Holiday abroad with a five-month-old baby before returning to work?

[Calicogirl]

We are having our first baby this year. I run my own business and taking holidays can be difficult, but luckily I've found a wonderful person who I trust to do my mat leave cover for 6 months so I can be off with baby. Given this, I'd love to take the opportunity for a holiday abroad with baby and husband, I'm thinking when baby is around 5 months old, just before I go back to work. Given the timings this will be March/April time, and I'd prefer somewhere with reliable weather, so thinking further afield than Europe. I'd love it to be somewhere I haven't been before as well (have already done Egypt and Canary Islands). So considering options like Mexico, Cape Verde, Dominican Republic. Would like sunshine, relaxing, maybe some fun activities but mostly chilled.

Basically husband thinks I'm mad and saying no to going away with a baby so young, especially if we are to go further afield. He worries about what if baby is unwell whilst away. He also thinks I'm mad to consider a long haul flight with a young baby. He would prefer that we just don't go at all.

Obvs this is my first so I may be being totally naive but from what I've read online people say flying with younger babies isn't so bad?

So, am I crazy to consider this? Will we enjoy the holiday with such a young baby, or will we just worry? Will the flight be awful? And if we do go, any suggestions on destination?

Totally depends on the temperament of the baby. Mine was a colicky, non-sleeping, clingy velcro baby so would have been a hard no from me! Wait and see how you feel when baba is here but no harm doing planning for it in case you do feel confident enough to go for it.

I wouldn’t go to Cape Verde - they seem to be having a lot of issues with food poisoning… scandal building about it.

Travelling with a five month old is ok yes, just go somewhere with access to decent healthcare.

It will come down to what your baby is like really - so maybe play it by ear and see if you have colicky fussy baby (which may make it less attractive) or a relaxed one.

5 months is a good age as assuming you won’t yet have started weaning.

5 months is the perfect age to take a baby on holiday their easy at this age enjoy as many holidays as you can before they become a toddler.

Oman is beautiful and warm then, plus very safe (assuming no wars etc), clean and civilised. I would go 4/5 star in and around Muscat. C 7 hrs flight

I wouldn’t touch Cape Verde with a barge pole - issues with hospitals. Mexico is just too far IMO

5 months is a good age to go. I breastfeed and so didn't need to worry about taking any food. They aren't mobile yet so aren't worried about crawling around on the plane.

I personally haven't gone further than 4 hours on a plane since having children. This is mainly because I'm not keen on long flights, and a little bit about feeling safer somewhere more similar to home I.e. Europe. This isn't particularly rational but I can understand your DHs point of view.

I went to Maldives when baby was 4 months. The flights were absolutely fine as he mostly slept during them!

A long haul flight with a baby is insane.

The baby could start screaming from the moment the plane leaves the ground - possibly for the whole flight - which will not go down terribly well with the other passengers.

I wouldn’t go more than a couple of hours and I would also not see it as a ‘holiday’. It’s a trip away with a baby and mountains of baby gear.
We took our firstborn away to northern Spain he was six months and it was early summer. It was exhausting as he didn’t like the change of routine. It was also a big pain to take pushchair and car seat , many countries don’t bother with car seats for babies and children eg in taxis.

5 months is pretty ideal as they can’t move, no food yet. But personally I wouldn’t bother going long haul. We went to Crete when mine was 6 months it was great. Especially if you are BF, you really don’t need to take much. They have hospitals in other countries; if you needed! Just make sure baby covered by travel insurance. Also accept youll be limited for ‘fun activities’-plan to not do much!

As long as they’ve had their 3 lots of vaccinations, I’d not hesitate. We took our babies abroad, and it was long haul, from when they were tiny. It was easy and stress free.

I wouldn’t touch Cape Verde either. Very little to see or do. Lots of food poisoning. Very basic medical facilities and stories of agressive behaviour and fighting in the hotels.

Avoid Cape Verde- have you not seen in in the news?

