You’re new parents getting ready to take the baby’s first road trip. A lot of questions can come up, and there can certainly be some nerves. But don’t worry! After a (LONG) recent road trip, I’ve compiled a list of the best traveling with a newborn baby road trip tips to make it a success!
When we took a family road trip for the first time, our baby was 8 weeks old. I was unsure what to expect on our journey from Colorado to Lincoln, Nebraska, and then from Nebraska to our final destination of Northern Minnesota—and then back home! We had a few 10-hour days in the car, but it was well worth it to see family and friends, explore, and get our baby used to being on the go. I definitely understand being a bit skeptical of the whole situation, but let’s answer a quick question before we get into the tips:
When can my newborn baby go on a road trip?
You’re the mom (or dad!) Your newborn can go on a road trip with you whenever you feel ready to take them! As long as you are prepared to keep them safe and ensure they don’t spend more than 3 hours in their car seat at a time, go for it! I am a strong believer that starting early is key to getting them used to it when they are older. And honestly, newborns sleep a majority of the time anyway—take advantage!
Traveling with a Newborn Baby Road Trip Tips
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Before Your Trip Baby Road Trip Tips
It all starts well before you even leave. Here is where to start when it comes to a successful road trip with a newborn:
1. Use the Car Seat A LOT
First things first when it comes to a long road trip…get your baby used to the car seat. In the weeks leading up to your trip, get in the car every single day. Even if it’s just a quick run to the grocery store, it will help them get used to being buckled in, the feeling of a moving car, and falling asleep in their seat. Plus, you’re going to be able to tell if car sickness affects them or not.
We use the MESA V2 Infant Car Seat and I swear by it. Our baby loves it and has no problem falling asleep and staying comfortable. We use the entire travel system and it makes things such a breeze. My family calls it “The Cadillac” and I think it’s worth the price.
2. Set Your Expectations
One of the most important things is to set your expectations. Your drive time will increase. Google Maps estimated arrival time will not be accurate. Not everything will go as planned. And that’s okay. You’re going to have a much better experience if you go into it accepting that and rolling with the punches.
For us, we added 15-30 minutes to every hour of travel. For example, an 8-hour drive will take us at least 10 hours with the extra stops.
3. Don’t Plan Stops
I’ve seen the opposite as a tip, but strongly believe it’s best not to plan your stops. You have no idea how this is going to go. Stop when the baby needs to stop. And avoid it when they don’t. Unfortunately, that may mean having to pee for a while (don’t wake the baby!), but hey, welcome to parenthood. Your baby might sleep in longer stretches and you want to use those couple of hours to gain ground. The babies make the rules and planning when and where to stop sounds like a great way to add frustration when it doesn’t line up properly.
4. Pack the Car the Night Before
It’s a good idea to get as much done the night before as possible. Pack everything you can, leaving space for what you can’t pack until the day you leave (like milk), and it’s one less thing you need to do in the morning. It’s already going to be stressful so do it when you have plenty of time to be smart and efficient vs. throwing everything into the car while you’re trying to leave the driveway. That takes us to…
5. Pack STRATEGICALLY
There is a right way to pack the vehicle and doing so will help immensely during your travels. Assuming you have a trunk area, a middle row, and the driver plus passenger seat, here is what I recommend:
- Trunk: Everything you will NOT (or at least should not) need during your drive. Suitcases full of clothes, the stroller, the travel crib, etc. The key here is Tetris; make it all fit together! It may take a few tries.
- Middle Row: The child’s car seat, obviously. And then what you WILL need during your travels while keeping one seat for an adult open. Milk cooler(s), tote bags with diapers, wipes, rags, pacifiers, and any personal items. Make sure to utilize the floor space (coolers are best here in case of any leaks.)
- Passenger Seat: Extras. Personal backpacks Snacks. Plastic bag for trash. Basically, the leftovers.
The middle row is the most important. As you pack, make sure what you’re going to need frequently has the easiest access so you are not rifling through all of your belongings and making a huge mess on the road.
