Costa del Sol with 8mo

[MeadowHay]

Going to the Costa del Sol soon with DD who will be 8.5 mo, and my DPs, DB, and DSis. DPs are taking us basically. Will be sharing a hotel room with DD. She is FF and on solids too, we do a mixture of spoon-feeding and self-feeding. This is the first time I will be taking her on a 'proper' holiday i.e. not staying with friends or relatives, and the first time I will be taking her abroad and on a plane. I am getting increasingly anxious about it now as the time comes, I feel like I have no idea what to pack or how to prepare. She is a 'high needs' baby and 90% of the time fights her naps awfully with loads of crying and needs rocking to sleep, which I usually use the pushchair for. How am I going to get her to be quiet/sleep for the plane journey??? That's what I'm most panicking about .

Anyway, any tips about things to take that I might forget otherwise? Have bought a Joie Nitro stroller to take so leaving our regular bulkier pushchair. Have used it a few times and DD is happy in it and sleeps well in it. Not even sure if the hotel has a mini-fridge in the rooms or not...do hotels usually provide travel cots? What do I do about the mini-bus transfer from the airport to the hotel, as I guess DD won't have a car seat for it?!

(I do suffer with GAD, I'm sure you can tell!)

Where abouts on the Costa Del Sol are you headed? We are off there too with our baby girl who will be 8 months at time of travel. You will need to take a car seat with you id imagine. I’d phone the hotel and check about the cot. Did you book a room for the three of you? As they usually check the ages of customers to ensure they provide the correct sleeping arrangements.

You don't need to take a car seat for public transport or transfers from hotel unless you wanted to. They can sit on your knee. If you do take car seat wrap it well for airplane.
If baby is on booking there should be a cot.
For formula I ordered the premade bottles to be picked up airside. Depending on which chemist you have airside, boots you should be able to order online, Superdrug I had to phone the store. Then I took a little bit of powder for back up. I took the tablets for Sterilising. If you are self catering they should have a bowl you can put bottles in for this. If not you can buy sterilising bags to put bottles in. I used bottles water for cleaning and if I needed to make up bottle. I bought a bag to transport pram in for plane. Keeps it clean but also gives more packing space, I stuffed it full of nappies. I also bought some Ella pouches to be picked up airside as well so I wasn't worrying about food. Have a great time

Most babies are quiet on the plane. Lots to see and do. Take snacks. It will be fine!

Also for plane you will find that the noise of the plane lulls them to sleep. But my 10month high needs baby when awake was so nosey about her new environment she was happy to just look around and explore. You could try and bring some toys to also distract her

Feed on take off and landing. It's a short flight will be fine.
Take car seat for transfer and for car hire when there.
Check with hotel re travel cot and fridge just email them.
All babies are high needs! There was never a baby that fended for itself. I say that as a parent if premature twins.
Have a great time!

There are loads of companies that hire baby equipment. Just google. They will meet you at the airport with the car seat.

Contact whoever is arranging the transfer. Most will provide car seats. Don't put the baby on your knee. Not safe.

Ok, have the details of providers for DM so will try and contact them all soon. She's unsure whether airport transfer is a coach or a minibus. Apparently children under 2 don't get their own seat on the transfer though so I guess she will have to go on my knee. I really really don't want to travel in a minibus without her in a car seat though...but not sure there's anything I can do about it if there's not space for her to have her own seat anyway??

It's not self-catered, so no kitchen facilities, we have a kettle, and I think there will be a mini-fridge but need to double-check. Never heard of sterilising bags, where can I buy these and what brand are they? I know about the sterilising tablets, do you put them in these bags?

I'm pretty sure there is a Boots at the airport so will have a look at that for ordering formula there. It's awkward as well because atm she has 9oz bottles of formula and the little pre-made bottles are only 7oz each so it means opening two bottles for each of her bottles and wasting most of the second one . Unless I can get the big bottles, but they won't fit in a mini-fridge anyway, would they?

