Last Updated on December 9, 2022
Traveling can sometimes be as stressful and tiring as it is fun and exciting. Long security queues, unpleasant airline personnel, overweight baggage concerns, traffic going to and coming from the airport. Add onto that COVID-19. Add onto that a 3-month old baby and you have an idea of how we felt leading up to our flight to Greece at the beginning of this month. Luckily, our time at the airport was relatively painless and the vacation was really enjoyable with only a few minor hiccups. From choosing the perfect baby-friendly destination for your family vacation, to booking your flight, read below to learn our tips and tricks on how to travel (better) with a baby.
How to Travel with a Baby: Choose the Right Destination
JC and I took a lot of time and deliberation in choosing the perfect destination for our first family trip. We eliminated a lot either due to COVID-19 risk areas or because we didn’t believe they would be baby-friendly destinations. Lisbon? Too hilly for the stroller. The Baltic Sea? Too cold in September to enjoy the beach. A road trip to the Hartz mountains in Germany? Do we really want to hike with a newborn? In the end, we decided on flying to Greece. Why Greece? First, the weather was going to be sunny and 31 degrees celsius, so perfect beach weather. Second, Greece is not on the risk area list as determined by the Robert Koch Institute. This meant that we would not need to take a COVID test or quarantine upon departure from or arrival in Greece.
A beach destination seemed like the perfect vacation with a newborn because it would not involve a lot of movement. We would stay put on the beach, taking care to keep the baby out of the sun. We also purposefully rented an Airbnb that was located right on the beach. This way we could go back and forth between the beach and the apartment with ease (to change diapers and feed her). You can read more about our trip to Greece with our baby here.
Related Post: How to Have a Beach Vacation in Thessaloniki | Agia Triada, Greece
How to Travel with a Baby: Booking your Flight
Purchasing Flights with a Baby on Ryanair
We flew Berlin to Thessaloniki with Ryanair. When buying your flights with Ryanair, be sure to add your infant under 2 years on your ticket before purchasing. An infant sitting on your lap costs 25 EUR each way. The baby does not get her own baggage allowance with Ryanair, but you can bring a diaper bag free of charge on board. In addition, Ryanair allows you to check two pieces of baby equipment, such as a stroller, car seat or travel cot, free of charge. You must go to the ticket desk before your flight to tag these items of baby equipment. You can then bring the stroller through security (although we were not able to in the Berlin airport , as we were told our Bugaboo Cameleon 3 model was too large) and all the way up to the boarding gate. Or you can drop of the stroller before going through security at the oversized luggage drop. Read all of Ryanair’s rules for traveling with infants here.
Author’s note: At the time of writing this post we only had one stroller, our Bugaboo Cameleon 3. We were not able to take this stroller on the plane and always had to check it. This grew quite tiring, as we do not usually check luggage. By the time our daughter was 2 years old, we finally invested in a second travel stroller. We bought the Bugaboo Butterfly. The beauty of this stroller is that it folds with one hand and can easily be brought onto the plane. This was a game changer for us as traveling parents. No more waiting in check-in lines! No more waiting for our stroller at bulky luggage! However, this stroller is only suitable for children 6 months and older. If you are looking for a travel stroller that fits in the plane overhead for a baby younger than 6 months, the Yoyo BabyZen is one good option. But we would highly recommend having a travel stroller either as your main stroller or as a second stroller.
Yes, Baby needs a Passport
Yes, your baby needs a passport to fly. Since I am American, Isabella is able to get American citizenship and an American passport even though we live in Germany. We completed this process via the US Embassy in Berlin. Refer to the checklist here in order to gather all the required documents and fill in the appropriate forms for the CRBA (Consular Report of Birth Abroad) and passport for your baby.
What about a visa?
As for a visa, technically, our daughter also needs a visa or temporary residency title to live in Germany as both of her parents are non-EU citizens. She automatically qualifies for the residency as at least one of her parents held a valid residency title at the time of her birth. However, you do need to make an appointment at the Bürgeramt (if you live in Germany) for your child’s visa. At the time of flying to Greece, we had not yet had our appointment at the Bürgeramt. However, since we were flying within the EU we did not pass through border control and therefore, no one asked for the baby’s visa.
