traveling abround with 2-3 mos. old?

[evjolin]

would you do it??? am i nuts? our good friend is getting married in eurpoe, and i have never been to europe so am dying to go. (wedding's in barcelona, would maybe do some add'l travel while there) depending on when this baby is born, he will be 2-3 mos old at the time of travel.

will i still be completely exhausted?

my other concern is exposing a baby that young to germs....i'm not a germ-a-phob, but stale airplane air is just nasty.

also, we are planning on some sort of (yet to be determined) delayed vax schedule. wondering if that would be affected as well....

thoughts? experience? advice? thanks!!!

[hakeber]

I wouldn't have any qualms with it, but if you have a choice, bring your partner. It is easier with a second pair of hands.

Provided all goes well, you should feel recovered and the baby will be sleep most of the way.

As long as the baby is welcome at the wedding, I see no reason why not.

[SamiPolizzi]

I absolutely would! In fact, now that my baby is mobile, I'm really regretting that I didn't travel more when he was smaller. I don't have a lot of travel experience with a baby (other than a few short road trips), but I'm sure there are plenty of women here who will tell you about transcontinental journeys they've taken with their babies. And as long as you're breastfeeding, I wouldn't worry too much about germs.

[lalemma]

I'm doing this right now! He's totally portable (although it's much easier with a second adult around) and the whole thing is generally much easier than I was worried it was going to be.

We vax on time, but I guess in general I'm kind of laid-back about his immune system. Part of growing up is coming into contact with germs and learning how to deal with them. So I do the best I can, wash my hands, and breastfeed.

[dex_millie]

I have done this with both my babies. DS was 6 1/2 weeks when he first went on a plane(he did get a slight cough with mucus for a few days but it just went). We also traveled back with him when he was 4 months and 8 months.

DD flew at 3 months and had no problems.

They are not vaccinated and we went to carribbean islands where my son played in dirt, feed goats and chickens and drank the water(they collect rain water so it is not public water).

[kismetbaby]

I would totally do it! Assuming you aren't travelling alone. I (and DH) will be traveling abroad soon when my LO is 7 months old and I am starting to wish we had planned the trip for sooner. A couple months ago, he was more portable/easier to carry around, didn't need much entertainment, and would sleep and eat anywhere. Now he's starting to get into a routine and gets bored easily. . .I'm worried that he'll be difficult on the plane and the jet-lag will be rough for him. We haven't vaxed him at all yet, and I'm not worried. . .assuming your babe is normally healthy and you aren't traveling to Africa, or Panama, or places where they have problems with tropical diseases I'd think it is fine--especially if you are BFing!

My advice though: find a carrier you (and your partner) like and can wear your babe in for extended periods of time. This will really save you in airports and just in general!

[Xavismom]

I say do it too

We are hoping to have a really good trip somewhere (not sure where yet!!) around DS's 1 yr mark. I figure between breastfeeding, and babywearing, it wont be an issue, and will be really fun.

I do wonder about diapers though... I dont see myself taking our cloth stash with us, especially out of the country..... Other Mamas that have done this.. do you bring cloth with you and try to wash it yourself? Bring a stash of sposies? Bring enough sposies for the flight and buy more when you get to your destination?

Also I'm not sure what we would do about vax, depending on where we went. DH's first choice is always somewhere in Asia, and I havent been to Asia for almost 10 years and have been longing to go again... What do you Mamas do about this? I wouldnt worry at all with some places, but others I would a little.

I wouldnt worry about Vax in Europe though.

[stinkster]

Definitely go!
You may want to think about allowing yourself some buffer time before the wedding to get acclimated and recover from jet lag. When I crossed multiple time zones with DS at 2.5-3 mos, he ate more frequently for about a week and was up at 3 a.m. ready to chat and play for several nights. Argh.

[SunShineSally]

we did not travel that far but we went on a 6 hour train ride and a 12 hour train ride I LOVED it. it was last month so Ds2 was just 3 months and Ds1 is 5
(almost 6) One thing that I would say is bring a carrier!

[ckmannel]

we travelled internationally several times with a baby ranging from 3 or 4 months old to over a year. two adults helps, but is not necessary. IMO a baby carrier (I prefer the wrap) is necessaryy. I bet you'll do fine especially since your baby will be so young. He/she will probably just sleep and nurse the whole time and you'll wonder why you were worried. Be sure to get paperwork for passport going in a hurry once baby comes, it takes a while and you'll have to have one for him/her

[Lauren31]

Originally Posted by evjolin

would you do it??? am i nuts? our good friend is getting married in eurpoe, and i have never been to europe so am dying to go. (wedding's in barcelona, would maybe do some add'l travel while there) depending on when this baby is born, he will be 2-3 mos old at the time of travel.

also, we are planning on some sort of (yet to be determined) delayed vax schedule. wondering if that would be affected as well....

