Smart Ways To Keep Everyone Safe On Your First Family Vacation

Written by: Lucy Crenshaw

This year, more families are expected to go on vacation than ever before. According to a study, more than 40 percent of the American workforce will be working remotely in 2020, which means that parents will be taking advantage of their more flexible schedules by planning to go on more family adventures. If you’re traveling as a family for the first time this year, know that being organized is the key to a stress-free time with your loved ones. Also, to avoid any incidents, you’ll need to come up with a safety plan to keep everyone healthy and out of harm’s way while on your trip. Here are some smart ways to keep your family safe on your first vacation.

Keep track of your belongings

It’s easy to lose sight of your belongings, especially if you’re traveling with young children or are rushing through the airport. To avoid misplacing your bags, choose brightly-colored or patterned bags that will stand out among the sea of black or neutral colored luggage at the airport. You should also keep absolute must-haves, such as passports, plane tickets, medication, and the like in a quality bag such as an anti-theft and waterproof backpack, and an adult should be in charge of carrying it at all times. It’s also a good idea to have backup copies of important travel documents and have another adult carry the duplicates in their bag.

If you’re traveling with children with allergies, make sure to have auto injector pens and antihistamines in that bag so you can stop an allergic reaction in its tracks before it gets worse. Moreover, all family members that are of age should know how to administer epinephrine shots (epi-pen shots) in case of an emergency. Older children should be taught how to do this before you leave for your trip so they can safely administer shots in case you get separated from your kids during your holiday.

Have an emergency communication plan in place

It’s important that every family member should have a working, fully-charged smartphone so you can get in touch with each other if you get separated and you can meet up at a designated area. Also, you should plan on having several options for communicating so that if one doesn’t work, you can still reach one another on a different platform. Let’s say for some unexpected reason, your family chat on Skype doesn’t work. You’ll need to have a backup chat on other platforms, so create one on Facebook Messenger or other chat apps like Famy, and make sure to do a test run before leaving for your trip.

Designate your main family app and a backup app so that everyone will know which app to try first in case you get separated from one another. You should also be prepared in case there’s no Wi-Fi in your area. Having local SIM cards may be your best bet, so make sure that all family members with a smartphone has one during your trip. 

Choose safe accommodations

Couples who will be traveling with their children for the first time should prioritize safety when looking for accommodations. Hotels are usually safer than AirBnbs as they have security measures in place, but check the reviews first before booking your stay just to be on the safe side. Never stay in hotels that are situated in unsafe parts of the state or country that you’ll be visiting. You should also save vital telephone numbers in your phone, such as the contact info for the nearest embassy, hospital, and police station in case of an emergency.

Family vacations can be more enjoyable if you plan and prepare for anything that may come up during your trip. Try these tips to keep your family members safe, happy, and healthy, and you'll be sure to have a great time on your first vacation together.