After traveling with a baby internationally over a dozen times and on over three dozen separate flights to places in Africa, South America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and the U.S., I’ve determined what the top travel essentials are when traveling with a baby.
1) Baby wrap: the easiest, most comfortable and efficient way to travel with a child under 2 years old
2) Back-pack style diaper bag: it’s critical to choose a comfortable and well-organized diaper bag to make sure things are easily accessible and easy to carry on long trips with baby
3) Car seat: a safety must for any travel that involves cars, especially in developing countries which often lack public transportation options
4) Squeezable organic baby food: the healthiest, easiest food option for baby on-the-go if you’re not able to make your own
5) Portable music: the best source of constant entertainment, engagement, and stimulation for all ages (with lots of mileage)
6) Breastfeeding/ pumping gear: needed gear for any breastfeeding/ pumping mom that is traveling
7) Cloth diapers: the easier, cheaper, environmentally-friendly option for poo containing on the go, especially if traveling to developing countries that lack sound waste/ sanitation infrastructure
8) Point-and-shoot camera: never leave home without one
9) Health kit: this should be tailored specific to baby’s needs, but should include basics such as thermometer, fever reducer, teething relief, and gripe water, as well as any prescribed medicines
10) Wet bags and compression sacks: these keep dirty diapers, clothes, spit rags, or anything dirty separate from everything else, and traveling with a couple of x-small compression sacks will keep extra clothes changes and dirty items compact to save space
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Just discovered your blog. I am going on a first flight (4 hours) with my 4 1/2 month old next week. I feel like I will definitely forget something important!! Luckily we can get whatever we forget at our destination. But your checklist is very helpful. I also read a few of your posts about traveling through the airport, etc.. Definitely a few things I didn’t know, so thanks!!!
Anne- good-luck with your first flight with the babe! Hopefully since your baby is still relatively young it will be a peaceful, easy flight with lots of sleeping involved! I hope the travels go really well for you, and I am glad that you found useful information here. If you think of it when you are back, I’d love to hear from you how the trip went, what you found useful (or not), and anything that may be of use to others visiting the blog! Happy travels!