Expats coming home for Christmas

Living far away is hard sometimes but it becomes super complicated if you need to travel home with the whole family. The holidays are around the corner and expats are coming home for Christmas – Hungarian expats as well. It is always hard work to pack for the family but if you are coming home for the holidays, you are probably trying to bring presents as well and it becomes impossible to carry everything with you. You need to get to the airport with all the luggages and the baby equipment, you need to pack all the gifts for your loved ones and check them in, then collect them and it just seems an impossible mission to get everything organized.

This is not what you want when you have been expecting spending time together for so long. When you just want to sit around the Christmas tree, get your hugs from relatives you miss all year and spend quality time together. So you really need to plan everything in advance as detailed as you can.

Expectation and reality – talk about feelings!

When you first decided to move abroad, it was tough. Leaving all your loved ones behind, starting something completely new, trying to find new friends and just fitting in. Then time passed and you got used to your new life, the new people around you, but a piece of you is still at home with your family. The first thought – right after feeling ‘I wish I could be home for Christmas.’ – is a sensitive question: is your family really waiting for you? Every expat needs to be prepared for changes in the family. Every relative lives their own life and they make decisions without you. It’s hard to see everything has been going on, people forgot missing you or they may even have replaced you. You need to know, you are not alone. It’s nobody’s fault, this is just how it goes. You have probably changed, so have people around you. So be careful with your expectations. Be prepared and don’t expect your family to act the same as if you had never left. Keep the most important thing in mind. You love them and they love you so use your time wisely. Collect as many memories as you can, and don’t spend your time feeling sorry for things you have missed or things that have changed.

Another thing you will need to do is prioritize. Probably everyone will want to see you and you might be happy about it but time is short. Spend it with those who are most important for you. You can have get togethers for friends and meet more of them at the same time, this can save you some precious time as well.

You need to be prepared that even though you have been keeping in touch, probably on a daily basis – thanks to advanced technology – you do not see it all. It might be hard realizing that your parents are getting forgetful, they are getting slower or that you are already late to meet some of your relatives. These are overwhelming feelings, you need to learn to cope with them. So coming home for Christmas will probably be one of the most beautiful and meaningful times of the year but it can be an emotional roller-coaster. And it is not because you are not strong enough. It is because the emotions are so intense and diverse.

Accommodation and logistics – take care of this

If you are coming home, you need to stay somewhere. Does your family have a huge house? Can you live with them for 2 weeks, with your children, etc? Do they have enough bathrooms or enough space? Will it lead to arguments if you stay under one roof or will it bring the family closer together? Will your kids be happy with the situation and can they adapt to another family? There is no universal answer as every family and every situation is different. You have probably moved out of your parents’ home a while ago. You might never have lived with your siblings. So it might be a tense period if you can’t get on well, or if there are little conflicts between you. This is why many expat families choose to rent a place or stay at a hotel and rent a car when traveling home for Christmas. This way they can be present, get to places but still be on their own with their own way of life. In case you were wondering where to find the perfect accommodation, we can help you here and here as both these links lead you to our partners which means you will definitely be able to enjoy our services.

What will you need during these few weeks?

When traveling with kids, you definitely need to make a list and prioritize. You need to consider all the things you need to take with you and the ones that you will need to or can buy back in your native country. Think about the things that take up a lot of space but you can easily get them after you arrive so you don’t need to take them all the way. Maybe the best example is diapers. You need to take many of them, they take up a lot of space but you can get them almost everywhere once you get there. Have some in your carry-on to be prepared for a day or two (you should have everything for a day or two for your child anyways, in case your luggage gets lost. You don’t want to stress on not having extra clothes or enough formula with you), but get the rest after you arrive. Lottirose can help you with this as well. This can save you lots of space.

Christmas survival pack from Lottirose

Lottirose can simplify your packing experience, this is our main goal. We realized that for families traveling with young kids, the biggest challenge is to have everything necessary with them even on holiday. It doesn’t matter if you are traveling for three days or for three weeks there are things you definitely need. But most of the baby equipment take up a lot of space. So we thought we could make it easier for you by providing you with most of these things, this way you will not need to take them all when you are coming home for Christmas (or any other time of the year). You can rent all baby gear from us and consider it your Christmas survival pack. Imagine leaving the bath tub, the travel cot, the high chair, the stroller, the baby monitor and even your breast pump at home, but still having them at your destination. Sounds unbelievable, right? This is why we say, the price you pay is moderate, while the help you get is priceless.

Check Lottirose’s offers now!

Coming home for Christmas!

Take it all easy. Try not to stress on anything concerning your visit, as that can make it a bitter-sweet experience. The decision is yours. Focus on your family and on spending quality time together. Enjoy the little moments. Plan everything, but be flexible to change plans any minute. Prepare for all the emotions but take only the best with you, once your holiday is over. Remember. These few weeks are just 5% of the year. You will need to live on those crumbs of memories for the rest 95%. Spend the advent season thinking: ‘I’m coming home for Christmas.’