Trains, planes, a toddler and a newborn.

Why take children travelling?

Gaia Grant

We must be a peculiar sight. Mum, dad, and the children loaded with luggage and headed for obscure destinations, juggling tickets and passports in one hand with nappies and teddy in the other, hurtling down the airport concourse or along the train station in a desperate attempt to meet that next connection. We must look peculiar, because when people come across our family band of wanderers they will often don a horrified expression and ask, "Why would you want to travel with children?"

I am equally mystified by their response, and either think or ask out aloud, "Why wouldn't you want to travel with children???"

Okay, I admit, when you have your first precious little bundle carefully wrapped up and protected from the dangers of the world beyond, the thought of travelling is a little ominous. Is it wise or even parentally responsible for you to wrench your child away from the security of their home base, to expose them to unknown risks and dangers? Is it worth your sanity to attempt to battle the elements with a child in arms and/or in tow? Would you ever forgive yourself if anything ever happened to your child?

It was questions like this that made our first journey away from home a little daunting. But I was determined not to be another casualty, another statistic. Another one of those parents who vowed never to be tied down by children, changing tune the day the child is born - after recognising the incredible bond which draws you to your child and makes you want to protect the child above all else. As scared as I was about the possible consequences, I was equally determined to prove that it could be done.

We ventured out cautiously at first, dipping our toes in before taking the full plunge. But with each successful venture we were encouraged to stray just that little bit further from home. Our first child was camping out of our van and touring through the south of Australia for six weeks when she was six weeks old. Before she turned one, we planned a trip to the Pacific, but had to cancel at the last minute because of an ear infection. So she accompanied us by car to Tasmania and to the top of Cradle Mountain in a backpack instead. By two, she was backpacking across the Indian sub-continent and trekking in Nepal. Our second child was on his way to Indonesia as soon as the passport was rushed through - at three weeks of age.

"Families aren't meant to be portable," insisted my home-loving brother -in-law as we whisked in and out of the house between destinations, with a newborn and a three-year-old. "Families are meant to stay home".

Let's do a little work on that assumption. I agree, modern families today aren't designed to be portable. If you consider all the paraphernalia that comes with the "having a baby" package, you'd have a hard time finding a house big enough to accommodate baby and the essentials without trying to carry these around. On an across Australia with the semi trailer type holiday maybe, but on any other excursion definitely not. Even the convenient travel versions of the cot and stroller along with the toys, nappies, food (etc - ad infinitum) can easily constitute a trailer load. And that's on top of your own essentials - hair dryers, sports equipment, computer and so on.

But whether or not families are "meant" to stay home is another question altogether.

No, travelling with children is not always easy. Yes, it can sometimes be downright difficult. But these days I would carefully consider going anywhere without my children. They have become too much a part of the whole travel experience, and are usually the highlight of our travels.

How do we do it? By focusing on what to leave behind, rather than what to take. And by focusing on the aim of the exercise, on the incredible benefits of having your children accompany you as you explore the world beyond your own home - both to yourself and your children.

Let's get practical:

What not to take when travelling with children

• Leave behind your expectations that the experience will be difficult, that the kids will be bored, and that it will not be a pleasant time for you. Leave behind the expectation that this will be a holiday for you, in the sense that you will be able to enjoy quality, uninterrupted child-free time, and expect instead that you will be having quality bonding time as a family.

• Leave behind the state of the art toys that you may think the children will need if they get bored. For babies and young children, "toys" can be anything - from a bunch of keys or a toothbrush container to the full toiletries bag (how much fun it is to pack and unpack it, testing out the different items along the way!). Older children can be encouraged to be creative with a pen and paper, or a small ball may suffice. Often there will not be a need for toys at all, if the children are having wonderful learning and exploratory experiences in their new environments.

• Leave behind the full food supply for the whole trip (unless you're camping, of course). Babies actually have their own portable food supply provided in breast milk, and with older children the local fare can often be readily adapted to suit their needs. Even though people in some countries, such as India, have no concept of certain English phrases, such as "No Chilli please!", there are always other alternatives - fresh fruits and vegetables, yoghurt and nuts, in this case.

• Leave behind the "portable" baby items. You'll soon find they're not so portable after all, and that other options are available. A front pack for a small baby or backpack for a child up to four years old is much more practical than a stroller, for example. A makeshift bed can be fashioned easily in a wide variety of circumstances, so there's no need to take the travel cot.

Take instead:

• An appreciation of the value of being together and learning together as a family. A realisation of the incredible insight your children will gain as they experience different perspectives on life first hand.

• A flexible take-everything-as-it comes attitude. A sincere, "Isn't this a wonderful experience" smile. An expectation that nothing will run "smoothly", but that everything will be a wonderful learning experience for you all, and that you'll have lots of good stories to tell everyone afterwards!

• A creative approach to problem solving, which will allow you to improvise toys, food, nappy change tables, travel methods etc - on the spot.

Why take children? There are a hundred and one good reasons.

Children can form an amazing link with people in other places, and particularly in other cultures. Many people will be interested in your children, and in many countries families are warmly welcomed into local communities.

Children also have an interesting, pint-sized perspective on life, and their knee-high observations can be absolutely astounding. Children can learn from travel experiences and be enriched by them, particularly if they are constantly reminded of them through retelling interesting stories about the experience or reliving experiences through photos or video.

And - importantly - children can be inexpensive travel companions, especially when they are young. Travel expenses are considerably lower for children, and they can often participate in special activities or events for free.

Take your children with you as you travel - for better or for worse - and have the time of your life. As soon as I pack up this laptop and my husband gets his surfboards organised we'll be off again with ours. (Did I say anything about the parents having to leave their toys behind?!?)

Gaia Grant has travelled extensively with children while researching and writing her book, "The Rhythm of Life" (Transworld), which looks at childrearing practices in different cultures around the world. She and her family live between Bali and Sydney.