Travel hacks from eight parents who’ve mastered air travel with a baby
By Marygrace Taylor
Remember the nervous feeling you had the first time you packed your diaper bag for a trip to the market with your brand-new baby? If you’re prepping to bring your little one onto their first plane ride, you might be experiencing some déjà vu.
After all, you’re trying to balance being prepared for feedings, naps or sleep, fussing, diaper changes, and the unexpected mess or meltdown—without feeling like a pack mule. It’s not easy!
But it is possible, say parents who’ve logged extensive travel-with-baby experience. Here, eight parent pros share the items you’ll want in your carry-on, plus the handful of things you probably don’t need to worry about.
Spare Outfits (for Everyone)
“My first time flying with my son, he vomited on me in the parking lot, and both of us needed to change before we got through security. And we also had a blowout destroy another outfit before we even got on the plane,” says Kate Wehr, a mother of five kids ages 5 to 13 based in Deer Lodge, Mont. The lesson? Bring a change of clothes for your baby—and yourself. That includes underwear (for you) and a change of socks (for you and your baby).
Tuck the outfits into 1- or 2-gallon zip-top bags, recommends Madlynn Schreibvogel, a Denver-based mom who frequently flies with her 4-year-old, 3-year-old, and 7-month-old. Separate plastic bags for spare clothes make them easier to grab when you need them; plus, as Schreibvogel says, “you’ll have a place to put dirty or wet clothes, so your carry-on bag doesn’t smell.”
Plenty of Diapers—and the Right Diaper Bag
It’s the first rule of traveling with a baby: Bring more diapers than you think you will need. “Plan for delays, missed flights, and mid-air poopsplosions by bringing one diaper for every hour of travel,” says Kristin Valentini, a Northville, Mich., travel writer who did a cross-country solo flight with her 4-month-old daughter (and has since continued to travel regularly with both of her kids, now in their early teens).
And consider investing in a backpack-style diaper bag for your trip. The double straps mean you won’t have a shoulder bag sliding down your arm every time you have to bend over as you move through the airport, says Alice Wu, who took her first flight with her now 9-year-old when they were 11 months old. Make sure the diaper bag has a side pocket with a removable wipes case that you can grab without removing the backpack, because you’ll be using them for more than diaper changes (just like at home). “Putting down your bag to unzip it, search for, and grab a wipe takes too much time,” says Wu, who also recommends bringing extra wipes for refilling the case.
Finally, tuck a thin changing pad in your diaper bag. It’s nice to have for the airplane bathroom changing table—and even better for all of the impromptu places you might end up doing a diaper change. “I’ve been that parent who’s changed diapers on the floor of an airport,” says Conz Preti, a mom of three kids ages 6 and under who first flew with her oldest son when he was 3 months old.
A Ton of Snacks
Having a variety of little nibbles won’t just keep your older baby or toddler from getting hangry; it’s a source of entertainment. “The hardest age to travel with is that 14- to 20-month-old phase where they don’t want to sit in the seat. The No. 1 thing that made a difference was food,” says Suzanne Brown, a mom of two older boys based in Austin, Texas, who began flying with them when the oldest was around 14 months old.
Dani Lebovitz, RD, who’s been traveling internationally with her three girls since the oldest was 4 months old, packs a variety of shelf-stable options that are easy for her kids to eat independently. “I bring a combination of nutrient-dense options and fan favorites,” she says. Think freeze-dried and dried fruits, applesauce pouches, shelf-stable yogurt pouches, tuna kits, dried seaweed, dried edamame, snap pea chips, cereal, and granola bars. “I also include some novelty items like lollipops, chocolate, gummies, chips, and crackers,” says Lebovitz. “I keep snacks in a reusable zipper bag in my diaper bag backpack to keep everything organized.”
Lebovitz likes to let her kids pick from one of two snack options at a time rather than giving them carte blanche. “It provides autonomy of choice while preventing a snack buffet,” she says. To keep portions and messes in check, she’ll put the chosen snack in a reusable, toddler-sized snack cup.
If your baby takes formula, pumped milk, or baby food, pack an extra day’s worth to ensure you’re covered for delays or cancellations. “TSA liquid rules do not apply […] so I always err on being over-prepared,” says Lebovitz, who recommends bringing milk bags or bottles stored in 2- to 3-ounce portions because they’re easier to warm.
