16 TRAVELLING WITH KIDS/TRAVEL HEALTH
The latest family travel products for summer!
With summer just around the corner, ALLY THOMPSON and her team of pint-sized testers check out some of the latest travel products on offer for families this season...
IMPORTANT: Look after your passport!
Usborne Children’s Books
THE Usborne brand is synonymous with quality children’s publications and activity sets that aim to capture your child’s imagination and entertain them for hours on end.
We’ve picked out four of our favourite holiday themed titles that will be travelling with Team Thompson this summer! The ‘Holiday Activity Book’ is crammed full of puzzles, doodles to draw and over 200 stickers that should keep Libby (6yrs) amused on our next flight. For Molly (2yrs) we’ve opted for the ‘First Sticker Book Holiday’. She loves her stickers and with big sister’s help, she’ll be enthralled. We’ve recently invested in a VW Camper so there’ll be lots of driving miles clocked up in the months ahead… this is where ‘100 Things for Little Children to do on a Journey’ should prove invaluable. It contains 50-wipe clean cards with 100 activities to keep all three kids amused in the camper van (ages 2, 4 and 6). Finally, a bit of family fun for everyone on our camping trips with ‘Holiday Snap’. The pack has 26 pairs of brightly coloured cards with lots of holiday themes and activities to match. Prices from £4.99 - £7.99. Visit
www.usborne.com for a full list of titles and stockist info.
A
NSWERS to some questions on risk management in relation to travel abroad, passport safety and finishing vaccines especially ones that are two or three vaccines.
Q1. Recently I heard that U.K. passports are stolen from holiday makers abroad each year. Is this correct? A. Yes it is most definitely correct. Here are some worrying figures - 27,000 British passports went missing abroad in 2012. In 2013 the figure is looking worse - for the first three months of that year one in twenty British holidaymakers had passports stolen. The risk areas are Spain, France, Italy, Australia, Mexico, and Portugal. Most passports are stolen from shops, hotel rooms, beaches, airport departure lounges and bars. Passports stolen are bought by dealers to carry out identity fraud and sell it for £400 on the black market. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office have excellent information on their website, however here are some of their
tips for looking after your passport. l Value your passport it is your
property - so look after it l A passport is not always safe on you
Apollo Family Bicycles
WITH the Giro d’Italia having recently wound its way through Northern Ireland at great speed, the country is well and truly in the grip of ‘cycle fever’. Make
www.cycleni.com your first port of call to find cycle routes in your area (including family friendly trails). Next stop, Halfords… check out their extensive range of Apollo bikes. They offer something for all ages, ie. bright and vibrant children’s designs as well as a wide choice of adult bikes from mountain bikes to hybrid specific models. We put the Apollo Elyse Womens Hybrid through its paces this month. Its lightweight alloy frame made it easy to maneuver and the gel comfort saddle made it a comfortable ride. It handled just as well on the cycle trails at Castleward as it did on the Bangor school run.
The pannier rack (pannier bags available separately) also made life easier when it came to carrying the ‘essential kit’ that accompanies any family day out. Halfords build the bike for free in store and then follow up with a free six-week first service, giving you complete peace of mind.
Maxi Micro T-Bar Scooter
The Elyse also looks very stylish and, at the time of going to press, Halfords are currently running a 50% off promotion on adult Apollo bikes. What’s not to love?! Apollo Elyse Womens Hybrid RRP £399. Offer price £199.99. Visit
www.halfords.com
- so if you have a safe lock it away l Make two photocopies of your passport, leave on with friends and take one with you - or store it on line using a
secure data storage site l If possible use this photo copy as an alternative maybe when going out at
night l Make sure your passport is valid and be aware that for some countries your passport must be valid for x months after you travel so check this out before you go
l Passport thieves usually work in busy tourist areas and generally work in gangs. So holiday where ever you are in the world - be sure to be 'PASSPORT SAFETY AWARE' Q2. Does it matter if I don't finish my vaccination course? A. Yes it does as with any medicines you should complete the course, and vaccinations are no different. Some vaccines are just a one off - such as Yellow fever or meningitis vaccine. Other vaccines are given as a course either two or three vaccines. Examples of these vaccines would be Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Rabies or Japanese B
TRAVEL HEALTH by HELEN JOHNSTON
vaccines. So you should make every effort to finish your course of vaccines. The reason is that a course of vaccines is designed to give you protection from a particular disease and the complete vaccination course can last up to five years, depending on the vaccine of course. Q3. I heard recently that a Travel clinic told a traveller it was up to them to manage the risk they were putting themselves at by travelling abroad - what did they mean?