I TOTALLY WOULD! I live in Germany and really love how child friendly it is here. We are going to selective/delay vax and it is just perfectly fine- they don't have the same schedule as the CDC anyways. They delay or not have a lot of the vaccines common in the states. I would HIGHLY suggest getting a baby carrier though as the streets are difficult to maneuver with a stroller. Besides that I DEFINITELY think you should come!

[marrymeflyfree]

Go for it!

We have traveled abroad quite a bit with our girls, and started quite young (less than a month). It really is the easiest time to travel with children in many ways!

I personally would not be concerned with vaxes for most European travel...as for the stale airplane air, well it really and truly is not as stale as pop culture would lead us to believe. There's actually a very high rate of turnover of air in modern jets...the air is extremely dry, however. It's the drying out of the mucous membrane lining the nose that allows us to be more susceptible to airborne germs. That mucous is your first and best line of defense! After more than a decade as a flight attendant, I have learned that keeping the nose moist with a little saline spray during long flights is the most effective way of preventing illness. My husband is an airline pilot as well and does the same when he's working - and we give the kids a little spritz during long flights as well. My kids have traveled extensively and have never (knock on wood!) been sick after flying.

[Kelly1101]

Totally would. Breastfeed and get a good sling or other carrier. Babies travel well.

[sky_and_lavender]

My husband and I traveled to beyond Europe when our baby was about 3 months old (24 hours travel time one way). It could be difficult depending on your baby's temperament and your own self-consciousness about your baby crying or screaming in public. But if s/he likes to nurse and still sleeps a lot, it is incredibly do-able!

Nursing and baby carriers definitely make things easier. We don't have a stroller at all and it was problem--if we had one it would have been in the way.

Hint:
Make sure you and your traveling companion get seats next to one another. We found out that this isn't an automatic thing. It would have been hard to nurse with a stranger next to me because my babe is long and her legs would have poked a stranger. I preferred the aisle-seat/middle-seat location.

Also, our airline offered a "bassinet" which we requested, but the flight attendants didn't give it to us because we didn't want to pay extra for bulkhead seating. Our baby never liked to sleep alone anyway, so we didn't miss out on anything.

[russsk]

I think it's a wonderful time to go! We took DS to Turkey when he was 3 months. We had a wonderful time. He slept great being worn, so we weren't tied to any nap schedules or anything, and he just loved all the attention he got. He was fantastic on all the plane rides. We really had a blast.

[welsh]

Go!!!!

The Spanish love children! You'll be so welcome and looked after!
Travelling is a big part of our lives and it's much easier before kiddos start crawling (and picking up germs).

You need a carrier.
I loved the ring sling for that age. Can be used as a breastfeeding cover too. Although people don't really bother with them in Europe.
At 10 wks ish, maybe 12, DS loved facing out and seeing the world. If tired then they can face into your chest. Also, if you're walking along Las Ramblas (I love Barcelona!!!!) and your babe falls asleep in the sling, when you get back to the hotel it is v easy to loosen the ring on the sling and lower babe on to the bed.

Bring enough disposables (I would forget cloth for travelling longhaul) for the journey and the first few days. It'll be very easy to buy diapers and wipes.

I second the vote for saline nasal spray. Also some travel laundry soap to handwash things in the hotel bathroom.
Easiest to dress babe in a footed sleeper for the flight. Overnight to Europe works best. This direction is much worse for jetlag.

When I pack my carry-on bag, I have everything in separate bags so it's easy to grab. A change of clothes for myself in one plastic bag, change for babe in another, diaper stuff in another. Gallon ziplocs are useful for bits and pieces.
Some spare bags (grocery plastic ones etc) in case clothes get covered in vomit, poop, whatever!
Oh and bring a changing pad. Don't expect restaurant toilets to all have changing tables. They won't. But the locals manage and they take their little ones out to eat all the time.

[ithappened]

We just got back from doing 2 transatlantic-transcontinental flights with each direction being around 24 hours of travel with my DS who was about 2 months at the time- we had no issues and found it very easy- people were extremely helpful toward us in ALL the airport and at all the lines we usually we allowed to cut to the front