Travelling with Little Ones: A Few of Our Favourite Things

The thought of travelling with your child or children can feel overwhelming at the best of times. A trip out of town can be enough to make even the most organised parent feel stressed, let alone international travel! We've been lucky enough to go on a few international trips with our little ones ranging in age from 10 months old to almost 4. Here's a few things we've found useful along the way! These tips don't just apply to international travel though - a lot of these tips and products will be very handy for upcoming summer adventures domestically, too.

1. A multi-purpose travel stroller

We've been lucky enough to use and test multiple travel strollers over the last few years, and the UPPAbaby MINU V3 is the most recent one we have used.

The one-second, one-handed fold is the thing you appreciate most when you're juggling a toddler, a boarding pass and a coffee. It folds small enough to fit in an overhead compartment (the dimensions are IATA-compatible), it stands on its own once folded, and there's an integrated carry strap so you can throw it over your shoulder and keep both hands free.

In our most recent travels we went to Samoa and if you've ever been to Samoa you'll know how undesirable the streets are! If you're lucky you'll have some footpaths to stroll on, but the many roads have no footpaths and are uneven. The front suspension with independent rear suspension made a real difference over that terrain, and the MINU was narrow enough to weave through crowds without a fight.

It's suitable from birth right through to 23kg, so it takes you well into the big-toddler years [used on this trip with my 3 year old & 5 year old] the perfect solution for tired toddler legs that need a rest. At 7.6kg it's light enough to carry up stairs, and the basket takes up to 9.1kg, which is more than many travel strollers will give you.

A few extras worth knowing about: the MINU Travel Bag protects it when in the overhead locker or if you check it in - and if you're travelling with two, the MINU Duo is the side-by-side version that still folds compactly. There's also a travel bundle if you want the stroller and bag together.

Shop: UPPAbaby MINU V3 Stroller | MINU V3 Travel Bundle | MINU Travel Bag | Shop all UPPAbaby

2. A good baby carrier (or two!)

How GOOD is a baby carrier when out and about? Especially when travelling abroad or for summer adventures! We have used and loved our Ergobaby Omni for years now and have absolutely had our money's worth out of it. It's carried both of our children and still comfortably fits my toddler.

I found this carrier great for travelling as it's completely hands free — perfect for navigating busy airports and Bali streets while having your hands for carrying luggage (or drinking coffee). The other beauty for us is that our little one will still happily sleep in it, allowing for easy naps on the go.

Although it's great for a hands-free carry, a structured carrier can be frustrating for toddlers who feel a bit 'restrained', and it makes things harder when they want stints in and out. Enter the Wildride Toddler Carrier.

What's so great about a Wildride? It's the perfect solution for toddlers who don't love a fitted, structured carrier. Great for kids who like to walk but don't last long before needing to be carried, especially when travelling away from home. It's so compact it fits in your handbag, hand luggage, the baby bag, under the stroller or in the glove box of the car — super handy as a grab-and-go carrier. It's also incredibly easy to scoop your little one up into, without multiple clips to deal with. There's a lot less fabric than a traditional carrier, too, so it's a good option in hot climates where baby wearing can get a bit much.

Shop: Ergobaby Omni Deluxe | Wildride Toddler Carrier | Cotton | Wildride Toddler Carrier | Linen | Nuna Cudl Clik

3. Your home sleep comforts

If you're a routine parent who thrives off a good sleep routine, then bringing your home sleep comforts away with you is a MUST. We, and our children, do a lot better with some consistency around sleep on holiday. Here's what we take.

• Blackout. Darkness is a must for our little ones, especially during the day, so a portable blackout blind or a SnoozeShade travel cot cover makes daytime naps away from home so much smoother.
• White noise — need I say more? Whether out and about or in a room, a white noise machine helps create a consistent sleep environment and blocks out external noise. A portable sound machine also makes naps on the go happen a little more easily.
• Familiar comforts. A snuggly blanket, teddy or sleeping bag can help make sleep easier. We even take our own cot sheets so they smell like home — it really helps our little ones settle, especially if you're moving around a lot during the trip.

Shop: Travel Cot SnoozeShade Blackout Cover | Total Eclipse Portable Blackout Blind | Hushh+ Portable Sound Machine | Shop all SnoozeShade

4. Warmer weather essentials

Here's some products specifically for if you're heading somewhere warm. Mosquito repellent and sunscreen are a MUST, for summer adventures or trips to the tropics.

With mosquito borne illnesses on the rise in tropical locations, a strong tropical strength insect repellent is essential. We used tropical strength DEET while in Indonesia, as unfortunately our preferred natural methods just aren't quite enough for those locations. We did pair the DEET with Buzz Patches for added protection for the kids. In the evenings when they were in bed, the patch was enough to give their skin a break from the intense repellents - a great back-up method, especially if your little ones have sensitive skin like ours do.

We also packed Magic Patch Itch Relief Patches in case of bites. Our kids didn't get bitten at all with the DEET and Buzz Patches, but I managed to get a few nasty ones despite covering myself in repellent. The Itch Patches were so good for stopping the itch and keeping the bites covered — a must for the travel kit.

A mineral zinc sunscreen is also great for taking travelling. I always prefer to take my own rather than buying it while away, so I have no qualms about whether it will work (and also won't make the kids' skin react). We use Avocado Zinc: the SPF 30 Natural Body Sunscreen is lightweight and easy to spread over big areas, which makes it the one for arms, legs and backs, and the SPF 50 Natural Physical Sunscreen is what we use on faces, it doubles as a moisturiser so perfect for use on me as well as the kids. Both use non-nano zinc oxide, which sits on top of the skin as a physical barrier rather than being absorbed, and is the kinder choice if you're swimming anywhere near reefs.

Shop: SPF 30 Natural Body Sunscreen | SPF 50 Natural Physical Sunscreen | Buzz Patch Mosquito Repellent Patches | Magic Patch Itch Relief Patches

5. Swim attire

Good swim attire for your little ones is definitely an essential when travelling somewhere warm. Another thing we found incredibly helpful was taking the kids' Sunnylife swim vest floaties. Ours have been using theirs for a couple of summers now and have really got the hang of them. It allowed them, and us, to move around the pool more while being hands free and knowing they were safe. They aren't intended as life jackets, but they let the kids "swim" unassisted and move from the steps into the pool confidently. We all had so much more fun with their new found independence.

In the early mornings and evenings we felt confident enough for our kids to swim in just bottoms or swim nappies without worrying about sunburn, but 99% of their day was spent in full length rash tops and swimsuits (and don't forget the matching hat!) for optimum sun protection. Not having to reapply sunscreen to their whole body after every swim was game changing. And if you're swimming near reefs, they help protect little bodies from nasty reef cuts, too.

Shop: Shop all swimwear | Shop Sunnylife

A few last things

There are so many other things you could take travelling to make life easier for you and your little ones, but it's so dependent on luggage space, your accommodation set up, length of stay, where you're going and plenty of other factors. We're all about comfort when travelling and recreating the home environment as much as possible, which is why we found these things useful.

When it came to things like nappies, we bought those once we arrived to save space in our luggage — the exception being a short stay in Fiji where there were no amenities close to our accommodation.

The other really important things we packed were mostly first aid items:

• Teething gel for our littlest
• Pamol and ibuprofen, just in case
• Electrolyte sachets in case of gastro
• Anti-nausea tablets for us and the children
• Plasters

Happy travels! Shop our full travel edit here.