Sanity Saving Tips For Long Car Journeys With A Baby

Planning a road trip with your baby and wondering how to survive the long car journey with a little one on board?

We had several road trips with our babies when they were tiny – including one lengthy drive through France that spanned several days.

Parents on a long car journey with a baby

If you’re planning a long journey in your car with a baby on board then check out these top tips to help make your trip run smoothly.

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Tips for lengthy car trips with a baby

Any car journey that takes longer than two hours can be considered a long trip for your baby.

The longest road trip we have taken with our kids when they were babies was around 12 hours.

These are my top tips I picked up from our own road trips with a baby!

Plan to stop every two hours

Experts advise that babies should not be kept in an infant car seat for longer than two hours at a time, according to the Lullaby Trust.

So they should be taken out frequently and allowed to stretch, and preferably laid down flat on a blanket on the ground in a safe spot or on the back seat of the car when you are safely parked.

Before you set off take a look at your route and figure out where the good stopping points will be to break up your journey.

Allow extra time for your trip so you aren’t rushing, as you’ll want to take a decent break every two hours so your baby can stretch out.

We would pick our babies up and take them for a little walk, and also sit with them while they laid flat on their back on the back seat, during our road trip breaks.

Consider your baby’s usual routine

When planning in your breaks it’s wise to time them to coincide with when your baby will usually be hungry.

This means you’re less likely to get a screaming baby who is desperate for a milk feed after just 45 minutes of driving.

If your baby doesn’t have any kind of routine, then the general rhythm to follow with any baby is eat, play, sleep.

How this works on your car journey is you set off when it’s time for sleep, having given your baby plenty of play time and a decent feed. And then you can stop after two hours to see if they are hungry and let them have a stretch.

One adult should travel in the back

Rather than stretching behind you to tend to your baby it’s sensible if one of the adults on your journey sits with the baby in the back seat.

If there is only one adult travelling with the baby then try adding a mirror above your baby’s rear facing car seat so you can see them.

This isn’t a replacement for stopping regularly, but can just reassure you that they’re OK.

Dress them for comfort

Stick to soft and stretchy clothes that keep them comfy and cosy, and are made from breathable fabrics.

Babies can get quite sweaty in their car seat, particularly in the summer, so try not to add too many thick layers.

Experts also advise that you do not place your baby in their car seat for travel when wearing a thick coat or padded snowsuit.

This is because it means you may not tighten the seat restraints enough around your baby.

Just dress them as you would for indoor sleep, and you can always add a blanket on top if air conditioning is making the car a little cool.

Have a grab bag of essentials

It’s useful to have a bag of essentials items inside the car with you – not buried in the boot of the car.

That means they are right there just in case of an emergency nappy change of outfit change.

The key items to pack for your road trip are:

Enough milk for the journey – pack double in case you hit traffic jams. If your baby is formula fed then consider buying the ready-made bottles of feeds. They are more expensive but more convenient for on the road than powdered formula. You can make milk feeds up in advance and put them in a cooler if you wish.
Travel sterilising kit for bottles if formula fed
Solid meals – take jarred food or pack or own homemade meals in a cooler for the journey
Baby cutlery
Snacks – if baby is weaning
Changes of clothes – pack an outfit for every three hours of the journey
Favourite toy/comforter
Sensory toys – a bar of toys to reach out for and stare at on the car seat can be really useful and a good distraction. Something brand new they have never seen before is a great idea, as well as familiar toys.
Noisy toys – avoid bringing anything that will annoy the driver too much!
Thermos of hot water and a jug – this is in case you need to warm up baby’s meals or feeds. Alternatively you can buy an in-car bottle warmer
Changing mat
Muslins – take extras. They double as a car seat fabric cover if your baby’s nappy explodes and the car seat fabric is damp.
Towel – just in case of car sickness
Travel high chair – these are great for stops for food. Most restaurants will have high chairs though so it’s not a total essential.
Spare batteries for their favourite noisy toys

Plan a baby-friendly playlist

Music can be really soothing as well as fun for your baby, so plan a playlist that they will love.

You could also try an audio book for kids.

Consider driving overnight

If you can drive safely overnight then making a long journey at night can be really useful as your baby should sleep through the entire trip.

You will still need to stop regularly to allow baby to stretch out of the car seat.

Break up the driving with overnight stops

If you are going in a seriously long trip then it’s useful to plan for an overnighter at a hotel so your baby can sleep in a proper bed, not the car seat.

In this case it’s useful to pack a travel crib for your baby, which pack up super small and are so useful!

Sun shades for the windows

Sun shades for your car are not a must-have baby product, but they can be useful on a lengthy car journey in summer.

They help to keep the sunlight away from your baby’s eyes, which can mean they find it easier to sleep and are less agitated.

Remember to pack your feeding essentials

This is important for your comfort as well as your baby’s.

For example if you are breastfeeding then you may want to take along a cushion to make it for comfortable for you if you will be nursing in the car. You may also want to bring your breast pump in the car just in case you need to pump for comfort.

You may find your baby sleeps for longer than usual on a longer car journey.

Don’t forget to bring along spare bottles as well, because you won’t be able to wash up bottles on the road.

Snacks can help

If your baby is over six months and has started on sold foods then snacks are a brilliant way to distract them.

I would just add a warning to that, which is some babies are prone to vomiting when travelling in the car. I’ve had friends whose baby was sick on every single car journey.

So in that case you may wish to limit the snacks in order to limit the number of outfit changes you have to do.

And it’s also wise to be aware of the risk of choking, especially if your baby has just started weaning. So you may want to save snacks for when you are pulled over for babies who are very new to solid foods.

Snacks definitely helped us with our baby when she was age one and we drove her to France. Although she slept a lot of the time, she got bored when she was awake and snacks were a good distraction.

How soon can a newborn travel long distance by car

Experts advise that a baby under four weeks old should not be in a car seat for longer than 30 minutes at a time.

A study by the University of Bristol on car seats and SIDS found there could be a greater risk of breathing difficulties if a baby is in an upright position while travelling.

For this reason you may wish to postpone your road trip until your baby is at least two months old, so that you don’t have the added journey time of stopping every 30 minutes.