by Isabelle Esteves

Created on: April 23, 2008   Last Updated: December 05, 2008

As the mother of three and grandmother of eight I have done my share of traveling with children. It is a challenge but with some good planning it is very do-able. Unless you are going to give up traveling for 20 years it makes sense to start early with your children or grandchildren and instill in them a love of travel.

Begin with these simple suggestions:

1. Try to make sure that they get a good nights sleep. There is nothing worse than a tired child.

2. Feed the troops. An army and children travel on their stomach, if there is anything worse than a tired child it is a hungry child. Not only have a good breakfast but carry along some snacks and drinks.

3. Depending on how far you have to travel in the car make sure that you bring along a bag of tricks. Books, coloring supplies, small travel games. Yes, you guessed it, a bored child is not a pretty sight either.

4. Keep the day short if you have young children. One major mistake parents make is trying to do too much with small children. Pick one major thing and then have a break.

5. Pick a hotel that has a pool. There is no better de-stresser with kids than a good romp in the hotel pool.

Here are a few of our favorite places to visit. Getting around to them is fun and in expensive if you use Phlash the big purple buses.

PHILADELPHIA ZOO
One of our favorite places to visit is the zoo. It is one of the premier zoos in the United States and has a petting zoo for the little ones and also a wonderful collection of snakes and poison toads for the older crowd. Lots of space for running and no one has to be quiet at the zoo. The zoo has its own parking and they offer family friendly day tickets as well.If you live nearby their family membership is well worth the investment.

PLAYGROUNDS
Franklin Square at 6th and Race. This is a playground where kids can just enjoy themselves. There are plenty of playgrounds in Philadelphia. Plan your trip so that you can take some time and relax with the kids. http://gocitykids.parentsconnect.com/browse/subcat.j sp?area=190&category=33

PLEASE TOUCH ME MUSEUM
This is a great place to take the smaller children. It is nice to have a place where touching things is encouraged. This museum is all about letting kids be kids and parents are just along for the ride.

THE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE
This is a real kid pleaser. There is an IMAX theater, a huge heart that kids can climb through, lot of things that they can do and touch without getting in trouble and a planetarium. Little children may not like the dark

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