I asked 10 globe-trotting moms about the non-negotiables in their carry on + diaper bag
Plus some tales from summer travel trenches
When my daughter was 7 months old, we spent a month living in the UK for my husband’s work.
Everyone said that the younger your baby is, the easier it is to bring them on long haul trips. Being a new parent, I was still exceptionally anxious about the journey and everything that could go wrong.
The morning of our day flight to London, she woke up with her first (EVER!) cold. By the time we approached the gate, she had already blown out of her first outfit and was onto the second. Foolishly, I had only one remaining pair of pants left for the roughly 10 hours it would take us to reach our destination.
We ended up emerging from this experience unscathed, if a little world weary. That is, until we had to return home the next month. In those short few weeks, our baby had gone from a pleasant lump into a crawling, ever-curious rascal. It wasn’t until we spent 8 hours on board trying to contain her that we understood what all our friends had been talking about.
Fast forward one year to our first night flight to Europe, in which she slept a mere 30 minutes, and I was ready to say uncle and stow our carry on until she was in college.
Like most parenting miseries, amnesia eventually set in, and this summer, we booked a trip to Copenhagen and Austria (leaving next week!).
To gear up emotionally and physically (with actual gear), I asked some of my mom friends and favorite Substackers who travel a ton (often with multiple kids) what their favorite products and strategies are for various types of travel. They even shared a few horror stories of their own.
It’s a similar advice round-up (with some similarly amazing recs for cheap plastic entertainment) as this post on how to eat out with young kids without losing your sanity. So make sure to read that one too if you find the below helpful. We all need this pep talk to remain out in the world.
I don’t consider myself an expert, but here are my essentials:
This snack spinner, filled with new and exciting things she’s never gotten before (and plenty of refill bags in my carry on).
A stasher bag of plain cooked pasta. I got this tip from the Big Salad Substack, and it continues to be a go-to. There’s no mess, it’s filling, it keeps well at room temp, and if you do it with penne or rigatoni, it can double as a pasta finger game.
These headphones are a new purchase, so I can’t vouch for them yet, but they seem like they can double as a toddler eye mask, which would be a game changer. Also, my daughter cannot withstand the instant gratification of ripping a cord out of a socket, so Bluetooth is a big plus.
Please share some of your travel hacks with us in the comments – the brain trust needs to know! And if you’re curious, I recently asked on notes whether you would use a car seat for an overnight flight. Here’s what you all said.
Happy munching!
Phoebe
p.s. I normally share these round-ups only for paid subscribers, but I’ve taken down the paywall today in the spirit of summer survival mode. If you’ve found it helpful, consider upgrading to paid! In addition to fabulous recipes, you’ll also get my Summer Breakfast Planner PDF, which walks you through how to prep for 2 weeks worth of mornings in just 2 weekend hours.
I asked 10+ moms with young kids about their strategies for making travel less of a misery. Here’s what they said.
The non-negotiables for carry-on/diaper bag:
“We have had so many cancelled flights and weird situations, especially when flying to and from Durango, where we spend time every summer, that I now make everyone include a “go bag” in their carry on backpack: undies, an extra shirt, toothpaste, swim suit, the essentials. Sadly (happily?!) this has been a lifesaver a handful of times when we’ve gotten stuck far away from home on a layover.”
--Liz Baker Plosser, author of Best Case Scenario Substack, Mom to Charlie (14), Lucy (14), George (10)
“Always ziplocks and extra plastic produce bags. Someone always gets wet, pees in their pants, spills, etc. My son has a small bladder and though we always use the airplane bathroom after finding our seats, he always has to go again while on the runway. We’ve mastered the ziplock-pee technique. Always a roll of PlantPaper for any mess, use as tissues, etc.
Uncharacteristically, our daughter recently had to pee both while waiting on the runway and then again during takeoff. The flight attendants wouldn’t let us go anywhere. We took her shoes and clothes off and proceeded with the ziploc-pee technique (much easier on brother!) - ended in a big success.”
--Deeva Green, Co-founder PlantPaper, Mom to S, 5 and M, 2.5
“Anything NEW they have never seen before: spinners that stick on window, stretchy giraffes, busy board, erasable drawing board.”
--Caitlin Oyler, Mom to Arlo, 2.5 and Archie, 7 weeks
“Painter’s tape (to rip and pull off the seat in front for endless entertainment) and Melissa and David Water coloring kit.”
--Mary Kate M, 5 year old boy and 1.5 year old girl
“Up until recently, a portable potty training toilet with disposable mess bags. My daughter was out of diapers relatively early, but even then it can be hard for toddlers to wait to use the bathroom when they need to go. This saved us on more than one occasion.
Some of our other go-to's are new sticker books (we like the Usborne princess and mermaid books), and removable clings for decorating the windows and airplane wall.”
