The high flyer

At some point in time, you will find yourself wanting to go away with your baby or toddler. It could be a short visit to see family or friends or even a trip abroad. However, just the mere thought of a long car journey or flight with young children can be nerve-racking, especially that very first one, where you have no idea what to expect. There is so much to think about when it comes to travelling with little ones, from packing and planning to considering how to manage sleep schedules whilst away. But this doesn’t mean that you need to give up on your travel lifestyle after having children. With some preparation, you can honestly have a great travel experience.

 

If you are travelling overseas, it can often be helpful to take a night flight as little ones tend to find it easier to sleep in the darkness. For daytime flights, encouraging children to nap at their normal times can help prevent overtiredness. Where possible, taking along their sleep associations, such as their sound machine and preferred comforter, for example, can really help children sleep.

 

It is worth thinking about your child’s sleep timings when you get to your destination. If you arrive in the morning, and your little one hasn’t slept well during the overnight flight, offering a nap to catch up on lost sleep is fine, so long as it isn’t for hours and hours as you want them to go to bed at a reasonable hour. If you arrive at your destination in the afternoon, and your child is shattered, don’t give into a long nap; otherwise, you will be in for a very late night. In this instance, opting for a short and sweet nap will help your child make it through to the evening and ensure that they are ready for bedtime at a decent hour. If you are in a different time zone and find that your child is waking up during the night, be sure to keep your interaction non-stimulating and aim to resettle your child back to sleep without turning on the lights.

 

Sleep and wake-up times can go out of the window whilst you are away, especially in different time zones. So if you can try and stick to a similar sleep schedule to the one you have at home, it is possible to adjust to the new time zone effectively. Recreating the bedtime routine that you would normally do at home, as well as ensuring the bedroom environment is conducive to sleep, will all help your child adjust well. The quickest way to reset the internal body clock is to expose your little one to daylight first thing in the morning. This is beneficial for their body clock as well as yours.

 

So please don’t worry; you do not need to put travelling on the back burner. It definitely can be done with children in tow. By sticking to a similar sleep schedule to what you have at home, recreating their home sleep space environment, and using daylight and darkness to your advantage, you can absolutely travel with your children and make the experience a positive one for the whole family!