Finally, remember to bring some food for yourself and a refillable water bottle. If the drink service comes around when your baby is asleep in your arms, “you’re not moving to scratch an itch, let alone reach for a ginger ale,” Valentini says. Pack snacks you can eat one-handed and keep a drink in your diaper bag. When the time is right, you’ll have what you need to tide you over.
Fun and Travel-Friendly Playthings
A variety of toys and playthings can help keep your older baby or toddler (who would rather be running up and down the aisles) happy in their confined space. “We’d basically bring a new thing out like, every hour. That meant we had to carry a lot of things, but they didn’t have to be huge,” Brown says.
Window clings, those reusable gel window stickers that come in all kinds of themes and designs, were a big hit with Brown’s kids when they were toddlers, because they’re tiny and practically weightless. Preti would hit the dollar store for crayon packs, coloring or sticker books, stuffies, or mini building sets that she could stash in a plastic container and dole out one at a time. “Just a lot of variety because their attention spans are so short,” she says.
Schreibvogel’s go-to was busy backpacks, which are small and lightweight enough for older toddlers to carry on their own. “They have clips, zippers, laces, and other small activities sewn onto them to keep little fingers busy,” she says. And with the activities attached to the bag, there are no pieces to lose.
Sleep Gear
One thing that Preti brought along on her first flight with her infant son, that she didn’t expect she’d actually use, was a travel-sized white noise machine. “It was small enough to throw in the backpack, and it really came in handy. I put the sound machine next to him and it kept him asleep the whole flight,” she says.
As for where your baby should snooze? A flight-approved car seat is the safest way for your baby to travel whether they’re asleep or awake, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and a slew of other expert organizations. But if you’d rather hold your baby, Preti had success with having her son sleep on an inflatable pillow placed on his seat.
One thing to avoid: having your little one sleep on the floor by your feet, especially for long stretches where you’ll be sleeping, too. “It’s so dangerous. It gets super-cold on the floor, and if the seat belt sign goes on, the child isn’t wearing a seat belt,” says Pat Sullivan, who worked as a New York-based Delta flight attendant for 41 years before retiring in 2020.
A Few More Essentials
Aside from the biggies, here are a few more items flight-savvy parents said they always take along.
Spare blanket: Bring your own rather than relying on the airline, so you can have it before and after your flight, too. “Rolled up, it acts as a soft prop for your tired arms as you hold a sleeping baby. If it’s chilly on the plane or where you land, you can use it to keep your child warm. It can also be a nursing cover or thrown on the floor during a layover so your baby has a place to stretch out,” Valentini says.
Doggie poop bags: They’re ideal for containing messes, and a roll of 100 or so bags is tiny and lightweight. “You can double wrap dirty diapers on the plane or in the hotel room,” Brown says.
Nail clippers: Baby nail clippers make easy work of opening any kind of plastic packaging, which is helpful for all travelers, but especially frazzled parents. “When we bought Motrin for my wife [on a recent trip], we physically could not open the pill package until the clippers came out,” says Christopher Mannino, an author and parenting coach who’s flown with his now 8- and 5-year-olds since they were babies. Plus they’re TSA-approved, so they won’t get flagged in the security line.
What to Skip
Most of the parents we spoke with agreed that it’s better to be overprepared than underprepared when flying with a baby. (Peace of mind can be priceless!) That said, there are a few big items you might want to avoid lugging around if you can help it.
First up is a big, bulky stroller. “We brought a full-sized stroller [on our first flight] because we didn’t have a travel stroller. It was a pain in the butt to fold and check at the gate,” says Preti. “And looking back I could have just worn my son in the carrier instead.”
Also, if you’re a nursing mom and you’re traveling with your baby, it’s probably okay to pack your full-sized breast pump (which doesn’t typically count toward your carry-on allotment) in your checked bag instead of bringing it onto the plane. “When I exclusively pumped, I’d bring a manual pump on the plane in case of a delay and pack the pump in the suitcase,” Preti says.
Last but not least: If you realize on your way to the airport that you spaced on something important, there will still be opportunities to get what you need. “I realized that if I’m running low on something, I can just buy it at the airport,” says Preti.
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