Tested tips to enjoy your first vacation with baby

Once you have welcomed your little bundle of joy, you are in for immense fun and enticing activities. One of which is traveling. Forget listening to loud music on the road trip, sunbathing for hours, going out to bars, and get prepared for unanticipated moments and unpredictable situations. However, there is no need to panic in advance since there are an abundance of vacation destinations and hotels accustomed for a family with a baby. The trip itself can be rather smooth and fun if you get all the gears ready, prepare everything in advance, and think two steps further. Still unsure? Here is what you should do.

Pack the bag of essentials

You will probably have to pack all the baby’s stuff in its separate suitcase, just don’t over-pack. Make sure that you pay attention to the weather, and keep it simple. That being said, you had better have an extra bag of essentials always by your side, for the “just in case” scenario. In that bag you must put an extra pair of diapers, burping cloths, baby forehead thermometer a pair of warmer sweaters and socks, a bottle of water, and loads and loads of wet tissues. If your baby is eating solid food, you might want to prepare your baby a veggie meal for the road as well. Don’t forget about her favorite toy, and for an extra blanket. First aid kit is also extremely welcomed when you are traveling, especially when you cannot know how your baby will get accustomed to the climate.

Arm yourself with patience

There are many things that may go wrong on a trip. Bad weather, food poisoning, flat tire, and teething. When your little one starts teething, a trip can turn into a nightmare. Its nervousness may last longer than changing a flat tire, that is why you need to arm yourself with patience and get prepared as well. Firstly, you might want to pack some baby teething toys that she can soothe her pain with and play. Secondly, have a banana by your side that the baby can eat and transfer her focus on it. If the baby continues crying along the trip, then it is either hungry or tired, in both cases you might want to stop and either feed or put her to sleep.

Avoid panoramic route

You might have been used to travel on a scenic route when there was just the two of us, but now you had better skip that idea. The faster you get to your desired destination, the better your baby will succumb to the road, and the faster will everything be over. Before you head out to your journey, carefully go through your route plan, and memorize the map for a quicker way. It would be beneficial to select a route that has a lot of 24-hour gas stations, restrooms, kid-friendly pit-stop, and service areas. What is more, you might want to plan frequent breaks for that matter. You can never know how your baby will feel and behave in any given moment during your travel, and when you take a break every hour or two to stretch legs, eat and rest, both you and your baby will feel better.

Opt for a night drive

If your baby sleeps throughout the whole night at home, that is, if the baby doesn’t wake up for her night’s feeding, then the best advice is to drive at night. It can be a little bit unsuitable for the parents, but then again, so it is uncomfortable when the baby is screaming uncontrollably during the day. Basically, if you choose to drive during the night, your baby will sleep over the whole trip, thus you won’t have to worry about feeding, playing, wet diapers, and so on. Furthermore, driving at night also means that you won’t need to take as many breaks as you would need to when you drive throughout the day. You will arrive faster and hopefully without any unpredictable mishaps.

Set “home-feel” atmosphere

Your baby has its tight and strict schedule, form feeding to napping time. For your first family vacation, you should strive to stick to the same schedule as you were at home. If the baby is used to sleeping in its crib, you can get a portable crib and a similar mattress as you have in the crib. The baby won’t feel the difference, and she would certainly sleep soundly. Next, bring some of her favorite soft toys, her own potty if the potty training has commenced. As long as you follow the same feeding routine and regime, delegate respectfully napping and playing as you were at home, your baby will enjoy the vacation without a doubt.

Set your mind at ease, some new things might happen, but you only need to remain calm and flexible. As long as you are all together and happy, your first family vacation might be a blast.

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