Baby holiday essentials

[MissingGrandstand]

Hello wise ladies of Mumsnet,

Taking a 6mo baby to Florida in a few weeks (I know, insanity, it's a rearranged trip from before baby was even thought of!) and want to be as prepared as possible.

Aside from the essentials (nappies etc) can you please share your must haves? I'm a real poster, not a stealth marketer, so I don't need brands, just ideas! For example my mum just suggested a clip on fan for the stroller which I hadn't thought of.

Really appreciate any and all suggestions, last time I asked for purchasing advice I ended up with my Stokke Tripp Trapp which I LOVE, so hoping for more of the same!

And wise men if any men have any good ideas!

Couple of flannels and a plastic wallet to keep them in damp to wipe baby down when hot..
Parasol and fly net for the buggy. Fly net useful for travel cot also at night...

Not sure if you're renting a car, but we got a Doona stroller which is a car seat / pushchair which is amazing when travelling. (Although I think in the states the car seats are different maybe?)
Also get a good carrier for carting the kiddo around when they won't be in a pushchair.
I found having a really big nappy bag with all the essentials helpful for the plane (mostly for me being terrified I wasn't prepared enough) but in that bag I pack a smaller pouch with a nappy, puppy pee pad and wipes for quick nappy changes in small spaces (like airplane bathrooms)
Also book a bassinet seat if you can. Baby might not use it, but you'll have a little more space.

Do not forget the baby monitor's CHARGER!!!

Snoozeshade cover for the stroller, keeps sun off baby much easier than a parasol, and good for blocking out distractions at nap time

Thank you both! @Creepymanonagoatfarm flannels are a great idea, digging some out now!

@GiraffeInTheCity is there a particular carrier you've found ok in the heat? She was a winter baby so my carrier is a really heavy one and I'm worried it will be way too warm for her when I get there.

I didn't see the Doona until I'd already bought the stroller, it looks amazing! We've rented a car seat for while we have a car towards the end of the trip, but the Doona does look fab. Anecdotally the rules are different in the US (need to be US gov approved car seats which none of the European ones are), but I've read that no one has ever come across/heard of anyone being fined for using a car seat, as they only care if the baby isn't in one (can't speak from experience though!)

I'm probably going massively overboard but we are flying with BA and can take a cabin case as hand luggage so going to do that to make sure we have plenty of spares (big group going so we will have an overhead to ourselves so I won't be annoying anyone else). Bassinet seat booked, so handy to be able to pre-book!

@Sbena I'm taking it that you speak from experience 😂 very good point, I'm going to make a list of all chargers and pack spare batteries for things that don't recharge

Disposable bibs
Cheap buggy
Clip on parasol
UV swimsuit and hat with neck flap - the more body covered the less you worry about sun cream and sun burn
Swim nappies
Calpol

@MissingGrandstand we use the ergobaby omni breeze carrier. Used it lots in Singapore, just made sure to put a wet hat on DS as it was super hot and humid, so that kept him happy.

@DreamingofThailand I'm ashamed to say that even after reading everything including the science behind it, the Snooze shade still terrifies me! I've had one in and out of my Amazon basket and still can't decide...

@MajorCarolDanvers she absolutely hates disposable bibs, I have no idea why! I have a silicone one for wipe clean and a load of really cheap Primark ones but disposable would be so much better so I don't have to carry dirty bibs for the rest of the day once she's finished eating.

It’s not insanity! When we went to Florida we rented a box of toys from this company….. I’ll try and find it… they also did cots, high chairs etc. was brill!

I’m taking our Tula Lite to Greece in couple of weeks (and 4 month old to go in it of course). I have loved it in the heat and it folds down into a bum bag!! Probably wouldn’t use it for carrying for a whole day as not much shoulder padding.

We rented a car and the car seats were terrifying (way less sturdy than UK ones and they were v old) and we had to fit them at like 2am at the airport so definitely look into that!

US car seats actually expire so when renting one it might have been heavily used but they definitely shouldn’t be old! All harness seats have chest clips, look up where to position the clip on baby before you go as placed wrongly and they can cause injuries. Isofix is called LATCH over there but it’s exactly the same so easy peasy. If you get given a belted seat instead then a lot of (although not all!) infant carriers install using the American not the European belt path which is just using the lap bit of the seat belt and the shoulder bit doesn’t go round the back like you’d expect. Again I’d look this up on you tube or something so you don’t end up having massive stress in the rental parking lot! Otherwise you’ll be fine. UV suit and hat for the pool is a good shout but the really good thing about the states is that everywhere inside is air conditioned so it’s super easy to find somewhere to cool off if you should need to. Have a good trip!