How to Travel With Kids for Less This Christmas
Keep kids beside you on flights, pay half-price for child rail fares, and use a fourth-grade pass for park entry.
You can travel with kids for less this Christmas by using family seating rules, child rail fares, and a fourth-grade park pass. Check age limits and booking rules before you pay, so the discount applies. Every Kid Outdoors is a federal program that gives fourth graders plus their families free entry to hundreds of parks, lands and waters.
Its pass runs Sept. 1 to Aug. 31, so a Christmas trip falls inside the school-year coverage.
Verification note: Program terms and availability can change. This page was checked against linked sources on November 03, 2026.
Can You Skip Seat Fees When Flying With Kids?
The U.S. Department of Transportation lists Alaska, American, Frontier, Hawaiian and JetBlue as committing to seat a child age 13 or younger adjacent to an accompanying adult at no extra charge on all fare types, subject to limited conditions (family seating dashboard). Book the child and adult together in one reservation.
Read the airline condition note before you choose flight times. Use these steps to keep the benefit: Holiday flights change gates and planes often. Check your seats again a day before travel and at check-in.
- book adult and child on the same reservation
- select adjacent seats where the airline shows them at no extra charge
- contact the airline promptly if seats split after a schedule change
When Does Amtrak Cost Less for Families?
Amtrak treats ages 2-12 as Child passengers eligible for 50% off the adult rail fare when traveling with at least one adult age 18 or older in the same reservation (child passenger rules). That half-price fare can help on routes where holiday airfare rises. Book everyone in one reservation to keep the age rule clear.
Bring food and activities to avoid extra station purchases.
How Do You Save Time and Money at Security?
The Transportation Security Administration allows children 12 and under to use TSA PreCheck lanes with an enrolled parent or guardian with no separate enrollment (families and PreCheck). That avoids paying for PreCheck for young children during holiday lines. Keep one adult enrollment active for the trip.
Keep children with that adult in the same lane.
Can a Fourth Grader Cut Christmas Park Costs?
The National Park Service notes the federal Every Kid Outdoors program gives fourth graders plus families free access to hundreds of parks, lands and waters for Sept. 1 through Aug. 31 (Every Kid Outdoors for fourth graders).
A Christmas trip falls inside that school-year window. Check which sites accept the pass before you drive. Plan gas, food, and lodging, since entry savings do not remove those costs.