--Hillary Dixler Canavan, writer of The New Family Table Substack, mom to a 5 year old
“We typically take a newish something for each kid -- some kind of activity book or plane-friendly art project/game. For younger kids: bendy magnetic robot men. Our oldest son absolutely loves these travel-friendly puzzle games: Kanoodle and SmartGames IQ gears.”
--Carey Polis, Cheese, Book, Restaurant, Thing Substack, mom to C, 6 and L, 3
Advice for tackling a night flight or long haul journey:
“Get child their own seat earlier than required; start weeks before adjusting to new time zone slowly (use app like Timeshifter). SLEEP immediately on plane (eat at airport before if possible); stay up when arriving at destination. Show pictures of landmarks of where you’re going startling a few months ahead to get them excited and familiar.”
--Caitlin Oyler, Mom to Arlo, 2.5 and Archie, 7 weeks
“The longest flight we have probably taken was 5 hours. But somehow the kids are always more hungry on the plane. For travel and vacation we allow our kids much more treats than on "normal" days. The only time we let them have soda is on the flight to make it a more special experience and keep them happy.
My favorite snacks include: Meat sticks, Olive packets from TJ's, pretzels, Bear snack fruit roll, dried mango, and durable fruit - apples or pears.”
--Miranda Hammer, MS RD CDN, mom of three (ages 7, 5, 3)
“Food is a big one for us because both kids eat a lot and frequently. So that they have some fresh food on a long travel day, I always make banana-egg pancakes the night before, especially a morning flight. They’re totally delicious not hot and the kids usually eat most if not all on the way to the airport. This gets us through the first hour of travel plus the airport process. And then always hard-boiled eggs, cheddar cheese, cucumbers, berries, nut butter sandwich (along with the packaged stuff).”
--Deeva Green, Co-founder PlantPaper, Mom to S, 5 and M, 2.5
“This may seem obvious but carry a small cross body bag in addition to your carry-on to easily have access to your phone, chargers, tickets and SNACKS. So you don’t have to dig! I also got my son the micro travel scooter and it’s a great way to get him around the airport while the younger one is in the stroller. He also then packs his toys in there and we use it as a way to get around at our destination!”
--Mary Kate M, 5 year old boy and 1.5 year old girl
“We fly cross-country a few times a year to see our family on the opposite coast. This might be counter-intuitive, but my advice is: Take the layover. Getting off the airplane, walking around an airport, and finding an (admittedly overpriced) restaurant to have a meal at, can be very restorative. In our case, opting for a layover also means we get to land in a nearby airport, versus flying direct and then doing a 3 hour drive.”
--Hillary Dixler Canavan, writer of The New Family Table Substack, mom to a 5 year old
“Lower all of your expectations, prepare for the worst, and remind yourself that it'll be worth it once you get there. I also try to book flights around when nap or bedtime would be, and always try to keep her awake leading up to any flight with the hopes that she'll crash (even if it's bad timing - a sleeping baby on a plane is better than an awake baby on the plane I promise). And I always pack a hard top carry on with at least two days of clothes and essentials for both her and I in case of major delays or lost luggage. So far, we've never needed it, but I feel better having it there. Also if someone out there can make a safe baby/toddler eye mask that would be much appreciated - thanks in advance.”
--Jennifer Cook, author of Mom Friend on Substack, mom to Lou, almost 2!
“This car seat vest for my older child! We're often times travelling to places where a carseat is available to us but if we're going to and from the airport in a car that doesn't have one this has been lifesaver. Also, sanitizing wipes! I clean down everything before my gremlins put their mouths on everything.”
--Davida Lederle, Blogger at The Healthy Maven and Writer of Logging Off on Substack, mom of two (3.5 and 15 months)
“Get the zoomies out in quieter area of the airport before you board. We find night flights easier — their natural sleep pressure, plus the dimmer lighting helps with sleeping. And remember that no matter how bad it is, it will eventually be over.
Also, bubbles! When shit hits the fan, pull out the bubbles. It’s a mood-shifter.”
--Raisa Aziz, Mom to almost two-year old twins
Hacks for car travel with kids (that don't rhyme with shmipad):
“We love to bring the Yoto radio (and maybe buy a new story card before a trip). Audio books / stories are such a good alternative to watching (and avoids any nausea)! And snacks that take awhile to disappear like a bag of freeze dried strawberries or pistachios (snack as activity).”"
--Deeva Green, Co-founder PlantPaper, Mom to S, 5 and M, 2.5
“Setting up a car desk for activities is a major win!! I have nailed the car sickness game. Hospital throw up bags in every door pocket, towels to catch the throw up, paper towels, and then dramamine for when they’re old enough!!”
--Mary Kate M, 5 year old boy and 1.5 year old girl
*reads two days before transatlantic travel* — thank you! Xo
So much great advice in here. Thanks for including me @phoebelapine!!
PS. Team layover.