Tips for Traveling with Baby

[kimebies]

Whenever we go out with my kids in tow, I always instruct the yayas to bring Lysol wipes and baby wipes. Now, whenever they'll pee in public restrooms-- doesn't matter if pay restroom or not, we satize everything that would touch their skin first before they do their thing.
Even in restaurants, sanitize the tables and chairs first before you sit just to make sure it's clean and safe for the little ones.

[Priceless]

^I like this. I bought clorox disinfectant wipes to wipe the public diaper changing tables as well as the surfaces sa toilet sa plane, pati na rin ang baby chair (the restaurants don't clean them well enough!). Kasama na itong clorox wipes sa kanyang travel kit.

For his fingers I buy dettol wipes but I try not to use sanitizer directly on his skin pa kasi he's too young for that I think, baka ma-dry masyado ang skin nya. Other than before eat or when he goes to the loo, I try not to be over the top in sanitizing everything kasi I want my baby to be able to build his own immunity against common illnesses.

That said, there was an article that came out lately, I think it was an immunologist in the UK that said that our obsession with cleanliness has weakened our immune systems. And he was saying that this is also the culprit for the rising numbers of children and adults that have allergies.

[kimebies]

I agree, the tables kasi they wipe it with the same thing over and over-- mabuti sana if they wash it after every use eh hindi naman. I am also very particular with hand-washing. I insist that my kids would wash their hands before and after eating and whenever they'd go to the bathroom.

[chuy]

I also sanitize the high chair when we eat at restaurants. Akala ko ako lang gumagawa nun. I bring alcohol (in a spray bottle) all the time. Yung ethyl alcohol lang kasi masyado matapang na kapag isopropyl. For me kasi mas OK kapag alcohol kaysa yung alcohol-free hand sanitizers and it's also a good alternative for soap and water if they're unavailable.

[oreo08]

what are your tips naman for entertaining your babies (aged 1 yr and above) onboard? Of course very active na sila and gusto lakad lakad, crawl, kalikot ng kung ano ano... how do you do this if more than 8 hours ang flight?

do you also forego your normal routine like if she needs to nap once in the morning and in the afternoon, wala na muna and wait na lang until she gets tired?

and how do your babies sleep on red eye flights?

please share naman your experiences about this

I am dyingggg to travel with our little one but my husband and I medyo nahirapan from our last trip kasi she refused to be put down in her bassinet the whole flight from Singapore to Australia. Red eye yun flight so di nakatulog ang asawa ko talaga

[Priceless]

^Hi Oreo, ako ulit!

We've just completed another long haul trip (12+ hrs) and here are my tips:

1. If baby/toddler is already walking, bring a baby harness along. Mahilig talaga sila maglakad lakad at sasakit ng husto ang likod mo if you bend to hold them and support them. Hubby was in charge of walking him around the cabin and the galley area when the baby got antsy na. This is a great way for them to burn energy. Hopefully baby is smiley and friendly - most passengers react positively naman to a smiling baby.

2. If budget permits, travel business class or premium economy because the space really makes a lot of difference. Depending on the airline, they won't give you a separate seat for the baby and if it doesn't make sense to bring a car seat along (if they're not giving you a spare seat for baby, then there's no point for a car seat - unless you're paying for a seat for baby), it's better that you are able to recline your seat as much as you can or at least, lift the arm rest so that baby can sleep across the seats on your lap. If in business, you can lie the bed flat (some airlines), and your kid can sleep very comfortably.

3. If she doesn't follow her usual sleeping pattern, that's okay. Expect her to be out of sorts (especially when jet lag is involved) for a few days. We traveled at during the day (did not work for us), we've traveled mid day (sort of worked), and also night, although not red eye flight. I think the one that worked best was the early evening flight. As usual, he had his meal, then a story time, konting play, then he slept according to his schedule - which was about 7 hours straight. After that, konti nalang flying time, which was spent watching the video, eating, playing with the magazines, etc.

4. Inflight entertainment - bring books (if she likes books), toys (her favorite toy), a new toy (gadget or something to keep her busy figuring new features, etc), download apps on your ipad or phone. I had to apologize to SQ kasi napunit ng anak ko yung mga inflight magazines and menu - pero if that kept him busy, then the flight crew were just happy to oblige.

5. Inflight meals - I mistakenly ordered a meal for my son. A big lesson learned. He hated it. As in pati kami when we saw it, hindi talaga sya appetising, itsura pa lang. When I tasted it, yuck din. Good thing they also have baby food in jars, so humingi nalang ako nun. And I had him eat the mashed potato from my meal. And we also asked for a spare adult meal din. My suggestion is to bring your own food - preferably sealed well if you are going through customs/airport inspection, or just pre order a kid's meal or an extra adult meal. You can then either mash or cut the food into sizes that your child will be able to handle.

