Before
You Go
the part nobody puts in the brochure
Every trip has two halves. The half people daydream about, and the half that decides how the first half goes. This is the second half. Passports and their timing, insurance and what it really covers, flying eight hours with a child who does not want to, and what happens when the dog comes too. None of it is glamorous. All of it is the difference between a good trip and an expensive lesson.
Why this sits in the library and not buried in a destination guide
Most people plan backwards. They pick the country, book the flights, and only then find out that a child passport takes eight weeks, or that their credit card insurance does not cover a cancelled trip, or that the dog needed a rabies shot twenty one days before departure and it is now day nine.
None of that is hard. It is just time sensitive, and it does not live anywhere useful. Airlines tell you their rules. Governments tell you theirs. Nobody tells you the order to do things in.
So these pages are the order. Read them before you fall in love with a destination and the whole thing gets easier.
If you would rather hand the whole list to somebody who has done it, that is the job. Planning fees start at $200 and cover everything. International family trips start at $500.
Questions people actually ask
The ones that come up before anyone books. If yours isn’t here, ask me.
What should we sort out first when planning an international trip?
Passports, every time. They are the only part of the process you cannot speed up past a point, and everything else depends on them. Check the expiry dates today, before you look at a single flight.
How far ahead should we start planning?
Six months is comfortable for a first international family trip. Three is workable. Under six weeks and you are limited by passport and pet paperwork timelines more than by availability.
Do we need travel insurance for a family trip?
For a domestic weekend, probably not. For an international trip with flights, deposits and children, the medical piece alone usually justifies it. The travel insurance page walks through what is actually covered.
Start here
- International travel with kidsFlights, jet lag, packing, food, and the parts that actually go wrong.→
- Travel insuranceWhat it covers, what it does not, and when it is worth buying.→
- Passports and visasTiming, children’s passports, consent letters, and the new Europe rules.→
- Traveling with a dogMicrochips, rabies timing, airlines, and what Europe is really like with a dog.→
- Travel gear we recommendThe packing cubes, luggage, headphones and first aid gear that actually earn a spot in our bags.→
- Poppy’s TravelsWhere the dog has actually been, and what it took to get her there.→
Written and kept current by Nicole Damiano, ASTA Verified Travel Advisor with FG Luxury Travel. If something here is out of date, tell me and I will fix it.
Tell me who is coming and how long you have.
That is usually enough to know if this is a ship, a train, or a car with the windows down.
International family travel
Planning your first international trip with kids?
Start here. The order I'd do it in, where I'd go first, and how far ahead to book.
See the step by step plan