Tips for Traveling with Babies & Young Kids
First, let me say this:
You and only you can come up with the best travel plan for you and you wackadoo babies. Kids are nuts. Each one their own special brand of crazy, so what works for my animals may not work for yours. I get that. I hope you know that, too.
That said, I’m more than happy to share what works well for us when we lug three small children across these United States of America. In the past, we’ve gone from Alaska to Virginia. Or Virginia to San Diego. Or Alaska to Florida. And that last one is what we’re gearing up for, yet again: Alaska to Florida.
No, it’s not for our big move to Panama City. That’s happening this summer via road trip! Ugh, I love family road trips so much. If my children cry, it bothers nobody but me—unlike on an airplane where we are in a public setting for 18 hours straight, which I can barely handle as a full-grown adult. I mean, the kids will break down and it will be embarrassing and that’s really the end of that story. Best to go into it knowing the ending.
Wow, sidetracked. Anyway, we are going to Florida this time to embark on a Disney Cruise! Eeeee! Cruising adds an extra element of needing to be fully prepared since we won’t have access to stores to buy things upon arrival (like diapers or formula).
You’ll be shocked at all we can fit into two carry-on backpacks, but it really does work. I can’t recommend this backpack/diaper bag by Walker Family Goods enough when it comes to no-dig compartments and tons of storage.
Here we go! My tips for travel with young kids, ages 0-4:
If you’re a Type A mom like myself, forget your schedule. Don’t wonder why your baby is crying when it’s only 10am and they’re not supposed to get a bottle until 11. Just offer them the bottle every time they cry. If they fall asleep an hour before nap time, so be it. If they take one nap instead of two, such is life. Just follow their lead. Give them what they want.
Let them have screens. No rules. Go crazy. I promise too much screen time on an airplane will not be what makes them depressed or develop a learning disability in elementary school. Let. Them. Zone.
We use these sound-blocking headphones for our kiddos. We don’t even own an iPad, so they watch something on Aaron’s old phone and his current phone and do just fine. We don’t have a fancy gadget to clip the phone onto the seat in front of them but we’ve survived so far.
Speaking of giving them what they want, give them food they’ll eat. I’m not talking about letting them eat 100 donuts and throw a fit otherwise. Ew. Never. I’m saying that if they say they’re hungry and want goldfish instead of “real food,” GIVE THEM THE DANG GOLDFISH. I’m all about a healthy diet. I like to make sure my kids get protein and nutrients so they’re not cranky pants, but do I push it heavily while traveling? No. I don’t. Give them the dang Biscoff cookie. (I’m not sharing mine, though.)
The good news is that, just like us, they usually end up craving real food so it works out fine, even if they ate pretzels for breakfast. I do avoid overtly sugary foods (except the Biscoff cookies) so there’s less of a chance for sugar crashes/tantrums. Here’s a list of kid food I like to bring:
Pretzels. Kids love them and they take a long time to eat. The longer they’re eating, the longer they’re not yelling.
Goldfish. Same as above. Options are great.
Pouches. Get fruit and veggies in any way you can, canIgetanamen?
Gummy bears. I never let me kids have gummies, but these are clutch for take off and landing to pop their ears. Let them go ham.
Fresh fruit. This trip I’ll bring strawberries (soft enough for Warran to eat) and apple slices. Like adults, kids end up craving fresh food while traveling.
Cheese sticks. Enough said.
Banana pancakes. I SWEAR BY THESE. It’s just 1 banana, 1 egg, and 1/4 cup oats into a blender, and voila—healthy mix! We make them into mini pancakes the size of a silver dollar. They hold up well for travel, so we make like 30 (no joke) to bring with us and the kids get their healthy-but-weet “real food” craving without a mess. Plus they’re baby friendly for Warren.
Peanut Butter & Jelly. I’ll probably also bring 2 peanut butter and jellys cut into quarters so they kids have something to stick to their bones to switch it up. As I said, options are great for long plane rides.
Yes this does take up a fair amount of room, but there’s nothing worse than hANGRY children. Stuffing them with food is a solid tactic. Also, we are traveling for 18 hours straight, so this is lunch and dinner and snacks all in one list. We try not to bank on having time to buy food during layovers because airlines loveeee to put you completely behind schedule.
We always travel with what we call “Family water.” It’s just a Contigo water bottle that the kids can easily open without spilling, and we keep it full by pouring in water cups the flight attendants give us or refilling at water fountains. This also fits in car cup holders, so we use it every day.
