Collaborative Post
Travelling with a baby is always a challenge and if you feel that navigating the airport with a young child is too much, you may decide to drive instead. But a long car journey with a baby brings its own unique challenges and your baby will quickly get restless. If they are not comfortable, the journey isn’t going to be fun for anybody, so it’s important that you prepare properly. These are the best ways to keep your baby comfortable on a long car journey.
Getting The Car Ready
Preparing the car properly before you set off is so important. There are a few simple things that you can do to make the car more baby-friendly, like removing clutter and protecting the windows to block out sunlight. If you can make the car more comfortable for your baby, it will be so much easier to keep them calm during the journey.
Getting a good quality car seat is essential as well. The car seat is important for safety but also for comfort and if you invest in a cheap one, you are far more likely to have a grumpy baby on your hands. There are some great sites online (like foryourlittleone.com) where you can get good quality car seats at reasonable prices. Finding one that is extra comfortable for your baby will make life a lot easier for everybody on a long car journey because they are far more likely to sleep through.
Planning Stops
You always need regular stops on a long car journey so you don’t get too tired and lose concentration. When planning your stops, you should always consider the baby’s sleeping pattern and how long they are comfortable in their car seat. If you can plan your stops around the times that they are awake and then drive when they are asleep, you should be able to cover a lot of distance without too much stress. You can use the route planner on roadtrippers.com to plan all of your stops ahead of time. It’s also a good idea to set off right as they go down for a nap.
Drive At Night
Driving at night actually has its benefits, even if you aren’t travelling with a baby because there is a lot less traffic, so you will get to your destination faster. Travelling at night is particularly helpful if you are driving with a baby because they can sleep during the journey and stick to their regular sleeping pattern. If their sleep pattern is disrupted by a long car journey, they will be very restless and unhappy when you arrive.
Prepare For Feeding
When you make a stop, you should take the opportunity to feed the baby. If they are still on milk, make sure to take plenty with you and use an in-car bottle warmer. For babies that are on formula, you can get some great ready-made cartons to make life easier. If they are on solids, make sure that you have a portable bowl and feeding spoon on hand.
It’s unlikely that you will make it through a long road trip without any tantrums at all. However, if you follow these tips, you can make your baby as comfortable as possible on a long car journey.
