The Best Minimalist Packing List for Traveling with a Baby!
This is our must have items for your packing list for traveling with a baby! You need a lot less than you think, regardless of all the marketing you’ll see geared towards baby specific items. If you can be creative or be a little flexible when you’re on the go, you don’t need much. We are pretty minimalist when it comes to baby gear, and it’s no different when we’re traveling!
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After traveling a LOT with our kids as babies, these items are the only travel gear for babies that we really needed. Another solution is to rent baby items locally, which can help decrease the amount of items that you have to drag along with you to the airport. We’ve made this list to include items you need for road trips with a baby, airplane travel with babies, camping with a baby, hiking with a baby, beach trips with a baby, and more!
General Things You Need for Traveling with a Baby
These are your items that you’ll likely need wherever you go, just your traveling with baby basics!
1. Travel Bassinet/Pack n’ Play
Before you go buy a travel bassinet, check with your accommodations to see if they have a pack n’ play that you can borrow or rent. We almost never have to bring one because they have it. This is also an item that you can often rent locally if your accommodations don’t have one.
But if you need one, we loved this travel bassinet for road trips. It packs up nicely, and is easy to use for babies when they are young. Once they are bigger, a good old fashioned Pack n’ Play is great. You can even usually find these for cheap on facebook marketplace.
2. An Easy to Carry Diaper Bag
You probably already have one of these since you have a baby. However, for traveling, you’ll definitely want one that is a backpack so you can easily carry it along with all of your other travel gear. This diaper bag has a changing pad included (really nice to have when traveling!), and all the pockets you’ll need for your travel baby gear.
3. Just in Case Medications/Sickness Preparation
The last thing you want is to be stuck somewhere without some medications or tools to deal with your kids sickness while you are traveling. We have found that our kids often have a cold on the way home from where we are visiting, and being prepared for the plane ride home can make things so much easier.
The Nose Frida is a must (they have a battery powered or manual option), and we always bring tylenol, ibuprofen, and gas relief drops. You know your baby best, so bring some of the things you use at home when they are sick, just in case!
4. An Extra Pack of Binkys
It never fails that we lose one or two binkys while traveling. We usually bring extras, but we have gotten stranded in a National Park before with no binky and it was NOT ideal. I would recommend stocking up on a few extra of your binky of choice so you can keep your baby comfortable.
5. One Go-To Travel Toy
I would definitely recommend bringing one toy from home that your baby loves on the trip. We don’t load up on a bunch of toys to save space, and also to help our kids focus on wherever we are traveling. But having one familiar toy is a good idea. We usually end up bringing a couple of small cars and a familiar book for a bedtime story.
TIP: if you are going to bring your child’s most prized possession, make sure you don’t lose it. We’ve left a couple toys on the airplane, so we usually don’t choose to bring their absolute favorite toys.
ANOTHER TIP: If you’re trying to save money while making your packing list for traveling with a baby, consider making a trip to the thrift store! Our kids love picking out one small toy before our trips – it’s usually only a dollar or two. Then you don’t have to worry about the cost or the environmental impact!
6. Nursing Cover (if Breastfeeding)
Breastfeeding on an airplane or anywhere you are traveling, can be difficult. This nursing cover was really helpful for me to be able to nurse babies on the plane, on a trail, or wherever we were that didn’t have privacy. It also doubles as a car seat cover which was great when nap time lined up with our time at a restaurant, the beach, or wherever!
7. Small Travel Blanket
We like to pack a lightweight blanket no matter where we are so that baby doesn’t get cold. Even if you’re traveling to a warm destination, your baby could get cold on the airplane or in air conditioning. You’ll probably already have a baby blanket at home that is small enough to travel with, but if you don’t, try to get a lightweight one that can pack up fairly small.
8. Noise Maker
One of the most frustrating things on the planet is when you finally get your baby to sleep and then a loud noise wakes them up. We had this happen more than once when we were traveling, so we decided to start packing a small white noise machine to help block out unexpected sounds. We also use one of these at home, so it helped to keep the bedtime routine similar for our kids.
9. Baby Monitor
This may or may not be applicable depending on what your accommodations look like. If you’re staying in a hotel, you might not need a baby monitor since you’ll be in the same room. However, if you have a vacation rental with multiple rooms, having a baby monitor is really nice. We’ve been able to enjoy drinks on the deck, or have a hot tub during nap time because we had our baby monitor with us. We didn’t buy anything fancy, just packed ours from home.
10. Travel Size Liquids
Using hotel lotion and shampoo is not ideal for anyone, but especially not for fragile baby skin. We make sure to pack our baby lotion, soap, sunscreen (check out our favorite baby safe sunscreen!), toothpaste, and whatever other liquids we use on a daily basis.
TIP: These travel containers make it really easy to ensure you are staying within the TSA limits for liquids AND you can easily pack them away for your next trip and not have to worry about forgetting something.
