It is normal to believe that traveling with a young infant could be harrowing on account of disruption of routines like feeding, sleeping, waking etc. But that is no reason to put your traveling plans on hold. You can have a relaxing and comfortable trip if you are prepared in advance and carry all the necessary things that your baby would need, with you. Here are some tips that I applied whenever I traveled with my children.
If you are going to fly, you will need to ask for less cramped seats (normally the emergency exit or the bulkhead) while booking your tickets, so that you have room to keep the baby bassinet. If it is first class, the seats come with plenty of leg room for you as for your baby. Or buy an additional ticket for extra comfort. Use an infant harness like Baby B’Air to allow your baby on your lap and tethered to your seat. The harness also eliminates the need of a stroller or a car seat.
Do a thorough research about the airline you are going to travel in order to find out if they are baby friendly or not, in matters like bassinet availability, heating baby formula and whether they provide a ‘baby kit’ to passengers carrying babies.
Pack your baby’s stuff in a different bag to avoid getting it messed up and for easy handling.
Pack some snacks that your baby loves, as he may be picky about what the airline offers in the flight. Eating food he loves will help your baby get settled faster during the flight.
Carry powdered baby formula as opposed to liquid formula, on account of strict airline regulations. You can ask the stewardess to give you distilled water, to mix the formula in the flight. You can keep one bottle of liquid formula for your baby to feed on during departure.
Pack a couple or more pairs of your baby’s clothes and diapers (depending on the duration of the flight), in your carry on, in case your baby got dirty. Pack some extra clothes for you too. Pack your baby carrier like Baby Bjorn as opposed to a stroller. It will be easy to get about with your hands free while carrying your baby, rather than be weighed down with heavy and bulky strollers.
Pack a few Ziploc bags, kitchen sponge and cleaning liquid for a quick cleaning of pacifiers, feeding bottles or toys, if needed in an emergency.
Give your baby a pacifier during the flight, especially during take-offs and landings, as the sucking motion will soothe your baby and prevent ear aches that can occur on account of pressure on eardrums. Whenever I flew with my children, I would put the feeding bottle into their mouths during take off and landing because they refused to take the pacifier and it worked just as fine.
Carry your baby’s favorite music that you can play on a portable player to lull him to sleep. Take a couple of his favorite toys too.
Complete the necessary immunizations, depending on where and how long you are going, after proper consultations with your doctor.
Make sure there are no empty air bags in your seat, to avoid unnecessary risk of your baby playing with it when you are not looking.
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