Journeys with Baby

I flew with my daughter, Alice, twice in her first year. Our first trip, to Austin, Texas, she was 8 months old and still content to sleep on my chest or sit on her father's lap to look out the window. Our second trip, she was 11 months old and much more mobile and energetic. Its a whole different ballgame! That second trip was an international one, a flight from New York City to Krakow, with a layover in Frankfurt. All told, we spent over nine hours in the air or in the airport. Here are some things I learned along the way, and some tips I gathered from fellow travelers with young children.

The Flight

Preparation for your actual flight begins well before take-off. We were very lucky to fly Lufthansa, a kid-friendly airline with amazing flight attendants, toys for the kiddos and baby food on hand. About a month before our trip, we called the airline to request a bulkhead seat and a baby bed. Even if the airline does not have baby beds, try your hardest to get a bulkhead seat. You'll be grateful for the extra leg room and you'll be able to avoid the tricky issue of kiddo kicking the seat in front of you!

Some people prefer to bring a car seat, even if the child is young enough to be a lap child (for most airlines, a lap child is two years of age and younger.) We prefer to travel as light as possible, and since we would not be renting a car, we didn't bring a car seat when we flew to Krakow. When we flew to Austin, we gate-checked our car seat, which brings me to another tip: gate-check your stroller! You'll be able to use it right up until you board, and it'll be waiting for you when you land.

Shweta, mother of 14 month old Sophie, travelled with her daughter for two months this summer, from New York City to India to Poland to France. She says that "parents are generally most anxious to board the flight with a baby." Shweta suggests, for the sake of simplicity, a large, roomy backpack with easily accessible compartments. Diaper-changing supplies, toys, water and snacks were packed into the smaller compartments. In the main compartment, diapers, food, a change of clothes, blankie, and additional toys and books were organized into ziploc bags to keep the contents visible. Several of my friends suggested buying a new toy especially for the flight and not revealing it to the child until boarding the flight. The novelty of a new toy will keep your child entertained for a short while. These toys should be small, easy to clean and cheap.

Shweta also recommends leaving your big stroller at home, and traveling with a lightweight collapsible stroller. She says, "We followed this principle throughout our trip and kept it simple for a fuss-free vacation!" In addition to a stroller, I also brought my front carrier. Using a front carrier makes it easier to navigate through security in the airport, since you'll be asked to remove your child from the stroller, fold the stroller and put it through the scanner. With my front carrier, I was able to fold the stroller up ahead of time before handing it off to my husband, and have my hands free to take my shoes off, and load the scanning table, before going through the metal detector with Alice.

Rachel, mother of 15 month old Massimo, travelled from Estonia to the United States with Massimo, by herself, when Massimo was six months old. She travelled without a stroller, using only a soft carrier. She says "It saved me, but a stroller would have been better. It was basically 24 hours of travel and I had to hold him by myself the ENTIRE time. It was exhausting and having a stroller in the airports would have made such a difference."

For your child's comfort, and yours, dress in layers. You'll go through many temperature changes between the outside, the airport, the plane itself and upon arrival at your destination. Rachel suggests leaving your child's shoes off, if he or she is not yet walking, since you'll most likely have to take them off anyway when you go through security.

At Your Destination

When we travel, whether it's to my parents three hours away or to a different time zone, I try to keep Alice's routine as unchanged as possible, especially when it comes to her sleep routines. I always take along Alice's own bedding and crib companions, so that she feels at home wherever she sleeps. This includes her blanket, blankie and her white noise machine (we use a SleepSheep--great for travel!). I also bring our own crib sheet as well. When we stay in a hotel, I call ahead and request a crib in our room. Most hotels have them--you just have to ask! You'll get either a crib or a Pack and Play. In either case, the crib is likely to use bassinet-sized sheets, as opposed to full-sized crib sheets.

If you have a child that naps well, and will nap in a stroller, you're one step ahead! If your child is very young, schedule your tourist outings during your child's normal nap time. If your child is old enough to enjoy family activities, try to work it so that you (and your travelling partner) eat meals while the little one naps in the stroller.

Since I can't always depend on Alice to nap in the stroller (especially with the time change and jet lag), I was flexible with our time so that she could take her naps in our hotel room. Since I was travelling with my husband, this was a great opportunity for one of us to get some alone time and explore while the other stayed behind with Alice in the room.

Staying Sane

Travelling can be nerve-wracking on its own, but when you have a young child in tow, it can be easy to lose your cool! Rachel advises the following: "relax your standards" and "roll with the punches." At home, I'm very particular about what I feed Alice, but when travelling, it really is necessary for your own sanity to be less picky. If your child has an allergy or your family has religious dietary restrictions, plan ahead! Bring your own food and be sure to request the appropriate meal from the airline.

We know all too well the problems that can arise when flying. When we flew from New York to Krakow, our flight from New York was delayed two hours, causing us to miss our connection in Frankfurt. Our one hour layover turned into five hours. Alice, not yet walking at the time, was desperate to move around but a crowded airport with no enclosed area for small children was not an ideal place to let her roam on all fours. I don't know how we got through those five hours but we spend a lot of time pushing her around the airport in the stroller, and entertaining her with her toys.

Travelling with the little ones can be a great adventure for the whole family, with a little advanced planning and the proper mindset. Happy travels!