4 PANDEMIC TIPS IF YOU FLY WITH KIDS

As some states and countries ease their coronavirus restrictions, parents have cautiously begun booking trips. But traveling with kids, especially on planes and through airports, was stressful and germ-y even before the pandemic hit. How can you do it safely now?

Traveling by car is a safer alternative to flying — especially if family members are at high risk for the coronavirus.

However, flights might be unavoidable for some families. In that case, many of the same precautions we’ve taken in the past few months still apply: Stay home if you’re sick, wear a mask, try to keep a distance from others and keep your hands as clean as possible. If possible, get tested before and after the trip.

Tips on keeping kids safe while traveling:

1. Pack smartly.

Limit carry-ons to just the essentials: no blankets, pillows or stuffed animals that might get dirty. And bring extras of everything, including masks and hand sanitizer.

Chelsea Jackson and her family moved to Seattle in June from the Marshall Islands.

Their 8-year-old and 18-monthold daughters had traveled before, but this was different. No more trips up and down the aisles, and no more snacks from flight attendants.

“We stayed in our seats. I was pretty careful to pack as many activities as possible ,” Jackson said. The girls played with coloring books and stickers and got more screen time than normal.

Both flights had extremely limited meal service, and many restaurants in the airports were closed, so Jackson recommends packing plenty of food and water, including plastic utensils.“We just had to rely on what we brought,”she said.

2. Get the right face coverings.

Children who are too young for masks can also wear face shields, said Qingyan Chen, an engineering professor at Purdue University who researches airplane air quality. A face shield is “not as good as a mask, but it’s better than nothing,” he said.

The air coming into the airplane cabin is highly filtered, Chen said. The problem is the air already circulating in the cabin — the exhalations (and coughs) of other travelers. That air hangs around on planes for three to four minutes, he said, before running through a filter.

3. Stick together.

It’s safest to keep the whole family together rather than in different rows, Chen said. The highest risk is a seat right next to someone who is contagious. Within a row, the farther kids are from other people, the better protected they are. Keep in mind, though, there’s also a risk from people around you.

4. Let children know what to expect.

A night or week away from home might help kids cope with the stress of the pandemic — depending on the child’s personality.

If your child has been struggling to deal with isolation over the past few months, a change of scenery could help them get out of their funk. But if your child has been anxious or afraid of getting sick, the trip could add to their anxiety — and that would be no fun for anyone, said Clarissa Simon, a health scientist at the Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.“The relaxation you’re expecting and hoping for as a parent may not quite materialize, and you may experience actually an increased level of stress.”

Having conversations with your kids about what to expect and how this trip will be different from previous travel is also important, so they’re not surprised or overwhelmed, she said.