21 absolutely essential family travel hacks

1. Smart cookie 

Ever spent hours hunting down an amazing holiday bargain, only to watch the price jump the moment you’re ready to book. No coincidence. Some sites track repeat visits through cookies and quietly nudge prices higher when they sense interest.

Go stealth. Do your searching in an incognito browser so your clicks aren’t logged and your curiosity doesn’t cost you cash. Clear cookies between searches, compare prices on different devices and, if possible, book straight away once you spot a genuine deal. It’s a small move that can save serious money, especially when you’re booking for a whole family.

2. Economies of scale

3. Bag a bargain

Subscribing to local online discount sites at your destination is a sneaky little hack that pays off big. You get access to cheap dining deals, reduced entry fees for museums, theme parks, zoos and other attractions, and sometimes even special offers for experiences that aren’t widely advertised. It’s a way to stretch your holiday budget further while still enjoying everything on offer, and often these deals are digital-only, so you don’t even have to hunt around in person. With a few clicks before you leave, you can set yourself up for a trip that feels luxurious without the luxury price tag.

4. Snapshot

Snap a photo of every family member’s passport, visa and any other essential ID before you leave on a trip. Then email the photos to yourself and forward that email to someone not travelling with you. Having your documents stored in multiple places gives peace of mind – you’ll be able to access them even if your phone is lost, stolen, or runs out of battery. For extra security, consider backing them up to a cloud service or a password-protected app. It’s a small step that can save a huge amount of stress if anything goes wrong while you’re away.

6. Don’t put it off 

6. How we roll

7. Shoe biz

We carefully pack our shoes in the little shower caps we find in hotel bathrooms. Not because we’re kinky fetishists, but because it keeps dirty soles from leaving their detritus all over our clothes. It’s a simple, cheap trick that saves a lot of scrubbing later and keeps your luggage smelling fresh.

Bonus: it’s also handy for separating wet or muddy shoes after a rainy day out or a beach excursion, so everything else stays clean and dry., It’s one of those tiny hacks that feels absurdly clever until you realise how often it actually comes in handy.

8. In Case

9. Ease the ooze

Nothing puts the poo in shampoo quite like opening your bag to find it’s leaked all over your clothes and toiletries. To avoid the ooze, unscrew the lid, place a small piece of plastic wrap over the opening, then screw the cap back on. It creates a tight seal that stops spills even when your bag gets jostled around airports or shoved under beds. You can do the same for conditioner, sunscreen, and any other liquid bottles…. basically anything that could turn your suitcase into a sticky, smelly mess. Trust me, a few seconds of prep saves hours of panic and laundry later.

10. Carrying-On

Always pack a spare set of clothes for the kids, along with nappies, wipes and snacks for tots, in your carry-on. You never know when checked baggage will decide to take its own holiday, and having these essentials on hand can save a meltdown or two. If you;re travelling with tots, add a small blanket or favourite toy too…. it keeps little ones comfortable and entertained if flights are delayed or baggage is delayed.

A well-prepared carry-on is basically your emergency survival kit, letting you handle messes, spills or boredom without stress and keeping the holiday mood intact from take-off to touchdown.

11. Layer over layer

Dress your kids in as many layers as is comfortable when flying because cabin temperatures can swing from Arctic cold to sauna-hot at the drop of a hat. Layers let you strip or add clothes without a full wardrobe change mid-flight. Plus, let’s be real, kids are almost guaranteed to spill something something gross and unidentifiable from their uneaten in-flight meal all over themselves.

Layers give you a buffer, keeping them warmer, drier and slightly less frantic as you deal with the chaos. Plus a spare jumper can even be used as a makeshift blanket if the airline doesn’t offer one.

12. Cling on

Speaking of spills, keep a little cling wrap in your bag and use it to cover your kids’ drink cups in flight. Push a straw through the wrap and you’ve got an instant, spill-free sippy cup. It keeps sticky juice or water from gushing all over seats, laps and tray tables, and makes mid-flight clean-ups way less stressful. Bonus points if you pre-cut a few pieces before you leave home, so you can just grab and go. It’s a simple trick that saves endless wiping, soggy clothes, and the inevitable panicked cries when a cup tips over at 35,000 feet.

