It has been 2 years we haven’t seen Opa and Oma, 3 years was the last time I was in the Netherlands and 5 years for my kids. It is time we’re taking a trip to the Netherlands. This time it was a little dangerous, traveling during a pandemic is definitely more stressful. What to do when you travel during a pandemic?
Preparation for an international trip
By now, we all know that things change really quickly during a pandemic. Our trip wasn’t even really planned.
My parents normally come every year in May. They were not planning to come in 2020 because of their move. They moved to a smaller house after living for about 40 years in the house we grew up in. Little did we know that 2020 would be the year of the COVID-19 pandemic. We were looking forward to the year 2021 where we would definitely see them…or so we thought. I told my dad, who is an early planner, to get tickets for August instead of May. The chances the borders would be open would be greater…..or so I thought!
November 8th was the date the USA was letting Europeans into the country again. But it was getting cold in Iowa, so my parents were not thinking of coming in the winter. Better wait until May of 2022. BUT THAT IS 9 MONTHS AWAY!!!!
Then we decided that our youngest and I would take the trip to the Netherlands to stay with my parents and do fun activities with my nephews…..or so we thought!
Paperwork
A passport, a valid one.
I have a Dutch passport and a permanent resident card for the USA. Our kids have dual citizenship. In July we renewed the US passport of our youngest, but by the middle of October it hadn’t arrived yet. At the end of October we finally got it in the mail. The birth certificate followed soon after. I had to take that one, because I was planning to renew M’s passport in the Netherlands. We were never able to do that…
Plane ticket
I was looking for tickets from the day my parents decided not to come this year. So I had an idea when the best time was to fly. Usually during the week it is cheaper. Some airlines show a calendar where you can see different price options. We used Skyscanner. Sometimes booking directly from the airline can be cheaper too.
This would be our first year to fly with KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines). Check with the airline which luggage you want to bring. You can add a suitcase or upgrade your ticket with the extra luggage and picking your seat.
As we were checking in, our oldest asked if they could come along. I didn’t even think that was possible, but my husband called at the check-in desk and bought a ticket, just like that, online. Which brings me to the next point.
Vaccination card
Our family went up to Chicago and stayed the night at a hotel. J had a backpack with an extra set of clothes, a book and a laptop, a fanny pack with their passport, vaccination card and phone. On the way to the Netherlands no negative test was needed. At the check-in they online asked for a vaccination card OR a negative test. It was easy for us to show our vaccination card, but then I was thinking that it was still possible to have COVID, even if you are vaccinated, you can still spread it.
We had a straight flight. If you have a stop over in another country, you need to check their COVID rules.
I kept checking rijksoverheid.nl and also the airline webpage.
Health declaration form
This was a weird form. I printed it out at home, signed the paper, but no one ever asked for it. On our way back, they gave a form at the gate, which you had to fill in: vaccinated and/or negative test. They did collect those right before you went into the plane.
Consent form to travel with a minor
To be honest, this one was new to me. And it was the first time I got these forms with me. But it seems that there are 3 documents you need to have when you travel alone with your child.
Pack your bag
As I mentioned before, J came along with only a backpack. Crazy! Just flying across the ocean with an extra set of clothes, toiletry bag, passport, wallet and vaccination card.
At home M and I packed our suitcases for traveling to a cold, damp country for 2 weeks. I had some clothes for my mom and a few gifts for my nephews. We ended up with 2 backpacks and 2 suitcases. Check the airline for the weight for each item. A backpack was 12 kg and a suitcase 23 kg.
This is a list I give to my kids, so they can get their stuff ready by themselves, so I only need to check afterwards. Before they start packing, I fill in the form how much of each item they need to get. For example 6 pairs of socks.
Tip: download the packing lists, which includes a countdown until the trip, a packing list for kids and a packing list for parents. Print them out and laminate them, use dry erasers, clean them after and use them again for your next trip.
Check-In.
A lot of airlines allow you to check in online 12-24 hours before take off. We did that too and it saved some time at the check in desk. On the way back to the USA, we were able to upload pictures from our negative COVID test and our vaccination cards.
Check in at least 2 hours before take off, so you have enough time for security, bathroom break and maybe a bite to eat.
What to do in the Netherlands during a pandemic?
We had enough plans to keep us busy during these 2 weeks, but it turned out differently.
Upon arrival in Amsterdam, we took the train to the south, the province of Limburg. My parents picked us up from the train station. The kids went almost straight to bed. I tried to stay awake to get back on a normal schedule. It wasn’t easy.