A. Only a very small percentage of diseases can be prevented by vaccinations. There are many more risks open to the traveller for which today the traveller must assume responsibility, be aware of the risks and manage the risk accordingly. Here are some risk to think about -
SUNBURN - manage the risk, use a SPF 15 or above, wear a t-shirt, sun hat and sunglasses and stay out of the hot sun between 11am until 3pm. ANIMALS - manage the risk - leave all animals alone they may transmit Rabies and other infections ACCIDENTS - manage the risk
- never ever drink and drive, be aware of traffic systems, if hiring equipment for say diving or skiing, hire from a reputable company and take out adequate travel insurance FOOD AND WATER - manage the risk - eat food that is well cooked. Avoid shell fish, be careful with dairy produce, and don't eat food from market stalls or road side stalls MALARIA - manage the risks - take the appropriate malaria medication that has been prescribed for you and follow all rules for good bite avoidance measures
All the above information and more in relation to Travel and risk management can be read on an excellent web site
www.nathnac.org.
The writer of the Travel Health article Healen Johnston runs Lisburn Travel Clinic. You can contact the clinic by ringing 02892501281.
Discover Europe with Lonely Planet
TEAM Thompson have always been big fans of the Mini Micro Scooter so it was with much excitement that we picked up its big brother, the Maxi Micro, to take for a test drive.
Libby, 6yrs old, has recently outgrown her Mini Micro but not before becoming a very adept scooting speed demon. Her eyes lit up when she saw the shiny red Maxi.
Having first donned her helmet, we headed to the park to put it through its paces last weekend. The transition from Mini to Maxi was smooth. Its design is based on the same principle as the Mini Micro, i.e. tilt and lean for intuitive steering. It’s built to last with a robust kickboard and three puncture-free wheels. With a price tag just shy of £100, it initially seems pricey for a kids’ scooter… that is until you realise that the adjustable handle bars will see them through from 6-12yrs old. Admiring the quality of the build at close quarters, it suddenly doesn’t seem that expensive after all for six years use and an incentive to get outdoors. A huge thumbs up from Scootin’ Libby! RRP from £99.95. To buy, visit
www.micro-scooters.co.uk
WHETHER you're cruising along the French Riviera, punting down the canals of Venice, speeding down the slopes of the Alps or sipping coffee in a Viennese cafe, Europe offers more iconic experiences than practically anywhere else on the planet. History is undoubtedly one of Europe's major draws. From Neolithic sites and Grecian ruins to Gothic cathedrals and crumbling castles, taking a trip across Europe can feel like stumbling into the pages of a history textbook. While in many ways one of the world's most forward-looking regions, Europe's post inevitably informs its present and its future.
Thankfully, there's no shortage of amazing museums to put it all into context, from the palatial Louvre and British Museum to Amsterdam's Rijsmuseum, recently reopened after a decade-long renovation. Europe also understand the finer things in
life. and its never shy about letting you join in the party.
The Lonely Planet's Discover Europe guide makes it even easier to plan your perfect trip and experience the best of what Europe has to offer.
Available from all good book shops and online retailers or direct from the Lonely Planet store shop.lonelyplan
et.com RRP £17.99
June 2014 Travel News
Be passport aware and finish your vaccinations!
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