It's easy to fall into the trap of spending lots of money on travel friendly toys, or plugging your kids into an electronic device every time they get bored. That's all well and good, but what do you do when the battery dies? Here are some ideas for using what you see around you to help entertain your kids when you travel.
See more: Condé Nast Traveler's Holiday Gift Guide
Long wait at a restaurant? Sugar packets and coffee mugs are the perfect tools for an impromptu game of three-card-monte. Paper cups and a sugar packet work equally well on an airplane.
Those free magazines in the airplane seatback can provide more entertainment than you think. Get out a pen and decorate the faces, go on a scavenger hunt for all the dogs in the magazine, circle every occurrence of the word "breathtaking." And the Sky Mall Catalog? That's the best imaginable conversation starter for an inquisitive child.
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Blog Posts by Gray MacDonald
Five Free Ways to Entertain Your Child when You Travel
By Gray MacDonald | Parenting – Mon, Dec 12, 2011 11:32 AM ESTThe Most Famous Zoo Animals Around the World
By Gray MacDonald | Pets – Mon, Dec 12, 2011 11:10 AM EST
Read More »from The Most Famous Zoo Animals Around the WorldBy Maddie Donnelly, Condé Nast Traveler magazine
They've got fans and a devoted staff, they're all over YouTube, and they fly first class. But these stars are less Planet Hollywood and more Animal Planet. Meet Edinburgh Zoo's newest headliners: giant pandas Tian Tian and Yang Guang.
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The male and female pair flew FedEx Panda Express (this is not a joke) from China to their new home in the UK on Sunday. Authorities so believe that the duo will bring an increase in tourism that they forked over $10 million to secure them for ten years. It's the zoo's hope that Tian Tian and Yang Guang-two of the roughly 2,000 pandas left in the world-will breed and welcome a baby in the near future.
The duo joins the ranks of other animal "celebrities" across the globe that can draw in crowds like a Justin Bieber concert.
Winter the Dolphin
Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Florida
Arguably the most famous dolphin in the world, Winter lost her tale in a
