--- title: "Travelling with children: how much mobile data you need" description: "A tablet playing cartoons uses more than all the adults put together. How to work it out, what to download beforehand and how to avoid the surprise on the flight." url: https://getgigapass.com/en/blog/travelling-with-children-mobile-data markdown: https://getgigapass.com/en/blog/travelling-with-children-mobile-data.md lang: en site: Gigapass generated: 2026-10-24 languages: es: https://getgigapass.com/blog/viajar-con-ninos-y-datos-moviles de: https://getgigapass.com/de/blog/reisen-mit-kindern-mobile-daten it: https://getgigapass.com/it/blog/viaggiare-con-bambini-dati-mobili fr: https://getgigapass.com/fr/blog/voyager-avec-des-enfants-donnees-mobiles pt: https://getgigapass.com/pt/blog/viajar-com-criancas-dados-moveis nl: https://getgigapass.com/nl/blog/reizen-met-kinderen-mobiele-data ja: https://getgigapass.com/ja/blog/kodomo-ryoko-data ko: https://getgigapass.com/ko/blog/aideul-yeohaeng-data zh-hans: https://getgigapass.com/zh-hans/blog/daizhe-haizi-lvxing-liuliang pl: https://getgigapass.com/pl/blog/podroz-z-dziecmi-dane-mobilne sv: https://getgigapass.com/sv/blogg/resa-med-barn-mobildata no: https://getgigapass.com/no/blogg/reise-med-barn-mobildata da: https://getgigapass.com/da/blog/rejse-med-born-mobildata tr: https://getgigapass.com/tr/blog/cocuklarla-seyahat-mobil-veri ru: https://getgigapass.com/ru/blog/internet-dlya-detey-v-poezdke zh-hant: https://getgigapass.com/zh-hant/blog/daizhe-haizi-lvxing-wanglu ar: https://getgigapass.com/ar/mudawana/alsafar-maa-alatfal he: https://getgigapass.com/he/blog/tiyul-im-yeladim-netunim index: https://getgigapass.com/llms/en.txt --- # Travelling with children: how much data you need and how to split it > A tablet playing cartoons uses more than all the adults put together. How to work it out, what to download beforehand and how to avoid the surprise on the flight. [Home](https://getgigapass.com/en) › [Blog](https://getgigapass.com/en/blog) › Travelling with children: how much data you need and how to split it On the road A tablet playing cartoons uses more than all the adults put together. How to work it out, what to download beforehand and how to avoid the surprise on the flight. **Claudia Ferrán** 10 Aug 2026 6 min Photo by Denys Kostyuchenko on Unsplash In this article › The real arithmetic › What really saves the trip: downloading › How to split the connection › Keeping usage in check without arguments On a family trip the data arithmetic changes completely, and not because of the adults. A tablet playing video can use in one afternoon of waiting what two adults get through in three days. ## The real arithmetic | Who | Per day | | --- | --- | | Adult with maps and messaging | 200 to 400 MB | | Adult with social media | 500 MB to 1 GB | | Child with video on a tablet | 1 to 3 GB | | Teenager with social media and video | 1.5 to 3 GB | A family of four with two children can pass 5 GB a day without doing anything out of the ordinary. That is why calculations designed for one person always fall short. ## What really saves the trip: downloading Cartoons, films, offline games and music, all downloaded at home over wi-fi. That is what turns nine hours of flying and three hours of waiting into quiet time without spending a single megabyte. 1. Download several hours of material per child, not one. 2. Check BEFORE leaving, with the device in aeroplane mode, that it plays without a connection. 3. Download the games too: many of them need a connection to start even though they do not use one afterwards. 4. Take headphones for each of them and a splitter if the device is shared. Point two saves the most grief: some apps treat something as downloaded and then ask for a connection to open it. ## How to split the connection Two options, and the choice depends on whether the group splits up. - One big plan on a phone that shares with the rest: simple, and it leaves everyone hanging on that battery. - One plan per device: more independence, and usually better if there are teenagers with their own phone. What to know when sharing a connection is in [sharing internet from an eSIM](https://getgigapass.com/en/blog/tethering-with-an-esim). ## Keeping usage in check without arguments The phone's parental controls let you limit data use per app and set time limits. Setting that up before leaving avoids the conversation at the airport, which never goes well. If a child's phone goes missing, the same applies as with an adult's: locate, lock and tell the operator. Having their details written down beforehand saves half an hour in a bad moment. Know where you're going? Pick your destination, days and data. Install it before you leave and pay once. [See destinations](https://getgigapass.com/en#destinos) Claudia FerránLong trips and remote work She has worked from wherever she happened to be for six years. She works out the data for a trip the way you'd work out the petrol, and she rarely gets it wrong. ## Frequently asked questions **How much data does a family need on a trip?** Between 3 and 6 GB a day with two adults and two children, mostly because of video on the tablets. Calculations designed for one person fall short. **What should I download before the flight?** Several hours of cartoons or films per child, music and offline games, and check in aeroplane mode that everything opens without a network. **Better one big plan or one per device?** One big shared plan is simpler; one per device gives independence and is usually better if there are teenagers with their own phone. **How do I stop the data running away?** With the phone's parental controls, limiting use per app and setting video quality to saver mode before leaving. **And if a child's phone goes missing?** The same as with any other: locate, lock remotely and tell the operator. Write their details down before travelling. ## Keep reading - [On the road](https://getgigapass.com/en/blog/slow-hotel-wi-fi) | Hotel wi-fi: why it is bad and what you can do | 5 min - [On the road](https://getgigapass.com/en/blog/internet-on-long-train-journeys) | Long trains and coaches: how to get through with your phone | 5 min - [On the road](https://getgigapass.com/en/blog/internet-in-rural-areas) | Internet in the countryside and the mountains: what to expect | 5 min