Travelling with a Toddler

5 weeks away with a toddler….When we booked it – we didn’t think anything of it.   We’d been away so much with Harper before – this was going to make it 7 countries and 34 flights so we knew what to expect to a point.  The longest we’d been away with her was 2 weeks – when we went to the USA and we had the best time – Harper loved the sunshine, playing in the pool every day and being outdoors.  I suppose we didn’t think about how it was about to be bitterly cold, dark at 3pm and no pools – for a long time.  We did have a good time – don’t get me wrong – we have made so many beautiful memories, saw new places as a family, she’s at an age where it’s so much fun and Harper got to meet relatives she hadn’t before and hang out with our friends and family that adore her.  

In hindsight – we shouldn’t have been away for as long – and we wouldn’t have jumped around so much – that’s what I think had the biggest impact on us – it makes it hard on routine – and with a baby/toddler – routine for us is important, and unpacking and packing with a toddler during winter is a mission.  

We travelled with:

• 4 large suitcases
• A huge pram bag (packed with of course a pram, and other things – coats, nappies, wipes) make the most of a pram bag – it’s a free item so pack it full
• Her Trunki (from the Storknest)
• A Phil and Teds portacot
• A skip hop nappy bag (from the Storknest)
• Chris backpack
• And a toddler 😉

It was a lot – and because we were stopping in Dubai on the way home we needed some summer clothes too. 

THE FLIGHT:

15 months – is a wonderful age – easier in some ways but WAY harder in others.  When we went to the US – Harper was 11 months and not walking – although this made it harder because she didn’t like to sit still – because she couldn’t walk she didn’t have much of a choice but to stay close to us.  This time – all she wanted to do was walk up and down the aisles.  So that’s what we did – be prepared to get your steps up on the flight.  We have learned on holidays and especially on flights – to not force her to do anything – including sleep.  When she was younger we tried to get her to eat at a certain time, or sleep at a certain time – and she’d just lose her shit and then we’d get stressed because she was cranky.  Since then we’ve just gone with her flow.  When she’s tired – she’ll show us and then we’ll get her ready for a nap….if she starts to whinge – I usually know she’s hungry so I’ll bring out a snack – I’ll offer it – and she’ll either grab it straight away or shake or head and push it away – I follow her lead.  It’s a strange environment for them so making them feel as comfortable as possible is key.  I also relax on things, for example, she can watch shows on the iPad – Chris downloaded a whole lot of Hey Duggee and Telli Tubbies (it only holds her attention for about 5 mins at a time as she’s not used to it) and using some aids for sleeping (which I’d never do at home) – I’ll give her an extra bottle, stroke her to sleep, or shush and cuddle – and I make the most of those cuddles ;). 

Trying to MAKE her sit still, or in a seat is just causing stress and will make it harder for you.  Unless the seatbelt sign gets turned on and QUICK find a game to play 😉

Don’t forget to make sure they are drinking on the way up and the way down – whether this is from a bottle, sippy cup, bbox, babies and toddlers can’t unblock their ears so swollowing will unblock them with the cabin pressure.  My tip would be – don’t offer water or a bottle until your about to take off so they’re thirsty and same on the way down. 

Things we took on the plane :

• new toys – ones she hasn’t seen before.  Stacking blocks are great
• New books – it sparks a new interest and holds their attention for longer
• Snacks: pancakes, bananas, boiled eggs, berries, baby corn, muesli bars
• Long life milk – you can buy them in 200ml cartons – no need to really heat as it’s room temperature so really handy
• Sleeping bag and comforter – this will remind them it’s bedtime as that’s what they have when they’re at home in their bed.  TRY and do a bedtime routine – bottle, story, then sleep.

ONCE YOU ARRIVE

Get in to routine as quickly as possible.  You’re not going to be able to control if they’re super tired and need to sleep – but see below for some tips for times you arrive in places:

• If you arrive in the morning:
  • Chances are they will be tired – let them sleep but max 2 hours – that way it’s like a nap – then you can get back into a routine – it may mean a 2nd nap – but try and do bedtime at normal time.  (best to nap then too 😉 It may mean an early bedtime on night one but try not to put them to bed before 5:30pm if you can.  
• If you arrive midday
  • an afternoon nap may be on the cards – but make sure they’re awake by 3pm – this way you can still get a normal bedtime in.  
• If you arrive at night
  • Have some dinner and get to bed ASAP – this is the easiest time to arrive because everyone will be tired.  A bath before bed will help them relax after the excitement of the flight too.  Set an alarm for 8am at the latest to make sure you can start the day at a normal time and get back into routine.

That first day away try and have their nap where you’re staying so you know it’ll be a good nap.  Sleep promotes sleep so if their nap is good it’ll help get them into routine.  If you have a full on day out and about exploring with pram naps – the next day try and be back at where you’re staying for their nap.  Travelling with a baby/toddler is different to prior to kids – so be prepared that you might not do everything on your wish list – but it’s still fun and once the routine is kind of back to normal – there is lots of fun to be had – and then you can start to do more eg: stay out later etc. 