6. Charge EVERYTHING
Phones. Breast pumps. Bottle warmers. Toys. Make sure everything is at a full charge when you’re ready to leave. And have a cord in the car for easy charging on the go.
During Your Trip Baby Road Trip Tips
You are planned and packed. Here are newborn baby road trip tips for when you’re actually on the move:
7. Sit in the Back Seat
As mentioned, have someone in the back seat so it’s easy to keep a happy baby. You don’t want to pull over because the pacifier fell out, the sun is in their eyes, or their onesie is bunched up in their face. Plus, your baby will likely be much more content if they can see you.
8. Leave Early in the Morning
When is the best time to actually leave? After they wake up to start the day and right before the next nap time. If they wake up at 5 AM, get them fed, changed, ready, into their seat, and hit the road. A little extra coffee is going to be worth it. Hopefully, the car lulls them back to sleep and you get a solid 2-3 hour stretch of drive time right away in the morning. If you wait, you risk everyone being ready to go except the sleeping baby. No one wants to wake them up and you’re losing out on crucial drive time!
9. Avoid Night-Time Driving
Plus, the earlier you get going, the more hours of daylight you have to take advantage of. Night driving sucks. Night driving with a baby sucks even more. You don’t want to be fumbling around in the dark for diapers and milk. Plus, everyone is exhausted—you have a newborn! Long days in the car are better than long nights.
10. Dress the Baby Super Comfortably
Nobody wants to spend a long drive stuck in uncomfortable clothes. Make sure your car journeys include a super comfy baby. Try something super soft with built-in feet (don’t mess around with tiny socks) and a double zipper to make diaper changes even easier.
11. Rest Stops vs. Gas Stations vs. Off-Ramps
Where are the best places to make pit stops? Well, it depends on what you need. After our first trip on the road with our newborn, here’s what I found to be the best:
- Rest Stop: Someone (not the baby) needs to pee—BAD. Do your best to hit a rest stop. It’s easy in and out without turns. Fingers crossed, the baby stays asleep.
- Gas Station: Someone needs to pee, and/or you need gas (duh), food, oil, a charger, etc. Gas stations are the answer when you have multiple things to handle.
- Off-Ramps: The baby is hungry. If this is it, just get off at the next ramp and find a safe place to park. A few items below will make sure you’re set up for success—and avoid nasty gas station bathrooms. Plus, you avoid crying while waiting for the next gas station.
In my personal experience, the off-ramps were the easiest!
12. Take a Walk, If Needed
A little bit of fresh air works wonders for babies. Have easy access to your stroller so you can take a quick walk during your travels—even if it’s just 10 minutes.
What to Bring Baby Road Trip Tips
Babies do NOT travel light. How such a little human can have so much stuff is beyond me. But, stay organized and it will be fine. Here is everything to bring to make your life easier:
13. Portable Breast Pump
Nothing, and I mean nothing, stops the need to pump! And it’s a hell of a lot easier to get it done with a portable breast pump. I use the Elvie and SWEAR by it. It’s expensive, and there are cheaper options, but I do think it’s worth it. If you’d rather use your regular pump, just make sure it’s charged (there are adapters for car charging as well) and that you have the space for it.
NOTE: Don’t forget extra storage bottles. These are my favorites—they even let you note which day and time it’s from.
I don’t like pumping (does anyone?), but the good news is, it sort of passes the time when you have to do it in the car. Setting it up, pumping, cleaning it, storing it. Before you know it, an hour has gone by!
14. Breast Pump Cleaning Wipes
One of my FAVORITE items. Easy-to-use wipes to clean your pump parts so you don’t need to worry about stopping to rinse and clean them. These wipes work like a charm! (I keep a pack in the car at all times.)
15. Breastmilk Cooler Bag
The most important thing, right!? Make sure you have plenty of cold milk no matter if you’re breastfeeding or formula feeding—or both! We have this cooler which perfectly fits six short Dr. Brown’s bottles and comes with ice packs. It has a nice strap, and an extra storage compartment (for pump parts, empty bottles, etc.), and we had no trouble with leaks. Highly recommend.
