Standard Chartered Bank
It’s the time of the year for school holidays and you are worried your children might get bored out of their minds while sitting at home trying to keep themselves entertained.
For most parents, taking children out of the country for a short holiday will ease the children’s boredom. But with COVID-19 and financial turmoil in some countries, is it a good idea to travel?
STAYING AT HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
A simple solution would be to just stay home. Parents can continue to take leave from office but instead of taking a vacation out of the country, you can still enjoy your vacation at home with many fun and creative ideas to keep your children busy and active.
Go to the beach – a beach picnic is always a huge source of fun for the children with endless low-cost possibilities of kite flying, shell collecting and sand castle building.
All you have to do is decide on a beach, pack a great picnic basket and ensure that you have sufficient water for cleaning off by filling up recycled water bottles or large plastic canteens and storing them in the boot. When it’s time to go home, kids can rinse off sand and saltwater before getting in to the car.
Remember – Don’t forget sunscreen and dispose of your rubbish properly!
Visit our public places of interest – when was the last time you visited the museum? Bring the children for a walk at the Royal Regalia Building or museums in Brunei. Entrance is free! End the day with tea and cakes at the local stalls by the Brunei River.
Alternatively you can make a whole day trip and visit Seria or Kuala Belait towns and go to OGDC which has plenty of interesting activities for children and have minimal entrance fees.
Remember – pack tissue packs and hand sanitiser gels for your children to use in case they need to visit the toilets. For long distance travel, drive safely and follow road safety rules!
Make a movie day or night at home – children love to stay up late. But instead of letting them do their own things like playing video games, get the whole family together for a movie at home.
All you need is a DVD and some snacks. Watching movies at home may not be a full cinematic experience but by making sound fun and exciting, you can make the whole family enjoy being together. Plus you don’t have to worry about bringing your children to the toilets!
Remember – pick a good sensible movie that can be enjoy by the whole family and try to make your snacks healthy like vegetable crudités and dip and fruit juice instead of carbonated drinks!
Have a sleepover – invite your children’s best friends for a sleepover party. Your children will have a blast and it is also a good way to ensure your kids continue to socialise healthily.
They might even be missing their bets friends from school during the holidays and will love the chance to catch up. Keep healthy snack foods at reach like egg sandwiches, fruits and fruit juices. You can even entertain the parents of the children who are staying over for dinner, making the stayover all the more sociable while building trust for both parties.
It is also a healthy way for you to keep track of your children’s social activities rather than letting them stay out till late at night where you are not sure what activities they might be up to.
Remember – give your children and their friends some privacy but do check in on them once in a while. Make sure they observe healthy clean up habits like brushing teeth and bathing before bedtime.
Set a strict rule on bed time to ensure a level of discipline is maintained.
IF YOU ARE TRAVELLING FOR YOUR HOLIDAYS
Some parents may have booked holidays since travelling restrictions have been relaxed – which is all perfectly fine. However, overseas holidays can be expensive and require extra spending money.
Before your travel, make some efforts to find out about the weather in the country and also the COVID-19 status of the country you are travelling to. If it forecast to be rainy, pack your children’s raincoats and covered shoes. Bring a brollie or foldable umbrella for yourself. Make sure you leave all your contact details in that country with a relative or a friend in case of need for contact.
Bring along a small supply of medicines which you may need like panadol or diarrhoea medicine in case you are not familiar with the medicinal brands in that country.
Remember to also to keep notifications of any known allergies with you in case you need to visit a doctor for treatments. Bring hand sanitiser gels for your children at all times to keep germs at bay in case you are not able to find a toilet or wash basin, being prepared can help you to keep your travel costs minimal instead of forking extra cash to buy medicines or umbrellas or other typically non-essential items that you would not usually require.
This article is for general information purposes only and while the information in it is believed to be reliable, it has not been independently verified by us. You are advised to exercise your own independent judgement with the contents in this article.