We booked this when I was about 8 weeks pp, I massively underestimated the logistics involved in travelling with a baby .

Hollow Yes, sorry, of course - but DD still cries so much she's waiting on a paeds referral, and even relatives and people at baby groups comment on it/her behaviour . It is tough - but definitely not as tough as with prem twins, you are a hero!

What happens the with buggy, will I be able to take it right up to boarding the plane and recieve it again on the other side or not? Or does it depend on airline. Apparently we are flying with Easyjet.

DD definitely on booking for the room I am sharing with her so should be a travel cot I guess but I will e-mail hotel to confirm.

We are going to Fuengirola! Need to look up the weather as well...will I need sunhats and things for DD?

@MeadowHay I was there when my little girl was 9 months old. There is a great bioparc there. We went back to benalmadena last year and heading back there again this year. Train into benalmadena is very straight forward. The fish alley also has lots of nice restaurants in fuengriola.

Back to your questions, you will most likely be on a bus and no baby won't have her own seat so you will be made put your baby seat in the hold. You would also need to check if your baby seat would be compatible with a mini bus etc. I have also hired car seats when travelling and they are such poor quality. I kicked up a massive stink and made them get me a new one and it was still really poor, I actually cried. However this was for a hired car. On buses she has just went on my knee, same as she does on buses at home. The journey from Malaga airport is thankfully not that long and good roads. It's not ideal being on your knee but there is no difference being on your knee/pram in UK or Spain. Although if you really didn't want to do that, the train station at Malaga airport takes your right to fuengriola, it's the last stop and it's easy to navigate and everyone is very helpful and speaks good English. Then you could walk to hotel. I think it's only a few euros from memory.

There are lots of different types available but like this Sterliser Bags (7 day supply) www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000F4B43I/ref=cmswrcpapii4vowCb2Z3W48T

I think if you lay the big bottle of premade formula flat it would fit in the mini fridge. I would see if you could get measurements. Although can the small bottles not be kept for a certain amount of time after opening in the fridge? (Check the fridge gets cold enough). I would just email hotel and ask what other guests do! I can't remember to well about timings as I only used formula for a few months and it's over a year ago now.

Weather won't be to warm at the minute but yes if it's baby's first time in the sun I would get a hat. Better to be safe and their wee skin will be very sensitive

Oh sorry forgot about pram, when you check in they will ask if you want to bring it through or check it in. Just tell them you want to bring it to the gate. They will put tags on it. When boarding you food pram up, put it in its bag (if you have one) and leave it at front of plane (on ground before boarding). Then it just depends on bag handlers, they may give it to you as you get of the plan or it will come out with the rest of the bags on the carousel.

Or it will come out on a different carousel for bulky items. I fi d sling is good for carrying baby till get buggy back.

Thanks, we have a Baby Bjorn that DH uses a lot, and a Close sling that we've never really used. I have a dodgey back and coordination difficulties so I don't do much babywearing. My back is particularly painful right now as well but we're not going for a few weeks so hopefully if it's better soon I will have a fiddle about with the two, I did think it might be a good idea to take one for airport and other short little walks or something. Although I haven't done any babywearing for a few months and she's now 8kg so not sure how practical that will be . Shame DB or DF won't do it...I might be able to talk DB in to it lol but DF is categoricaly against babywearing for some reason ! (He is mid-fifties and very active and in good health btw, not elderly or anything lol).

DM says we are flying with Easyjet and I checked and it says you have to pay a little extra for an infant to sit on your lap on the plane, and that each infant gets to bring two things free of charge from a list of things like a pushchair and a car seat. But we have booked through TUI, and DM said she looked at the TUI documents and that says we can only bring one thing, like just a puschair, free of charge . I guess the TUI docs are more likely to be accurate? I really need to contact all the providers and find out what is going on. But thank you all for your help

Have contacted the hotel - they said they didn't know anything about the availability of formula locally/what other guests do regarding formula-feeding but they said they will supply a travel cot and there is a minifridge in the room. I also have use of three minifridges as travelling with family and we will have 3 rooms between us. Does anyone know if I can buy Cow and Gate First Infant Milk easily in Fuengirola, both powder and/or pre-made bottles?