The day after, we bought bus tickets to go to a nearby town, to buy some clothes and shoes for J, because they only came to the Netherlands with a backpack. We got clothes and shoes at Scapino and we loved roaming through Action and Hema.
The day after that, we took the train to Utrecht, which was the closest location to get a QR code. With this code you can get into restaurants, museums and other places. It turned out I never had to show it, because we didn’t go anywhere after this day.
Utrecht, by the way, is a fun city, has a cute city center with restaurants and cafés along a river. We walked a good amount that day (good job,M!) and we ate fries outside on a bench. I guess that was the highlight of that day, because M wanted to go back to Utrecht to eat more fries.
We also found a pop-up store called “Peppernuts”, where around this time of the year, they sell mainly covered spiced cookies (“Pepernoten”).
My dad tested positive for COVID the day after….and we all followed with positive tests. And there we were, visiting the Netherlands, the grandparents, their new home, which we now know very well after quarantining for 2 weeks!
A lot of our plans went down the drain!
With kids
We wanted to visit a zoo. The “Gaia Park” in Kerkrade is a beautiful one. Instead we went to a petting zoo close by. No one was there, so we felt more safe than in a zoo.
We wanted to go to a pancake restaurant where they have more than 360 different kinds of pancakes, like “de Pannenkoekenbakker” in Thorn. Instead we ate fries in a cone outside on a bench.
We wanted to visit cities like Amsterdam, Maastricht and Nijmegen to show the kids around. Instead we biked and walked around in the town where my parents live. That wasn’t bad either, because we got some fresh air, some exercise and we found a local farm with a fresh milk dispenser, a variety of yogurts and puddings.
I showed my kids my old high school, the house I was born and the town of Roermond, where J was born.
Around this time of year the Dutch celebrate a tradition called “Sinterklaas”. It’s a tradition we grew up with and it was always very special. I wanted to share this tradition with my kids and I was so happy to be there this time with 2 of my kids to see the “real” Sinterklaas coming into the country and into town on a boat. Read all about “Sinterklaas” and how we celebrate here in the USA right here.
We wanted to play with our cousins. Not only at their house, but there are a lot of indoor play areas, indoor climbing and trampoline halls. But that didn’t happen. Instead we had a nice walk in the forest and after we tested negative, the day before we traveled back to the US, we had a nice evening with them at their house. The most fun part was that M and my youngest nephew were playing some kind of game on the iPad. One was only talking Dutch, while the other one was only talking in English. They seemed to understand each other very well. The one asked questions and the other answered…in their own language!
The trip back to the USA
Our suitcases were full of Dutch treats. Sinterklaas goodies, like chocolate letters, banketstaaf, pepernoten and more. If you cannot get these from the Netherlands, you can make them yourself. Here you can read how.
Keep checking the government websites about COVID updates for the country you’re traveling to. For the USA we all needed a negative antigen or PCR test not older than 3 days (not 72 hours, which can make a huge difference) for the vaccinated and 1 day for the unvaccinated.
My parents brought us to the train station in the morning. We traveled about 2 hours to the airport. The train arrives underneath the airport, so that is convenient. Getting through check-in and security was smooth and before we knew it we sat in the plane.
There was only one extra health declaration form we filled in at the gate. That was all! There was enough room, so J could lay down across 3 seats. M and I had fun playing games on the screen in front of us, reading and coloring. I also enjoyed the creativity of KLM making a little video at the beginning of the flight about safety issues. They made the entire video with Dutch tiles.
I also liked the little napkins with a blue mill on them and the containers with mills, wooden shoes, Dutch boy and girl kissing, Amsterdam houses etc.
After 9 hours we landed in Chicago. The only thing which was inconvenient was the long wait before customs. It was warm and there were a lot of people. Not a good situation in a pandemic.
Anyhow, we were happy to hug daddy who picked us up from the Chicago airport.
BTW, at this time of year Chicago has a wonderful display of Christmas decorations and “a Christkindl Market”. Don’t forget to check that one out next time when you are in Chicago at the end of November up till Christmas.
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Happy Holidays and stay healthy and happy!
Hello everyone,
Welcome to my Crafty Dutch Girl blog! Grab a cup of “koffie” and browse through fun blog posts about our Dutch family expat life in the USA, Dutch history, Dutch recipes, Dutch things to do in the USA and all kinds of crafts and activities. Don’t forget to connect with me for new ideas! “Groetjes en tot ziens”.