Trunki: A brilliant answer to flying with children and tackling airline queues

My daughter was very excited to receive a Terrance Trunki suitcase for her 4th birthday. We took it on our next holiday and she loved it.  Unfortunately my daughter quickly out grew Trunki and as I often flew on my own with my two girls, I couldn’t carry one (heavy) baby in a carrier and pull my daughter along at the same time.  Sadly, on our next holiday Trunki was left in the play room.

However, I’m pleased to say, Terrance Trunki hasn’t ended his days in the corner of the play room.  My eldest daughter is now 6 and my youngest has just turned 3 and recently, Trunki has been fully reintegrated into the family.

I thought I’d try it out holidaying with my youngest a few months ago with much success.  Firstly, my daughter really enjoyed packing her toys in Trunki.  It’s great to involve children in the holiday preparation and Trunki is plenty big enough for her travel toys as well as spare clothes for the flight.  And so packed and ready, off we trundled to the airport.  My daughter was more than happy to ride on Trunki and felt very secure sitting on it. Like her elder sister before her, she very much enjoyed the attention and smiles of other passengers.

Standing to board a flight can be so tedious and difficult for children, so it was great that both girls could sit on Trunki while we were in the queues.  On the aeroplane Trunki fits under the seat in front and so my daughter’s toys, snacks, etc. were all to hand.

When travelling with children the worst bit is surely the long slog from the aeroplane, through lengthy passport control queues to baggage pickup which generally has to be done without your buggy.  It  always seems to be at that time that the children are at their most tired and the patience of even the saintliest of mothers is tested.  This was where Trunki absolutely came into his own.  My youngest happily sat on and enjoyed the ride. Once I was loaded with a trolley, I couldn’t pull her at the same time, but she happily pulled Trunki along herself.

I am very pleased that we have rekindled our Trunki love affair.  It has proved invaluable in our last two holidays with the children.  It’s tough and easy to clean and has tonnes of storage space.  It easily covers an overnight stay.  My eldest daughter used it for a school trip to the farm and although she didn’t ride on it of course, it was easy for her to wheel along herself, or where there were stairs to negotiate, it is light enough for her to carry. 

Ours is one of the original Trunki’s and my only gripe would be that it is a little featureless inside. However, I am pleased to see that on the newest version, anything I would have liked to see in addition to ours has been covered, that is; it has internal straps (cutely called teddy  bear seat belts) a pouch for ‘bits’ and an additional small handle on top.  Brilliant.  I definitely recommend Trunki when flying for the sake of your little one’s tired legs and more importantly mummy’s sanity.  I would recommend it from about 2 and a half years to get full use, maybe even younger.  Click here to see the full Trunki range on Amazon including the classic Terrance and Trixie and some very gorgeous special editions.  Amazon have them at great prices and they’re generally available with free delivery if direct from Amazon.  They’ll make great Christmas presents for jet setting toddlers.