The Most Common Mistake Parents Make While Flying With Kids, According To Flight Attendants

If you're about to take your child on their first flight, it's normal to feel nervous. You may have been going overboard trying to figure out the best tips and tricks for making traveling with your kids a more stress-free experience. You might have overstuffed your carry-on with snacks, coloring books, and your iPad full of downloaded movies and games. Those are all great ideas for keeping the fun going while you're in the sky, but according to flight attendants, it might be a mistake to share the activities you've planned for your kids at the beginning of the flight. 

There's only so long a kid can enjoy a handheld pinball machine or watch "Bluey" before they get bored. The truth is, for many kids, just being on a plane is engaging enough — at least for a little while. "Don't pull out all your tricks at once. Too many times I see parents pull out the snacks and have a movie playing while we're still boarding," flight attendant Keri Kulhman told Reader's Digest. "Flying for most kids is exciting. Let them just take it all in for a while." Once kids have been strapped into their seats for quite some time and start to get restless, only then is the perfect moment to break out the crackers and toys.

Between long airport security lines and flight delays, it's easy to get frustrated with the experience of flying. If you've logged a lot of hours in airport lounges and sitting on the tarmac, you may have forgotten how exciting it can be to fly for the first time. There are a lot of things you can do to make the experience more fun for kids, both in the days and weeks leading up to your trip and when you arrive at the airport. Hopefully, this will pay off by keeping your kids more engaged on the flight for longer, so you won't have to dip into your in-flight activities too soon.

Before you go, you may want to start preparing your children for the experience by letting them pack their own travel bag (or, if it's more age-appropriate, help you choose between some items). Reading books and watching movies together where people fly in an airplane is another good idea. Explaining every step of the process, from the time you leave your home to when you arrive at your destination, can set expectations and build excitement, too. When you get to the plane, consider asking a flight attendant if your child can visit the cockpit and meet the pilot before takeoff and make sure to board the plane at the right time when flying with kids.

If your flight is a long one, your little ones will probably get tired of looking out the window eventually. Fortunately, if you've utilized this flight attendant tip and held off on doling out your packed activities and snacks until they start to get restless, you should have some new and exciting things in your carry-on to share with them. The best things to bring depend on their age and preferences, but you may want to consider having a tablet and extending the amount of screen time they're allowed to have for the flight.

You can preload it with some of their favorite movies and games so they have something fun to focus on by themselves while you relax — just remember to bring headphones for them so the sound doesn't annoy your fellow passengers. It may help protect their ears from the sounds of the flight, too.

Another thing you may want to consider is activities you can do together. For example, books you can read to them or games you can play as a family. If you and your kids are crafty, some models they can build can be a great distraction. Paper and crayons can be perfect, too — just don't let them draw all over the seats and tray table when they start to lose interest! Believe it or not, it's happened before.