Does anyone have any recommendations as to what I should do with regards to bedding? Atm she sleeps in a vest, sleepsuit, and 2.5 tog Grobag but we have a thermostat and the temperature doesn't drop below around 17 degrees at night now and doesn't go above 20 degrees (that part is just the first few hours that she is in bed sometimes, before we go to bed). I have no idea how warm it will be in our hotel room so not sure whether to pack 2.5 tog grobags or 1 tog grobags, blankets, what ?

Whenever we have took DD's to Spain they just slept in a vest. No sheet/blanket/bag.

Sorry I've forgot what month you are going. But if it's May - Oct I wouldn't worry about a gro bag.

Pack the 1 tog if you are worried they won't sleep without the gro bag and maybe just a nappy underneath. You can turn in the air con if room is hot.

Our DD (now 25!) always slept on a sheepskin fleece. When travelling we always took it and used it in her travel buggy as well as in hotel travel cots. We used to get strange looks taking it to the beach but it worked really well in keeping her settled. We started using it as she spent time in GOSH as a baby and they used them in NICU. I think you can buy them from the Woolroom. Could you not put the powdered formula in zipped bags for travelling? At least then you know it’s the right one.

Make her bottles up for the plane at home before you leave. You are allowed to take them through. You can pre-order tins of formula at boots airside as well as pouches of baby food and sterilising tablets.

Or stick a tin of formula in your case.

Pack vests and baby gros etc, sun hat, sun cream factor 50, medicines and mozzie plug.

She'll be absolutely fine on the plane, it's only a short flight. Feed her on take off and landing. Download stuff to an iPad for her to watch etc. There's 5 adults to entertain her

No I am going this week! It will only be 17-18 degees max late afternoon.

Need to start packing...I know I am massively overthinking everything and getting irrationally anxious but I do have GAD so that's why. I'm sure it all won't be half as bad as I'm expecting .

The weather forecast for Thursday in fuengirola is 22 degrees with a real feel 24 and no cloud cover. You need suncream.

I would pack the gro bag then. The houses in Spain are built to release the heat to it can get cool at night.

Ah Shpoot, that's interesting - I guess you used AccuWeather as your source? I was going by BBC Weather. There is a significant difference between the two estimates so now I'm not sure what clothes to pack for myself! I guess a range of different things lol.

Yeah I find accuweather to be the most accurate. It will be lovely and warm. I've got friends out there at the moment and it looks nice. Definitely sunscreen for your dd anyway to protect her

And a mozzie plug from b and m

Think I've finally got everything! Although not all packed yet. Does anyone know what the availability of baby jars/pouches is like there? I have packed a small amount but planning to mostly buy there. Spoke to Cow and Gate and they said the the formula is called Milupa 1 there and Almiron 1 is actually Aptamil 1 (which makes sense if you look at the packaging), contrary to what everyone on forums seems to say online! Carrefour doesn't seem to sell Milupa but if I can't find it I might just put her on Almiron as they're the same company anyway so they're probably almost identical. And as DM said, she cries so much anyway that I can't imagine she could be worse with a slightly different milk. She may even be better, who knows?! I asked them if they sold premade Milupa or Almiron in Spain but they said they only had info about the powders (why can't they find this out given they work for C&G ).

It'll be more stressful and probably more expensive to get it there. Why don't you just pack it?

As for the baby food pouches, I'd buy them in the airport once you are through security and take them with me. You'll have enough to do without doing a big shop with a hungry baby and you seem very particular about what she has

Pack dried formula.
Buy some ready made, airside.

It is very hard havjng a baby that cries. I hope you get help with that soon; ask them to check for cows milk allergy.

Have a nice holiday. Half the population and holidaymakers in Fuengirola are from the Uk so you will find many familiar brands.