Travelling with my baby (1 month to 1 year old)

I am a mother to a 1.5 year old boy. He is a hyperactive kid and the apple of my eye. I love travelling and I love travelling with him. I have been travelling with my baby (trains, flights and road trips) since he was 1.5 month old and honestly, it has always been a lot of fun. However, a lot of new mothers think otherwise and find it a hassle to travel with infants or toddlers. This is my attempt to share some experiences and tips with young mothers and encourage them to travel with their little ones.

6 month old Vidar on board train from Kolkata to New Jalpaiguri 

Travel tips for infants below 6 months

This is the most convenient time to travel with your baby as he/she will have very minimal activity and needs. Basically, it’s eat, poop, sleep and repeat. My baby was exclusively on breastmilk till 6 months so it was minimal equipment that I had to carry along – just the nappies and wipes.

6 month old Vidar enjoying toy train ride in Darjeeling

Train –

• Always choose a side lower seat as you get maximum headroom when you need to sit up during the middle of the night to feed the baby.
• Carry your own sheets and blankets, both for yourself (as you share the seat with the baby) and the baby.
• Try to keep the baby fully covered, especially during the night. Choose a full sleeves onesie, preferably the ones that cover the feet (else have socks). Also carry gloves and cap to cover the hands and years. This is important to protect the baby against the chill in the train compartment and the mosquitoes.

Flight –

• Feed the baby while takeoff and landing to avoid any ear trouble with pressure changes.
• A window seat with maximum possible legroom will be most preferable.
• Keep the baby fully covered during the flight to protect him/her against the chill.

I did 2 train trips (12 hour each) and a road trip (6 hours to and fro) with my 1.5 month old and he mostly slept through most of it.

Fun fact – (this is no secret though) Kids get really sleepy and sleep very well while in moving vehicles. Hurray!

Travel tips for infants older than 6 months (and less than a year)

This is a slightly more challenging phase as the baby now starts eating other things apart from breastmilk (although it still remains the main source of nutrition). Also, his activities increase. However, it is still fun to travel with them as babies this age can be easily distracted and kept engaged in one place. A few rattles and some funny faces generally suffice to keep the baby amused.

8 month old Vidar en-route Delhi in Duranto Train (the train was late)

Train –

•         The side lower seat will still be preferable owing to maximum headroom.
•         Baby still needs to be fully covered while sleeping (she may reject the cap though)
•         Sheets and blankets for the baby need to be carried.
•         Carry a few of his favorite toys (rattles or stuff toys) to keep him engaged.
•         Carry hot boiled water in a thermos flask.
•         Baby food (like Cerelac) should also be carried for emergencies. I say this because I am a big advocate of giving all natural home food to babies. I gave soft fruits (banana, custard apple or chikoo) or boiled veggies (like potato or tomato) and used baby food only in emergencies.

Flight –

•         Keep the baby covered
•         Feed him while takeoff and landing.
•         Try to put baby to sleep as soon as you settle down and he should easily sleep through the journey.

6 month old Vidar enjoying a truck ride at Betnoti (Orissa)

Road –

•         Sit in the back seat with the baby. ALWAYS. (no front seats please – they are too dangerous)
•         Prefer the middle seat as then baby can sit high up on your lap and clearly see the road ahead.
•         Show him the wonderful things passing by and that should keep him engaged for a long while.

Babies get restless when they cannot see outside the car. I personally prefer the middle seat on top of my lap (baby can clearly see through the dashboard) over the side window view. I keep talking to him while pointing him things like cars and trees and animals outside and that keeps him occupied.

We travelled to Puri and Bhubaneshwar (to and fro in train from Kolkata) when my baby was 6 months old, to Darjeeling and Kalimpong (train and road from Kolkata) when he was 7 months old, road trip from Kolkata to Betnoti (Orissa) at 7 months old, Delhi (train and flight from Kolkata) at 8 months old and Pune (to and fro in flight – just me and the baby, first solo trip with the baby) at 11 months old. More about these trips and experiences in the next posts.