Flying to Bali with kids is already a pretty big adventure.
Flying to Bali with three kids and only one parent?
Well, as I’m writing this, I’m starting to wonder whether my plan was quite as brilliant as I originally thought!
In just a couple of hours, I’m going to start the long journey from Arizona to Bali with Cosimo, Emma and Luca.
And Mass isn’t coming with us. At least not yet.
So…Where Is My Husband?
Mass actually left for Bali about a week before us because he is attending a workshop.
When we were planning the trip, we decided it made more sense for him to go ahead while the kids and I stayed home a little longer.
That way, instead of arriving in Bali and waiting around while he was busy with his workshop, we could meet him afterward and start our vacation together.
At the time, this sounded perfectly logical. Very smart, actually.
Then I looked around the room. There are suitcases. Backpacks. A stroller. Carry-ons.
And what feels like another million things scattered everywhere.
And suddenly I’m thinking: Was this actually a smart idea?
Because all of this stuff, and all three children, has to somehow get from Arizona to Bali. With me.
What the Kids Were Doing Before We Left
The timing of this trip was especially crazy because Cosimo and Emma had already had a very busy couple of weeks.
They had been preparing for Aladdin Jr., with rehearsals and everything that comes with getting ready for a performance. So while I was surrounded by suitcases, backpacks and everything we needed to somehow get to Bali, they had also been busy with their own big adventure before we even left.
Watching them perform was such a special way to finish our time at home before taking off for the other side of the world. And, from a purely practical mom point of view, I was also secretly thinking: Surely they have to be exhausted after all of this!
Maybe all those rehearsals would actually work in my favor on our long flight.
Cosimo and Emma should be pretty tired. Luca? Probably not so much.
At 15 months old, he seemed to have an endless amount of energy, which was slightly concerning considering I was about to spend more than 13 hours on an airplane with him.
But let’s keep our fingers crossed!
First We Have to Get From Phoenix to Los Angeles
Unfortunately, we couldn’t find any decent flights from Phoenix that didn’t involve a 12- to 20-hour layover in Los Angeles.
If I’m going to spend that many hours getting to LA anyway, I might as well drive there at my own convenience. Right?
So that’s what we’re doing. Our first part of the journey will be a five- to six-hour drive from Phoenix to Los Angeles.
Then I need to park the car, get three kids and all our stuff into LAX, check in, go through security and somehow make it onto the plane.
Our current inventory:
2 suitcases.
3 backpacks.
1 carry-on.
1 stroller.
3 kids.
1 mom.
I’m already tired just looking at that list.
My Carefully Planned Strategy
Since it’s three kids against one parent, I need a plan. And I think I have a pretty good one.
Luca will probably sleep for a good part of the drive from Phoenix to Los Angeles. Normally, having your baby sleep peacefully in the car would be wonderful. Except I don’t want him arriving at LAX completely rested and ready for five hours of running around.
I need that child tired!
So we’re going to stop in Palm Springs to visit some friends. The plan is to get everyone out of the car, eat something, visit with our friends and, most importantly, make the kids MOVE. Think of it as workout number one.
Then we’ll continue to Los Angeles. Once we’ve parked the car, dragged ourselves and all our luggage into the airport, checked in and made it through security, the second phase of my brilliant plan begins.
I will find somewhere Luca can move around and…let him loose. Cosimo and Emma can run after him. Workout number two.
Then we’ll board our long flight, everyone will be completely exhausted and all three children will immediately fall asleep. I’ll sit back, relax and maybe even sleep myself.
That’s what’s going to happen. Right? Please tell me that’s what’s going to happen!
Then We Have to Survive Taipei
If we make it through the first long flight, our adventure still isn’t over. We have a few hours in Taipei before getting onto our second flight to Bali. And strangely enough, this is actually the part I’m most worried about.
The first flight is overnight, so there is at least some hope that the kids will sleep. The flight from Taipei to Bali is about five hours and during the daytime.
I have a feeling Luca isn’t going to happily sit on my lap for five hours staring out the window. He’s going to want to move. And since there is only one of me, I’m hoping Cosimo and Emma will be ready to help keep their little brother entertained. This is going to be a team effort.
Will My Plan Actually Work?
So that’s it. That’s my brilliant pre-travel plan.
Drive from Phoenix to Los Angeles.
Stop in Palm Springs and tire everyone out.
Get to LAX.
Somehow manage two suitcases, three backpacks, one carry-on, a stroller and three kids.
Find somewhere for them to burn off even more energy.
Board the plane.
Watch all three children immediately fall asleep.
Sleep peacefully myself.
Arrive in Taipei.
Survive another five-hour flight.
Land in Bali.
Easy.
What could possibly go wrong?
I’m writing this before we’ve actually left, so I genuinely have no idea how much of this plan is going to work. Maybe I’ll read this again from Bali and congratulate myself on my excellent planning. Or maybe I’ll laugh at how incredibly optimistic I was.
Either way, in a few hours our journey to Bali begins. And despite the nerves, the luggage and the slightly terrifying realization that it’s three kids against one parent…
I’m excited. Bali, here we come!
UPDATE: So…Did the Plan Work?
Well, we made it to Bali.
But did all three kids peacefully fall asleep while I relaxed on our long flight? Not exactly.
Let’s just say Luca had some very different ideas about how our journey should go.
I wrote the whole story after we arrived, including the sleepless flight, endless diaper changes, the kindness of strangers, eating on the airplane floor and everything I learned from traveling such a long distance alone with three kids.
Read next: Traveling Alone With 3 Kids: Our Crazy Journey to Bali
Looking back now, this little pre-travel post makes me laugh.
At the time, we were still a year away from leaving to travel the world full-time. I was nervous about getting three kids from Arizona to Bali without Mass.
I had no idea that airports, long-haul flights, strange sleep schedules and figuring things out as we went along would eventually become such a normal part of our family’s life. But maybe this was one of those little tests along the way.
And first…I just had to get us to Bali.
I’ll keep you posted on our adventure to get to Bali through our instagram and Facebook!
Continue the journey with:
If you are planning a trip to Bali, these stops should definitely be on your radar:
- The Magical Gili Islands with Kids: Gili Trawangan & Gili Meno
- 9 Amazing Things to Do in Candidasa with Kids: A Family Guide Malaysian Borneo: Wildlife, Ecotourism, and Adventure
- 8 Fun Things to Do in Canggu with Kids: Our Family Experience
- Best Beaches in Uluwatu for Families: 4 Beautiful Beaches We Tried
I hope our experience helps you plan an unforgettable Bali adventure of your own!
