Source: WikipediaWhen traveling by train or bus with small children, safety is a crucial factor.

In the station lobby, keep children close by. Places like crowded airports and bustling train stations are very popular hangouts for purse snatchers and pickpockets, and an unsupervised child might be a very tempting target.

Don’t let your luggage out of sight, either. With a family-sized pile of baggage, one small piece might not be missed until the family is a hundred miles from the station. Put your ID on all of your luggage. While you’re at it, make sure every child is also carrying ID, including name, address, itinerary, phone numbers, and if possible, the contact information for the person the child is going to see at their destination. That way, even in the unlikely event you and your children are separated, they should be able to contact either you or someone at the destination.

Supervision of children is also critical when boarding or leaving the vehicle. Bus and train stations are very active places, with vehicles moving in all directions, and a child could very easily step into danger while the parents are wrestling with a stroller or heavy bag.

Bus or train rides that last longer than a few minutes will require moving around, even if only for restroom breaks. Since the vehicle will be moving, children may need help to keep their balance and footing while working their way to and from the restroom.

Place children in window seats on buses whenever possible. Not only will this give them something to look at during the trip, it will also make it more difficult for them to wander away down the aisle if mommy or daddy falls asleep because they would have to crawl over or under the adult.

Trains and subways can be very crowded at times and small children can get lost in the commotion. Be sure to keep the children close when the ride becomes “standing room only.”

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Sometimes the kids have to fly alone. Maybe because it’s too expensive for the parents to fly a round trip to drop off the kids with grandma, or maybe there’s an emergency where the parents have to put the child on the plane by themselves. Regardless, there are times when the kids have to fly by themselves.

Fortunately, the airlines recognize that this situation happens, and they do try to assist the parents as best they can. Most airlines will assign a flight attendant to the child, and that person will make sure the child is comfortable on the flight, makes his connection to the next flight, and will hand the child off to the responsible adult at his destination.

If you need to send the child on his way, think ahead. Don’t saddle the kid with carry on baggage that weighs as much as he does. Try to pack light, with perhaps just a backpack containing a change of clothes and some favorite books and toys. Don’t forget medications and contact information, either. The child shouldn’t have to remember the name, address, and phone number of the relative he’s going to visit; he should be able to just hand over a sheet of paper with all of that information.

Think about security, too. You might want to establish a code word, a secret password that only the relative on the far end will know. Besides the obvious-”yes, this is the right grown-up”-the code word will also help to comfort the child, as a link to his parents (”My parents really did talk to them and give them the secret word, that means they know where I am and everything is going to be okay.”).

Most of all, reassure the child that they will make it to their destination safe and sound, and return home when the trip is done.

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Are you preparing to take a flight this year?

If so, could you name off all of the air travel rules, including the ones that were recently implemented? You may think that you could, but many travelers actually can’t. This is because many are aware of all of the items that are prohibited from being on airplanes. Unfortunately, being unfamiliar with all of air travel rules can spell trouble. Not only can you miss your flight, but you can also be banned from the airline altogether, or you could be arrested. To prevent this from happening, you are advised to learn all of the air travel rules, before you leave for your flight.

Learning the new air travel rules, seems easy enough doesn’t it?

Unfortunately, it isn’t always as easy as it seems. There is a reason why so many travelers are unaware of these rules; many of them do not know how to go about learning them. Luckily you for, if you are interested in familiarizing yourself with the many air travel rules, before you leave for your flight, you have a number of different options.

Perhaps, the best way that you can learn all of the air travel rules is by contacting your airline directly. This contact can either be over the phone or online. For instance, if you are planning on flying with Delta Airlines, you will either want to contact a Delta representative or visit their online website. Most airline representatives would be more than willing to assist you and most airline websites are filled with valuable information, including information on items that are prohibited aboard a plane and other applicable rules.

In addition to contacting the airline directly, you may also want to contact the airport in which you will be leaving from. As with airlines, most airport representatives would be more than willing to assist you with any questions that you have, including questions that pertain to air travel rules, restrictions, and violations. There is also a chance that you can find what you are looking for by visiting the airport’s online website. If you are flying out of an airport for the first time, there is a good chance that you may be looking for information on parking or additional fees. If so, that would be the perfect time the search the website for information on airport or air travel rules.

If you are unable to make contact with the airport in which you will be flying out of or the airline that you will be flying on, you can also use the internet to research and familiarize yourself with air travel rules. Perhaps, the internet is one of the best ways to stay up-to-date on the newer air travel rules, ones that were implemented within recent months. Information on these rules will commonly come up in online news reports. When searching for new airport or airplane rules with the news, you are advised to keep the news report’s date in mind. This may help to prevent you from relying on outdated information.

In conjunction with searching news reports for up-to-date information on air travel rules and safety, you may also want to perform a standard internet search. By searching with the words air travel rules, you should be provided with a number of different results. Those results will likely include online websites that outline the rules and restrictions commonly found in airports and aboard airplanes. You will want to make sure that the website, which you are getting your information from, is accurate. One trusted website that you may want to get your information from is www.tsa.gov. That is the website for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). You will want to be careful obtaining your information from anywhere else.

