Traveling with a toddler
We recently returned from a week-long trip to Hawaii with my family and you guys have been wanting to know allll about our travel experience with a toddler (J was 17.5 months at the time) - so I’m going to give it to you! I’ve shared a lot on my Instagram but I figured writing everything out in a blog post is a better way to make sure it’s more accessible to you guys when you want it. I’m going to share all about our trip, how we managed J’s routine, and my best travel tips and hacks when you have a toddler in tow…. let’s get into it!
Our Trip
We traveled to Kauai and stayed in a rental condo with my family for the week. We didn’t go to any other islands or stay in any other places, so we had this as our home base. We flew direct flights each way from Denver to Kauai and back. We rented a car when we got there, which we had the entire time. Kauai is a 3-hour time difference from our home in Colorado.
The Flights
Jake, J, my mom, my dad, my sister, and I flew from Denver to Kauai on a 7-hour direct flight on a Wednesday. The flight left at 11:50am and arrived at 4:30pm Hawaii time (3 hour time difference from Colorado), so it was basically our entire day. When traveling with babies and toddlers, I prefer to fly during the day, if possible, so that night sleep is not interrupted. The six of us took up a full row across (three and three) and J had his own seat. We brought the carseat on the plane with us - J had the window seat, which is where the airlines recommend you put the car seat. This was our first time flying where J had his own seat and it was definitely worth it for this long of a flight! We were hoping he would nap in his carseat, which he did - but only for 20 minutes : / However, he did sit and “watch” a show (without sound) for almost an hour so that was great. The rest of the time he basically crawled around our laps = ) It was SO great having my family across from us because he wanted to sit on their laps for a part of it so it gave Jake and me a bit of a break. He played with his baby doll, magna doodle (he has been loving this lately!), read some books, ate lunch and some snacks, and mostly just wanted to touch random objects like my mom’s purse or an empty water bottle and cap :) He also wanted to walk up and down the aisle so we did that a few times when the seat belt sign was off and the flight attendants didn’t give us any trouble. Overall, the flight was tiring but do-able.
Our return flight was a red-eye from Kauai to Denver the following Wednesday evening. A red-eye was the only option for a direct flight, so we decided to go for it. We figured it would be easier than having to deal with a much longer travel day with a connecting flight somewhere on the West coast. I was definitely nervous for this one because I myself do not do well on little sleep (brings me back to the early postpartum days), but I knew going into this that we would all be exhausted and we would just figure it out. I went into this flight with VERY low expectations and I am glad I did :) Again, J had his own seat with the carseat in it. The flight didn’t board until close to 9:00pm so he was definitely already tired by the time we got on the plane. We put him right in his carseat and he ended up falling asleep soon after take-off. He slept for about two hours straight - Jake and I tried to fall asleep as well but we weren’t quite tired enough yet - and then woke up screaming around 11:30pm. We took him out of the carseat and tried to find a comfortable position to hold him in but he was definitely squirmy and fussy. This lasted for about an hour which was very unpleasant - I could tell he was SO tired but he was having trouble getting comfortable in our arms, but screamed every time we tried to put him back in his carseat. I felt badly since the rest of the passengers were trying to get some sleep and I knew J’s screaming was disruptive, but what can you do?! After about an hour or so of off-and-on sleeping in my arms, we put him back in his carseat and he finally settled and fell asleep again for the remaining two hours of the flight. So, he slept for four hours total (two + two) that night….! He woke up when we landed (6:30am Denver time but our bodies felt like 4:30am Hawaii time) and was alert and happy throughout the airport getting our bags, etc. He ended up falling asleep in the car on the way home from the airport and then took a long nap that first day back at home, but was definitely grumpy from the lack of sleep.
Overall, flying with a toddler is hard but it was worth it in this case to go to Hawaii! I do not recommend a red-eye if you can avoid it, but sometimes it’s the only option. We survived!
Adjusting to the time difference
Okay let’s circle back to our trip…. When we arrived at our condo in Kauai that first evening, J was exhausted (as were all of us!) By the time we got there, it was around 6:30pm Hawaii time which was 9:30pm Colorado time - and J had only taken a 20-min nap all day! We put him right to bed and he fell right asleep. He did wake up the next morning early around 5:00am, which would be 8:00am CO time, which was to be expected, so he really only got 7 hours of sleep that night. We were all up early too since our bodies were still on CO time.
