Skip to main content

Holiday Travel Tips for Seniors

 

Traveling may be one of the best gifts for mom or dad. The trip may be to visit family for the holidays, an adventure to a destination, or even a return home.  Since planning trips can be hard and time-consuming, we have drafted a list of travel tips for seniors to make sure you get to your destination safe and sound!

 

Visit Your Doctor

 

Before you plan anything trip-related, it’s important to plan a trip to the doctor first. Your doctor will be sure to clear your loved one safe for travel and can give you recommendations on vaccines and medications to make sure that your loved senior stays healthy. Note that it’s very important to follow your doctor’s advice. Make sure you bring all the recommended medications. A change in a routine or schedule can cause some people to lose track of time, so be sure to schedule that appointment before time slips away from you.

 

Request and Reserve Elderly Accommodations

 

These requests such as seat assignments in the rows designated for disabled travelers, wheelchair service at the airports, and meal service aboard are very important.  If your loved one is traveling alone make sure your senior will have all the assistance needed. If you don’t make and confirm all of these requests at the time of reservation, the services may not be available at the airline, train, etc.

 

Prepare Documentation

 

If you are traveling outside of the country, make sure you prepare the documents for receiving your government passport. If you or your loved senior doesn’t already have one, consider applying months prior to your travel. Also, make time to request copies of prescriptions and statements of medical conditions from their physicians. Make multiple copies of passports, driver’s licenses, Medicare and insurance cards, travel tickets, itinerary, boarding passes, etc. Place one complete set in your loved one’s carry-on bag as well as keeping a copy for yourself.

 

Pack Appropriately

 

Knowing what to pack will make the entire process much easier. Even if you’re just going to your relative’s house for a couple of days, it’s important to know what’s on the itinerary. This will make packing a breeze. For example, if you are going ice-skating,  make sure to pack a heavy jacket, gloves, and a hat.

 

If you’re flying, check with TSA regulations to make sure all your essentials are in your carry-on bag. Include one set of clothes in your carry-on in case your luggage gets misplaced.

 

Think About Senior’s Safety, Security, and Comfort

 

Elderly loved ones can be seen as vulnerable. Don’t give thieves the opportunity to take advantage of them. Maybe instead of your loved senior carrying a purse, supply them with a money bet worn under their shirt, or a hidden wallet in a secret pocket in their winter coat. If traveling alone, advise them to always keep their carry-on bag between their feet when standing, or with a strap looped around the leg of your chair when sitting.  Think about their comfort on the plane, consider packing along or purchasing a neck pillow that supports their neck and head.

 

Plan for Crowds

 

The holidays are no doubt a busy time for traveling. AAA”S travel forecast for the holidays has been increasing every year since 2008, and this year is no different. Nearly 50 million Americans traveled more than 50 miles for Thanksgiving weekend, and that was just on the roads. Plan for traffic jams, and if your flying, plan to arrive at the airport extra early. If your loved senior is traveling alone you can ask for assistance at the security checkpoint to make things go a little faster.

 

 

The holiday season is a hectic one. If you followed these tips and tricks given to you by Freedom Home Care you’ll be ready for almost anything that this trip can throw your way! If you are in need of some assistance in getting your senior ready for your next trip, reach out to us here at Freedom Home Care. We will work with you and help every step of the way. We can help provide any type of documentation to help make the process that much easier.

The post Holiday Travel Tips for Seniors appeared first on Freedom Home Care.



from Freedom Home Care https://ift.tt/2PvrE9b
via IFTTT
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sleep in the Elderly: What is Normal?

If you are a caregiver for a senior, or even just have elderly people in your life, you may wonder about their sleeping habits. It sometimes seems that the elderly don’t need as much sleep as the average person. You may feel like the elderly in your life are sleeping a lot, or sleeping too much during the day. Unfortunately when it comes to sleep in the elderly, what is normal may not necessarily be what is healthy. Excessive sleep or daytime sleeping in the elderly are all related to sleep disorders and can be helped. How Many Hours of Sleep Does an Elderly Person Need? A pervading myth related to sleep claims that elderly adults need less sleep than the average adult. It’s not quite clear how this myth began. Perhaps because elderly adults tend to nap in the afternoons and sleep less during the night. Perhaps because the elderly tend to wake up earlier in the morning, it appears they do not need to sleep as much. Whatever the reason, it remains a myth. From the mid-’20s onward, do...
1 comment
Read more

Dads and Pops: Your Good Health Matters to Us 

Did you know  June is  Men’s Health Month  and Father’s Day anchors Men’s Health Week ?   Celebrate dad on Father’s Day and thank him for all he  has  done, but  also  make sure to seize an opportunity sometime this month to have a conversation with him about his health. This awareness campaign has the critical purpose of informing men   that avoiding preventive healthcare puts them at real and serious risk of  contracting a disease or  acquiring  a chronic condition.   Studies consistently  show the numbers go against men , particularly as they advance into their senior years.   Even with dramatic advances in diagnosis and treatment over the past 100 years, men’s life expectancy still lags significantly behind women. According to  Harvard Health ,  the gap is widening. In 1900, the life expectancy for women was 48.3 years vs. 46.3 for men. In 2017, it was 81.1 years for women vs. 76.1 for men. Harvard...
Post a Comment
Read more

Film Screening at Samvedna Senior Care

On 30th September, 2019, Samvedna Senior Care Foundation hosted the 2nd film festival of generations in association with Heidelberg University, Germany. The film Sputnik Moment – 30 years and beyond was screened at our senior citizen centre in Gurgaon for our members and staff. The film highlighted how senior citizens in Germany and the US were taking up second careers to fill their time, engage meaningfully and also get support through additional income. Post the screening Dr. Martin Gieselmann, Executive Secretary, SAI, Heidelberg University and Dr. Constanze, Coordinator DAAD Project, Heidelberg University along with our team engaged with the audience in an interesting discussion on the Indian scenario. Members shared that in India it is not easy for senior citizens to pick up jobs after retirement, however it was interesting to see that many in the audience did have jobs post retirement. They also spoke about stereotypes and social attitudes towards ageing and shared their per...
Post a Comment
Read more