1 large suitcase for family of 4 - tips!

[Bourbon2891]

We’re going away next month for 10 days with our 2 DCs who are 2 and 6 mths. We are hiring a smallish car, so had to take that in to consideration when booking luggage with our flight.

We’ve booked one 23kg suitcase and we each have a carry-on bag (to fit under seat on plane). We will also be checking in 2 x car seats, a travel cot and a buggy, We are staying in self-catering accommodation with a washing machine. Weather will be mid to high 20s.

We went away last year with our then 1 yr old on a similar trip and took one 20kg bag and carry ons and it was no problem, but for some reason this time i am panicking slightly.

We will be bubble wrapping the car seats and i know i will be able to stuff beach towels in with those - possibly some things in with the travel cot too.

Any packing tips welcome!

for you and DH: 5x tops and 3x bottoms that mix and match. One jumper each, worn on the plane. 4x undies, 1x swim suit. Buy nappies there, take only enough for three days. Check whether the accommodation provides beach towels. How sicky is the 6mo? I'd be doing 6x tops 4x bottoms 2x jumpers for the kids, but maybe a couple extras for the 6mo. You could actually pack most of what you need in your carry ons! If you want suggestions for your specific destination, I really recommend travelfashiongirl, who has great packing lists.

Agree with PP, buy toileteries and nappies at your location. The only thing we normally buy at home is sun lotion.

Just add one change of clothes and nappies enough for a day plus emergency delay ones into your handluggage.

Microfibre towels and add them to the buggy bag

I wouldn't hire car seats, we did it once and it was a disaster despite written confirmation. And it was in my home country where language wasn't a problem. Never again.

Reconsider hiring a smallish car due to space in boot (what car did you look at to hire?).

I would also consider hiring a larger car given the amount of items going in the boot. You’d be unlikely to get all that into a small vehicle’s boot.

Will you fit a large suitcase, travel cot and buggy into a small car boot?

Buy toiletries there, likely in a self catering they'll be some stuff left. Same with laundry powder etc. Buy nappies there. Take 4-5 days worth of clothes only and do laundry given you can. Wear biggest shoes on the plane. Can you not hire car seats from the car hire company? I'd ask the property rental company if they can provide a second travel cot or single floor mattress for 2 YO.

Where are you heading to?.

Use google maps for the location your staying at to locate places like supermarkets.

Put a A4 piece of paper on top of clothes in the suitcase listing your contact details, where you are staying and flight number. This will help get your suitcase to you quicker in the event it goes missing.

Yes I’m not sure will fit one large case, pram and travel cot in a small hire car seeing as back seats will be full of children in car seats and other smaller bags.
You are going to have to ditch taking

cot or hire larger car.

We just about squeezed one case, babyzen yo-yo (ie tiny pram) and babybjorn travel cot (ie one of smaller folding cots) in small corsa. That was with just one child in car seat so used back seat for pram, rucksack and coats. With two children it wouldn’t fit.
By 2 year mine just climbed out of travel cots. So just use bed.

For packing. Use seat bags. Then can put bag inside car seat with bulky items like nappies/ sleeping bag/ swim float.
I fold small blanket, a few muslin cloths and attach toys to Within pram folded. Pram in bag so all contained.

We have never regretted upgrading car to larger hire car if possible. Just makes it far more pleasant with children having space for changing, luggage, beach stuff on days out etc without faffing with car jenga

Roll clothes into packing cubes
Don't overpack clothes, it's only 10 days. You could totally get away with 3 outfits each as assuming it's a pool situation, and you can wash if needed. Two pairs of shoes each, just flip flops/sandals plus something to travel in (trainers?).

If it's got a washing machine you won't need much clothes. Does it have a dryer. Get a little tiny back pack for your older child to carry on a plane with a few story books, a colouring book, crayons and a couple of small toys.

