long haul travel at 6 months pg

[chloesbaby]

DH and I have just been looking into holidays for September and have more or less settled on Thailand - some really cheap deals knocking around at the mo.
I'm v excited but family are being v negative about the "risks" we are taking. I am currently 12 wk pg so will be around 6 months by the time we go (1st pg)
We haven't booked yet. Are there any real reasons why we shouldn't consider long haul? What should we know about insurance, vaccinations, etc? And do you think there will be any problems with the heat? What about flying - is it awful when you're big?
Really keen to have a nice relaxing holiday before baby arrives so will be good to hear your views / experiences

Some airlines won't carry you long haul when you are pregnant so you'll need to look into this before you book.
You'll also need to let your insurance know that you are pregnant.
I have no idea about vaccinations. I didn't have any when I travelled to Thailand I didn't think you needed any.
I flew to France on a 2 hour flight at 26 weeks. It wasn't terrible but I did need the loo 3 times which was a PITA.
The other thing to consider is food poisoning. You'll have to be extra picky when choosing where to eat and I wouldn't risk drinking anything but bottled water - even if you boil it to make tea. Food poisoning in pregnancy can be quite dangerous so it's not worth the risk.
When it comes to temperature I think it's personal to you. I was heavily pregnant last summer when it was very hot - it reached 30 degrees in my bedroom one night! I didn't find the temperature in France too bad but then again I like hot climates.
Drink loads of water to stay hydrated.
Other than that I think the choice is entirely yours! Enjoy!

I flew longahul at 5 mths and then short haul at 6. I chose to go to the USA mainly for the ease of things and if anything happend I was in' my own language' IYKWIM. I wanted to go to the Maldives but crossed it off......
I had insurance through citybond and for the short haul at 6 mths I had to have a docs letter with me.

I think it depends where you are going in Thailand - presumably you are going to be near a large town/have access to a good doctor who speaks English in good hotel, as opposed to staying in a beach hut several boat journeys away from civilization?! Also, check you don't need malaria tablets as these aren't recommended, but I think most of Thailand OK? And check how hot it's going to be - you really won't be comfortable in the heat.

I personally wouldn't fly long haul at 6 months, in economy - it was bad enough at 4 months, and I didn't fly at all after 6.5 months last time round. I did a lot of travel first of all, but as the months want on I just felt like being closer to home, and even long journeys in the car (2+ hours, we were house hunting, were a pain). Also had emergency scan in Italy at 5 months due to severe cramps, just to be aware that sometimes you do need attention abroad. The other thing to consider is that you don't know if you are going to develop anything which might need extra attention between now and then - high blood pressure, unexplained bleeding, etc.

thanks all for your advice. i may have been a bit over-enthusiastic about it all and not considered the downsides. so far, i've had it fairly easy and kind of thought I would just carry on as normal... (there may be a lot of heavily pg ladies laughing at this!)
will check with doctor and travel agents before booking

The book I have says there is no medical reason not to fly long haul at up to 8 months (or even later), though it does concede that it might not be comfortable for you. The advice is to make sure the airline are happy (most are up to 7 - 8 months from my research).

But pick your location with care - be sure you're happy with the level of medical care available in case anything goes seriously wrong (eg blood transfusion).

For me, beach locations in Thailand wouldn't work for the medical care reason and because I'd be too picky about how safe the food is (and the food is one of the best reasons to go to Thailand). I'm having second thought about Mauritius for the same reasons . I don't really want to go to a hotel and then eat all my meals there just in case!

We're looking at safe old Europe or the States/Caribbean. Some Caribbean locations are out of the path of most hurricanes!

I travelled to Thailand at 4 months pregnant on a trip we'd booked prior to realising I was pregnant. We had a great trip (Thai people love babies and this extends to pregnant ladies!) although I was obviously very careful about what/where I ate (am vegetarian anyway which helped) and only having bottled/canned drinks. Also had to stay well shaded in the heat of the day and seek out the aircon. No vaccinations or malaria necessary. If you research your trip well and stay in a good quality easily accessible resort with good medical facilities and are fully insured I don't see why you couldn't have a lovely relaxing trip. As others have said though, for peace of mind it would be better to avoid being on a small island in the middle of nowhere - not least as this would involve climbing in and out of a lot of boats/pickups which is probably best avoided with a big bump!

In terms of the flights, I had no issues flying to Thailand at 4 months as no bump then, but flew to the States at 7 months and main feedback is that no it isn't particularly comfortable in economy but it is doable if you plan it well beforehand and accept in advance you will be stiff etc - you can't have an exit row seat if you are pregnant for safety reasons. For me daytime flights were better as it was easier to get up and walk around and it actually worked out well that we had a transfer rather than a direct flight so 90 minutes to stretch our legs.

thank you all, am feeling quite excited about it now. think as long as we take sensible precautions, careful with food, etc, it should be ok.

I can't help on where to go sorry, I hate flying so I only fly on special occasions, honeymoon to Australia and family holiday to Borneo, before that I hadn't flown for 10 years since being a child and for some reason having no fear of flying at all.

Anyway waffle out of the way.

If an airline allows you to fly with them when heavily pregnant they may require a doctors note to say your able to fly and not a high risk pregnancy etc.
As for vaccinations the nurse will advice you on the ones suitable and ones that are not suitable for pregnant women, it might be worth looking in to this before picking your destination.
As for comfort I can't speak from personal experience.
But all my above info is from my SIL who lived in Australia and came here when she was about 5.5 months pregnant with 1st, then came over from Singapore when she was 4.5 months pregnant with 2nd.
She said she didn't find it uncomfortable. She did say she made more effort to move around the plane than she usually did, and the staff on the plane, encouraged her to move around more and kept bringing her water and checking she was okay, especially on the Aussie flight.

