Traveling with a toddler can be daunting, especially if itâs your first time traveling with a child. As if getting organized for a holiday abroad wasnât stressful enough try adding a toddler into the mix because letâs be honest, theyâre unpredictable little humans, you never know when a meltdown will occur!
Our first flight with our daughter was to Orlando and she was only 13 months, I was dreading a 9-hour flight with a 1-year-old to entertain and I had no idea how she would be! Lucky for us â she was great! Pretty much slept the whole way there and back! A win for us!
However, fast forward a year and we have ourselves a very independent, knows what she wants, fast walking, doesnât stop talking, queen of tantrums on our hands! Iâm not going to lie to you itâs safe to say when we travelled to Palma Nova in April, I was DREADING it!
So here are my tips for going abroad with a toddler!
Tips for the Airport and Plane
Letâs get the most stressful part out the way! Baggage drop and security, not much fun for a toddler! We gave Heidi her own carry-on bag that she could pull along, this helped keep her occupied when we were walking through the airport, as she had something to focus on doing. I knew boredom would kick in whilst we waited but I had filled up her tiny carry on with my must-haves for going on the plane! These included:
- Her âfavoriteâ cuddly toy, I donât know about you guys but Heidi changes her favorite quite often, so we let her pick two to avoid any bedtime meltdowns halfway through the holiday!
- An actual toy, this holiday she chose her Moana doll, who apparently was equally as excited as her about going on the Airplane.
- A coloring book and crayons â let them get creative!
- A few books â Heidi loves to read so we packed a few different ones.
- Her tablet â a few pre downloads of Paw Patrol and a princess film and weâre good to go!
- Last but not least SNACKS! Pack all the snacks!
Whether you're looking for baby gear or self-care essentials, we've got you covered!
Other must-haves for the plane rideâŚ
- A spare change of clothes (you never know when an accident or spillage will happen)
- A set of clothes to change them into once youâve arrived at your destination (we change her into a dress or shorts as itâs so much hotter when we land than where weâve left from!
- Baby wipes! For obvious reasonsâŚ
- Something like liquid Tylenol just in case of a temperature and problems with sore ears. Sachets are perfect for popping into hand luggage!
- Something for them to suck on whilst taking off and landing, Heidi has never taken a dummy or bottle so we just get her to have a drink, but dummies and bottles come in handy here!
- More SNACKS!
There you have it, youâre sorted, youâve arrived at your beautiful hot destination, tantrum-freeâŚhopefully đ
Now that youâve arrived at your holiday destination be sure to have packed these holiday essentials!
Holiday Essentials
- Sun Cream
- Toys (we always pack a few of her favorites into the suitcase, in case of bad weather or if weâre having some chill time in the hotel room.
- A Sun Hat, Heidi was always a nightmare keeping a hat on but we found one that had a unicorn on it â job done!
- Sunglasses â anyone elseâs kids copy them? Trust me theyâll need their own pair!
- Snacks, especially if you have a fussy eater, we donât have that issue usually but with the heat she tends not to eat very much at mealtimes, so we always pack extra snacks in the suitcase for snack emergencies for when she does decide sheâs hungry!
- A fan â Heidi loved the fan, entertaining and effective!
- A wrist link - a must-have if you have an independent toddler who decides theyâre not going in the buggy or holding your hand!
Last but not least now youâre there thereâs only one thing left to do! HAVE FUN! Enjoy your family holiday! Remember why youâre there â to make memories! So try not to get too stressed about whether or not theyâve napped, if theyâre up really late, have had more than one ice cream or the fact youâve survived the whole holiday by sipping cocktails! You are on holiday after all! Just go and have fun!
Happy Holidays!
