Half-term holidays, winter and its snarly snowy weather all conspire to create LONGER wait times at the airport. Add in tired children and you have a headache that no amount of Paracetamol can shift. Keep your head clear and your spirits high with our handy tips that while away the hours.
First things first
Do your homework before you book your flights. If your flight is two hours long and your waiting time an hour you probably won’t need much by way of kiddie entertainment. If your flight is 16 hours and your expected airport time is three hours (or you’re expecting to have a long layover en route) then checking out what’s available for kids is key.
A few golden rules
Check out where the play areas are and if there are special attractions such as a butterfly garden (Singapore Airport) or a museum stuffed to the rafters with treasures (the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam Schiphol).
Set up “camp” close to baby-changing / feeding rooms and toilets. And sockets! To charge up devices before flights.
Stay there as long as you possibly can but have a rough idea about how long it will take to get to the gate. Unless you like the idea of a last-minute sprint…
Give each child their own hand luggage to carry or trundle through the airport. The Trunki cases are great because they’re half-toy, half-storage, brightly coloured (easy to spot in a crowd) and can be dragged (by your child or you), carried (by you) or ridden on (your child).
Now, with devices plugged in and charging, here are 19 cheap or free ways to entertain your children at the airport:
1. Make a cheap goodie bag for your kids
A few days before your flight, visit your local pound shop and buy a few small toys. Create little bags full of stickers, a couple of dice (good for maths lessons on the go too!), a slinky, Kinder egg or small bag of Haribo, some loom bands or a packet of Match Attax. The surprise alone will delight kids.
2. Hold the Airport Games
Find a space that’s quiet(ish) with not too many fellow passengers and then start barking orders at your kids. Introduce some competition and a reward for the winner. Twenty star jumps! Ten press ups! Time the kids sprinting.
3. Bingo!
Play travel bingo. Create some pages in advance with lots of options. A toddler having a sugar-induced meltdown. A grandmotherly type knitting. Lady applying pre-flight make up. Captain striding towards plane. Stag / hen party in full swing. Tearful goodbye and joyous reunion.
4. Simon Says!
Always a good one! Be inventive with the physical exercise tasks.
5. Window shopping
One for older children. Get them to browse the Duty Free shops for the best bargains. Write your wish list – some No. 5, the most expensive box of truffles, La Prairie moisturiser – and get them to price them.
6. Snaffle free colouring-in sheets
If you’re dining at the airport get as many free colouring sheets – and crayons – as you can. Take a few straws, sugar sachets, ketchup, napkins too. Anything that can be used for a Jenga-style game at the gate.
7. Count it up
Everything can be counted… Get your kids to log the number of pairs of Ugg boots they see. Pyjamas worn as trousers. Trunkis. Hello Kitty bags. Football shirts.
8. Donate your coat / hoodie / scarf
For a while and ask your kids to come up with 11 crazy ways to use it on the flight.
9. Use that empty plastic water bottle
Make a rattle (throw in some of the crayons from number 6). Create a bottle of “blood” with water and some ketchup sachets (also from number 6). This works best around Hallowe’en.
10. Cook
Or create some delicious topping for yogurt or ice-cream by taking that cereal bar you packed for the flight and getting your child to tread on it. Aim to have them create the consistency of sand on a Caribbean beach.
11. Do a little massage therapy
Essential oils can really calm kids down, getting them into the zone for long-haul flights. Lavender for sleeping, chamomile for soothing tantrums, orange for lifting spirits. Give them a hand or foot massage at the gate. Remember to stick to the 100ml rule for transporting liquids in hand luggage though.
13. Pretend to be a horse or donkey
And feed them snacks out of their hoodie. Turn it around so the hood is just under their face and pour in some popcorn. Remember to visit the bathroom to shake out the hoodie before you get on the plane, when you’ll be using that hoodie as a pillow.
14. Learn a language
Hold an impromptu language class. Learn Russian in Moscow, French at Paris CDG. Get them to learn the names for the toilets, gates, welcome / hello, exit.
15. Hold a scavenger hunt
No running wild of course, but a scavenger hunt through the airport is a great way to kill time. Hunt for twins, airport staff, pilots, anything you like!
16. Confirm some stereotypes
So you’re at Heathrow and you get the kids to take a picture of a red telephone box or the Underground sign. At Dublin, you’ll want a picture of a pint of Guinness, at JFK you really need a picture of … JFK.
17. Turn art connoisseur
Airports are wonderful for public art. And you can usually get closer to world-class art than you can at a museum.
18. Use those walkways
As long as your kids aren’t tumbling toddlers, get them to use up their excess energy by running races along the moving walkways.
19. Name the country
Check out the departure boards and try to name the countries where the destinations are located. Great for jogging your memory of geography or planning your next holiday destination!
(Feature image: Sharon Mollerus)