6. Bassinet - hay naku. Ako din give up na ako dito. Hindi talaga umupo man lang sa bassinet ang little boy ko, so naging extra compartment nalang sya kung saan ko nilagay ang diaper bag nya, etc. If space is not an issue (see point #2), then keep the bassinet - you never know baka magbago sya ng isip. In any case, most airlines will ask you how heavy your child is, if beyond a certain weight (14 kgs for SQ if I remember correctly), they won't give you a bassinet.

7. Toilet & Nappy Change - This is a little bit trickier than handling a younger baby. My baby no longer lies down when getting changed and insists on standing up. And of course the nappy changing table is usually higher than usual plus the ceiling of the toilet is not really that high so, either mauumpog si baby or naka yuko sya. I had no choice but to put the toilet seat and lid down and let him stand on it. I hung the nappy kit sa hook by the door, and then used up a lot of the tissue paper and the towels as part of the whole process. My boy wanted to touch everything pa, so I had to make sure that whilst I was changing him, I had to keep an eye on both his hands and then make sure that he was all balanced and standing comfortably on top of the toilet lid. Once I've finally finished changing him, I give him back to hubby so I can then tidy up the toilet (throw the dirty nappy, used tissues, wipe the basin, etc.).

If I think of anything else, I'll post later!

[oreo08]

thanks again for the tips! where did your son sleep sa plane kung hindi sa bassinet? I tried to buy seats for my daughter AND reserve a bassinet pero di daw pwde according to Singapore Airlines. I was thinking kasi na at least may choice sya pag sleep time na.

[oreo08]

UPDATE:

so my husband and I travelled with our then 14 month old daughter
Australia to Singapore
- since our flight was during the day, she mainly just played on the plane... we didn't mind. She did get cranky when she wanted to nap. Ayaw nya at first sa bassinet but nung nakatulog sya na karga ng Dad nya, nababa naman namin sya and nakatulog ng mga 1 hour sa bassinet

Singapore to Australia
- this was a red eye flight so 12mn to 9ish am (in Australia); happy to report she slept the whole flight and nagising lang sya nung descent. Tamang tama kasi kukunin na nung FA yun bassinet nya

whew!! I got worried for nothing!

[chichigurl]

I will be travelling alone with my 8 month old baby on a 13 hours flight ( this is for our return flight na) i'm worried na hindi ko kayanin mag isa since long haul talaga ang flight namin. Nagsisisi talaga ako na hindi nalang ako sumabay kay hubby.  Hubby will be travelling 2 weeks early. He was insisting na sabay na kami kaya lang i wanted to stay longer and sulitin ang bakasyon. Sabi ko kaya ko naman mag isa ( halatang i wasn't thinking clearly hehe )  and now na nahimasmasan na ko, i cannot reschedule our ticket because we got it on promo. Huhuhu

Mga mommies, have you been on a situation like this? What did you do to make it easier? Also, paano pag say you need to go to the washroom? Did you bring baby with you or did you just let the FA look after baby for a few minutes? Do they do that?  Thank you

[LGV]

About to give birth early next year magback read muna ako. Excited lang itravel si baby pero hindi muna sa super layo

[Priceless]

^^chichigurl, not that I have tried traveling by myself with my son, but most cabin crew would be happy to look after your son while you are in the loo. But I also suggest you befriend your seat mate, kasi syempre he/she will have to bear with your child's "inflight entertainment", and of course, if nature calls na wala yung cabin crew (they might be on break or looking after other passengers), then you have someone to ask for help kahit sandali lang.

[bagaholic_chewy]

Travelled with hubby and 5.5month old baby recently, first time with baby. HK lang though, so malapit lang. Parang "test flight" namin.

Nung pauwi na, ayaw ni baby magpahawak sa Daddy nya so when I had to pee, kasama ko sya. Good thing is, I babywear. So I had her in my SaYa while I peed sa airport and sa tiny airplane lavatory. Buti na-try ko na gawin dati sa mall so di na ako gaanong nahirapan. When I'm using the SaYa or the mei tai, kaya ko to pee (or do other things) with baby. Kasi pwedeng hands-free and above my waist si baby.

Back to topic:
I made sure I have in my handbag some of her favorite toys to distract her - like her key teether and rattle (the soft-sounding kind ha, not yung maingay na makakaistorbo ng ibang passengers). That helped me keep her occupied, not only during the flight, but also during train rides, while we're having lunch/dinner at nasa stroller sya, etc.

In addition, I babywear but I still brought an umbrella stroller. Default is nasa stroller sya pag nag-iikot na. Pag naging fussy or naglalambing at gusto pakarga or pag nasa super crowded place, then I wear her. The stroller then became a dumping place for our shopping bags, etc. So me silbi pa din. Convenient din sa airports kasi you can use it hanggang sa door ng plane. And no need to fold and take baby out during security checks.

