flying solo with a baby: best tips + everything I packed

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Flying with a Baby: Tips, Packing List, & Travel Essentials from a mom of 3

Flying with a baby can feel really intimidating— especially when you’re doing it alone. After flying with all three of my kids at different ages, I’ve learned a lot… like that you don’t need to pack your entire house to make traveling with a baby manageable. You basically just need to do these three things: be intentional about what you’re bringing, give yourself plenty of time, and be prepared to be flexible. These are key. I’m Jess, aka The Windy City Mama, now let’s dive in!

I was reminded of that last part on a recent solo trip to OKC with just Palmer (who is currently only 8mo) when our flight was cancelled multiple times on a short two day trip. Our quick 48 hour visit with my sister turned into an almost five-day venture. I had carefully packed everything we needed. I’d thought through feedings, naps, toys, getting through security efficiently, what I’d need on the plane… but I never planned for two days of dealing with canceled flights.

And I quickly realized Palmie was feeding off my stress. It was a good reminder that one of the most important things I can bring when traveling with a baby isn’t something I can physically pack— it’s flexibility. Things happen, flights get delayed (though usually not like this *sigh*), but the best, and really only, thing I can do I prepare for the things I can control and learn to go with the flow for the things I can’t.

So, after plenty of flights with babies and kids over the years— and my most recent adventure flying solo— here is what I actually pack, what makes navigating the airport easier for me, and the fly-with-a-baby tips I wish every parent knew before their first flight. And I might even throw in a few things I highly advise against, just to save you the hassle.

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase through my links at no additional cost to you. I only share products I genuinely use and recommend.

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My #1 Airport Tip: BABY WEAR

Yep. Strap that baby on and carry them starting as soon as you get to the airport. Even though I bring a stroller with me, I always like to wear my baby through the airport. I use the Ergobaby Omni, and having my hands free makes a world of difference when you’re navigating luggage, security, boarding passes, and everything else that comes with airport travel. It’s also one less transition for your baby because you can wear baby right through security versus having to take them in and out of a stroller. Plus, I like having baby close to me in a crazy airport. It’s a win win over all.

SHOP: My Erogbaby Omni Carrier

And YES, I babywear AND bring a stroller. These are not mutually exclusive.

Palmie is still under a year, so I traveled with our Doona because it is also our car seat, but regardless of what stroller/travel system you’re using, I love the convenience of having a stroller that we can just check at the gate but have available in the airport if we need it. Plus, when you’re traveling solo, the stroller can become a very convenient place to hold things while you’re wearing baby. Once Palmer outgrows the Doona, we’ll just check his car seat with the luggage if he needs one wherever we’re going and bring a smaller travel stroller like our Bobbi BeeBee V3 with us through the airport.

Make sure to always check your individual airline’s current stroller and gate-check policies before your trip since they can vary, but generally, you’re able to check baby items like car seats and strollers for no additional cost.

SHOP: My Doona Car Seat/Stroller
SHOP: My Bombi Travel

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What I pack in the carry-on when flying with a baby

I’ve become pretty intentional about what makes it into my carry-on. More isn’t always better— especially when you’re the one carrying everything through the airport. Here are some of the things that actually made our recent trip easier.

Suction Cup Toys: If your baby is at the grab-everything-and-immediately-throw-it-on-the-floor phase, this is for you. Suction cup toys are the GOAT and so helpful on an airplane. You can stick them to the tray table, the window, I even stuck them to my phone. You just need a smooth surface and then you wont be picking up toys from the floor the whole time. We did the little ones that looked like fidget spinners and Palmie loved them. Also pack a few new toys or toys baby hasn’t played with recently to make it interesting again. And if you take ANYTHING away from this, learn from me, you don’t need as many toys as you think you do. I was a serial over-packer for toys with the girls and they never used all or even most of them.

SHOP: My favorite travel toys

Wearable, Hands-Free Breast Pump: If you’re pumping while traveling (I exclusively pump), then being able to be hands-free is key. The airport already involves enough juggling without needing to sit somewhere holding pump parts while wrangling baby, too. However, I know having a wearable pump is a luxury, so even if you don’t use one of those, I also always encourage you to see if there are designated nursing pods like Mamava or nursing room. You can absolutely use those for pumping, as well as nursing!

Milk Coolers— PackIt and Boon Milk Cooler: I had a lot of anxiety about how I was going to bring and travel with breast milk and baby food pouches even though I knew I was allowed to travel with as much as I needed. These two coolers really helped to alleviate my anxiety after successfully making it through security with them in like five minutes. The PackIt was perfect for my refrigerated baby food pouches— the cooling is built into the bag itself, like an ice pack lunchbox. It stayed frozen well and for quite a long time. I then had a Boon Milk Cooler for the breast milk I was taking with me and bringing back— I pump and immediately use most of my milk aside from one bottle a day, so I didn’t need a lot of space, which made this a great option for me. It was also an affordable option compared to a lot of the milk cooler bottles I was choosing between. I put both the PackIt Cooler and the Boon inside a larger cooler bag made to carry on the shoulder and everything stayed the temp I needed it to and wasn’t overwhelming to tote in the airport.

