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Mom's Best Travel Tips

Submitted by Our365 Moms

Take the Waah! out of your road trip with these hot tips


For air travel with baby, see here.

When you have to leave the vacuum at home...
from Ali
Our baby was 2 months old when we took our first trip with him. We had a seven hour drive each way. (Well, it was seven hours without the stop every couple hours to feed him.) Our son responds really well to the vacuum - he can go from a complete meltdown to content in seconds when we turn on the vacuum. After listening to him wail for an hour  in  the car, my husband came up with a brilliant idea: We tuned in static on the radio and blared it at him. Instant silence!"
 

For babies who hate their car seats
from Audra
I think I must have the only baby who does not like to be in a car seat. She even has the mirror that allows her to see me she just does not like the car seat. So during our summer travel, I actually sat in the back seat with her. Sitting with her allowed me to talk and play with her.

When Baby is enough to carry
from Tahnee
Renting baby equipment at our vacation destination rather than schlepping our baby’s items was the best tip one mom gave us.  We rented a swing, bouncy chair and playard with bassinet.  So much easier.  We brought our own sheets but you could have rented the sheets also. 

For traveling toddlers
from JK
Several times a year we make the 12-hour trip to New York to visit my family. When our first two were little, instead of stopping at fast food places or rest stops, we would stop at hotels that have a restaurant. We found that hotels are often cleaner and provide more space for the little ones to run around and stretch their legs. After a couple of trips up and down the halls or playing in the hotel lobby, the babies were more eager to get back in the car.

When baby needs entertaining
from Ashley
My husband and I are on the road for at least two-hour trips quite frequently. We started early trying to find things to entertain the baby and came up with putting a tension rod between the handles over the back doors. This allows us to hang toys and even books we have found with stroller straps above him so that he has several toys to choose from! Has worked like a charm for ten months now and we are still rolling!

If you time your trip right...
from Becca
My husband and I just returned from a weeklong vacation in Florida.  We live in New York, so it's a long drive. We found that traveling at night with our four month old son was much easier than in the day because he slept through.

Feeding Baby on the move
from Amy
Empty baby food jars are the perfect size for 3 ounces of dry formula and rice cereal.  To make: Add formula first, tap it down, and add cereal to the top of the jar- be sure to keep tapping down the cereal.  Seal with the lid and it travels easily.  To use:  pour in a little container and add 3 ounces of water and its the perfect consistency! 

Remember to pack this
from Michelle
We took our 2-month old baby on a trip to Myrtle Beach, which was 12-hour car ride. One important tip: Take disinfectant cleaner or spray for the changing tables in all the rest stops and other restrooms along the way. I was so glad I remembered it; I sprayed and cleaned every changing table before putting my baby down!

Lessons from a four-week road trip
from M
We recently spent four weeks traveling 3200 miles in a 25-foot camper with two kids, one seven months old, the other age two. Our tip: Keep the routine the same as much as possible. When stopping, let the babies move or run. When traveling, a DVD and books helped the two-year-old. After lunch, the kids napped and when stopping for the night, we tried to keep to our at-home routine with dinner, a walk or play, then baths and bed. A full day of activity will really do the job when bedtime comes. Also, our plans were not set in stone, and we adapted them depending on how the kids were doing side by side, sleeping and traveling in general.  Everything worked out - great times and memories!


If you're renting a vehicle
from Brenna
Moms beware! When I rented a car for our California vacation, I made sure that there would be an infant seat available for the reservation - and there was. But when inquiring about the seat, I made the mistake of not asking what kind of seat it would be. When we got to our rental car, we found that the infant seat was from 1990 and didn't even meet safety requirements for that decade. I was furious when the car company said they weren't liable, and that was all they had. I had to rush to a Sears to purchase a car seat suitable for my son.

Next: Traveling by air