Autism and Travel

April is Autism Awareness month. Those who love someone with autism are aware of it every day. For those who don’t, you probably will at some point, since the new stats released show that 1 in 68 people will be diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. I have had lots of experience, both personally and professionally, regarding Autism Spectrum Disorders, and I love and care about several people who are on the autism spectrum. As this is a travel blog, I decided to write this post about Autism and Travel. I compiled tons of great travel tips from friends who are parents of children with autism, as well as professional colleagues who work with those on the spectrum.

Before we get into the travel tips, I have to state the old adage “if you meet one person with Autism, then you’ve met one person with Autism.”  Meaning, all people will manifest symptoms differently, and people with autism are as unique as snowflakes (oh, and the rest of humans). Therefore, not all of these tips will apply or be helpful to all situations. Conversely, many of these tips will also be helpful to parents of children with other diagnoses, such as ADHD and Anxiety Disorders (which often have overlapping symptoms with Autism Spectrum Disorders anyway), or even parents with children in general. I have found many of these tips to be personally useful, and I thank, with all of my heart, the friends who shared their ideas with me. There is no one I admire more than those I have met along this journey (you know who you are). As I write these tips, I use the terms ‘kids’ and ‘children’ because that is my frame of reference and area of professional knowledge. Many of these tips can also apply to adults as well.

OK, now for the helpful stuff…

50 Family Vacation Tips

Before-Trip Preparation:

• Consider starting out small, by staying for one night in a local hotel or at a relative’s house, so that your child will have some experience with getting used to sleeping in an unfamiliar environment if this will be a new experience for him/her. Repetition and practice can be your friend & it will be a common theme here.

• Research your destinations carefully as you plan your trip. There are some places that are known for being easier to visit for people with special needs. Disney is known for being a great destination for those with special needs, and there are many other places as well.

• If your child has a special interest, consider making that a part of your trip (ie a train museum for a train enthusiast, the National Portrait Gallery in DC for a fan of US Presidents). Even if these sites aren’t of interest to you, it can add so much joy to the trip when watching your child light up with excitement at seeing these places and his/her obsessions up close and personal.

• Show your child YouTube videos of specific places (rides, hotels, inside of an airplane, buildings, etc) so that he or she can start to develop a visual picture of where you are going. You can pretty much find anything on YouTube (both good and bad, of course)!

• Make a Social Story about your trip and where you are going, adding in things that the child will be expected to do (ie “John will stand in line while waiting to get on the ride”). Social Stories can be very effective for some kids, for most situations.

• Make a Social Story about various aspects of the travel (ie if you are going to the airport, make a story about going through security). Be very specific with details. If you yourself are not sure of details of travel logistics, ask around (google is also your friend).

• Show your child photos of the locations, places (hotels, amusement parks, etc), and modes of transportation (like airplanes, trains, etc) you will be visiting.  You can often order brochures and maps (like a Disney theme parks map, for example) ahead of time.

• If visiting people the child has not met or seen in a while, make a photo book with their photos and names (ie “This is Aunt Mary”). Also, give these people a heads-up about Autism before you arrive & maybe send them some links to your favorite articles to expand their awareness and understanding.

• Do a faux ‘run through’ (aka a role play) of a situation that might be part of your travel experience, like taking shoes off at the airport and walking through the security line.

• Practice things that might be stressful for your child multiple times (ie When the security at the airport asks your name, you say “John”, repeat until he/she is comfortable doing this with you playing the security guard, change roles and practice again).

• Find photos and/or articles about your vacation and make a “pre-vacation” book.  Look at it with your child every night.

• Try to find out ahead of time where the “calm” areas are in a place that you may visit in case the child needs a quiet place to take a break, etc.

• Write out a schedule/routine for your time away and review it regularly before the trip. You can post it right next to the daily home routine, if you have one,  so you can identify changes and practice the differences (ie we have breakfast at home everyday but on vacation, our schedule says we will eat breakfast at the hotel).

• Some children do better with preparations that start a month or more in advance.  For others, that can be anxiety-provoking instead of calming & they do better with only a few days of advanced preparation. Know which of these methods works for your own child, and prepare accordingly.

• There are lots of forums out there related to specific destinations – read as much as you can & ask questions to get tips from other families who may have some of the same experiences.

• Call ahead to hotels and airlines to let them know that your child has a special need, any specific food allergies or restrictions. For example, let them know if you are in need of a quiet room at the end of the hallway in the hotel and explain the reasons why. Let the airline know about any needs that you may have as well. Most people are very helpful and want to make your experience as easy and pleasurable as possible.

• Some airports have an Autism Access Program, like the one described here at the Philadelphia Airport.  If this is available to you, it looks like it could be very helpful for making airline travel easier.

• Try to book direct flights to avoid layovers, plane changes, and additional ear-popping mayhem.  Also make an effort to get the bulkheads seats, as to avoid kicking the backs of seats and getting dirty looks from other passengers.

• Speaking of other travelers, some parents swear by the “I have autism card”.  There are many variations of this (check Pinterest for some great ideas), but it is basically something that you can hand to people who are giving you a hard time that says something along the lines of “I/my son/daughter have Autism and things may be difficult for me at times. Please try to be kind and understanding.”

