If you are planning to holiday in Asia with your young family, here are some tips and make your Asian holiday that much more enjoyable.
Be it relaxing in heavenly Bali villas, or hiking in Kuta Kinabalu, or enjoying Disney World in Tokyo, Asia offers a huge variety of holiday destinations for those children.
However, as rewarding as it is, traveling with the younger ones in Asia is not always
Here are some insights gained traveling across Asia with children in tow, over the past 10 years.
Getting Back
It is more than likely that you will be taking a commercial flight to Asia.
Here is the first word of caution. As far as traveling with the young ones is concerned, not all airlines are created equal. No, I don't mean the level of service you can expect, as this seems to be of quite a high level whichever Asian based major airline you choose. In our experience, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Zealand, and Emirates all offer great service when you are traveling with kids.
However, the big difference much different carriers choose to charge for the younger ones. Some carriers, for example, charge 10 percent of an adult fare, for infants, traveling on your lap, without a seat. At first, this may sound like a fair deal. However, if you consider the fact that this 10 percent is calculated as of a -Full Published Adult Fare- price, you may find that you are paying as much infant's air fare, as you are for your own discounted fare! The good news is, not this pricing policy, and if you shop around, you can save yourself hundreds of dollars even before you leave home!
Also, do keep in mind, that many airlines will offer special -Child Meals-. Some, such as Singapore Airlines, do also offer different menus for different age groups.
Similarly, for toddlers and older kids, it is what is on offer in terms of flight entertainment. Some airlines will have dedicated children's cartoon channels, with a large selection of entertainment options, whilst others may not. If you are traveling long-haul, this alone huge difference to how well your Asian holiday kicks off.
Transportation on the Ground
The quality and safety varies immensely from one Asian Country to the other. However, as a general rule of thumb, taxis to provide child safety seats, and in many parts of Asia, even rental cars may child safety seat option.
The good news is, across most of Asia, metered taxis are plentiful, and with working seat belts. When you are in Singapore, you can expect (or even demand); fully belts both at the front and back passenger seats. In other parts of the region, you that seat belts have been removed, on purpose, because ‘they get in the way'.
So, if you that you would like child safety seats whilst holidaying in Asia, you may consider bringing your own, or picking one up, when you land at your destination.
Probably with the exception of Japan, Korea and Taiwan, train services are of a variable quality, and unless you are going for gold, and staying on the Palace on Wheels in India, or a special First Class trip between Beijing and Shanghai, you may well, and take all your essentials on board with you.
Food Matters
Whilst most westerners find Asian food Asian, or South East Asian food), quite spicy, this is not necessarily an issue when traveling younger ones. Most hotels and restaurants will prepare food for the little ones separately, without the if in doubt, plain noodles, or plain rice with some vegetables on the side is always a good stop gap ration. Depending on how off the beaten track you decide to travel, than likely to find, old favourites such as fish-fingers, chicken nuggets, and hamburgers in most parts
One word of caution on the food front is the liberal use of MSG (Mono Sodium Glutamate) in Asian cooking. This food additive is also used in the west (mostly packaged crisps/chips), and in principle is than many of the E numbers we may consume daily. However, in many Asian countries MSG very liberally, especially in soups and food with sauces. In China, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia, to countries, you can expect that your soups and sauces will contain MSG by default. Many parents travel in Asia complain that excessive MSG causes dehydration, lethargy, and mood swings with some younger children (and many adults are also found to be sensitive to excessive MSG). If concerned, request for your food