Holiday Sleep Survival Guide: Making Travel Easier with Your Little Ones
Heading off on holiday with your little ones? Planning travel with kids can feel like a big undertaking, and concerns about children's sleep during travel are common. But with a few smart strategies, you can make the travel day smoother and hopefully enjoy some decent sleep while you're away.
We all know that travel with toddlers or babies can sometimes knock little ones off their usual sleep routines. So, try to be kind to yourself and accept that things might be a little different for a while. And if you're lucky enough to be heading to a different time zone where bedtime might naturally fall a bit later, you can definitely see that as a potential advantage for those early risers!
My Top Tips for a Smoother Travel Day:
Entertainment Essentials for Travel Sleep: Keeping boredom at bay whether you’re hitting the road, riding the rails, or soaring the skies is crucial. Pack a collection of lightweight, durable toys for your children. Consider fresh puzzles or toys that haven’t been played with in a while – the newness can be highly engaging! Distribute toys gradually to extend their appeal. For older children, consider controlled screen time, engaging audio books, or calming playlists. Remember, timing is key – screens off before sleep time!
Smart Snack Management: Pack ample snacks! Delays are common during travel, and it’s always best to be prepared for hunger. If flying, do check liquid restrictions, especially for baby formula and milk, though most airlines are typically accommodating for these in hand luggage. A practical tip for air travel with infants: pack spare outfits in transparent bags for quick and easy changes in confined spaces.
Flexible Sleep on the Go: Embrace the natural quiet of travel motion and ambient white noise. If sleep finds your child outside their usual nap zone, allow it. Travel can disrupt their routine, so let them catch rest whenever possible. Stay calm and flexible – their sleep routine will typically resume upon arrival at your destination.
Navigating Time Zones: Adjusting to the New Rhythm
When you arrive in a different time zone, try to adjust your little one's schedule to the local time as soon as possible. Whether it's a couple of hours' difference or more, sticking to the local meal times and bedtimes will help their body clock adjust more quickly. This is key for overcoming jet lag in babies and children. Similarly, when you return home, try to get back into your usual routine straight away. There might be a bit of jet lag, but it usually only takes a few days to get back to normal.
However, should you be somewhere that doesn't have a huge time difference, and it works better for you to continue using your home time, as it means you may get more evening time or later mornings, then you can just do nothing and continue as if you were still in your original time zone.
Creating a Familiar Sleep Environment Away From Home
Making their temporary sleep space feel as much like home as possible can really help, especially for younger children and babies. If they're sharing a room with you when they usually have their own space, that's okay. Here are some essentials that I recommend taking with you to help with keeping that feeling of familiarity in their temporary sleep environment during your holiday:
Their favorite comforter or teddy.
A night light if they use one at home.
Their wake-up clock if it's part of their routine.
Their own sheets and pillowcase (unwashed if possible, to retain the familiar scent).
Familiar bedtime stories and bath toys.
A sleep bag suitable for the climate.
A baby monitor.
A sleep shade for the pushchair (which can also help with sun and insects).
A travel blackout blind, which can be really useful if the curtains aren't very good where you're staying and there is lots of bright sunshine. You can find good portable ones like this Portable Blackout Blind: Sleeptight™ Portable Blackout Blind | Tommee Tippee
A great alternative for travel which means you do not have to work hard trying to making the whole room darker, is a Slumperpod: SlumberPod - Room Sharing, Solved - Travel Made Easy
Do check that the travel cot or bed provided is safe, and it's a good idea to pack some antibacterial wipes for the surfaces.
To help your child smoothly transition into a new environment, follow the same bedtime routine as you do at home (same steps, same order) to help give them a feeling of familiarity, even if it means reading books in the bedroom but then letting them fall asleep in the pram while you go for dinner. The familiar steps leading up to bedtime will also act as important sleep cues.
With a bit of planning and a relaxed approach, you can definitely make travel with young children more manageable and hopefully still enjoy a restful holiday.
