Traveling Tips

Traveling with a baby for the first time can be scary. You want to make sure you bring all the right stuff and leave all the unnecessary things at home. Our first trip with our baby (at 10 months old) went pretty smoothly, so I wanted to share the things that worked for us!

Car Seat

We decided to check-in our carseat so we didn’t have to haul it through the airport. I ordered a car seat bag ahead of time to protect it during its travels. I am so glad I did because I’ve seen some carseats come down the conveyer belt destroyed, dirty, and even wet (if it happens to be raining).

We ordered this one from Amazon and I triple checked to make sure the dimensions would accommodate our Clek carseat. This bag also has wheels and that came it handy to wheel it when we needed to, instead of lifting it. Shortly after ordering this bag I realized Clek has a carseat bag called the Weelee that looks top tier. It even has a handle like a regular luggage which looks like a game changer. It’s on the pricier side, but definitely something to look into if you plan to get lots of use of it.

There’s always the option of gate checking your carseat before you board the plane to make sure you have it at your destination. It all depends how many things you want to haul through security and the airport.

Lightweight Stroller

We brought along our (super) lightweight travel stroller from Colugo. This Compact Stroller is a must-have when maneuvering through airports. It can easily fold and unfold with one hand while holding baby with my other. If baby isn’t using it, we ended up just tossing some of our carry-on bags, purse, (etc) on it so we more hands-free.

We gate checked the stroller right before boarding the plane. I also saw another mama that had the same stroller and she folded it up, brought it on board, and stored it in the over head bin. This is also a great option if you don’t have time to wait for the crew to bring up your stroller after the plane has landed.

Baby Carrier

Wear your baby. I will say it again, wear your baby. This is amazing for so many reasons and the obvious one is being hands-free. Especially if your baby isn’t walking yet and needs to be held. You can wear your baby through security and keeps your hands available to put all your bags on the belt to be screened.

We have this one from Baby Bjorn and give it 5/5 stars. It’s soft, lightweight and can easily be folded up and put away when not in use.

Milk/Snacks

I pre made a few formula bottles and kept them cool in an insulated bottle bag with an ice pack. There’s so many options on Amazon, I’ll link a couple below! Security will most likely test the milk but you are allowed to bring baby’s milk (formula/breast milk) and ice packs. Just let security know and they may have you take it out and place it in a separate bin.

Our baby doesn’t mind cold milk, but you can ask for a cup of hot water and warm up the bottle that way. This might also mean you would have to bring a container large enough to place the hot water in and then place the bottle in so it’s submerged. Collapsable containers are great for this so it doesn’t take up much space when not in use.

Depending on your baby’s diet will determine what kind of snacks to bring. You want to bring items that are easy to whip out, allergy free, can be sealed again, and low on the mess.

We packed:

  • Cherrios/Puffs
  • Bananas
  • Apple Sauce (in a squeeze tube)
  • Berries
  • Muffins
  • Chickpeas
Diaper Kit

We brought along a small diaper kit by Storq that makes changing time so easy. It conveniently is a wristlet that can just dangle and lets you be hands free (very key). Inside the diaper kit we had a changing pad, couple of diapers, wipes, and balm. All the essentials to change that diaper as quickly as possible on the plane; which we know is the smallest bathroom on planet Earth.

The nylon material (of the changing pad and bag itself) is easy to clean with a disinfecting wipe after each use. I wanted to be able to change baby without hauling our larger diaper everywhere, so we kept a stash of diapers in our bigger bag and only a couple in the smaller diaper bag that we kept reloading. This kept everything lightweight, minimal, and allowed for easy maneuvering.

Change of Clothes

I don’t need to say much about this one. Babies are constantly getting dirty so this was a nice way to freshen up halfway through our travels. I’m especially glad we had a change of clothes because our daughter managed to get poo all over her sleeve during a very shitty diaper change on the plane. I mean that very literally. I will mention that I packed her zipper onesies so I didn’t have to fuss with any buttons.

Toys/Books/iPad

Other than snacks, this was the best way to keep our baby entertained on the flight when nap time was a fail. We bought a couple of new books and toys that she had never seen before and loaded up her favorite movies on the iPad.

Or of course you could just bring baby’s favorite toys from home that you know they already love to save a few bucks.

Feel free to share some of your travel tips for all us mamas!