Fly Priority with Baby and Make Your Life Easier
We flew priority in order to be able to choose our seats next to one another, bring a trolley plus a personal item (plus the diaper bag) and board first. I would highly recommend buying priority tickets. Pre-baby we flew non-priority Ryanair with just backpacks in hand. But now that we are parents, you’d be amazed how much stuff the baby needs. You’ll definitely need and want your trolley. And do you really want to take the chance that you can’t sit next to your partner on board? Buy priority and make your life a little simpler.
How to Travel with a Baby: What to Pack
For our first flight with our newborn, I definitely overpacked. However, considering that babies often soil multiple articles of clothing per day and baby clothes don’t take up too much space, I’d rather bring too much than too little.
See below my baby packing list for our 6 day/ 6 night trip to Greece
Packing list for a 3-month old:
- 2 bottles filled with baby formula or breast milk in your diaper bag (you are allowed to bring milk and formula through security)
- Dry baby formula in a plastic baggy (enough to last 2-3 days and then we bought more at the Pharmacy in Greece*)
- Electric breast pump ( I only used it once while in Greece and wouldn’t bring again to save space)
- Diapers (we packed 12 which lasted 2 days and bought more once at the supermarket in Greece)
- Wet wipes ( I had to buy more at the supermarket in Greece)
- Diaper bag — equipped with travel size wet wipes, enough diapers to last flight, 2-3 bottles with milk, trash bags for soiled diapers**, small towel to dry baby’s bottom after cleaning, portable changing mat, swaddle, bib, travel size diaper cream and change of clothes for baby (and myself!)*** on plane (just in case)
- Blanket for plane in case she gets cold
- Extra bibs, swaddle and small towels
- 2 swimsuits with sleeves and UV protection (you want to keep baby as covered as possible as she shouldn’t wear sunscreen before her 1st birthday)
- Bath towel with hood
- 1 waterproof swim hat with UV protection
- 1 sun hat with wide brim
- 3 short-sleeved pajamas
- 6 onesies/rompers/top & shorts outfits****
- 3 nice dresses
- 1 knit cardigan
- 1 linen kimono and linen pant outfit for layering
*Finding formula in Greece was a little tricky – we went to one grocery store and two pharmacies before we were able to locate any.
**One of the best items I packed was a roll of small trash bags — we emptied the trash in the airbnb after every time we changed her diapers in order to keep the stink to a minimum.
***Isabella tends to get motion sickness on planes and throw up, so a spare shirt, also for me, is super important!
****She spent most of the day in her bathing suit, so we didn’t use many of the onesies and rompers.
Where Will Baby Sleep?
For our trip to Greece, I asked the Airbnb host if he had a crib. Unfortunately, he did not. We decided, therefore, to have the baby sleep in the bed between us. This did not work well. She is used to sleeping on her own in her bassinet, so she woke up multiple times per night sleeping with us. We moved her onto the sofa bed one night and she slept nine hours straight. For our next trip we invested in a baby travel cot so she can have her own safe bed while traveling. And (hopefully!) sleep as soundly away as she does at home.
How to Travel with a Baby: On the Plane
On the plane, you are given an infant seat belt that attaches to your own. All passengers flying with an infant on their laps must sit in a window seat.
Be sure to have a bottle of breastmilk or formula handy to feed baby on the plane. Due to the air pressure, baby’s ears may pop, and to help prevent this discomfort you should bottle feed your infant during both take-off and landing. For our flight to Thessaloniki, Isabella was asleep for landing, but I did feed her during take-off and she was perfectly content.
Another tip is to try and time your flight with your baby’s regular nap or sleep time. Our flight to Thessaloniki was at 7:50 pm. Isabella normally goes to bed between 8:30 pm and 9:00 pm, so she slept the entire flight.
What was your first flight with your baby? Do you have any other tips and tricks? Let us know in the comments below!
Related Post: How to Have a Beach Vacation in Thessaloniki | Agia Triada, Greece
