TRAVEL MAMA | Ashley, Flying with a Baby
Flying with a baby is daunting to most new parents but expert Travel Mama Ashley jumped into the adventure with two feet. This week I got to interview Ashley and find learn about her take on traveling with kids and the
How much did you travel before you started flying with a baby? Where had you been?Before having our son, I’d traveled to almost a dozen countries including Thailand, Austria, Italy, France, Costa Rica, and Jamaica.
When did you get your first passport?I actually didn’t get my first passport until I was 22 years old. I kept waiting for my parents to take me or send me abroad and that never happened! So I planned a getaway for me and my then boyfriend (now husband) as a gift to myself when I graduated from undergrad.
Did you travel pregnant? Any tips for flying while pregnant?I did travel pregnant. And I was miserable. The motion of any and all moving vehicles made me sick to my stomach and unless I was the one driving, I felt every bump. Almost my entire pregnancy. I traveled by car, plane and ferry and all were a bad idea. If I could do it again, I’d definitely wait until my second trimester. All of that travel happened when I was between 8 and 10 weeks along so still in the thick of morning sickness. I’d recommend that if you can wait until after the first trimester, wait out the morning sickness, if you even have any.
How many children are in your travel tribe? What are their ages?We just have one baby and he will be 1 years old on January 29. Lord willing, more to follow 🙂
How old was your baby the first time you traveled?My son was 4 months old when we first traveled with him.
What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned about your kids, travelling?My son is such a people person when we travel. He waves at strangers and even tries to sit with whoever is sitting next to us on planes. The older he’s gotten, I’m learning how he plays and how long his attention span is, on average. For example, I can’t bring the same toy he likes to play with at home on a trip. We’re in a new environment and the toy should be new too in order to keep his interest.
How has travelling as a mother changed you?I’ve slowed down a lot and I didn’t realize how adventurous I used to be. In fact, I never would have even called myself adventurous but certain things like drinking too much on a night out with my husband doesn’t happen anymore because I know that we’re picking up the baby the next day or I’m less likely to go with the flow of the bus or metro being late and I’d rather have the convenience of a Lyft or Uber when abroad. We’ve slowed down to exploring only 2 cities in 10 days when before we’d jam pack as much as 4 cities into that same amount of.
What are the best tips for travelling with kids you’d give a mom who was Anxiety about flying with a baby?I love this question because I am so passionate about mothers traveling with their children. I’d say making a list of things you need, your day to day activities, and overall organization will cut out a lot of the what-ifs of travel. Start local or domestic. Don’t take your baby on that 9-hour plane ride the first time you travel with them if you’re not even sure how they will do on a plane. If you can, travel with a partner, friend, parent, etc. Having someone that you trust who can hold the baby while you’re sorting out paying for the cab or checking in to the hotel can be a huge help. Almost everywhere that we went with our son this past year were places that we’d been to before so we weren’t worried about not knowing the lay of the land, so to speak. I would even recommend your first trip being to visit family and friends.They will want to hold the baby and give you a much needed break.
Out of all the benefits of travel what is one thing you hope your children take out it?I want my children to be curious. I want them to question everything that someone tell, them (within reason) so they can learn more. I want them to be hungry for knowledge and travel has peaked my interest to learn more about every place I’ve visited and plan to visit in the future so I hope that travel will give them that same curiosity to know more.
What are your travelling essentials when flying with a baby? What are 3 things you never travel without for yourself and for your kids?For me, my skin routine, clean underwear and a jacket (I hate to be cold). For my kid, food, diapers, extra change of clothes.
Long layover or direct flights? Why?Direct flights. I’ve only ever seen long layovers at inopportune times. For example, we arrived in Seoul for an 11-hour layover but didn’t get in until 5am and nothing opened until 8am. Our flight out was at 4pm and it wasn’t enough time to do very much. I like at least a couple of days in a new place. Plus, direct flights with kids are the way to go for the following reasons: one ascent and one descent, no possibility of a missed or delayed connecting flight and you can check your bags all the way through instead of worrying about losing them or having to pick them up to go through customs while on a layover.
Why is it important to you to travel, mama?I believe that it can be dangerous to be too comfortable. Yes, I’ve lived in the same general 70 mile radius my whole life but the rest of the world is a real, dangerous, beautiful, awe-inspiring place and I never want to forget my place in it. Nor do I want my children to forget. I like nice things but could I live without running water? Could I stand to have only the clothes on my back for a month at a time? These are the challenges that I plan to face as I travel. And the return on investment is that I get to learn more about myself better along the way.
What is something you do without at home, to travel more?Shopping. I don’t spend that much on my clothes or shoes and anything really nice that I own was a gift.
Airport uniform?Man. This is something I’m working on! I just want to be comfortable and warm. It’s usually a sweatsuit or leggings and a sweatshirt, a jacket and a scarf. No matter where I’m going, I have a scarf.
Travel mama hack?You can bring a carry-on size bag for your baby even if they’re a lap infant. That’s an entire extra bag. No more stuffing all of baby’s must-haves into your bag anymore. This changed my life lol.
Do you /How do you practice responsible tourism as a family?This is becoming more of a must for us this year and I’m researching ways to be more responsible. I volunteer taught English in Costa Rica and thought I was doing such a good thing but there is something crooked even about those volunteer companies. We love Airbnbs and that’s a way that we support locals when we travel.
The most sticky experience you’ve had, flying with a baby.On our third trip with our son, he had a terrible plane ride home. I booked the flight right in the middle of his nap. I didn’t realize how long you sit on a plane just taxing to the runway. We were saving the bottle for when we took off but we couldn’t wait, he was just so miserable. We thought he was going to be screaming going up because he was full from the bottle and wouldn’t take another one. He was fine going up but over tired and couldn’t fall asleep until about an hour into the flight. He’d been such a champion flyer until that moment and I really felt guilty for bringing him with us that trip. But once he got some sleep, he woke up happy and playful again.
Where have you been as a family?We’ve been to New Orleans, Orlando, Punta Mita and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, London, Madrid, and Amsterdam.
Secretly there are 9 million benefits to traveling with kids what’s the best perk you’ve experience led going with a tiny traveler in tow?Hands down getting through security and checking in faster at the airport. Especially in Europe, there are designated check-in counters and security lines for families and people traveling with small children.
Where are you guys off to next?As a family, we will be in Arizona and Switzerland this year. If I can swing it, I’d like to visit some family in NYC and Atlanta.
Where can we follow along with your family travel, mama?I detail all of our travels both on my instagram (@from.my.world) and on my blog www.frommyworld.com.
Thank you so much Ashley for your time, your expertise and your tips on flying with a baby. For a complete list of Travelling essentials for flying with a baby check here.
Happy travels!
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