Are you travelling with a baby/toddler soon and want to know the must-have baby travel essentials you need for your vacation? These are 10+ tested and approved baby travel essentials you need to know about.
We travelled abroad with our then 15-month-old daughter and we were nervous and excited! Just like any parent we searched for all the baby travel essentials we needed to have a smooth journey and enjoy our holiday. I will be completely honest with you guys – you will enjoy your holiday but you are guaranteed to have some hard days or hard times. We have never experienced so many tantrums until we went on holiday.In this post, I wanted to share some of the baby travel essentials that were helpful and made those hard times a little easier for us. The aim of this is to reassure you that you can still travel with your baby and not be completely put off because everyone says it’s tough to travel. It is tough but some things can help make it better and help you enjoy your holiday as much as possible!. I hope you find this post helpful!
This post is all about 10+ must-have baby travel essentials you need to help you have a smooth and enjoyable holiday!
Baby Travel Essentials
Flying with a baby
Before I get into some of the must-have items for travelling with a baby, I want to start by talking about one of the things that really helped us with our outbound flight and not so much with our inbound flight – which shows how important it is. My biggest advice when travelling with a baby/toddler is to TRY (and I am saying try because it’s not always possible due to availability) to book your flight around their nap times. Our outbound flight was during her nap time. This meant that as soon as we got on the plane, after like 30 minutes of flying, she took her nap. This gave us some quiet time.
However, we struggled with our inbound flight. Because although she fell asleep for a bit, she was overtired as the time she fell asleep was her bedtime. So the car journey back home was full of tantrums which were hard. So, when booking your flight try your hardest to book it during the naps for both the outbound and inbound flight because it will make it just that little bit easier.
Right, let’s get into the baby travel essentials you need for the airport and flight.
Baby Travel Essentials List For The Airport/Flight
1. Tablet
Although this was not the exact tablet we took with us, I tried to find something that was cheap and for kids! However, it will provide the same purpose. The tablet is probably the best and most helpful when travelling with a baby/toddler out of all the other baby travel essentials in my opinion. Before travel we downloaded her favourite show, Peppa pig, of course, so we can play it without Wi-Fi. When travelling, especially during a long flight, screen time and your child’s favourite ‘non-educational’ show does not matter at all! The purpose of taking the tablet is to calm them down and keep them entertained during a long flight. We found this was so much better than giving Ayah our phones to avoid wasting charge and taking it off her hands when we need to use them – this saved us from so many tantrums hahaha.
2. Baby travel bag
This baby travel essential may seem like an obvious one but taking the right baby travel bag is important. We decided not to take our normal changing bag that came with our baby travel system as it didn’t have enough space and would be uncomfortable to carry with us. So we found this travel bag which was so convenient. It has so much space with multiple compartments to stay organised. It even has a section where you can keep your milk bottles in built-in insulated pockets.
3. Travel Toys
Taking 2 or 3 toys will help make the flight a little easier. This is another way to keep your little one entertained if they get bored with watching their show (which by the way is possible – surprisingly). You can either take their favourite toys or new toys. Taking new toys can keep them entertained for longer as they would want to explore them more, compared to if they were seeing an old toy. We only took 2 toys that we found to be educational and entertaining too. The colouring book kept her busy for quite a while as this was Ayah’s first time colouring and I noticed before we travelled her interest in paper and pen. However, as I mentioned above, the tablet was a winner and kept her entertained for the longest time.
4. Snacks
Who doesn’t love snacks? Most babies/toddlers love to snack more than they like to eat proper meals. So making sure they have plenty of snacks with you will help to ensure that they are eating even if they refuse a meal. Ayah refused her meals during the journey (even when we got to Turkey) so carrying snacks with us made sure that Ayah was eating, Also what I found was giving her favourite snacks on the plane kept her quiet even when Peppa Pig couldn’t calm her down. I’ve linked a similar container to the one we took – it has divided parts so you can put in different snacks.
Baby Travel Checklist For When You Are Out And About
4. Travel pram
Before we invested in the travel pram we currently have, we had a baby travel system from Ickle Bubba which we loved. However, as Ayah entered toddlerhood we realised that we needed something lighter. This travel pram was the cheapest one we found and the quality is amazing! Super light too which I loved, especially because of my back pains. This is essential when on holiday because it is so easy and quick to fold when getting on taxis, and so lightweight to push around. It has a decent amount of space at the bottom to fit some of your shopping too!.
5. Stroller Fan
This is not just a travel essential, this is essential in general. Ayah threw so many tantrums when we were in Turkey and I know for sure it was because of the heat. The stroller fan helped to calm her down which helped her nap on the go too. This stroller fan can be attached to your pram or can be adjusted to sit up on a flat surface – perfect for when you’re by the pool or at the beach and they need to take a nap.
