Sound the Alarm

"I use an inexpensive, thumb-size USB flash drive to store medical and insurance contacts, confirmation codes, credit card numbers, addresses, and phone numbers. It fits in a secure zipped pocket in my travel purse (and I make sure it's either password protected or encrypted). If I don't have my laptop, I can insert the flash drive in most hotel or Internet café computers." —Linda Steven, Saint Paul, Minn. Get more family-friendly travel tips right on your mobile phone! Scan our QR code, here, and then check back each month as we add more tips.

"If you have an early flight, it's a smart idea to make sure your hotel-room safe is unlocked before going to sleep. Recently, the evening before departure we tried to open our room safe (which contained passports and other valuables), but it wouldn't budge-and the receptionist had no idea of the code to unlock it! If we had waited until the morning, we never would have made our flight." —Sandra DeGroot, Grand Haven, Mich. Get more family-friendly travel tips right on your mobile phone! Scan our QR code, here, and then check back each month as we add more tips.

"Before traveling with young kids, buy a present-something quiet-for each one. Then when you arrive at your hotel, sit the kids down and tell them you're giving them a "hotel gift." While they play with their new toys, you'll be able to unpack in peace. Plus they'll have a souvenir, so you won't have to purchase something you know they won't use." —Debbie Roche, Winterville, N.C. Get more family-friendly travel tips right on your mobile phone! Scan our QR code, here, and then check back each month as we add more tips.

"For quiet time when plane-bound, tuck one end of an airline blanket into the fold-up tray and the other under the headrest (behind the child). Voila: a "tent" that lets your toddler nap better on the plane. We put this together one night while stuck on a runway for almost six hours, and it saved the day. My son rarely naps anymore but still asks for an airplane tent, if only for playtime." —Roy Youngblood, Chicago, Ill. Get more family-friendly travel tips right on your mobile phone! Scan our QR code, here, and then check back each month as we add more tips.