I know this is 2nd hand information so feel free to disregard it if you wish.

I am doing a long haul flight in week 31. We are moving abroad permanently and so I have an 11 hour flight to look forward to. I am flying with Virgin who wants a doctors note but you can fly up to week 36. I am not too concerned about the flight. The airline knows that I am pregnant and have promised to look after me so I feel reassured.

When I was in Thailand (this is over 8 years ago) I definitely had several injections and ate malaria tablets but I guess it depends where you go in Thailand.

Good luck with the trip if you decide to go.

If you book, make sure you get your travel insurance with a company who will pay out if you get too ill (due to preg related things) to go. Most companies will cover you for whilst you are away but won't cover cancellation due to pregnancy.

When we went to America we bought our travel insurance from InsureandGo because they covered both. I really had to look around, most companies didn't.

Hopefully, you'll continue to have an easy pregnancy but best to be covered just in case.

I've flown loads in this pregnancy, and would still be flying now if I was allowed (grounded at 34 weeks..)

I flew long haul to Canada at 6 months, which was only a drag because of the BA strikes which meant I had to transfer at amsterdam and was traveling alone, so no one to carry stuff for me. I wasn't huge at that stage and was absolutely fine. From my experience and the experience of friends, if you're having a fine time at 4 months, you'll prob still be having a fine time at 6 months (and 8 months hopefully!)

I've been back and forth to Ireland and Spain since then, both for work and hols. I was 7 1/2 months in Spain - still not huge, but def on the bigger side, but absolutely fine both traveling and sightseeing - I happily climbed up steep hills and stuff that the slightly overweight people around me were having problems with!

And I also did some quality sunbathing - top advice - I slathered sunblock on my bump but still got a bit burnt, so really slap on the factor 40!

I got a 'fit to fly' letter from my docs for flying after 28 weeks (the cut off for most lower budget airlines) but never got asked for it.

I did always ask for an aisle seat when flying, but I've not been that troubled with needing the loo all the time anyway, so prob would have been fine if I hadn't had an aisle.

My advice, if you're feeling positive and healthy, then just go for it. If you enter into these things thinking 'I'm going to suffer' then you do, if you have a 'this is going to be great' attitude, then it will be great.

Have fun!

Meant to add that I did end up using my travel insurance in America as I got ill whilst I was away.
I've never been so glad to have bought and looked into decent travel insurance!!! I usually just buy the cheapest on offer.

The hardest thing I had to do was put on those flight socks ... I tried to put them on after I had my trousers on - no way . So took them off then got the giggles and couldn't hold leg in cross position and pull the bu**ers on. Dh tried to help but we ended up in a mess. Eventually got them on and for the return flight it was great team work .

Furthest I've flown in this pregnancy is to Scotland, so I can't really offer any advice about the travel side, but I was told, if I was going further afield, to make sure the travel insurance covered the baby as well should he or she arrive early.

I flew to Australia at 24 weeks nad flew home at 28 weeks. It was fine I wondered about every few hours, wore my flight socks, drank loads of water and had absolutely no trouble at all. My insurance said pregnancy was not an illness so unless i had and complications there was no problem flying. We flew Emirates who upgraded us on the way home due to my huge bump.

we flew to utah when 24 weeks, returned at 26 weeks, no problems, wore my socks, drank water and walked around as much as is possible. bit more difficult on the way back as couldn't get comfy and an overnight flight so didn't want to disturb others.

wasn't showing very much and BA check in staff weren't bothered when i told them so no chance of an upgrade, boo.

did feel the heat a bit more, and were also at altitude for a while, but it didn't stop me from hiking or doing anything else i wanted

we were in the middle of nowhere for most of the road trip so not exactly near a hospital but i'm not the sort to worry about things so just carried on regardless and had a wonderful last '2 of us' holiday

go for it

I guess if your going to be 6 months pregnant then that is the latest i would leave it to go on a long haul flight.

As long as you are fit and well and the pregnancy is running smoothly. Get advice from you GP or midwives too. . see what they say.

I am flying home from the UK (12 hr flight) at 29 weeks and Obs is fine with that but wanted me back by 34 weeks and said she wouldn't advise longhaul after that. Coming over here (27 weeks) was okay but not super comfortable (felt bloated and generally a bit grumpy)and that was in business (I squandered many airmiles in pursuit of comfort).

Check the seat pitch on your proposed flight- scheduled airlines generally better than charter.

Also, what are you normally like with heat as you feel hotter than normal when pregnant? Make sure you stay hydrated and dont get burnt (i'm not sure if this is "fact" but I find my skin is more sensitive to sun than it was pre-pregnancy.

Have fun!

Check with your doctor. Pregnancy makes you at high risk of blood clots, so if you have any other risk factors (such as being overweight), you'll probably need to take heparin injections to fly long haul (that's what the info my doctor has given me says).

Be aware that you can't really sunbathe and you mustn't eat food off the street. Plus you can't have many of the vaccinations you might get for travelling.

I went to Mexico at 6 mths pg. I did get mild food poisoning which wasn't great but other than that was fine.

Airline made me sign a waiver form. I did use the special stockings against dvt.

I flew to Gran Canaria at about 27/28 weeks. The flight and holiday wasn't a bother at all. However I would recommend you contact the airline to request a good seat. I had a big bump at this point and although I was comfortable on the flight (BA) queueing for the loo was a bit of a problem. Not so much for me but for the poor people sat in the last rows who kept having my stomach shoved in their faces everytime the outgoing occupant tried to get back to their seat. There was definitely not enough room for two people and the bump to pass! I had a fit to fly letter and was told to make sure I drank plenty but otherwise it was pretty much business as usual. Have a good time wherever you go!