First time abroad with 1 year old to Caribbean, any advice please on how to travel and what to take!

[newmummy321]

Hello!

I will be flying to the Caribbean with my 13 month old baby later this year. FTM here so I've never traveled with a baby!

Any advice on what to take would be great from bottles, cot sheets, food, baby friendly mosquito spray(?) car seat etc

I was planning to buy a collapsable stroller, I've seen some which fold very small so hopefully I can take it on the plane as opposed to the hold.

We are flying either BA or VA, do we need to buy extra baggage? Would you recommend upgrading from economy to premium for more room?

I'm quite clueless on how to travel with a baby, I was hoping to go short haul this summer but I think coronavirus will stop us going!

Thanks in advance!

8 hours with a wriggly toddler wouldn’t fill me with pleasure on a plane. Are you on your own?

It depends where you stay regarding cot sheets. Bottles if still needed would need to be taken. We used to buy a few beach toys when there. Mosquitos are not usually a feature of a beach holiday in the Caribbean. If you are hiring a car, take a car seat, and a pushchair.

I think you need to plan what you need for the flight to keep DC amused and not annoying other travellers. I didn’t take mine long haul until 5 years old. You can order food. Also a family friendly hotel should have suitable food but check when you book.

I would check whether there are any extra vaccinations that any if you would need before travel. My GP has a travel clinic run by the practice nurse and she checks what is required and advises when to get them

Thanks for your replies! Sorry it's taken me a while to respond!

No I will be travelling with my partner and our friends.

The hotel is family friendly and their reviews from people travelling with little ones are great! No we are not planning to hire a car we will be taking taxis to and from the airport. Do I still need to take my car seat? I don't think there will be any to hire as i know they're small airports.

Good point on the vaccinations but I've read there shouldn't be any for where we are planning on going!

Face masks ?

luckily we haven't actually booked yet so of course we wouldn't be travelling if it's not safe!

How will you decide if it's safe ?

Mosquitos are not usually a feature of a beach holiday in the Caribbean.

They certainly used to be where we go. The hotel have managed to get rid of them though.

I've only ever taken bottles, toys and enough nappies to get through the first few days. At 13 months I wouldn't bother taking food.

The flight will probably be hell - I would either upgrade to premium economy or buy a seat for the baby as it's very cramped in economy with a baby on your lap.

A sling or something like the Hippy Chick seat is great for the airport and if you have to check your stroller into the hold.

How will you decide if it's safe ?

Presumably there will be travel advice from official sources.

A summer weight sling of the appropriate size.
Both mine have slept in the sling on the plane, and then used sling at destination when pushchairs weren't appropriate (note - pushchair plus sand isnt a good combination).
I spent most of 2 weeks in Hong Kong with my 18 month in a toddler connecta sling - even the slight 4 year old was manageable in it for short periods. I hired it from a local sling library for our trip.

pushchair plus sand isnt a good combination

I agree - pulling is better than pushing though!

Mosquitos are not usually a feature of a beach holiday in the Caribbean.

'NoSeeUms' can be. Don't know if they transmit nasty diseases but itch like hell.

Thanks SoupDragon that's really helpful , I hadn't thought about nappies!

Unfortunately I can see the flight being tricky! We are heading to a wedding otherwise I would have booked a closer destination! I think upgrading would be a wise move after reading a few threads on here.

I have been to the Caribbean before and did get a few bites from mozzies I'll look into children's repellent.

Thanks Kitten I'll definitely look into slings!

It depends where in the Caribbean you are going.

The scaryness and amenities vary widely depending on what island you are going to.

I’ve never taken a mosquito net though or used a sling as my child doesn’t sit still, ever. There is a silver cross airplane stroller that folds up and comes into the cabin with me.

I always bring a pack and play and my own sheets for my baby. there is lots of fresh fruit. I pack my steriliser too so the bottles are cleaned properly.

The flight will be fun, I’ve been long haul to the Caribbean and states multiple times for work since my baby was 8weeks and it only gets worse even in business class - I have a 14 month old 99th percentile sprinter. Bring plenty of wipes to wipe the planes down as the child will lick touch and poke everything.

Also remember it is hurricane season soon and it is particularly bad during September and parts of the Caribbean were pretty badly hit last year.

it only gets worse

Until they are about 4 and just watch back to back cartoons. It starts to improve from there on!

Thanks so much I'll take all this info, it's going to be December so i know hurricane season will have passed!

It's going to be a long flight to get there!! Not looking forward to it, I never enjoyed flying child free in the first place

Make sure you take swim nappies as we struggled to get them. Also take calpol.

Contact the airline well in advance and request the bulk head seats with the bassinets. Saved a similar length flight for me with ds at the same age. We took plenty of picture books for the flight and lots of snacks. It was an awful lot better than I feared it might be.