Using cloth/reusable nappies on holiday?

[Faithincats]

I'm a first time mum, keen to try cloth/reusable nappies. I'm wondering if other parents who opted for reusables use them all the time, including when you go on holiday? I know and accept they will be more effort day-to-day (washing, drying, etc) than disposables. This feels manageable at home, but what about when you go away on holiday, either in the UK or abroad? Do you stick to reusable nappies, or do you use disposables temporarily, for ease? Curious to hear others' experiences.

Hi!

We used reusable nappies on DS from when he was 4 weeks old. It is a way of life and not that hard work really. Still use some of his daytime ones overnight to avoid bed wetting (he is soon 3). For holidays if it was self catering with a washing machine we would bring the cloth nappies with us, but maybe just a few as they dry quicker somewhere warm and we may have more long excursions where a normal nappy is better. If it is a hotel only then just buy some eco friendly nappies for the week. They are often better for the skin than cheap disposables, and you may just use 3 a day once your baby is weaned. We were always quite relaxed also at home and would use maybe 2-3 regular nappies per week if we knew we will be out and about for a long time/expecting a no 2 and it would be super horrible to carry a dirty nappy with us all day. It is good to try be eco conscious but not at the expense of your own sanity - perhaps before one particular holiday you are just shattered and want to get away from laundry for a week, and I think that is OK too!

Disposables on holiday.

If your un-eco enough to be travelling then you can manage a pack of disposables. I did more than my fair share of washables/terries back in the day, and as pp said the thought of lugging dirty nappies around on holiday was just too meh.

We were 100% reusables all the time including on holiday until son potty trained at two. All we had to do was plan around it and either book accommodation with a washing machine or make sure the hotel was near a launderette. We found apartments better for travelling with a baby anyway as we had a living room to relax in in the evening after we put him down to bed.

To pack them I used vacuum bags which were roll up ones rather than hoover operated. This made them flat enough to fit nicely into our suitcase.

Honestly, it required no more effort than washing them at home 😊 They also dry FAR faster in a sunny location!

Disposables of any kind were never an option for us even if it would have been more convenient.

In September we'll be going to Vienna with a three month old in full time reusables.

If you have any questions about anything I'd be happy to share my experiences 😄

@BloodyAdultDC See I see it the other way. If I've decided to take an aeroplane somewhere then surely I should be trying to be more eco friendly in other ways to go a little way towards offsetting that 😅

The thing with this is, you have chosen to take an aeroplane. Nappies are a necessity. Using reuseable nappies goes absolutely no way towards offsetting air miles.

We use disposables on holiday, unless going in the car within the UK. We've got a bloody massive nappy bucket for the dirty ones, and they're pretty bulky to pack (11 week old is still using 8+ nappies a day). Ours are bamboo which are great for absorbency but don't dry that quickly, Also, we quite like travelling by train if we can and wouldn't be carting around all the nappy stuff then. I try to be eco friendly but I honestly don't think a week's worth of disposables is the worst disaster ever.

I used reusable on short trips by car (I had 3 days worth) and did use them on a 2 week road trip when both were in nappies because we were staying in motels that had self serve laundries but for other trips I opted for disposables.

Honestly, don’t bother. We are a big eco household - solar panels, veggie, cycle everywhere and we still use disposables on holiday. Let yourself have a break!

Kid 3 was sensitive to disposables.
once did 2 weeks in France hand washing them 🤣. Seems crackers in hindsight but was fine. (>20 yrs ago. Use flat terries - easiest wash and dry though we had fancy ones for home mostly )

I always used disposables on holiday, but that would have been years ago, when tumble dryers weren't likely to be available in holiday cottages.

Nowadays I'd take the reusable nappies with me and wash and dry them.

@Soontobe60 Nope you're right, it doesn't but it is one more week's worth of nappies not going into a landfill, so it's something to me.

If I take a plane AND use disposables, then surely that's worse? 🤔

I used cloth nappies and loved them but for holiday, long days out I used disposable ones. Felt this was minimal and why make life a faff?

Could you get the train? It’s what we do - we don’t fly.

@AppleTree16 I have looked into it a few times but can't afford the time or the cost unfortunately 😓