10 Insider Tips for Travel with a Baby

Don’t get on a plane without knowing the little things only a veteran baby traveler could tell you!

1. Airplane Food: While it is generally rubbish for all of us, infant meals can be particularly unappetizing for a toddler as many airlines will offer just baby formula or a jar of banana porridge as a post-weaning meal.

If your child is anything like mine with a gourmet palette and a taste for fuller flavors, make sure to ask for a children’s meal instead of an infant one.

Further, always pack something for at least one extra meal in case your flight gets delayed. We were recently on an Air China flight that got re-routed because of bad weather and reached our destination 10 hours later. Luckily, I had extra milk and some pasta, which came in handy at dinner time.

2. Back of the Bus, Please: Many airlines will sneakily pack all the non-bassinet babies at the back of the bus, either to not disturb other passengers, or because they think they might be forging a new community of kids during the flight. You’d think that after all we have to go through as parents traveling with young kids, they would have the decency to get us off the plane first! Don’t stand for row 57, ask to be put in the front of the cabin. (Unless, of course you are traveling first class or business, in which case you can skip this point).

3. The Packing List: For a complete list of everything you need to take on a trip, check out my “Everything and the Kitchen Sink” list here.

4. Priority Baggage Tags: Most airlines will put a priority baggage tag on your luggage because you are with a baby if you request one. Always ask, what’s the worst they can say? While you are at it, see which other queues they will let you jump: I have been ushered to the front at check-in, immigration, security and customs! Some airports will also have separate counters for parents with young children.

5. Red-Eye Better: Maybe not for the adult traveling solo, but for the adult traveling with young children, night flights are the way to go if your flight is 8 hours or longer. Once your child is sleeping through the night, they want to sleep at bedtime, so you can sleep, watch a movie, or enjoy your book in blissful peace. On day flights, my 18-month-old is bouncing off the walls and anything longer than 2 hours feels like boot camp.

6. Airline Bassinets: Airlines have different regulations and weight limits for bassinets. See more information here.

7. Bath Books: If you want to carry a few books but are concerned about extra weight (which you should be, because 20 kgs is nothing!), opt for bath books instead of regular paper ones. They are lighter, harder to destroy and easier to clean. You can find bath books in most bookstores.

8. Sucking Prevents Blocking: During take-off and landing, give your child something to drink or suck on so that they swallow to prevent impact on the ears from air pressure changes.

If you are nursing, just pop them on the breasts during this time and they won’t even notice. Pacifiers are great for this purpose also.

9. Two Must-Have Travel Accessories: I never leave home without my Totseat and Fridge-to-Go portable cooler. It’s much less stressful to know that you don’t have to hunt for a high chair and that you can always have fresh food with you, no matter the country or temperature.

10. Clothing (Yours): Never travel wearing light colored clothes unless you want to look like Picasso’s canvas on your way to baggage claim. It’s a messy process, traveling with kids, so dress as if you were going to a paint-ball game, because in some ways, you are! And always carry a change, for everyone traveling because bodily fluids do do not discriminate when they spew. Ew.

Also published at Resu.com.au.