• Make a “countdown to vacation” calendar at home, where you can mark off the days until you leave. Also bring a calendar along on the vacation with the day that you will be returning home so that you can mark off the days of the vacation as well. You can do this via a calendar app as well.

• If your child uses a picture schedule at home and/or school, consider making one for the vacation as well. You can put things like waiting in line, the steps of going through security at the airport, the stops along the way on a road trip, etc). As each step is completed, you can take the picture away to show that it is complete.  You can even use the picture schedule for your practice runs at home.

• If your child has sensory needs, consider your destination carefully and prepare for it.  For example, if your child has not been to a beach & you want to try it, set up a sandbox at home & have him/her play in the sand at home first. You can also set up a small pool outside to literally “test the waters” for a possible visit to a hotel pool. You should try on hats, sunglasses, rash guards, sunscreens, or anything else you may need for your vacation, at home before you leave. The same would be true for a cold weather destination with snow, snowpants, hats, and gloves, but why would you want to go somewhere like that? (Kidding…sort of…I’m partial to warmth!).

Considerations for Packing:

• Make a list of the essential things that your child relies on (sunglasses, blanket, vitamins, loveys, special toy or object, etc), and don’t forget to bring those things.

• In addition to having a list of essentials, make sure to have a check list for those essentials to make sure that they are accounted for and not left behind when you leave. I have heard horror stories about left-behind, rare, hard-to-replace favorite toys or objects. Don’t take the risk of that happening to you.

• If your child responds to a reinforcer, make sure to bring plenty of it so that you can offer it often during the stressful times (ie I will give you a jellybean for every 30 seconds that you stand calmly and patiently in this line – airport security lines keep going through my head!).

• Bring preferred foods along with you if your child is specific about food items & you think they may be hard or inconvenient to buy while you are on vacation.

• For kids with food allergies, bring plenty of your allergy-friendly snack foods.

• Bring a comfort item for bedtime (blanket, songs on ipod that they listen to at night, stuffed animal, etc) which can be a difficult time when away from the familiar home setting.

• Bring a letter from your doctor regarding your child’s allergies, diagnoses, specific need.  Some places offer special guest assistance to those with specific needs. Many places will let you bring in your own food, even if they don’t usually let the general public do so.

• If you are going to anywhere that has a water play area (find out ahead of time if they do), bring a swimsuit and/or change of clothes. This would have helped a friend of mine to avoid a major meltdown.

• Pack extra socks in your day bag/purse in case feet get wet outdoors or at an amusement park.

• Bring back-up chargers for all of your electronic devices.

• Bring a small bag of sensory-friendly toy items for the airplane, restaurant, lines, etc.

• Bring some new things to play with/look at for the airplane, restaurant, etc. You can wrap each item individually (aluminum foil works well) & give out one each hour, 30 minutes, 10 minutes if you are desperate!

• Bring some old favorite toys/items that you put away for a bit prior to the trip. Having familiar items in a new place can sometimes be helpful.

• If you are bringing a favorite item, consider getting a second one as a “back up” to leave at home in case the one you bring gets lost or broken.

• If the child has sensory needs, consider things like earplugs, certain clothes, textures, bring own bedding if needed, noise machine, headphones.

• If you have a tablet or ipod, load it with some favorite movies and shows for entertainment in the car, plane, etc.

Considerations for Safety:

• Get some kind of identification with names, cell phone numbers, medications, special considerations (ie if child is non-verbal) made, like a necklace or bracelet. If your child will not wear something like that, you can get labels made that can be sewn onto clothing, zipper tags, or shoelace tags. There are even custom-made temporary tattoos that can be made with the identification information on them. I have friends with children who tend to elope who have purchased GPS tracking devices as well.

• Purchase the same brightly colored t-shirt for each day of vacation so that the child stands out & you can easily remember what she/he is wearing if she/he gets lost.

• Purchase the same shirt for the child and the parent to wear.  If the child gets lost, the parent can point to his/her t-shirt to show what the child is wearing.

• Carry with you a recent photo of the child.

• Make a Social Story for child about various types of community helpers (police, workers, etc) so the child knows who to go to in case of emergency.

While you are on Vacation:

• Check restaurant menus ahead of time to make sure that there are food items that your child can/will eat.

• Try not to deviate from a meal/eating schedule to avoid hunger and routine related difficulties.

• Check to see how far your destination is from a Walmart/Target/Kmart in case you are in need of an essential item.

• Make a daily schedule of your activities, and be very specific about what you will be doing and when. Although vacation seems like it should be more relaxed, for some kids, this will make for an overall more relaxed state of mind and a more enjoyable experience for all.

• Make sure that you have a back-up plan in case something changes (bad weather, a ride is closed, etc).

• Lines (and waiting, in general) can be a difficult time. Consider giving a new “thing” at the beginning/end of each waiting portion ($1.00 toy, silly putty, gum, etc).

• As hard as it may seem after reading this long list of things to do…remember to try to relax and have fun.  If you, as the parent, are feeling extremely anxious then it can impact how the child is feeling. Have a huge cocktail and put your feet up (ok, that’s not real professional advice, but I had to put that in there somewhere!). You are a fantastic parent & are doing your best! Sometimes a good sense of humor really is the best remedy of all.

What are your tips and tricks for traveling with a child with Autism or any other diagnosis?