As we come to the end of our first week of our month-long trip I’m writing the roundup of the triupmh!
The flight…
Our 27 hour long journey from London to Fiji was eventful to say the least. My blood pressure went up a few times, “of course with the kids that’s normal” I hear you say. It wasn’t the kids that caused that – the husband!!! Where I’m super organised (borderline control freak), know where I keep everything, make sure I have everything with me every step of the way…hubby is the complete opposite. He loses everything and is super laid back. So naturally I lost my sh** as he stressed out when he lost or misplaced or THOUGHT he misplaced every bag/thing he held at the airport. Anyway, that aside…back to the flight. I cannot explain how many different toys and activities I packed for the kids (in fact I can, I’ve listed them below). In the lead up to this trip I thought of something for them to do for every 30 minutes of the flight…to make sure they were constantly occupied and didn’t scream the whole time. I was dreading this journey and I had to make sure I was fully prepared so left nothing to chance. From snacks to bottles to toys to slippers. I thought of everything. Now take a look at what I packed vs what was used… :/
Although most of the toys weren’t used on the flight, the littles were such angels. They handled the long flight, the waiting, the food, the turbulence, the tiny toilets, like absolute pros and I couldn’t ask for a better flight with them. In complete honesty, they did better than me. Less complaining, less moaning, less huffing and puffing, less tiredness.
Some tips for what made such a successful flights:
- Early wake up – build excitement: talk about what the day will look like, the flight, what they will be able to do on the flight and the pilot (basically what the pilot says goes – so at any time during the flight I mentioned “the pilot said so” it got done, no questions asked!)
- A good meal pre flight – we filled the kids up with a nutritious filling meal just before the flight so it didn’t matter what time they fell asleep vs when food was served
- Lots of snacks on board – low sugar and low salt snacks is a must. A few we took: bananas, low sugar cereal, fruit bars, rice crackers
- Things to make the journey comfy – blanket, cuddly toy, neck pillow. We took an inflatable (chair to bed type thing) but didn’t end up using as the kids could lay across us with feet up
- Burn as much energy as possible pre flight – we checked in as much hand luggage as we could along with checked bags so that we didn’t have to carry it but also worry about over head compartment space. This meant we could spend longer outside the gate letting the kids run around and get playing/the excitement of the airport out of the system.
- Make use of all the child friendly zones in the airport! We travelled from Heathrow Terminal 5 and used Zone E to check in – they gave the kids a cute little bag of goodies which they LOVED and kept they occupied for hours. We always let the kids play in the soft play/stay & play areas too where available
Days 1 and 2
We decided to stay at a hotel near the airport to avoid any further travel after the flight. This might have been the best decision we made. It gave us and the kids time to adjust but also just flop onto a bed as soon as we got to Fiji. We arrived at 3pm, slept solid for 4 hours and then carried on with dinner as usual. This short stint of solid unbroken sleep (not in a car or on a plane but in a lovely comfy bed) meant that we were ready for the evening but more importantly, were able to make the most of our first full day as we were already – for the most part – over the jet lag.
On our first evening we went down to the port and strolled along the water where there were some lovely restaurants and bars. We chose a spot to eat and sat outside for hours enjoying the live music and good food. The Fiji way of life is so calm, slow and peaceful. If ever you need a break from the hustle and bustle of fast paced city life, Fiji is definitely the break you need.
Days 3-8 were mainly spent at the wedding, a gorgeous wedding full of culture and traditions. One of the most beautiful weddings I’ve ever had the pleasure of going to. It was during the Mendhi night (event 3 of 5) when I thought “I am so truly grateful that we decided to bring the kids on the long journey to Fiji”…because I had doubts before going and even on arrival…many many doubts…but seeing them meet and play with all the family and looking back now, it was a decision I’d make over and over again. To anyone out there considering or pondering over whether to take the leap of a long haul or just take them anywhere…DO IT! I can hand on heart say, you will not regret it.
During the wedding there was some downtime in between as generally the events didn’t start until 4pm (due to the heat and sun) so we had a chance to go to local markets and see some of the local shops/stalls. Some of the best food markets I’ve ever been to in my life. Fresh fruits and veg in the thousands…and PINEAPPLES…pineapples for days! Not just any pineapples, the most sweetest tender juiciest delicious pineapples of life.
Days 9-12
After the wedding we stayed at the Intercontinental golf resort and spa for 3 nights, which was just so incredible. It was nice to get a bit of luxury beach time before we left Fiji and it was a fantastic stay. The staff and hotel itself made it such a pleasurable stay. While we were here we hired a boat and went scuba diving – an incredible, truly beautiful experience. I couldn’t recommend this more. We booked it via the water sports team on site at the hotel so they were able to take us out in a glass bottom boat so the kids had some on board entertainment too – of course we took the kids along for the ride! The rest of the stay at Intercontinental was more eating, relaxing, massages on the beach, pool time and ice creams! A truly wonderful end to our Fiji stay.
Keep an eye out for my day-by-day guide to travelling around New Zealand with 2 toddlers – which was part two of this once in a lifetime trip!
~X~