As previously mentioned, there are a number of different ways that you can go about familiarizing yourself with common air travel rules. When doing so, it is important to remember that different airports and different airlines tend to have different guidelines, rules, and restrictions. Therefore, it may be best if you obtain your information directly from them.

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About the Holland

The summers are cool here but the winters are severe with some chances of snowfall. Rainfall can be expected in any month of the year. Dutch is the official language here. English, French and German are the other languages that are spoken, out of which English is widely spoken. Incase of emergency call 112.

Holland’s Culture

Handshake is the commonly practiced form of greeting. Although tipping is not mandatory, but it’s better to pay rounds figure in restaurants and taxis. A humble gift should be taken to the host’s house always when invited for a meal. Informal clothes are worn on a daily basis, but people are expected to turn up in formals at social functions and smart restaurants.

Shopping in Holland

Pottery of Delft, Makkum and Workum is a must buy. Silverware from Schoonhoven, crystals from Leerdam and diamonds from Amsterdam are highly recommended.

Site Seeing in Holland

Apenheul Primate Park is a place to visit which is a home to more than thirty species of mammals. It remains closed during the winter. De Hoge Veluwe is the oldest and largest park of Holland. Bicycles can be used to explore the 5,500 hectares of the park. Paleis Het Loo is a magnificent Palace surrounded by gardens and remains open year round except on public holidays.

Electricity in Holland

230 V and 50 Hz

Travel

The national airline that operates in Holland is KLM-Royal Dutch Airlines. It connects to almost all the major cities of Europe, North America and Asia. Amsterdam Airport is the hub for many international and local flights. It is located at 15 km away from the city and it takes 20 minutes to reach there by train. The Airline, KLM, provides bus service every 15-30 minutes which takes passengers to some of the famous hotels of the city. Public buses can be availed too, to reach destination. Trains connect to Amsterdam’s Central Station and Zuid Station. Taxis take tourists to almost any location. The Airport features duty free shops, banks, showers, business center, baby rooms, and car hire.

Rotterdam airport and Eindhoven airport are 8km away from the city. Trains and buses operate every 15 minutes to transport passengers to their hotels. Facilities such as duty free shops, eateries, car rental, and internet can be availed at these airports. No departure tax is implemented on passengers at any of these airports.

The main sea ports are Hook of Holland, Vlissingen and Rotteradm. Stena Line, P&O ferries and DFDS seaways provide ferry service to get to Holland.

If traveling by railway, Eurostar provides the best service and connects to all the major cities of Europe. It provides high grade services. Good offers are provided on regular basis and to utilize them they should be monitored from time to time. Unused tickets are easily refunded. The Inter-Rail pass can be bought to avail the unlimited second class train travel within 29 European countries.

Top class road network connects Holland to majority of cities in Europe. They are well maintained and signs are posted every where for safe driving. 120kph is the speed limit while driving on highways. Many car dealing agents exist if opting for car-rental. Some of them are Avis, Europcar and Budget.

Cycling is also a major means of transportation in Holland and is part and parcel of daily life. Tourists can hire cycles from the airport or other service providers with some money-deposit.

Duty Free Items

1. 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 100 cigarillos or 250g of tobacco
2. 50g of perfume and 250ml of eau de toilette
3. 1liter of liquor or 2liter of sparkling wine or liquor wines and 2liter of non-sparkling wine
4. 100g of tea or 40g of tea extract
5. 500g of coffee or 200g of coffee extract

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When our son was about 11 we took booked a week at Disneyland and stayed on site. It was an awesome experience but there are a few things that we would never do again.

Disneyland is a very popular destination for families, and there are an incredible number of things to see and do at the park.

For many young children, the highlight of the trip is the chance to shake hands and pose for pictures with a favorite character, like Mickey Mouse.

Some of the first things that come to mind in Disneyland are the rides. Disney rides range from extremely tame, like the Bug’s Life play area in California Adventures, to the unusual, like “Honey I Shrunk the Audience,” to the really fast, like the Matterhorn Bobsled and Space Mountain.

Many of the rides have height limitations, which means one adult may be left at the end of the line with the smallest child while the other adult takes the older children onto the ride. Fortunately, the park has a policy that keeps it fair: when one adult is forced to wait for the other, the ride staff will give them a free pass that allows the second parent to go to the front of the line.

Start the day by arriving as soon as the park opens. Then, before the crowds arrive, hit the most popular rides, like the Indiana Jones Adventure and Star Tours. In the afternoon, when the lines get long, abandon the rides for a little while, and hit the stage and theater shows, like Honey I Shrunk the Kids, the Enchanted Tiki Room, and the Country Bear Jamboree. When evening arrives, be sure to catch Fantasmic, a spectacular show that takes place on the lagoon.

After Fantasmic, and the evening fireworks, the crowds will start to thin. If the youngsters are up to it, this is the perfect time to go hit the rest of the popular rides, like Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion. In fact, after midnight, it’s often possible to dash from ride to ride to ride with no lines at all, before the staff begins shutting everything down at one AM.

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