6. Pram Snoozeshade
If your little one likes to sleep in the dark like Ayah then I can’t recommend this enough. Ayah never sleeps in the pram because she’s a tough sleeper but the Snoozeshade helps her sleep for as long as possible in the pram. It is breathable and suitable even during the summer. The stroller fan and Snoozeshade are the perfect combos for naps on the go. As I’ve mentioned before Ayah threw so many tantrums, and ensuring that she had a quality nap helped reduce these tantrums which helped us have a better time in the second half of the day. And this is why I can’t recommend the Snoozeshade enough. I also have a discount code for you all to use and it can be used on everything on the website! Discount code: MAMMAG10 for 10% off.
Bedtime On Holiday
Many of you who follow me on Instagram or know me personally know how much I struggle with Ayah’s sleep, whether that is during nap time or bedtime. However, one of the best pieces of advice I read before travelling was to keep the same bedtime routine. Literally from reading the same books to keeping the same step-by-step routine. This advice helped her sleep the same way as she does at home.
Below I will list some of the bedtime essentials
7. Baby Travel Cot Shade
Usually, I would always recommend portable blackout curtains because that is what I use at home and helps Ayah sleep. However, you are most likely not going to know the exact size of the window in the hotel room. So I found a better option that helped to keep it all blacked out for her. We got the cot shade from amazon as we forgot to order from Snoozeshade, and we needed it the next day. The one we got was really good, breathable and kept it dark for her which was the whole point of it. However, if you would prefer to get it from Snoozeshade then make sure to use my discount code to save yourself some money as it is a little pricey compared to the amazon one. Discount code: MAMMAG10 for 10% off.
8. Bedsheets
We took 3 of Ayah’s bedsheets for 7 nights. The reason why I am listing this as an essential is because look at it this way. You would sleep so much better in a different environment if you had your pillow with you. Well, I sure would. This is the same for babies too as it would smell of home. This made Ayah feel like nothing changed when it was bedtime! And alongside her bedsheets, we also took her favourite cuddly toy that she loves to sleep with. So don’t forget to pack a few of your little one’s bedsheets!
9. White Noise Machine
I have spoken about this in my baby essentials post and how amazing it is! A white noise machine is key, even if you are not used to having one at home. Ayah is an extremely light sleeper and this helped block out the noise from when we were going to the bathroom or moving around the hotel room to get things done. Also, a lot of hotels will have night entertainment like the hotel we stayed in, and it was loud but luckily the white noise blocked it all out for her.
Beach Essentials
10. Sunscreen
This is an obvious one! There are so many baby sunscreens out there and I didn’t know which one to choose, especially because I was worried as Ayah has sensitive skin. Thanks to the mum community on Instagram, so many recommended the Child’s Farm sunscreen. And I approve! Fortunately, it didn’t make her skin react at all and rubbed in really well into the skin.
11. Beach Hat
This beach hat from H&M is so cute and does the job too! They’re cotton fabric so they’re breathable and provide good shade too. The one thing I love about these hats from H&M is that it has a strap which keeps them in their head! Ayah hates wearing hats but with this hat, she could not easily take it off.
12. Beach Toys
I will be completely honest with you. Going to the beach with a toddler was not easy, we hardly were able to relax but we did enjoy it overall. Taking beach toys with us gave us a bit of time to relax without having to keep her entertained. It kept her busy and entertained for a while. The bucket was a winner as she absolutely loved filling it up with sand and then pouring it all out.
13. Swimming Nappies
Don’t forget to pack swimming nappies in your beach bag! The last thing you would want is for their nappies to get all puffed up and make your little one uncomfortable. These swimming nappies were really good because even when she made them dirty they still didn’t puff up which I was impressed about.
Other Baby Travel Essentials
14. Medicine
This was probably the first thing I added to my baby travel checklist because it is so important. You never know what will happen when you’re abroad. When we were in Turkey, Ayah started teething badly which resulted in a high temperature. Luckily we were so prepared and had her teething granules and Calpol which helped calm it all down and sleep better.
15. Bib With Sleeves
Bib with sleeves is so much better than the normal silicone bibs in my opinion. Especially when you are out and about and you want to avoid changing their clothes. I usually feed Ayah, but there are some finger foods that I give her and she can get messy. These bibs helped her avoid getting her clothes dirty when we ate out. Also, they wash so easily and can be wiped with a wet wipe too! The best bibs we ever got for Ayah for sure.
I hope you found this useful and enjoy your trip with your little one/s! Travelling with a little one can be tough but some things can help and make the trip smooth. Remember to comment down below your top baby travel essentials!
This post was all about 10+ must-have baby travel essentials you need to have on your baby travel checklist!
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