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Planning a trip overseas can be time-consuming. First, decide where you would like to visit. Next, preparing to go on the trip including obtaining passports, visas and any other requirements (maybe vaccines) can take a lot of time. Add into the mix a family and you have a even more stressful situation. However, the more time you allow in advance to the trip, the easier all of the requirements can be satisfied.
Travel Documents
Use your city’s official website to find out where you can apply for passports or visas. Make sure you follow all application directions perfectly. Remember: all children must be present when applying for passports as photos need to be taken and information needs to be verified (age, height, eye color, etc).
Packing
Before beginning to pack, it’s important to have a family discussion about the trip overseas with your family, what to expect, any rules you have for the children when you’re there and what they need to do to help you. Create a game out of packing. Ask your children to bring a specific number of clothing items to you. For example, 5 tees, 5 pairs of pants, 3 pairs of shoes, etc. This is a great learning experience to see if they can follow directions and also gives them some freedom. You, of course, will verify they have the right amount of items and they are appropriate before packing, but this makes them feel important and a part of the entire process. These little things can help make preparing for a trip overseas less daunting and more fun, as it shoud be.