Another thing that made our trip convenient is that I am breastfeeding my baby. So no water, formula, etc to think of and lug around. I brought a few bottles to store bm and to feed using pumped milk (like when naliligo ako or something and I had to leave her with her Daddy, baka bigla magutom). Pag nasa mall kami, I usually look for their Baby Care room (good thing most HK malls and HKIA have this) so I can bfeed in a quiet and relaxing setting. I also tried bfeeding in public there (I always wear nursing-friendly clothes when I'm out with baby so I can feed her discreetly. And my husband makes sure din na di ako nakikitaan when I do this). I don't really use a nursing cover kasi ayaw ni baby na natatakpan sya and feeling ko mas obvious pa nga if you have a nursing cover draped over baby. I just use a lampin to cover up, if needed (like when baby latches on and off). I also have a nursing loop (looks like a scarf lang) so sometimes I use that to cover up.

I also packed baby's "medical kit" sa check-in. Nail-cutter, nasal aspirator, thermometer, medicine prescribed by pedia (in case magkasakit), topical cream (for bites, rashes, etc).

And aside from alcohol, I also brought Lysol disinfectant spray, which I use everytime I needed to change baby's diaper. I spray it on the changing table and wipe it down with tissue, before I put the changing pad and lay my baby.

[DV]

^Lysol wipes might be better and more convenient. Those disinfectant sprays are not safe to use around babies; they can inhale the tiny particles. Most aerosols are also banned on aircrafts. Just a suggestion.

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ I was able to bring it on-board naman on both flights via PAL. It's small lang kasi and the spray circumference is not malawak naman so I'm pretty sure walang na-inhale si baby.

Anyhow, thanks for the suggestion. I'll consider the wipes next time, pag naubos na yung spray ko.

[chichigurl]

Thanks sis priceless. Good idea yan. I will definitely try to befriend my seatmate 

Do you also bring along the car seat or just the stroller lang?
I want to bring the car seat sana? We are travelling via PAL and according to their website, children are entitled to one collapsible stroller or pushchair. So pano if i bring both car seat and stroller? Do i need to pay extra baggage for the car seat kaya? Thanks

[Priceless]

^I've never tried to bring a car seat on the plane na pauupuan kay baby. I brought a car seat pero it was really meant to be checked in and we used it at the destination. On board, I requested a bassinet (you need to call the airline before hand to reserve this because they don't necessarily bring one all the time), and I always get the bassinet seat. Your car seat would be useless unless you buy a seat for your child, and given that your child is less than a year old, I doubt kung they will let you buy a full seat anyway.

Now, kung empty ang flight, then you can possibly use the car seat sa seat beside you, but then, kung 2 x 3 x 2 ang layout ng plane, wala kang seat mate which is great but also difficult dahil you'll really need to call someone to look after your kid when you need to go to the toilet. Again, I would not recommend bringing the car seat along din especially dahil mag isa ka lang and masyadong bulky to manage that together with your other handcarried items.

My last point would be to trim your hand carried baggage to necessities. Yung changing kit ni baby, make sure that it's just a small toiletry bag with his essentials. Changing mat, a few pieces of clean diapers, cream, powder, and a small pack of wet wipes. The plane's toilet would have lots of tissues, and for some, may fabric towels pa nga, so you don't have to bring your own. Just make sure that you don't have a lot of bulky stuff and heavy bags, kasi you need to be able to carry those on your own, put them/take them out of the overhead cabin, and make sure that you are able to keep an eye on baby all the time.

[chichigurl]

^ thank you. I really appreciate your help.

I will not bring the car seat nalang. And I'm also planning to request a bassinet. You are right,  I really need to trim our hand carried baggage to necessities. Iniisip ko pa lang ang hirap na  Hahaa but I can do it! 

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ sis, nung ako, I used a large tote bag with adjustable sling strap as handcarry. Para pwedeng handsfree sa bag. Tsaka pinagkasya ko sa 1 bag yung essentials ni baby + my (limited/basic) essentials. Para 1 bag lang iisipin ko. I just used bag organizers and small pouches to easily locate what I need.

[khriseeee]

When my cousins travelled to manila last year they brought those flat diapers (the ones used in hospitals) and would lay that down on public changing tables. It served dual purpose-was sanitary and also caught any accidents (they had a baby boy). After changing they would just throw the pad away. At leadt no hassle of cleaning pa each and every diaper change.

[katyap]

Up for this thread!

Question mga sis. We're flying from Singapore to Manila on June, and at that point, 10 months pa lang si baby girl ko, not sure kung naglalakad na sya. Medyo hirap ako magdecide if we're going to bring a stroller pa, or baby carrier na lang. First time namin itravel si baby. Itinerary lang namin is visit relatives, malling, attend a friend's wedding, and baka overnight sa Tagaytay. Not sure if makakahiram kami ng car pa. Any suggestions?