‘Let’s stay close to home this year.’ Like many new parents, when it comes to holidays that’s what Misery Guts and I have said to each other after the births of both baby number one and baby number two.
The thought of packing everything we might potentially need into a suitcase and jetting off to the unknown was simply too overwhelming, and it was almost two years before we ventured onto a plane and overseas with either of them.
Even then I was so filled with dread at the prospect I would rather have just stayed at home.
It’s only now I’m a third time mum that I’ve found the confidence to travel with a baby, so I thought it would be a good time to add to my how-to posts about staying (relatively) sane with what I’ve learnt through trial and error – mainly error – about how to travel with a baby and stay (relatively) sane.
How to travel with a baby and stay (relatively) sane
1. Don’t worry about what other people think. There might be campaigns for childless planes and the man across the aisle might be giving you the evil eye, but you’ve got just as much right to be there as your fellow passengers. Even if your baby’s shrieks are enough to smash glass and their nappies are enough to make eyes water.
2. Don’t try and schedule your travel to fit in with your baby’s routine. All you need is one delayed flight and it all goes out of the window anyway. In my experience the journeys we’ve taken at ‘antisocial’ hours are the ones that have been the easiest.
3. Do your homework. If, like us, you’d rather go self-catering than stay in a hotel then do your research because accommodation that isn’t child-friendly isn’t relaxing for anyone (trust me, trying to craft a stairgate out of a plastic patio chair and shoelaces is a bad idea).
Baby-friendly holiday company Tots to Travel visits and child safety checks all of its villas, which come with free baby and toddler kits (think cots, baby monitors, high chairs and changing mats) as well as barriered pools. So if you want to go to Greece, go to Greece (I’m loving this villa in Zakynthos – bliss!)
4. Be prepared. For example, if you’re travelling at night then get them ready for bed before you go to minimise disruption during the journey and at the other end. There are a number of baby sleeping bags on the market that come with a hole in the back and two-way zips at the front so you can thread car seat straps through, like this sleeping bag and swaddle set we were very kindly sent by Ergobaby (£29.90).
With a tog value of 0.30 your baby won’t overheat in different indoor environments, and thanks to zips at the front there’s no need to unwrap it for nappy changes. It’s also super soft, and all you need to do when you reach your destination is lift your baby out of their seat and into bed.
5. Relax! Since becoming a mum I’ve spent more time worrying about holidays and the journey there and back than I’ve spent on the actual holiday, which is ridiculous when you think about it. The chances are the travelling won’t be that bad, and if it is then there’s always next year!
Have you travelled overseas with a baby? How did it go and what are your top tips for travelling with kids and staying sane?
This post was written in collaboration with Tots to Travel. As always all opinions are my own and I would never recommend a product or service I don’t truly believe in.
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Great tips. We travelled with both of ours at around 6 months and apart from the explosive nappy incident and the horrendously inadequate changing table in the plane toilets we didn’t have any problems. Giving them a bottle or dummy on takeoff is a good tip to stop their ears popping. Also, go with the flow and accept that your routine will go out the window, babies are amazingly resilient so just relax about it x
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Great set of tips! And I love how much more relaxed parents seem to get, the more children they have! I would say if you’re flying with a baby or toddler to consider taking a buggy or a sling with you as carry on luggage. We put our buggy in the hold when we went away with my son and it was a big mistake, the flight was delayed and I had no way to get him to sleep without the buggy to rock him in! x #TheList
Great tips! We don’t get tons of opportunities to travel with our kids, and when we do, we usually drive. But we spend almost as much time preparing for the car ride as for the actual vacation!
Great list! I travel with my son really frequently (he’s currently 20 months old). He’s had a lot of flights now and one of my tips is to book a separate seat for your child. At first I tried to save on airfare since he could ride on my lap – but in the tight confines of economy class we really struggled. Booking him his own seat gives us plenty of space, and now that he’s older and more active he can use his seat as a play area while the flight is underway.
As you said, research is also key – we weren’t thinking and we booked a villa with three flights of stairs. We didn’t have baby gates so it was a constant game (struggle) all week to keep him from crawling up, and then falling down, the stairs.
As a twin mum we went self catering till our children were about two and could sit on their own plane seats and we could fly a bit further away. You do feel like you are packing up the hous! Our children have always been real joiners and we’ve appreciated some time off so somewhere with brilliant childcare is essential for us, number one on my kids list now is a brilliant kids club. Travelling with babies is hard – sometimes it’s a change of scene rather than a rest – but worth taking the plunge. Your list is handy! #TheList
Great advice. We tended to stick to camping when we had a baby as I like being able to make a noise and mess without annoying people. We’re going to embark on our first flight this year so we’ll see how that goes! #TheListLinky
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