20 tips for traveling overseas with a baby under one year old

It’s been five days since we landed in Washington DC after a mammoth 36-hour journey from Laos, and we’re starting to emerge from the jet lag fog. Dominic only woke up once last night, at 3AM, before waking up again at 6.

Of course, both Mike’s and my sleep patterns are so shot now that when we wake up at 3AM after five uninterrupted hours of sleep, our bodies assume that we’ve gotten our week’s allotment and that we should be getting up and moving on with the day.

It’s awesome.

Shortly after we arrived, I joked with The Traveling Writer that I should guest post for her on this topic of traveling overseas with babies. I said the post would read, in full:

Don’t. Just don’t.

But I know that some of us don’t have the luxury of swearing off long-haul travel just because we’re carrying a twenty-pound black hole of entertainment-need as our hand luggage – not unless we also want to swear off our careers. Or our marriages.

So. For those of us for whom travel is part of life, here are some things I’ve recently learned about traveling with babies (and I do realize that babies come in both boy and girl brands, but mine’s a boy so all babies shall hereinafter be referred to as boys):

1. Carry a U-shaped pillow with you. Yes, it’s bulky. But it’s light, and your arms and back will thank you when you don’t have to support baby weight for hours on end. These pillows can help support the baby in your lap, barricade them safely in their own seat, and you can use it when the baby’s asleep in the bassinet.

2. Bring a partner to lift bags.  Or if you have to endure the torture of traveling alone, don’t be the least bit shy about asking for help from flight attendants.

3. Move heaven and earth to ensure you’re seated at the bassinet. It makes a huge difference to be able to put the baby down when he’s asleep. The bassinet also makes a convenient change table (though make sure you line it with a blanket, first) and even a temporary seat.

4. If possible, have a designated seat for the baby. This is especially important if he’s older than six months old. If you can, take his car seat (and this is particularly important if you don’t have a bassinet). Confirm in advance with the airline, however, that the airline’s economy seat can accommodate your car seat. A lot of economy seats are narrower than baby pods.

5. Pack pajamas and any toys your baby sleeps with in your hand luggage. Logic (although, I have to say, not recent experience) suggests that it’ll help him sleep better if you adhere to his normal bedtime routine as closely as possible.

6. Pack a light blanket or linen wrap to lie over the top of the bassinet to shield him from ambient light (flickering TV screens, etc).

7. If you’re breastfeeding, make sure you drink lots of water during the flight. Drink even more than you think you need.

8. A word about medication: If you’re interested in using medication to help your baby sleep, talk to your doctor. Two options you might want to discuss are Phenergan and Benadryl. One thing I will say, however, is that you should test any medication you plan on using before you use it on a plane. Phenergan, for example, can make some children hyperactive instead of sleepy.

9. Try to sleep yourself whenever the baby sleeps.

10. If he’s eating, pack along plenty of munchie food (more than you think he could want). Food he has to pick up and eat himself is especially useful as a distraction.

11. Pack along disposable bibs and diapers.

12. Do not pack along very noisy toys (loud rattles, toys that make electronic beeps or animal sounds, etc). Those sorts of toys are a bit of a public-space foul. If your baby absolutely needs animal sounds, make your own. Use what’s on the plane as new toys, too. Let him hold and scrunch little unopened bags of peanuts and paw at the laminated sheet of safety instructions (no one reads those things anyway, they may as well be put to some good use).

13. Pack along at least two extra changes of clothing for the baby. Don’t forget socks.

14. Pack along an extra change of clothes for you because, as Mike can tell you, you really don’t want to get vomited on in the departure lounge in Laos with 35 hours of travel still in front of you and no extra shirt to change into.

15. Pack along a spare sippy cup or bottle – you may not be able to rinse them out if they get dirty.

16. If he’s using pacifiers, take along spares as well as a clip on chain to fasten them to the baby’s clothing. Pack them into small Ziploc bags so that you can differentiate between clean and dirty later in the flight.

17. During layovers, help the baby burn energy if he is awake. Let him move and stand and crawl.

18. Nurse or bottle-feed him during take off and landing and/or encourage him to suck on a pacifier. Little ears are even more sensitive to changes in cabin pressure than adult ears. During landing, ear pressure issues can kick in earlier for children than adults, so be aware that your baby may be experiencing ear pain and popping before you are even aware that you’re descending.

19. If you’re self-conscious about nursing in public, take that into account when you select your own travel clothes and/or pack along a nursing shield to drape over the baby while he’s feeding.

20. And, finally, never leave your child unattended in an airport cart, even if you’re so tired that you are seeing double and you just found the comfy chairs that recline.

OK traveling parents, share your wisdom. What have you learned about traveling with babies and toddlers?