Winter Travel Tips For Families

Traveling during the winter is a lot like traveling during the summer — except for when it’s not. Snow delays, dark driving hours, and cold weather can all make it a little trickier than usual, but these tips are sure to help.

Pack blankets in the car. Since winter coats are a no-go with car seats, it’s nice to have a blanket to keep your kiddo warm, but also to scoop them up out of the car and run into a rest stop or bathroom without worrying about a coat.

Be sure to check the weather for your destination and along the way if you’re traveling by car. You can eliminate any surprises like a snowstorm making it hard to travel, and you can prep by checking on hotels in the area if you need to stop.

Have your car serviced before you travel! Especially in cold weather, tire pressure is super important, and you want to make sure your tire’s treads are up for any icy, wintry conditions.

It gets dark a lot earlier in the winter, so account for driving times if you’re hoping to make it somewhere with daylight. If you also aren’t a fan of driving at night, keep that in mind as you plan your trip, too.

If you must have a connecting flight, try to find airports in parts of the country where snow or a blizzard is less likely. Clearly, weather just happens, but if you can avoid a connecting flight in Chicago during a snowstorm, that would be best.

Keep boots, coats, mittens, and hats in the car with easy access. If your kids want to get out and stretch their legs but it’s raining or snowing, you’ll want to be able to keep them dry and cozy without opening a suitcase.

If you gate-check a stroller, invest in some bunting instead of bundling your baby up to put into a stroller without any added layers. That’ll keep you from having baby wear a bunch of extra clothes on the plane, and they’ll be snug once you leave.

Snacks, snacks, and more snacks. You may be less likely to stop when traveling in the winter because of the cold, getting in and out of the car, trying to beat bad weather, etc. Fill the car with snacks for the whole family.