10 Tips for Picking the Perfect Lodging when Traveling with Kids

The Sensible Traveler is almost scared to share these tips because we’re shocked at how many parent travelers don’t focus on the right attributes when booking travel with kids. It’s not rocket science! Typically most parents give up on traveling with young children because kids prohibit parents from having the ideal vacation that they would want. It’s not uncommon to hear “traveling with kids is too much work”? Perhaps the Sensible Traveler is way off here but I find keeping kids at home is also work! Traveling with kids is work because there’s some added complexity to managing kids when they are sleeping in new places in new time zones, eating new foods and having experiences outside of their normal routines but is it really that much more work than what raising kids already is? Plus, don’t we want to teach our kids how to be resilient? Shouldn’t we be exposing them to more than just their normal routines every day because we all know that adulthood is far from consistent and ever-changing!

Ok, I’ll get off my soapbox and give you the reason why you’re reading this. Here are 10 things to consider when traveling and booking lodging with kids.

Top 10 Things to Consider When Booking Lodging with Kids:

1. Spend more money on your lodging, it’s worth it with kids
   • Sensible Traveler has stayed in their fair share of hostels but once I had kids a begrudgingly started spending more money on accomodations when traveling with them. Why? Because you’re inevitably going to be spending more time in your hotel than you would have without kids. Kids need naps, go to bed earlier and just take more time of your life where your not really accomplishing much more than helping them grow into upstanding citizens (which is very important!). Therefore, you’ll see that the rest of the items on this list will likely allude to spending more money on your accommodations when traveling with kids but it’s worth it if you want to maximize your travel in a sensible way.
2. Cleanliness Rating of hotel/airbnb
   • When booking any lodging the lodging’s cleanliness rating should be at the top of your considerations. Booking.com does a wonderful job of giving great insights into a hotel’s cleanliness via its rating and customer reviews.
3. If you can afford it, book a space with multiple rooms
   • Traveling with kids is hard but fortunately they still often go to bed before adults. This is valuable time that you’d rather not spend sitting in silence scrolling our phone reading Sensible Traveler articles in the dark under your bedsheets in order to not wake the kids. If you can, look for hotel units and/or Airbnb’s with multiple rooms. This allows you to maximize your vacation time.
4. Overall Recommended User Ratings
   • While the “Cleanliness Rating” is the most important score when booking any hotel accommodation, overall user recommended scores are extremely helpful and the most efficient way to identify quality lodging options. Very rarely does the Sensible Traveler book an accommodation rating with a score of less than 8/10 on Booking.com or a 4/5 rating on Airbnb. Don’t waste your time looking at options with worse scores unless you have unique circumstances.
5. Location Location Location
   • Similar to purchasing real estate, it’s often worth spending a extra money to ensure your lodging is in a good location. When traveling with kids this often means booking a place that will be closer to the attractions you intend to visit because being closer allows for flexibility around nap time and the potential to easily pivot if someone is having a meltdown (we’re not talking about husbands complaining about how far they’ve had to walk in a single day).
6. View, Hot tub or fireplace
   • If possible, always aim to ensure you hotel/lodging has a view, a hot tub and/or view that you can access while the kids are sleeping. This obviously adds cost to your trip but it really makes that downtime at the hotel far more special than if you just sit there quietly watching TV with subtitle. Nothing better than watching a sunset over some mountains or a large body of water while your child snoozes nearby. Bonus points if you can get fire, hot tub and view all at once! See pic at bottom of article for example.
7. Consider Whether Your Destination is Good for Kids
   • Some places really care about families and invest heavily in ensuring their cultures prioritize and care for kids. Be sure to prioritize destinations that are kid friendly, including a visit to the Country That Treats Traveling Families the Best.
8. Parking
   • When you travel with kids you’ll likely have more junk to take with you. Consider what the parking situation will be where you’re staying, whether or not you have to pay for it and that it will be adequate for the type of car you’ll be bringing along. You don’t want to end up like the Sensible Traveler in Scotland scraping your car along the side of a parking garage but if you do make sure you have Credit Card Rental Car Insurance because it really works!
9. More people the better
   • Like shopping at Costco, the more families you have lodging together the nice accommodations you’ll be able to afford. Obviously you have to get along with your travel companions but if you can split the costs of a an Airbnb across 3 families instead of one family, you’re likely to get a much more unique space for a lower cost since cleaning fees are generally a set cost for the unit and not the amount of people. Plus multiple bedrooms houses are more likely to have better amenities and space for the kids to spread out and entertain themselves while they leave you alone to enjoy your vacation.
10. Kitchen Space
    • Even if you can’t get a place with multiple rooms, try and get a space with a sink, fridge and microwave. This makes bottle washing so much easier, allows you to save costs by saving snacks/storage and keeps your beverages cold for you to indulge in when the kids go to bed.