Travel essentials - your tips please

[jennyh]

Going to santorini for a week with 18 month old and looking for top tips on what to take from a first aid/medicine/toiletries point of view. Best anti mosquito stuff for babies? Best bite or sting cream? I know we aren't going to the end of the earth but would like to pack for all eventualities!

Whilst i'm at it - anyone got general travel tips, what makes the flight easier, what meals to cook when we are there given our usual failsafes won't be at our fingertips.

All tips gratefully received, first trip abroad as you can tell!

[scareyt]

Sticker books, snacks they haven't seen before ( major tantrum on plane averted when lady behind us produced pot of dry kellogs shaped rice krispytype cereal), cheap toys they haven't seen before saved for landing.

[Norfolkvillas]

Calpol sachets for hand luggage (the bottles are more than 100ml). Sticker books for plane, but also mini post its in various colours work well. Travel black out blinds or a couple of black bin bags to minimise early waking....

[Fuschia]

I take

Nurofen

Calpol

An antihistamIne cream

Graze plasters

Waterproof plasters

Rehydration salts

[jennyh]

Thanks everyone, i did a big Boots run and will definitely think about the best toys to take given we don't really have much space in our luggage!

[StraferJack]

If i had to pick one thing only for a flight... Sticker books all day long

Second thing would be videos of bear in big blue house (Jim Henson thing). She goes nuts for that

Only on YouTube tho so save them down beforehand

[Moos]

There was a great post from "buggie" (senior paeds nurse) on this, perhaps last year - worth a search.

I also swear by teeny weeny crap but crucially NEW toys (stocking filler type) and kids' magazines for the journey. Do not run out of snacks, water, tissues, plastic bags, wipes or comedy Superhero plasters. Bring a couple of changes of clothes

[etta166]

Don't forget to take a new top (and possible also change of trousers) for you in your had luggage as well. You may well get something spilt on you, or wiped on you, or puked on...

[MisforMama]

For the journey I take twice the number of clothes I think I need because everything spills, leaks more than I anticipate and also put each nappy into a nappy disposal bag (not tied) because it's much easier not to take a whole changing bag to toilets. Plus I tape a nappy cream to a pack of nappy wipes. It would be a good idea to buy a bag size tube of Savlon and Sudocreme in Boots.

[MisforMama]

Twice the number of BABY clothes, not mine!