13. Zipadee do da

Zip-lock bags are solid holiday gold! Pack a stack in different sizes, then pack some more. Not only can they assist in keeping your phone and camera sand- and splash-free at the beach or by the pool and make useful storage for all those little odds and ends collected along the way, but also you can use them to store the snacks you steal from the breakfast buffet.

14. Charge  

Load up your tablet or smart device with a stash of new movies, apps and games for the kids, then actually charge the things before you leave…. or watch everything descend into chaos the moment the plane doors close. Not that we’d ever forget… well, maybe just the once.

Don’t rely on airport outlets or borrowed plugs either. Pack a spare charger or power bank so you’re not scrambling mid-flight. A little prep keeps everyone calmer, gives the kids something to focus on other than climbing the seats, and stops you from inventing new swear words before take-off.

15. Power up

There’s nothing worse than running out of power when you actually need it. Instead of juggling a dozen adapters for all your devices, just pack a power board (unlessyou;re cruising as tehy are not allowed). One plug keeps everything charged…. phones, tablets, cameras, chargers, so you’re never left playing musical outlets in a hotel room or airport lounge. It’s a tiny thing that saves heaps of stress/

16. Phone it in

If you forget your phone charger and the thought of being without mobile access makes you twitch, don’t panic. Most hotel TVs have a USB port tucked away at the back, which can double as an emergency charger. It won’t be the fastest charge in the world, but it’ll keep your phone alive long enough to check maps, make calls or scroll through a little social media before you hunt down a proper charger/

17. Netflix on the move

My TV-addicted, serial-bingeing kids love catching up on their favourite shows while on the road. Luckily, you can download select movies and series directly from Netflix for offline playback at no extra cost. That means they can happily binge on long flights, train trips, or car journeys without gobbling through your data or relying on spotty Wi-Fi. Pack a pair of headphones, load up a few surprises they haven’t seen yet, and suddenly travel feels a lot calmer. It’s a simple way to keep them entertained, give yourself a breather, and maybe even enjoy a little peace while they’re glued to the screen.

18. Road rave

Hitting the road and already dreading the inevitable “are we there yet?” Be sure to load up the iPod or tablet with the family’s favourite tunes, audiobooks or podcasts, so everyone has something to zone out to. Take it up a notch by mounting a suction shower caddy to the kids’ car window and filling it with toys, games, colouring books,and snacks. Suddenly, the backseat becomes party central, and boredom has nowhere to hide. Little touches like travel-sized puzzles, sticker books or a few new surprises keep the mood upbeat and the journey feeling shorter. You can find more of our road trip tips here.

19 Access all areas

You won’t always have Wi-Fi when you’re travelling, but you can save a screenshot of the directions you need from Google Maps for offline use. That way, you’ll never get lost, or at least, you won’t get lost while relying on your phone instead of asking strangers for help. Of course, this won’t help if you’re like me and can’t read a map to save your life, but its a better  option than wandering in circles wondering why the GPS isn’t updating. Pair it with a tiny paper map just in case, and you’ve got a fail-safe system that keeps you on track without constant internet access.

20. Tattoo you

While my kids are old enough to have memorised numbers and don’t leave home without their own phones, it’s a different story for younger kids. Make sure kids have your mobile phone number and hotel information in case you become separated. The best way to ensure they don’t lose this info is to mark it on them. Actual tattoos are a tad excessive, but writing it somewhere discreetly on their bodies in permanent marker at the start of each day works a treat.

21. Unreal appeal

Gifs from Giphy

An award-winning travel writer and photographer, Aleney de Winter was fresh from school when she first set off to explore the far reaches of Australia with a two-man tent and a beaten-up Kingswood for company. Three decades, and two kids later, and she's still on the go, with her itchy-footed offspring in tow.