Tips for traveling with a baby
Monday, August 6, 2018
I have been part of the many mom clubs concerned about flying with their baby, and no wonder – air travel can be stressful without kids! Add a baby and most of us would rather just stay home. But flying with your little one doesn’t have to be a dreaded experience if you follow these travel tips. We flew with Zuriel two weeks ago to Accra, Ghana. Looking back I am so glad that we waited for 8 months before traveling with her, I couldn't imagine traveling with her much younger then 6 months.
Let me start by saying that every baby is different. You of course have to take into account age, etc. (Zuriel was 8 months for our trip) and here is what worked for us. I was so nervous that I reached out to some of my fellow mamas for tips but I had to followed my own instinct in the end.
Our flight from Atlanta to Amsterdam, she slept 6 of the 8 hours of the flight, boy was I happy :), and from Amsterdam to Accra she slept 3 of the 6 hours flight (this was the hardest part. I would personally recommend scheduling your flight around the baby nap or sleep time so that way its easier for you all. Zuriel bedtime is 7:00-7:30pm and our flight was 8:05pm.
Even though we’ve only been on one trip, I definitely learned a lot and am happy to share my tips and things that worked for us!
Consider Your Schedule
Pre-baby you might have shopped for airfare on price, searching for the cheapest fares. With a little one, look for flights that fit your baby’s schedule as best as possible. All the moms I spoked with find traveling during nap time to be the most relaxing for everyone; ideally your baby will be awake while going through security and waiting at the gate, then fall asleep on the plane. If you can’t engineer it quite so perfectly, at least try not to travel around dinner time, when most babies are tired, extra fussy, and prone to crying fits.
Get Pre-Check
These days airports tend to be huge and just getting to your gate might involve getting on an intra-terminal train or shuttle bus, so have a plan for how you’ll transport your baby all that way. Load her into a carrier or bring your car seat-stroller combo for the trek. Most airlines allow you to gate-check your travel system for free, so you can take your stroller all the way to the door of the aircraft. is MAJOR key. I am a Delta medallion member so it work perfectly, plus Atlanta airport have a separate international terminal that is not busy like domestic.
Give Yourself Enough Time
Airlines recommend getting to the airport an hour before take-off; with a baby in tow you’ll want to give yourself an extra 15-30 minutes for peace of mind and emergency diaper changes. Getting through security is the real wild card: it could take a little longer with a baby and assorted gear, or you might get lucky and be whisked off to a no-wait family lane, you never know. We got to the airport 2.5 hours to our flight and had enough time for snacks and chill. Boy, do I love this new sound "those traveling with kids, can board first" (I always get to board first because of my Delta status but it just sounded so lovely). I always thought getting pre-check was a huge deal, but it’s actually super easy and was totally worth it.
Consolidate
Really think about what you NEED to bring and only include that. There are a ton of things on the “need list”, so eliminating anything extra helped to lighten the load and bit. Trust, you’ll need all the help lightening the load you can get! For real though, how do such tiny humans need so much stuff?!
Decide who will carry what
This is only applicable if you are traveling with your spouse or someone who can help, but assigning who is in charge of what really helped us. For example, Tunde was in charge of our carry-on suitcase, the diaper bag and I was in charge of pushing Zuriel in her stroller (we got the best travel stroller: Doona its both a carseat and stroller in one. It may traveling so easy that we even took it on the plane.
Change Baby Before Boarding
Change your baby’s diaper just prior to getting on-board. Diaper disasters are particularly annoying when they occur on a plane, so do yourself a favor and take preemptive steps by least starting off fresh.
Smart-pack Your Diaper Bag
What you have—and don’t have—in your diaper bag can make or break your flight. Write out a checklist of the essentials—including a few diapers, wipes, changing pad, diaper cream, nursing cover, light blanket, extra bottle, formula, pacifiers, spare outfit, a baby toy or two (preferably a new-to-baby one to keep her freshly amused), snacks for you, and water—and pack your bag carefully, putting everything in its place for easy access during the flight. You want to pack a few pacifiers backups and a clip that will attach to your littles outfit and help minimize the amount of times it falls to the ground never to be seen again (because ew). We also packed this chew necklace and she loved it. It’s super easy cause I an wear it and know it won’t fall!
Snacks and more snacks
On the entire flight both the 8 and 6 hours flights back and forth snacks were my saving grace. We used the little teething cracks and baby puffs etc. anything easy to pop in. Mostly it was nice because she could practice her dexterity and it gave her an activity! She is on a routine at home, but anything
goes for flights lol.
Bottles on take off and landing
my fellow mamas gave me this tip and it was truly genius! We gave her a bottle on take off and landing and it helped her ears immensely – I’m talking zero screaming from popping. Something about the swallowing really seemed to help keep them from getting clogged. When she wanted the boobs, I also gave her. We also had the sound earphone while taking off and landing.
Toys and books
Honestly, she ended up being much more amused by snacks (my kinda girl), but the toys and books were nice too. Pack a few that your little hasn’t played with so that it’s brand new and exciting. Is my kid the only one who get amused by empty water bottles and other things and not the toys lol.
Pick your seat wisely
My goodness. On the way there, we were by the window and aisle seats so it work perfectly for us. On our return flight, we had a whole row to ourself (thank you, God), and it was a game changer. I know you don’t always have the choice, but if you can, more space is always better!
Don’t worry
This is much easier said than done, but don’t worry. If your baby cries, that’s ok. Babies cry! I chatted with a few neighbors (babies are always good convo starters) and this seemed to ease my nerves. Feeling like you kind of know someone sitting near makes it a little less stressful if your baby gets fussy. But she did pretty good and slept most of the flight and whenever she tried to get fussy, we walked around with her on my back using the carrier or my African cloth.
Extra Wipes
I knew I was going to want to wipe everything down the second I got on the plane, so I used baby wipes to clean everything (my seat, arm rests, tray table, etc)! Airplanes tend to be on the filthy side—the five-second rule definitely doesn’t apply here. Instead, bring extra pacifiers and nipples in case they fall on the floor, or pack some sanitizing wipes to keep everything that goes in baby’s mouth as clean as possible. You can take hand sanitizer through security as long as you adhere to the TSA’s “3-1-1” rule on liquids. PS: have extra clothes, diapers and everything that is important just incase your luggage don't make it, but thank goodness all our luggage did. Now traveling with a child have help me to be well prepare for any for seen.
A mom’s greatest air travel fear—that her baby will cry inconsolably and bother other travelers enjoy your little one and make memories with them and don't stress!!! So if your baby freaks out, keep calm and worry about soothing her for your sakes, no one else’s.
And relax, you’ll be landing soon!
