Trunki

Air travel with children requires a lot of planning. I don't mean just the trip intinery I mean thinking ahead to how to entertain your child for 4 hours while your flight is delayed. Or how to get away without a stroller during a time you need it most- like at the airport when you have lots of walking and extra baggage to carry.

My sister, Kristin, is the ultimate planner. She has a back up plan for almost every conceivable travel predicament, wipes and Tide stain stick in hand at a moments notice, brand new travel games stashed in cutsie little backpacks and herself in heels no less! I look up to my sister can you tell? So, when Kristin introduced me to the the Trunki suitcase I was convinced it was a parent must-have.

The Trunki is a suitcase to carry all your child's belongings, of course. Its also, a way to get them from point a to point b quickly as you can pull them on it while they ride! Or even better they can pull it themselves and will love the novelty of doing it. If they do give up on pulling or riding you can clip the pull strap to the other side of the Trunki making it into a shoulder strap so you can carry it.

Best of all though, is that its a source of entertainment during those moments when the kids just can't seem to find anything else to do but lick the terminal windows or ask every 2 minutes to go to the bathroom- and still manage to really really need to go once your seated on the plane during take off. A suitcase entertain my child? That's right, find your child can ride around on their Trunki like so:
One more thing that is great about the Trunki is that its designed to be a carry on. Now a days you have to pay to check your child's luggage (or pay extra when you cram their stuff into your suitcase and its over the weight limit). Using the Trunki is a way to sneak on another carry on! After all, its not YOUR carry on (you already have your purse, and diaper bag and laptop etc..) its your child's carry on! Although, this won't work if your child is sitting on your lap- but if your child is under two chances are you won't be bringing your Trunki anyway. For example, my 20 mo old loves to pull it around and play with the hidden pockets on the inside, but I don't think he could do it as efficiently (or in one direction) like I would need him to once at the airport. So, I will wait to use it later on.

The downside to my Trunki is that once the suitcase it opened the contents tend to slide around and out. This is remedied by the newer Trunki model "Towgo" which has some webbing inside to keep contents in place once the suitcase is opened. The rubber rim keeps fingers from getting picnhed when closing and the "furry texture" is more textured plastic- there is not a furry as in cloth like texture.


While the Trunki is strong enough to carry your child and will withstand its share of bumps and bangs its NOT the kind of luggage you should check. I think the Trunki would arrive to your destination cracked if the baggage handlers had their way with it. But after all, the whole point is to bring it through the airport with you.

Hoping you can get your hands on a Trunki before Thanksgiving? The Terrance (blue) and Trixie (pink) Trunki regularly sell for $39.99. The newer model "Towgo" sells for 49.99.

Use the code citrus15% at checkout for the pink or blue Trunki before October 31st at Trendykid.com for a 15 percent discount.