I found flying with a baby easy. She had her own bed attached to the bulk head, right in front of me, and I was able to feed her when we were taking off and landing. The sucking action stopped her ears from popping.

Travel with a Toddler

We flew from London to Los Angeles to attend a Health Food Expo on the day my daughter learned to walk. We had to wait at the airport for hours, so she was an expert by the time we arrived and she insisted on pushing the trolley with all our luggage (even though she couldn't see over the top). If she had been crawling it would have been much harder to keep her entertained and her clothes and hands would have got very dirty, which is normally fine, but not great on a long flight.

When we went sightseeing in Australia the next year we took her tricycle with us. Otherwise she would have insisted on walking (slowly and with many stops). At least with a bike she managed a moderately slow walking pace and I could push her along if she got tired. She also loved cycling so she never got bored.

An Indian friend encouraged me to visit, saying, "Being immersed in all the bustle, the sights, the sounds and the smells of India, even for a day, is more meaningful than watching a well researched documentary."

I agree. Nothing can compare with first hand experience. Poppy still has vivid memories of India, but she doesn't remember any educational TV programmes she watched when she was eight.

My friend in India worked in a hospital and she assured me that there were never any incidents of malaria in the area we were visiting at that time of year (November). So we didn't take malaria tablets. We took homoeopathic remedies with us for every illness we could imagine getting and acidophilis tablets to help cope with the bacteria. We also used antibacterial wipes before we ate and didn't eat at roadside stalls. We were there for 3 weeks and didn't get ill.

Flying to Lapland to see Father Christmas was exhausting but amazing. The whole flight was full of families going on the same trip so it was one long party. We sang Christmas songs on the plane and we flew over forests and villages looking like a winter wonderland. When we arrived there was deep snow sparkling in the sun. We were given snowsuits to wear so we all looked equally silly and no one got cold.

Tobogganing, husky rides, and snow ball fights kept us busy until it was getting dark (about 2 pm in the arctic circle) then we followed a trail of candles through the forest to find the real Father Christmas. It was magical.

The smaller festivals tend to be more child-friendly. We went to Glastonbury one year and survived the mud, but arriving by bicycle was a mistake. On the way in, it was great. We could wheel the bikes across the fields loaded up with camping gear rather than carrying it all. But to get out again the wheels were so clogged up with mud, they wouldn't turn.

If we go to Glastonbury Festival again, we'll definitely take an extra small tent with a portable toilet in it rather than use the toilets on site.

On Poppy's 5th birthday we were in Hawaii and we had the opportunity to swim with dolphins out at sea. This involved being on a boat all day and most of the group who had gone out the day before got seasick.

A doctor on the trip told us that as long as the parents don't get seasick the children are ok, unless their parents are in any way anxious. Luckily neither of us gets sick on boats, so we went and when other people were getting sick we kept her close to us, stayed calm and played games. It worked.

Since then we have also been swimming with dolphins in captivity, which seems cruel, but it does encourage children to care about animals. We were assured that the dolphin we swam with in this photo was rescued as a baby when it's mother died in a fishing net. After hand raising him, the dolphin trainers tried to return him to the ocean but he played with the fish rather than eating them, so they had to keep him.

As well as swimming with dolphins, Poppy also learned about the issues affecting them and when she was 11 she set up a club to raise money to buy stretchers and equipment for stranded dolphins.

If your children belong to an International organisation, such as, Brownies, Guides or Scouts, you can make contact with local groups in the country you are visiting. We were given an official letter of introduction and phone numbers of people to contact. We took some candle decorating supplies from Europe so that we could share crafts from our culture and we were invited into schools where we were treated like royalty.