Holidaying with an Infant

Babies are amazing travel companions. They are curious, inquisitive, love new places and faces and will notice intricate details in things which you shall often miss out. It is also a great experience since you would be seeing the world with a tiny human who is making first impressions of the world out there and grasping a new environment, people, places, things, textures and much more. 

Few tips for a fun filled travel with your tiny little human: 

1. Choose your holiday destination wisely

When you are travelling with infants, travelling whole day can be taxing. You also cannot indulge in too many physical activities such as trekking, swimming, diving, as your baby is still too small to accompany you in these and unless you are travelling with your parents, you won't be able to leave your baby behind. 

Choose a place/city which is stroller friendly, has good public transport and tourist spots are easily available. Where all tourist spots have nursing rooms for mothers and babies, and where you can easily get from point A to point B.

With all of the above constraints, we chose our first travel destination as Singapore. It was a 4 hour flight from Bangalore which was easily manageable. As a country, Singapore is a 'Lego City', everything is extremely accessible, well planned and baby friendly. It is the perfect baby destination- it has ramps for baby strollers, prams on rent at most tourist attractions, nursing rooms in all tourist spots and malls, friendly people, great transport, the list is endless. 

2. Carry a Pram along

It can be exhausting to carry around your infant all day, both for you and your baby. Hence invest in a good, light and compact pram/stroller that is easily foldable and airline complaint (less than 7 kg). Especially, if your baby has not yet learnt to sit on his/her own, stroller can be a big help. 

When we took our daughter to Singapore,  she was 4 months old, just learning to sit with support. She loved her pram and would explore the world on her wheels as well as sleep off in it when she was tired. As parents, it turned out to be a boon for us, since we could be hands free and enjoy a quick meal while she slept. 

3. Invest a baby carrier

While a pram is a great option, your child may get bored of sitting in the pram, and may need the comfort of your lap. The best way to is to hang your baby like a kangaroo in a baby carrier and walk around. The baby will love the comfort of your touch as well as love the bouncy feeling as you walk around. 

This is a great option to travel with your baby, however, limit the number of hours you hang a young baby like this since it can be extremely tiring as the baby is still finding his/her balance. Once the baby sleeps off in this position, transport him/her back to the pram so that he/she can sleep peacefully. 

4. Indulge in activities which your baby can enjoy

Think about what all activities your little one can enjoy and new things he/she can experience. Our daughter was absolutely enamored by the underwater aquarium in Sentosa Island Singapore. She touched the glass while looking at fish and was squealing in awe. You could see the excitement in her eyes as she experience something new. 

Similarly she enjoyed the Jurong Bird Park immensely. The birds were close up and the shows enabled you to safely touch and interact with them. 

When you are travelling with a baby, strangers are kinder, and you also find other families with babies happy to sync and chat up, and share baby notes. Such interactions with other parents and babies will help your little ones become more social and self confident.

 

5. Plan your day and Pack Well

For the best results and a hassle free travel, plan ahead. Think about all the things you and your baby will need during the day, the number of hours you shall be away and how those hours will coincide with baby's play, sleep and feeding hours.