Yes, “Traveling with a baby is a big mistake” are actual words that someone sitting next to me on a bus said. And I’m sad to say that it is not the only time I have overheard remarks like this from other travelers. But, I can tell you, these people couldn’t be more wrong. Traveling with a baby is one of the BEST decisions you will ever make.

When I had my first baby, many people told me that my days of traveling were over. Traveling is my biggest passion, and I refused to believe that traveling with a baby or children would be impossible. When my daughter was 3 months old, we put this theory to the test, and took a 12 hour road trip to Rhode Island. Guess what? It was possible and we did it. We even had a great time.

9 months after that trip, we decided to take a trip around the world with our 1-year old daughter. We knew that the way we were used to traveling would be dramatically changed, but we wanted to do it anyway. Now having lived those changes, I can honestly say that traveling with a child makes life 10 times better. Yes, there are some difficulties that we didn’t have to deal with before, but the joy that we have felt traveling with our daughter makes it 100% worth it. It is truly something else to see the world through the eyes of a child.

So, if you are willing to give it a try. I will try to explain to you what could have been the alternate title for this post – The realities of traveling with a baby.

Note: this post is specifically for children under 2 years old. Some of these things change as kids get older.

The Realities of Traveling with a Baby

You will move slower

Before having a baby, I was the type of traveler to do as much as I could in one day. I would wake up at 7am and go to bed around midnight/1am. I wanted to see as much as I could in the time I had. Now, I wake up with the baby (usually around 6:30/7pm) and call it a night with the baby (again, usually around 6:30/7pm). I don’t necessarily go to bed at 7pm, but now I’ll spend the evening on the terrace of our hotel with my husband over beer or wine instead of staying out. We do end up going to bed earlier too.

You will become less frugal

Before Isabel, I was a penny pushing traveler. I would rather walk 4 miles than pay $6 for a taxi. I would never indulge in the snack they were selling on the boardwalk. I would look for the cheapest accommodation possible. I am definitely sill a budget traveler, but money on the small things matters much less. When you have a baby, you want to see them smile. Isabel’s love for bicycles outweighed the cost of rental. It was a joy to see her so happy (even if she cried her eyes out when the rental was up). Of course we don’t buy her a balloon every time she motions that she wants one, but every so often we might let her have one. In this respect, you might spend a couple more dollars.

It doesn’t cost all that much extra

For children under 2 years old, most tickets you buy will be free or significantly discounted. In addition, kids at this age don’t eat enough to require their own meal (especially if they are still nursing or drinking formula). That means, the money you’re spending is still 95% on you.

You’ll carry more

Kids need things that you never traveled with before. Toys for entertainment, different ‘in case’ medications, diapers, clothes etc… We felt like we did really well when we packed for our RTW trip – 2 carry-on’s and 2 backpacks, but it was still more than we wanted to take, and we constantly say that we have too much stuff, yet can’t seem to part with anything.

Meal time can be frustrating

Unless you are traveling with an infant, babies/toddlers who are a bit more mobile just want to play with the food you have or do something other than sit at the table. We’ve found that trading who is eating and who is entertaining or feeding the baby works best.

People will talk about you

A big reality of traveling with a baby is that people are going to talk about you. Sometimes it will be people who love you. They think the fact that you’re traveling with a baby is the coolest thing ever. They might love babies and want to touch or hold them, or they might want to give them a special treat. But, it might also be the complete opposite.

There will be people next to you who loudly talk with their friends about how they would never travel with a baby because of the lack of freedom or some other x,y,z reason. They will scoff at the fact that they have to sit next to a baby on the bus or plane because they are going to be such a nuisance or cry the whole time. And they will turn their noses up at you.

You learn as you travel not to let the negative people get to you. You learn to just brush it off. It’s too bad for them that they don’t get to experience the awesomeness that it is to travel with a little one. It’s just something you can’t understand if you don’t have a child of your own. The flip side, you will also run across people who LOVE babies.

Baby’s Will Adjust

Whether it is a time zone change, or different sleeping space, babies (and children) learn to adjust – eventually. It took Isabel 4 days to start sleeping at night again after an 11 hour time change. Yes, we were exhausted for those 4 days. She also quickly learned to slurp noodles when in Asia.

Diaper changing will happen in all different kinds of places

Outside the states, we’ve found that restaurants and public spaces don’t always come equipped with nicely laid out changing tables in bathrooms. So, you’ll get good at changing diapers wherever and whenever. Like on a bus, in the park and in the back of church.

Babies personality will grow

After only a couple days of traveling, Isabel really started opening up to other people. She saw more people, more animals, more food, more energy after 1 week of our RTW trip than she had in possibly her previous year on Earth. She now wants to play with other kids when the are near. She is excited to try new foods. She talks (or squeals) more. And all of this is really cool to see as a parent.

Have you traveled with your kids? Do you agree that it is awesome? What have you found that has helped you on your trips? If you don’t have kids, what is your opinion of seeing babies (or children in general) when you are on a trip?