FOOD

One thing that Chris and I found made us the most stressed was not knowing what Harper would be eating during the day.  As you know we love her eating healthy and this can sometimes be hard when eating out on holiday all the time.  It would’ve been super easy for us to always get something like fish and chips as I know she’ll eat it but I really wanted to make sure she was getting nutritious food.  Some tips below to help – meaning you have snacks ready if you’re taking some time finding somewhere to eat:

• Steal snacks from breakfast – bananas, boiled eggs, bread, grapes, berries, pancakes
• Have extra long life milk handy incase
• Google the night before and plan where you’ll have lunch – and dinner – the way you’re not worrying about it on the day. Searches like “heathy lunch places”, “best lunch cafes”, “restaurants with baby menu’s” on google are usually winners.  Also Instagram can have some great info on this.  

GETTING AROUND

We made the mistake in the US of not hiring a car.   This meant getting UBER’s everywhere and never having a car seat.  This freaked me out every time.  There are times where you won’t be able to have a car seat – for example in a taxi, or UBER however it’s not a legal requirement for them to carry car seats, nor is it that a child/baby has to sit in one.  This is in the UK and Australia.  Stupid I know.  This time – we didn’t make the same mistake and got a car for the whole time we were in the UK.  I do suggest pre ordering transfers to and from the airport and requesting baby seats if you’re not going to hire a car from the airport.  We also put the car seat around her if she had to sit on our lap.  

On this trip we also didn’t take our travel pram but our Egg stroller 2 piece.  I knew we were going to be on cobbled streets and need the footmuff in the cold whether and because we were away for so long and napping a lot in the pram I wanted her to be comfortable.  The Phil and Teds Travel pram was great in the US in the warm weather on the streets – but I’m glad we didn’t take it to ol’ London town.  I have also found as she gets older and now she can walk – the carrier doesn’t get used as often. I used it at the airport a fair bit but little miss energy just wants to be involved and walk everywhere – so not necessarily an item I needed to take with us.  

Something we really enjoyed and wish we’d thought of earlier was a bike ride with Harper.  We hired bikes with a baby seat and she had a ball.  This is something you could do anywhere in the world too – a great day out and a great way to see the city and get some exercise.  

OTHER

Whilst in the UK we wanted to make sure we had some us time – and had organised some dinners, and nights out with friends and family.  When we weren’t staying with family – and they could look after Harper we hired a nanny.  There are a couple of different agencies we used – I’ve popped them below – that were reliable, and all the nannies had all their checks and were lovely. Each nanny just had to sit either in the living area of the room or outside the door as we always put Harper to bed ourselves before we left for the evening.  All of them kept me updated  – which was a text saying “hasn’t made a peep” haha.  The hotels can also organise nannies for you as well – sometimes these can be more expensive though so always check out these services first.

Nannies in UK

• sitters.co.uk
• Tinies
• Hugaa

Hotels are also really great with milk for babies – you can just call down to room service and they’ll send it up.  We didn’t get charged for any milk either which was a bonus. 

All hotels also have cots so if you’re only staying in hotels – no need to take a portacot.  We stayed in hotels and with family so we took it – and she was so great adapting to new environments.  I think the trick is to not make a huge fuss about it – and stick to your bedtime routine like you would at home – this will make them feel like nothing is really different.  In the hotels where we stayed didn’t have a living area – we would have to put Harper to sleep turn off the lights and then would just sit on the bed until she was fast asleep. After that we would watch a movie or show on Chris’s laptop with earphones in or read etc.  Luckily most places we had a separate living area which meant we had more flexibiliy.  I suggest trying to get apartments or suites as much as possible so you have that separate area and kitchen facilities are always a win.  Trying to include breaky pre paid in your rate is also a great idea.  Rather than trying to find somewhere for breaky each day – knowing you can go downstairs and have scrambled egg, or porridge etc is a weight off your shoulders first thing.  

DUBAI

As you may have seen from my post – our time in Dubai wasn’t the greatest.  I think I gave it a hard time – probably because we were tired and ready to get home.  We found it hugely expensive to eat, drink and get around which put a dampener on our time there.  However things we did enjoy were – the Wild Wadi Water park.  Although Harper could only go on 1 ride and use the wave pool – it was a fun day out – and would definitely be great for older kids.  We also went to the Oli Oli Kids Museum which was terrific. It takes about 2 hours to get around and has lots of different rooms with different things to do in each.  She loved it and again would be fab for all ages of kids.  Some tips below for Dubai.

–  Get the Experience ME app.  It gives you discounts on eating out in Dubai – wish Id’ done this earlier

• If staying in Jumeriah get half board or full board if you can.  The meal and drinks prices at the hotels there are exorbitant.  It’s worth paying the extra before you leave
• Stay around Deira/Dubai creek -that’s where the hustle and bustle is and it’s easier to get around with the monorail.
• Take/buy long life milk- a lot of places outside the hotel only have powdered milk – lesson learnt.  

We have travelled with Harper since she was 9 weeks old – and every trip has been different – check out my other travel blogs.  It definitely gets more fun – but can have it’s challenges.  I wouldn’t go away for 5 weeks again until she’s older – 3 weeks would be my max.  There’s no place like home – and nothing like a good solid routine.

Love and Life

The Figure x