Flying with a baby can seem intimidating. I’m sure we have all experienced crying babies on planes and don’t want to be THAT parent. There are a couple of things you can do to make traveling easier for you and your baby. I mean, your baby can travel for free before the age of 2 years old so why not take advantage of it?!
Our first flight was to Chicago when our daughter was 4 months old. Everything went smoothly. Since then we have traveled on 6 domestic flights and 4 international flights.
Here are a couple tips:
Flight time:
The first thing is to book a time that works for you and your little one. If you know your baby takes a nap around a certain time, that’s the time you want to be up in the air. You don’t have to time it perfectly but it really does help. It’s nice to have a sleepy baby on the plane.
Traffic:
Another thing to consider is traffic. You are already going to be sitting on a plane so sitting in traffic should be the last thing you want to deal with. We did this once, we booked a flight around rush hour and it was so stressful getting to the airport. Never again!
These items have been must haves for our diaper backpack at airports/flights:
- Skip Hop Pronto Signature Portable Changing Mat: its easier to carry this into tiny airplane bathrooms rather than a full diaper bag. It comes with a
build-in pillow for your baby and holds diapers and wipes. - A change of clothes for you and your baby: As you already know things can get messy with babies the last thing you want is for you or your baby to be stuck with dirty clothes. The number of blowouts has decreased since switching diapers but you never know if a baby might spit up.
- Gallon Ziplock bags: On the note above, it would be helpful to have a ziplock bag to store soiled clothes.
- Toys: Pack a couple of toys to keep your baby occupied, especially if they are teething.
- 2-3 pacifiers: We learned this the hard way. On one of our trips to Mexico, we dropped our daughter’s ONLY pacifier. It was awful! Luckily we were able to find one the next day at the airport and “sanitized it” by leaving it in hot tea water for 5 minutes. Pacifiers also help prevent their ears from popping when ascending and descending if your baby is not hungry. So keep them handy.
- Hand sanitizing wipes: I have used these to keep our hands and babies hands clean. We have also used them to wipe seats, handrest, and foldout table. The second step might not be a must for you but since we were traveling during flu season we were trying to keep things clean. It’s hard enough having the same recycled air.
- Formula Dispenser: If you are supplementing or formula feeding this is extremely helpful. You can have the formula pre-measured and ready to go so that all you have to do is pour it in a water-filled bottle with the built-in funnel.
Global Entry:
Having Global Entry makes TSA and US Customs quicker. I highly recommend getting this for you and your child so you can make the time at the airport as seamless as possible. NOTE: If you have American Express, this is a service you can get for free.
Stroller Bag:
We have been using our
Good to know:
- Passports are required when traveling internationally.
- Airlines occasionally issue a seat for your baby if you ask.
- Some airlines require birthcertificate
I hope this encourages you to travel with your baby. If you have any additional question that I might not have covered, feel free to comment below or email me. I would be happy to help!
If you would like to check out other posts like this click here. Happy travels!