16. Portable Bottle Warmer
You have a hungy, crying baby in the car and the baby’s needs come first, right? Well, this portable bottle warmer makes everyone happy and is one of the baby road trip ESSENTIALS if you’re bottle feeding. In just a few minutes you can have a warm bottle ready without even getting out of the car. It includes multiple adapters for popular bottles and it holds a good charge.
BONUS: This is perfect in your hotel room, at bars and restaurants, really anywhere you go! I’d buy this ten times over.
17. Car Seat Liner or Burp Cloths
Don’t learn the hard way what happens when there’s a blowout. They do sell car seat liners, but a burp cloth layer should do the trick as well to keep the car seat in tip-top condition!
18. Changing Pads
They are fed and now it’s time for a diaper change. As mentioned above, I find all of this to be easiest when you just pull off onto the side of an off-ramp. And if you do that, a Snuggle Nest Lounger is the perfect changing pad. It folds up for easy storage and once you open it, place it on the backseat and you have the perfect (and clean!) changing station. Stash some diapers and wipes in it and you’re set!
While you can surely use this if you change a diaper in the rest stop or gas station, I also have this smaller roll-up one that stores in a diaper bag. I love to lie down anywhere the baby is being changed.
19. Extra Baby Blankets
Don’t let the sun ruin your baby’s car trip sleep! Purchase window shades if you prefer, but we just threw a blanket over her car seat. Plus, we had one to cover her. And another in case one got dirty!
20. New Toys
When traveling a long way, add a few new toys to the mix! This makes more sense when the baby gets a little bit older. But a newborn may be entertained by new or favorite toys hanging off their car seat handle. Whatever buys you some good, not-crying time!
21. White Noise Machine
Does your baby use a sound machine when they sleep at home? Well, it’s a great idea to take it on the road as well. This is my favorite portable one.
22. Totes to Stay Organized!
The best way to store everything for easy access is totes that fit perfectly in the car and help you keep everything together in one place. You can pack a diaper bag but then you’re just digging through it, what you need is at the bottom, and items are coming out, not going back in…it just ends up being more work than it’s worth. Totes allow you to see where everything is at once. Can’t recommend this one enough for diaper changes and the other one for breastpumping items—which also comes with a mini cooler.
23. Extra Everything
When driving long distances, take a little bit extra of everything. Clothes, diapers, wipes, toys. Either use a tote or a backpack that you know is full of extras. You might need to dig through it, but if everything goes smoothly, you won’t. It’s just a peace of mind thing!
24. Ziplock and Plastic Bags
When you have the whole family in the car, garbage is going to pile up. Be ready for it with a few plastic bags so it’s easy to keep trash together and throw it away in a gas station parking lot. Don’t forget a Ziplock or two as well—they will keep the smell of a dirty diaper locked inside if there’s nowhere to throw it right away!
25. Cleaning Wipes and Stain Remover
While we’re on the clean train, bring some generic cleaning wipes for spills. And this is a great stain remover if the baby spits up or poops on their clothes. (Or you get pizza sauce on your white shirt.)
26. Snacks
A long car ride with a newborn can be, well, long! Keep yourself entertained with some of your favorite snacks. Plus, they are much needed when you get hungry but don’t want to stop because the baby is sleeping!
27. Handheld Car Vacuum
This thing is awesome! And perfect for a road trip when you are bound to have a mess or two. Easily suck up crumbs and dirt to keep your vehicle as clean as possible.
28. Lastly, Patience…
Your road trip will not be like it was pre-baby. There will be more frequent stops, your travel time will increase, there will be extra time spent at gas stations than you’re used to, and you may be in for a long trip. But don’t worry, it’s all worth it when you get to the destination!
Traveling with a Newborn Baby Road Trip Tips
There is all of the general advice for baby car travel that will hopefully help you as first-time parents and ensure you have the best road trip with your new baby. Good luck!
Baby car travel is definitely different than doing it with young children, and even older children! As we go through life with our baby, I’ll be sure to post more of the best tips.
