Travelling with your baby can be a daunting challenge. You may be worried about rude strangers who comment when your baby cries, and whether or not your baby will be able to cope with a longer journey. Don’t worry, it’s not as bad as it may seem. Some children actually enjoy travelling and find the journey soothing!

If you are taking a flight, there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, try to be as rested as possible. If you are calm, it will be easier to prepare for any minor issues you might have to deal with.

Experts recommend breast or bottle-feeding during take-off and landing. The reason for this is that it will help with the annoying ear popping many people experience. The sucking and swallowing relieves the pressure that builds up during these stages of the flight.

As said, some children find flying quite soothing. A window seat can be handy to distract a slightly older baby, and it is recommended to bring some toys and treats along, just in case.

If needed, you may be able to walk up and down the aisle to help your baby fall asleep. Other passengers are unlikely to mind this – people tend to be quite understanding and most people love children, and will be sympathetic.

If you are uncertain if it is safe for your baby to fly, please check with your doctor beforehand. It is recommended to wait until your child is at least two to three months old. This will give him time to develop his immune system and for the both of you to settle into a breast or bottle feeding routine. In case of emergencies, younger children may be able to fly, provided they have a clean bill of health.

Come prepared – pack a small bag with a diaper, a few wipes and a perfumed nappy sack. You’ll be able to place this in the seat pocket in front of you. Some planes have a larger bathroom available in the back of the plane. It is recommended to ask an assistant where they would prefer for you to make the change – it is likely that you will receive help, which is very handy when managing a little one on a flight!

If allowed through security, bring your own baby food. Most airlines will be able to offer baby food, but you know best what your baby likes.

Make sure your airline provides a baby lap belt to attach to your own. This will help keep your baby safe during the flight.

If there are rude people aboard, ignore them. You know your baby best, so don’t panic. It’s only a few hours out of their lives, and they will get over it. In the meanwhile, you can look forward to a pleasant time on holiday upon arrival. And you may just find that your baby will happily sleep throughout the journey!

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In any case it is good to plan ahead and travel prepared otherwise even your 50 min short flight (or however long your flying) will feel like you are flying to the end of the world!

Tips for flying with your baby:

• Have plenty of fluid to give your baby during the flight and make sure that she is drinking or eating during take off and landing. That way you will automatically get her to ‘equalize’, that is adjust to the changes in air cabin pressure by swallowing.
• However, taking fluids on board is not necessarily that straight forward these days with heightened safety measures. Custom officials may ask you to open a milk carton/ bottle and sample the contents in front of their eyes – regardless of the fact that this may spoil the milk for your baby or leave you stuck with an open carton. You should definitely check with your airline what types of restrictions are currently in place before you pack your bags!
• If you are breast feeding then you are obviously not going to have any problems with taking extra fluids on board so if you are about to travel somewhere by plane it may well be worth delaying weaning your baby off your breast until after your trip.
• A spare set of clothing for your baby and enough nappies to last you the journey are a definite must, too! In fact, take an extra top for yourself, just in case your baby is sick all over you. I once sat for a good two hours with semi-digested banana vomit down my cleavage because my daughter was sick all over me and I had no choice but to hold on to her for the rest of the trip without being able to clean myself up properly – of course I had brought an extra set of clothing for my daughter so she was nice and clean again once I got her changed…
• Toys for distracting a little baby are also a good idea although small babies do not need much more than an un-inflated balloon or the inboard magazine to tear apart.
• Depending on how long you are travelling your baby is likely to want to sleep during the flight so you might want to reserve a bassinet for a long-haul flight and take your baby’s sleeping clothes along (including sleeping bag). If you are travelling by yourself and the flight is not fully booked, try and ask that the seat next to you remains unoccupied as you can always rest your baby on it when your shoulders have gone all stiff from holding her in the same position.

When you are travelling with a toddler most of the above points also apply although you need to be a bit more adventurous with your snacks and toys.

• Thick short pencils and something to draw on are always a favourite but do not take felt tips as you are bound to loose the tops and your toddler will start colouring the seat in front of you!
• In fact, your toddler is likely to show real interest in the seat and person sitting in front or behind you anyway. Whilst you can sort of discourage constant kicking of the seat in front of you or prevent your toddler from pulling the hair of the person sitting in it, you will not be able to stop a tantrum if you are being too restrictive. This will be worse if your child is suffering from air sickness so take nose drops and baby paracetamol just in case!
• Although you are generally discouraged from allowing your toddler to run around the plane, you should definitely allow your child some exercise if the alternative are yells – this is not fair on your child, you, your fellow travellers and even the stewardesses! Remember that sitting still for a long period of time is totally unnatural for a young child and you should just apologise to your fellow travellers in advance of your child playing up if you know he may be difficult during the flight. On the other hand, your toddler might be so excited by the whole adventure of being in an plane, maybe even seeing the captain and cockpit and playing with the window blinds that you will not have no problems whatsoever!

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