Halton Pharmacy Clinical Team, Leeds
July 20, 2026
6 min read
Reviewed by GPhC Pharmacist at Halton Pharmacy, Leeds
Travelling abroad with children needs more planning than travel for healthy adults and the stakes are higher too. Children aren’t just small adults. Their immune responses, vaccine eligibility, medication dosing, and ability to cope with heat, dehydration, and altitude are all meaningfully different. At Halton Pharmacy in Leeds, paediatric travel health consultations take more time and more clinical care than adult ones. Families often arrive without realising how much needs covering before a holiday or gap year trip with children.
Most travel vaccines have a minimum age below which they’re not licensed or not recommended, based on safety and effectiveness data in younger children. Key age limits for family travel:
Rabies pre-exposure vaccination can be given from birth where needed. A child’s smaller size means animal bites are more likely to land on the face and head increasing the risk of the virus reaching the nervous system quickly. This makes rabies vaccination especially important for children travelling to higher-risk destinations like India, Nepal, and sub-Saharan Africa.
Malaria can progress faster and more severely in young children than in adults. Children under five have the highest global death rate from falciparum malaria.
Antimalarial tablets are appropriate for children travelling to risk areas, dosed by weight:
Avoiding mosquito bites matters just as much as tablets. DEET repellent up to 50% concentration is safe for children over 2 months but keep it away from hands, eyes, and mouth.
Children dehydrate faster than adults, so oral rehydration needs to happen sooner.
Apply SPF50 sunscreen to all exposed skin before outdoor sun exposure. Keep infants under 6 months out of direct sunlight entirely.
High temperatures, activity, and not drinking enough fluids can cause heat exhaustion in children quickly. Make sure children drink regularly in hot climates. Watch for signs of heat exhaustion irritability, tiredness, reduced urination and move to a cool place right away if these appear.
Drowning risk is higher in unfamiliar water. Keep adult supervision constant around pools, the sea, and open water.
Many travel vaccines for children need two doses, spaced apart:
Booking 6–8 weeks before departure gives enough time to complete the full recommended schedule. At Halton Pharmacy in Leeds, our pharmacists offer paediatric travel health consultations and can vaccinate children of the right age alongside parents or guardians.
This article is for general information only and does not replace individual clinical advice. To discuss travel health at Halton Pharmacy on Selby Road, Leeds LS15 7JR, please book a travel health consultation.
Our pharmacists offer fast, confidential advice often without a GP appointment needed.
253 Selby Rd, Halton, Leeds LS15 7JR · Mon–Sat · GPhC Reg. 1039734
It is recommended to visit a travel clinic at least 6 to 8 weeks before departure. This allows enough time for travel vaccinations, malaria prevention advice and personalised recommendations based on your child’s destination, age and medical history
The vaccines recommended depend on your child’s age, routine immunisation status, destination and planned activities. Depending on where you are travelling, vaccines such as hepatitis A, typhoid, rabies or yellow fever may be recommended alongside routine childhood vaccinations.
Protect your child by using an age-appropriate insect repellent, dressing them in long-sleeved clothing, sleeping under insecticide-treated mosquito nets where appropriate and avoiding mosquito exposure during peak biting times. These measures help reduce the risk of malaria, dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases.
Pop into the pharmacy or book an appointment online.
Our pharmacists can provide fast, confidential advice and treatment for many common conditions, often without needing a GP appointment.
253 Selby Rd, Halton, Leeds LS15 7JR · Mon–Sat · GPhC Reg. 1039734