@Peony654 you make a great point re: wear your biggest shoes on plane but I misread it and had a mental image of them all trooping onto the plane in clown shoes 🤦😆

Check and see if local company you can rent a travel cot from. My sister lives abroad and runs a company that does this; likely to be an option at many tourist destinations. Otherwise I’d be trying to see if you can get 2 year old to sleep on a mattress. Or 6 month old to sleep on one of the very light travel cots suitable for small babies. Regular Travel cots so heavy.

Airbnb might have towels and if there is a washing machine can take minimal stuff and wash it - I put a wash on each evening, rumbled overnight and didn’t iron anything!

How about a Ready Bed instead of taking the travel cot for the 2 yr old? www.ebay.co.uk/itm/285442766850?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=7Cn2TTfcRSa&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=Zpi2v5PPRa6&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY
A lot lighter...!

Is there a Boots at your airport? As long as you have enough hands amd car space buy, or better still pre-order toiletries there.

Definitely do not hire carseats, you know how they work, they are not missing bits and you know how to clean them. The exception would be if you are going to Austraila as they have specialist hire companies. Never hire with the car.

Take at least one jumper per person in case it gets colder than expected.
Take stuff to make your first meal in case your flight gets delays ( pasta and a sauce or something like that) something your kids will eat. Take your babies normal formula if your not breastfeeding.

Change the kids cots a double if nights before then take those sheets/betting with you then their bed will smell the same so will be familiar. Take spare with you.
Some of these things might be worth taking.

Get 2 Aerolite minimax suitcases for carry on. They conform to the under seat size for easyJet (not sure about other airlines) and you can fit so much stuff in them. I pack all my DS stuff for a ten day trip in one of these. Also handy wheels. Game changer for holidays.

I’m told you can order stuff from Boots (including milk) to be delivered to the branch through security so you can take more on the plane. All your toiletries etc.

Definitely take car seats - you really cannot rely on the ones at airports to be suitable - and they can be really expensive.
I've just done family of 5 for 2 weeks in one case. Mix and match tops and bottoms for everyone, wear trainers and jumpers on the plane, sandals/flip flops in case. You don't need multiple changes of clothes if you have a washing machine. Pack Calpol, bite cream etc. I did take nappies as my 2 year old is a larger size and they're not that common where we were going, but easily distributed around cases and luggage. Swim nappies can be dried and reused unless soiled.
Maximise the hand luggage with heavy items - so long as it doesn't breach the size requirements no one ever checks the weight.

We did very similar to this for a family of 5 earlier this summer with a weather forecast varying from 10-25 degrees - it is very do-able and you’ll be fine! However much you take you always end up not wearing everything. I’d suggest:

-one long sleeved cardigan/jumper per person (to be worn on the plane);
-two pairs of shoes each, usually sandals to be packed and heavier trainers on the plane;
-then just 2/3 light dresses/ shorts & t-shirt combos per person;
-as someone else said, take suncream but buy cheap shampoo/ conditioner immediately upon arrival;
-large muslins can double up as towels, sheets, beach mats etc and always seem to come in useful;

Enjoy your holiday!

Car seat travel bags- still bubble wrap seats but you can stuff lots in with them- towels Nappies etc. personally I wouldn’t take an expensive pushchair- have seen how they get thrown around, take nappies/set of clothes/milk snacks in carry on just in case, then will at least have some clothes in case case is lost. If have washing machine then you don’t need to pack too much- is there somewhere to dry it at the apartment? If not some sort of folding airer, can get some that fold up really small

Order toiletries to airside chemist and they won't go towards weight allowance then. Also pack kids stuff in a door shoe hanging thing. It's amazing and saves huge amount of space

Take Hamman towels rather than traditional towels or microfibre. I spent fortune on Dock and Bay microfibres towels for everyone, and they are "Emperor's New Clothes". They don't dry bodies that well, and they don't dry themselves that quickly. I get all this in my £4 Hamman towel though! And it packs up very small (it's basically a big, thick muslin).

Definitely try getting 2 year old in bed, even if a mattress on floor.