SHOP: PackIt Cooler
SHOP: Boon Milk Cooler

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Okay, now the unexpected MVP: any zip-up hoodie with zipper pocket. I know this isn’t baby gear, but hear me out. Airports involve constantly needing your phone, ID, boarding pass, pacifier, and approximately 472 other little things— and being able to zip all those little things safely in your pocket is ridiculously helpful. It’s one of those things that doesn’t seem like that big of a deal until you’re traveling alone with a baby.

SHOP: My travel day outfit

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Getting through airport security with a baby

As I mentioned, one of the reasons I love babywearing at the airport is that it makes getting through security so much easier for me. If you’re traveling with breast milk, formula, baby foods, etc., like I was, make sure you familiarize yourself with the TSA’s current rules before leaving. Breastmilk and formula are treated differently than standard liquids, so knowing exactly what to expect at security before you arrive makes everything much less stressful. I also recommend keeping all milk and feeding supplies somewhere it is easily accessible and then flagging it with the TSA agent before it goes through the scanner.

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Change the diaper/take the potty break RIGHT before boarding

Even if you think it will be fine or just did it not tooooo long ago, just do it. I try to do a fresh diaper change immediately before boarding so we are starting the flight as fresh and prepared as possible. This is also when I refill my water, use the restroom myself, make sure things I will need on the flight are accessible, stow the stroller to get it ready to gate check, and do a final inventory before boarding. Trust me, the last thing you want is to get seated and realized the paci is at the bottom of the bag you just put in the overhead bin.

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Have a bottle, boob, or paci ready for takeoff:

You have to have something ready for baby to such or swallow while gaining altitude for their little ears. The key for me is NOT starting too early. Taxiing can take a while, so if you offer a bottle the second the plane starts moving, there’s a decent chance it will be gone by the time you’re actually climbing. Wait until you’ve taken off and are gaining altitude before you offer whatever you got.

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Pack for YOU, too:

This is INCREDIBLY easy to forget. We spend so much time thinking every possible thing our babies could need that we can forget there is another person who has to get through a travel day— US.

• Here’s what I always want:
• A big water bottle
• Snacks
• Portable charger
• Zip-up layer
• Extra shirt (ya know, because of course baby’s gonna spit up all over you)
• Pumping stuff

Especially if you’re traveling solo, take care of yourself, too. A hungry, dehydrated, stressed parent isn’t going to make a chaotic travel day any easier.

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And again— what I probably didn’t need…

I was pretty intentional about packing for our most recent trip, so there wasn’t much I regretted bringing. Except one thing. Too many toys. Babies don’t need an entire activity center on an airplane. A few strategiacally chosen things—especially the new or forgotten/seemingly new toys can go a long way. I also packed a blanket we never used because the plane and airport were both warm. I wouldn’t necessarily leave that behind though because of the wildly unpredictable airplane temps. But that also showed that my lightweight muslin blanket was a good choice over a more bulky blanket option.

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Baby Packing List:

For Baby

• Diapers
• Wipes
• Portable changing pad
• 2 changes of clothes
• Pacifiers
• Pacifier clip
• A few small toys
• Suction-cup toys
• Feeding supplies
• Snacks, depending on age

For Milk/Pumping

• Wearable breast pump
• Milk storage
• PackIt cooler
• Boon milk cooler
• Bottles
• Any cleaning supplies I’ll need during the trip

Gear

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The most important thing I learned flying solo with my baby

You can make the perfect packing list. You can arrive early. You can have the stroller, carrier, bottles, toys, everything all perfectly organized… and your flight can still get canceled two days in a row. That happened to us.

I was stressed and anxious— and I could tell Palmer felt it, too. The more worked up I became about everything going wrong, the harder our experience became for both of us. It reminded me that traveling with kids requires a different definition of a “successful” trip. Success doesn’t mean perfection. It doesn’t mean nobody cried (I did, for sure.) It doesn’t mean every nap happened on schedule (it didn’t.) It doesn’t mean the flights left on time (they DEFINTELY did not.) Sometimes, success if simply staying flexible, figuring out the next steps, and getting everyone where they need to go (eventually.)

Prepare for what you can. Pack intentionally. Give yourself more time than you think you’ll need. And then, as much as possible, go with the flow. Babie are allowed to take up space. They are allowed to cry. They are allowed to exist on airplanes. You don’t owe everyone around you a perfect baby. You’re just getting from point A to point B— just like they are.

You’ve got this.

with love,

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