We took DDs on their first holiday aged almost 3 and 6 months, in a 4.5 hour flight to Turkey. DD2 slept or fed for the whole flight.

we also didn’t need “mountains of baby stuff” as the resort we stayed at provided sterilised, cot, baby bath, etc. we took bottles, formula, nappies, wipes and a pram. The resort also used a company who provided car seats for the transfers.
the time of year we were there wasn’t too hot for the kids, DD2 still napped well, and honestly it was a dream (ideal as we were there for a friends wedding!)

I would say it very much depends on your baby though, and I probably wouldn’t risk long haul for your first flight because if baby doesn’t like it, no one will enjoy it!

i would also recommend an AI resort, as you have everything you need at arms reach - we’ve visited Ikos and Maxx Royal since having kids multiple times and they’ve been perfect for what the kids enjoy and want, as well as what DH and I want.
our kids now even ask to go to kids club sessions so we get a few hours to ourself by the adults only pools!

We took DS at 6 months to Singapore and Japan. At 5 months to Gibraltar. And at 7 months I drove him to the south of France (on my own). DH was in the forces so we went to see him and I spent a lot of time visiting relations. For me it was all fine. He was incredibly easy and portable. I would plan to go somewhere like Oman but maybe hold off on booking until after baby is born. You could also consider Greece or Spain… won’t be that hot but that’s no bad thing.

Morocco?

We went traveling around south east Asia when our baby was 6 months, for similar reasons. We were very particular about which travel insurance we got to make sure we had decent cover, but she didn’t get so much as a mosquito bite. We didn’t need or take ‘mountains of baby stuff’, we didn’t even take a pram, just a carrier. She slept in the massive double beds with us and showered with one of us so we didn’t need cots or baby baths etc (then again we didn’t have either of those at home). She slept through the whole flight there and stayed awake through the whole flight back, but just sat on my knee ‘reading’ the safety card. It very much was a holiday, we loved every minute of it.

5 months is perfect - no need to worry about choosing a restaurant with suitable food, no need to look for kids activities and play areas because all the grown up stuff is just as exciting - get them in a carrier and go where you like!

On the plane they're not trying to crawl around. And unlike in a car, you can hold them the whole time so they can be much happier!

I couldn't think of anything worse than a sunshine holiday with a 5 month old, why is it necessary?

Do it. Baby will be portable and even if they are colicky or don’t sleep well where would you rather be miserable? In your own house for the fifth month in a row or somewhere sunny with hotel staff to make your breakfast?!

Yes do it, maybe hold off booking until you've given birth and know how you are coping. As expats we flew long haul when ours were babies, no issues travelling with them. We went to Fiji when our youngest was that age and it was perfect. Never took mountains of stuff, hotels have cots and showers, only really needed clothes, nappies and a baby carrier.

I traveled a lot with ds that age as we lived abroad.

Did night flights, fed him on take off and he’s then sleep.

it got harder once he could move around 🤣

We had one of our most amazing holidays when our first was 7 months old! We used to go for a walk every morning during his nap time, and sit out and have drinks during his afternoon nap. In the evenings he’d fall asleep in his pushchair while we had drinks outside and we’d transfer him to the cot when we went in, he loved the pools, the beach, it was just fabulous. Is your baby on the upper end of 5 months? Just asking because our boy was weaned by the time we went and it was so much easier letting him sit in the high chair and eat in the restaurants with us, he just wanted plates and plates of broccoli 😂 (he’s still the same now!)

Hope you have a wonderful time, my little boy is now 2 and my girl is 11 months and we’re doing it again in September but I have a feeling this one will be slightly harder work 😅

Can I recommend a could have things that might help if you do have a baby with reflux?

Read up on Tongue Tie and its symptoms. It is fairly common and often missed by HCPs and I’d also have a read of Baby Calming by Caroline Deacon before your LO arrives

While i kniwmist are imobile - echoed in the comments above - just a hazard warning about 5 month olds - DS1 was crawling at 5 months, DS2 was shuffling across the floor at 4.5 months.

Id go before they hit 5 months!