The holidays are coming up, and for many families, that means traveling. Although vacations are supposed to be fun and exciting, for parents of young children, the thought is often daunting and overwhelming.
Not only do small children add a significant amount of luggage to your packing list, removing a baby from their normal routine, schedule, and familiar environment can have adverse effects on their behavior and their sleep. However, it doesn’t have to be this way.
It is possible to successfully travel with little ones! In fact, I’ll even go as far as saying, it’s possible to enjoy vacationing with your babies!
An important key to a happy, healthy child (and consequently happy, healthy parents) is good sleep. This is important at home, and it’s important while traveling. If you’ve got a family vacation or holidays travels coming up on the calendar, here are X tips for maintaining healthy sleep habits while traveling.
Pack the Equipment
When it comes to baby sleep, consistency and routine are important. What tools do you use for bedtime at home? If your child sleeps with a sound machine, pack it! If your baby is used to reading specific stories or has a beloved lovey, make sure these important items make it into the suitcase. The more consistency with bedtime routines you can provide while traveling, the better your child will sleep.DIY Blackout Curtains
Vacations are supposed to be for relaxing and sleeping in, right? Well, there’s nothing worse than being exhausted from a long day of travel and being awoken by your baby at the first sign of sunlight. Light is incredibly stimulating for babies. If you’d like to prevent your children from waking at the crack of dawn while you are traveling, and hopefully catch a few more minutes of sleep, bring supplies to create your own blackout “curtains”. This can be as simple as taping a garbage bag or sheets of aluminum foil in the windows, but it will make all the difference.Pack ‘N’ Play Practice
For many families, traveling means the baby will be sleeping a pack ‘n’ play, a wonderful alternative when a crib isn’t available. However, if your baby isn’t used to sleeping in a pack ‘n’ play, it could make bedtime harder. In order to make the bedtime process while traveling as seamless as possible, take a few nights before leaving for your trip to have your child sleep in the pack ‘n’ play at home, rather than their normal crib or bassinet. This will allow your child to get used to their new sleeping accommodations before you are trying to put them to bed on vacation.What To Do About Time Zones
You may be wondering what to do about time changes? Well, that depends. If you are traveling somewhere far with a significant time difference (4 hours or more), there’s a good chance the first day or two might be a little rough while your little one adjusts. Instead of fighting this, plan for it! If you are able to start with a slower, quieter day, it will give you baby the time to acclimate with the time change which will make for happier traveling for everyone! For shorter distances (1-2 hour time change), it can be helpful to keep your baby on their normal time zone schedule.When Necessary...Nap On The Go
Maintaining quality day time naps is vitally important for your baby’s wellbeing. However, with different schedules and activities while traveling, it can be difficult to fit in your baby’s daily naps without feeling like you can’t enjoy your trip. If you’re out and about, naps in the car seat or stroller can be helpful for getting enough daytime sleep. If you little one will sleep in a baby carrier, bring it with you when you go out for your daily activities. When it’s time for a nap, put the baby in the carrier for some much needed shut eye while you continue enjoying your vacation.Plan For One Good Nap A Day
While the above mentioned baby carrier technique can be helpful for accommodating nap time, naps on the go aren’t the highest quality sleep your baby could have. While traveling, set aside time for one good nap per day, meaning your baby should be sleeping with their ideal sleep conditions (i.e dark room, sound machine etc.) If your baby is still taking more than one nap per day, choose which one you will stay home for.
Traveling with a baby requires careful planning and preparation, but it doesn’t have to feel impossible. If you’ve got holidays travels coming up, use the tips to help your baby get quality sleep while traveling.
What are YOUR best tips and tricks for traveling with your baby? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