My general guidelines for adjusting to time differences is the same for babies/kids as it is for adults - our bodies can generally adjust one hour per day, so you can aim to shift your child’s schedule by one hour each day until you are on the desired time zone. For example, on day one, he woke around 5:00am, napped around 11:30, and then went to bed around 6:00pm (and slept until around 6:00 the next morning). You would aim to shift the entire schedule one hour later the next day and keep doing that until you are back to your child’s normal times. As long as you are generally aiming to follow age-appropriate wake windows (with some wiggle-room, of course), then your child’s body should adjust okay.
We generally tried to follow a 5-6 hour wake window each day and slowly shift the whole schedule one hour later each day. On mornings two and three, he woke up closer to 6:00am, and by morning four, he made it to 7:00am! This is pretty much exactly how long I expected it to take. If you are traveling to a place with an even greater time zone, you can expect it to take longer.
Since YOUR body will take generally the same time to adjust as your child’s, I haven’t found it to be too confusing or exhausting when traveling to new time zones… though I haven’t done anything greater than 3 hours difference... yet!
Sleep and naps
We set up a pack-n-play (provided by the rental condo) and a SlumberPod (we brought ours) in the large walk-in closet in Jake and my room, which worked perfectly for nights and naps that took place at the house. J is used to sleeping with this set-up when we travel because we have done it for every trip we’ve taken since he was a baby. We brought our Hatch sound machine and placed it right at the edge of the closet doorway so it drowned out any noise that Jake and I made while in the room.
Since we were out exploring some of the days, not all naps took place in the house. On some days, he only had a short car nap and that was okay. My general philosophy for naps on vacation (or when otherwise out of your home) is to try to alternate days where you are out all day / off your routine with days where you can ensure a more normal routine/nap time situation. For us, this meant that if we had a day where we were out and about and J napped in the car (which are always shorter for him, about 30-35 mins max), the next day we planned our day so that at least one of us could be home with him to nap at the house. Then, the next day can be out again! This tends to be a great middle-ground approach so that your baby/child doesn’t become extremely over-tired but you are still able to enjoy yourselves by deviating from your routine.
Packing logistics and gear (includes affiliate links!):
Things we brought from home:
Umbrella stroller (we have this one. We use it for J in the airport and then gate check it when boarding - you just have to get the tag at your gate before your board, but it’s super easy)
Travel Carseat (We use this brand. We carried it through the airport in this carseat backpack, strapped it into J’s seat on both flights, and put it in our rental car for the week)
Slumberpod (the BEST thing ever to room-share with baby) - use code ‘ROOTEDINROUTINE’ for 5% off
A to Z Adventure gear mat (to hang in the car window to darken the car for car naps) - use code “RR15” for 15% off!
Sound machine for room
Things the rental condo had:
Pack-n-play
High chair
(Often times rental places have baby things so always ask even if it isn’t listed on the listing!)
Things we rented from BabyQuip (first time using this service and it was SO easy! Use code “ROOTED20” for $20 off your order of $100+):
Hiking backpack
Durable stroller (easier to maneuver than our umbrella stroller when taking walks and doing errands)
Wagon (for walking to pool and beach)
Waterproof beach blanket
Beach toys for J (buckets, shovels, etc)
Other things I recommend you bring / use:
Baby/toddler mealtime stuff - lunch box, ice pack (I like these ones because they’re flat), a few small Tupperware containers, plate and bowl, spoon/fork, bib (Makes it so much easier when eating on-the-go, packing leftovers for lunch/snacks, etc. You can bring all of this through security!)
Snacks, snacks, and more snacks (some of our favs were string cheese, kids GoMacro bars, fruit/date bars, cheerios, pouches, and snack size applesauces)
Pop-up laundry hamper (somewhere to actually put dirty clothes!)
Carseat backpack for airport
Sposie booster pads (Tuck right into your baby’s diaper to increase absorbency = you can go longer in between diaper changes on long travel days)
Travel white noise machine (great for car or stroller naps)
When planning and packing for a trip, I like to think of all of the items in the categories of J’s daily routine - sleep/naps, mealtime, play, etc. I created this FREEBIE for you guys that breaks this down further!
Whew… I think that’s most of it! I hope this post was super helpful for you if you are planning to travel with a toddler anytime soon. I will say that traveling with a toddler is exhausting and it is not relaxing, but in my opinion, it is worth it. The new experiences you share and memories you make are worth every logistical nightmare : )
You guys know I am an open book so feel free to drop any questions below or reach out to me on IG @rootedinroutine with any more travel questions. Safe travels!