Anders does sticker-by-letter or sticker-by-number books (sometimes called paint by sticker) nonstop while traveling. We’re bringing 4 of them with us this trip. When his eyes/brain gets tired from screens, these are the perfect repreive.
Paperback picture books. We love these indestructible kind. Even though they’re not intricate stories, Warren and Jo love to flip pages and tug at them and it’s nice to have really durable books. I also bring 2 of their favorite more traditional picture books that are paperbacks. Very useful on the plane and also for wherever you’re going to keep some semblance of a normal bedtime routine.
Baby toys.
Stacking cups are our favorite. They end up getting used by all kids, from baby to preschooler, for collecting things or banging together or making towers.
Teether. The “teether” we’re bringing for Warren will be a pop-it pad so it doubles as mindless entertainment for the older kids, too.
Busy board. This one folds up flat so it’s easy to pack in a backpack.
A stroller! Do yourself a favor and please please travel with a stroller. The Joovy Caboose is the perfect size for travel and Disney approved (that’s a thing). You can check them at the gate, easy peasy. It gives you a “home base” for all the kids and all the stuff as you move through the airport. The trick to traveling with kids is to make your life as easy as possible, which includes not carrying your child or dragging them by the hand. Plop them in and push. Even a cheap convenience stroller is great to have.
Use carabiner clips to clip kid backpacks, toys, whatever to the handles so you’re not hold things. Remember— you ALWAYS need hands free when you are dealing with kids.
A baby carrier to wear your baby is clutch, too, but keep in mind you have to take them out of the carrier during take-off and landing.
Mask chains!! Otherwise when your kids inevitably rip off their mask, it goes straight on a dirty chair or the airport floor. I’ve gotten all of ours from Etsy.
A formula dispenser like this one allows you to measure out formula ahead of time and easily dump it into your bottle. Keep in mind that TSA will let you bring water through security if you tell them it’s for formula!
These disposable placemats will make you feel less gross when your kids are eating on their trays. They’re also perfect for restaurants!
Disposable changing pads are also a must-have for public restrooms.
These inflatable foot rests are really wonderful for the airplane. The kids can nap better in their seats, can’t kick the seats in front of them (as easily), and are all-around far more comfortable/less squirmy.
Really excited about this floor mat for travel! It is also waterproof on the bottom so doubles as a perfect picnic mat outdoors. This way we can set Warren down in the airport between flights and attach some toys to the handles in the center!
We aren’t going to bring it this time, but this portable bottle drying rack is so helpful for when you’re out of town. Drying bottles is a pain and this gives you somewhere to put them after they’re washed. (Don’t forget to pack a bottle brush and some dish soap in a travel bottle!)
We love this portable high chair harness for parents with kids who won't sit still to eat yet (think crawlers or newly walking). You can turn literally any chair into a high chair. We pull the chair up to a table if we can (place a pillow under their hiney if they need a boost), or just hand them pieces of food. It’s much easier than wrestling a writhing kid while trying to get them to eat.
Zip lock bags.
Especially for cruises, having empty zip locks with you is THE secret. You can take cereal or fruit from the buffet to save as snacks in your room or on excursions.
We are obsessed with these black out tents that you can pop up around a pack and play. That way babies go to sleep, but you can keep the lights on in your room so adults/older kids don’t have to feel around in the dark starting at 7pm.
This travel sound machine by Dreamegg is compact and even comes with a “shhhh shh shhh” option so you can set it outside the baby’s pack and play, and they think you’re there!
The “baby monitor” app for iPhones. It’s only $4 and all you do is link it to two different devices (let’s say an iPad and your phone), and one device stays in the room with the baby as the camera/speaker, and the other one is your monitor that you can watch/listen/talk over the intercom from wherever. Only needs wifi!
Keep in mind that you need a safe way to transport your kids upon arrival. This time, we don’t need to pack carseats because we’ll be on a shuttle from the hotel to the ship, but either plan ahead to use a car service that provides car seats, or check yours! Most airlines allow carseats to be checked free of cost. You can also check them at the gate.
Last time, we had Jo ride in her carseat on the plane. If you do that (great option for being more hands free since the baby is locked in), this car seat backpack bag is really great for getting around the airport. You can also put your backpack in the seat before zipping it up to kill two birds with one stone while walking around.
Gosh, I’m sure there are so many other things to recommend, but these are the big ticket items/pieces of advice I can think of! Obviously it’s a lot to travel with kids…especially multiple little ones. Just know that one day you will, in fact, arrive at your destination. And you maybe might sleep again after vacation…but the memories make it all worth it! All I can say is keep those expectations in check and have fun in between the chaos. <3