Traveling with babies at the holidays

Traveling with babies and toddlers at the holidays is a different beast than the vacations we might take throughout the year. In addition to the regular joys of airline travel with small people, you can add in higher prices, crowds, and family stress. Woohoo.

Between Whit and I, we’ve done all the ages of travel in the car and on the plane from newborn through age eleven. So, we have developed some strong opinions! If you have any questions, leave ’em in the comments.

Most helpful tips and products for those of you juggling babies along with your carry-on luggage:

Travel lighter when you fly: after packing one diaper for each hour of travel, pare down your luggage to the essentials. You can beg, borrow, and steal rent the rest. {More tips on how to pack much less when you fly with littles}

What to carry on, pack, and do when you’re flying alone with a baby written by my friend, Beth, who flew solo with bambino from Chicago to Sydney, Australia. And back again. {More tips on airplane travel with baby}

Best suggestions for toddler wranglers on the road:

Sometimes the right product can make a HUGE difference. Stop lugging car seats on airplanes with this strappy plane-safe harness and a padded car seat bag.

PRO TIP: Shove jackets and other soft items into the car seat bag and you get a FREE checked bag. We still do this even with a small profile booster. Shh.

Yeah, your three-year old can spend several hours on apple juice and an iPad, but what about those too little? Secrets to entertain toddlers on the plane!

Once you arrive, we have tips for juggling baby jet lag and here’s how to remember to bring home all your toys from grandma’s house using only your phone and a sleep-deprived brain. And if your mom is like my mom, you might need to plan for a UPS drop-off or a spare suitcase before your return.

Because vacationing to Machu Picchu with a baby is different from visiting Grandma, Karen also shares the whens and wheres of traveling with baby in one of my favorite posts: The 6 stages of baby & toddler travel: What to expect, where to go, and how to time it right!

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