2nd hammam towels, we use them as beach towels, they are brilliant.

Remember, everywhere has babies, so don't panic if you forget something.

Aldi/lidl are most places for forgotten items. We got suncream for 4:euros in lidl France last week, so not always a horror story, but i would take calpol, ibuprofen etc as they'r@e expensive.

I am currently away with just DH in a small car, there is no way the boot would hold everything you are hoping your boot will hold. The case and 2 small bags possibly would fit but then you would have the travel cot and pushchair in the back across the foot wells, one bag in the passenger foot well and the other bag etween the two car seats. It might work. Have you tested this out with someone you know who has a small car before you go to see if it will work, if not upgrade the car now to save being ripped off when you get there. Have a lovely holiday and try not to stress too much

Thanks so much for all the replies! Loads of great tips! :)

Will look in to those different types of towels and will definitely invest in some more packing cubes.

We are going to Spain (similar area to where we’ve been before) so I know in the Lidl there we can pick up nappies and toiletries. Great shout about the Calpol - have added that to my packing list! Baby is ebf so we don’t need to take bottles or consider formula.

The baby is still quite sicky, so I imagine I will be putting a wash on most days. I really don’t mind doing that and actually prefer to fly home with a case of mostly clean clothes and not a huge amount of laundry to do. I will aim to pack 4/5 outfits each and we can wash/rewear. We won’t be going out in the evenings and the days will be spent either at the beach or exploring some local towns, so we really won’t need much. The weather should be warm enough that jumpers/cardigans are not required in the day.

Car seats - I had a think again about taking them and also looked in to hiring them. The cost would be 10 euro per day per seat, so a total of 180 euro. This seems so so expensive, esp when I could buy brand new car seats for this price. Even though lots of people have no problem at all with hiring car seats with their rental, I have equally heard lots of stories where it’s been a nightmare - no seats available on arrival, unsuitable seat, dirty etc.. I know it is going to be a real pain in the a s to take the toddler one in particular, but I think its the best option. It will only be the getting of these items from the airport car park to the check in desk and then the same on the other side that will be a bit of a faff.

Travel cot - I checked and the accommodations (we are staying in 2 different Airbnbs during our trip) don’t have a second travel cot. Our 2 year old (she will turn 2 shortly before we go) has never slept in our bed before so that would be pretty new for her but also our baby still wakes 2 to 3 times a night, so It wouldn’t work all being in the same room together. She still sleeps in a travel cot at my mothers house and hasn’t tried to climb out yet. My DH and I have had a pretty rough few months with the baby and are completely exhausted and sleep deprived. Thankfully our toddler sleeps really well, goes off to sleep no problem and sleeps all night. At this point I don’t think I could attempt to switch up my toddlers bed routine and try and get her used to sleeping on a mattress ahead of our holiday :(. If she started waking up in the night too or not going down at bedtime, I think it would tip us over the edge! We booked accommodation with 2 bedrooms and the idea was that we would put each of them to bed in the evening in their respective rooms in their cots and we could then cook and enjoy some time together. Out of curiosity, if the toddler was to sleep on a mattress on floor In the second bedroom, how do we know that she would be safe? She could just get up and wander around the apartment in the night as of course there are no stair gates?

Car - We didn’t hire the smallest car, but the next size up. I checked the booking again and it is for a 5 door Ford Fiesta or similar. On the rental companies website it says this size car hire should accommodate two large suitcases in the boot, so I am hoping one large case and the buggy should be fine as our buggy is really compact when folded. The travel cot might have to go in the car yes but we will see. The other bags we are taking are small under the seat on the plane bags, so 3 x small plus a change bag and these will easily slot in somewhere as they are not big.

Thanks again, so so many tips! Really appreciate it.

Best toy ever at that age on holiday = stacking cups. Take up hardly any space and are light. Can be used to stack, pour sand and pour water. Went on holiday with a 7 month old and 3 year old and they played with them loads.