11. Packing Cubes
Packing cubes are a GAME CHANGER when it comes to packing for travel, but especially with kids. Each member of our family has a separate cube, so we can easily pick out each person’s clothes without digging through our entire suitcase and making a mess. If you aren’t traveling with packing cubes, this is one thing I would recommend getting right away!
And when you’re packing, you’ll also want to check out our Pre-Travel Checklist: 31 Things You Need to do Before Vacation!
12. Car Seat/Car Seat Bag
Traveling with a car seat can be challenging because you are carrying a bunch of other equipment. When they are little babies, it’s easier to pack the car seat but once they get out of the infant car seat it can be heavier and more awkward to carry.
This car seat backpack carrier is AWESOME for making your trip through the airport smoother. While it’s a bit heavy, it’s a must for us when traveling with our kids.
And if you’re flying with your baby, here are our 18 Tips for Flying with a Baby!
13. Baby Hat
Those little baby heads can either get cold or at risk of sunburns because they have hardly any hair (if they are like our kids). So everywhere we go we pack a sun hat and a beanie so we can protect their sweet little heads.
14. Baby Swimsuit
Forgetting a swimsuit when you travel is the worst and it can be really tough to find baby swimsuits in some locations. No matter where we go, we always bring a baby swimsuit. Our choice is one that provides maximal coverage from the sun so we don’t have to worry about sunscreen as much.
15. Baby Swim Diapers
Another thing that can be super hard to find in the right size is a swim diaper. We’ve been to local pools and hot springs that carried swim diapers, but not in the right size. It’s best to just pack a couple of these in your bag so you don’t have to make a trip to the store on your travels.
16. Baby Bottles
A bottle that your baby is comfortable drinking out of is a good idea to pack with you. We’ve also been in a position where we forgot a bottle, and it became a problem. Bring one or two bottles with you in your diaper bag.
17. Breast Pump/Supplies
While I pretty much EBF both of my babies, I did always bring my pump with us when we traveled just in case. Sometimes weird things happened with elevation changes and different hydration schedules while traveling, so I found it helpful to have my pump just in case.
18. Formula Supplies (if necessary)
If you are formula feeding your babies, you’ll need to bring all your supplies with you. I would recommend bringing extra in case your trip gets delayed. Especially with recent formula shortages, you won’t want to risk running out of your formula of choice.
19. Baby Snacks
One of the best ways to keep your baby occupied on a flight or on a long road trip is by snacks. We usually pack several options in our bag so that we can continue to feed our kids (mostly) nutritious snacks while traveling in addition to whatever else we are eating. Some of the healthy snacks we love for babies are pouches, yogurt, healthier wafer/puff type snacks, and things from home like cheese or fruit.
20. Teething Toy
Having something for your baby to chew on in case they are teething can be really helpful. Whatever your teething toy of choice is at home, it might be a good idea to bring it with.
21. Wet Bag (or use a plastic bag)
We like having a couple of plastic grocery bags with us, one for dirty clothes, and another for any soiled clothes. You could even bring one more to hold dirty diapers if you aren’t near a trash can. If you don’t want to use a plastic bag, you could use this reusable wet bag that we also have!
22. A Passport or Birth Certificate
This one depends on where you are traveling, and you definitely don’t NEED a passport for your baby for lots of places. However, it makes it really easy for us when traveling to have passports for both of our kids. Then we don’t have to worry about having appropriate documentation when we fly or if we decide to fly internationally.
23. Car Window Cover
A car window cover is something we STILL don’t have but we think about it every single time we are on a road trip. The cover essentially just helps block sunlight from getting into the window and shining in your poor babies eyes! We also had one of our kids get sunburned through the window when we were in Hawaii!!
And we’ve got you covered with a few articles to help you survive your road trip with a baby:
24. Hiking Backpack or Front Pack (Optional)
A hiking backpack or front pack is something we bring on every trip because we spend a lot of time walking/hiking with our kids. However, if you choose to bring a stroller and don’t plan on hiking you may not need one of these. Here are some of our favorite packs depending on age:
- Best front pack for young babies: Baby Bjorn
- Best front pack for older babies with head control: the Ergobaby 360
- Best hiking backpack for kids: the Osprey Poco Plus Carrier
And, if you’re interested in more on what to pack for hiking with kids you can check out our article! We did over 52 hikes with our kids in 2024 and are doing the challenge again every year. We also have a list of What to Pack for Camping with a Baby!
25. Stroller (Optional)
We almost never bring a stroller when we travel. This is because we often travel to places outside of cities where we don’t have access to sidewalks or paved areas. It’s also bulky and too big for us to pack. However, it can be really nice to have in the airport and if it’s something you plan on using a lot, you may want to bring it.
26. Pack n Play Cover (Optional)
As a disclaimer, we haven’t actually used one of these. We have found that dark closets, hotels with blackout curtains, or the dark night sky in the campervan is dark enough for our kids to sleep at night. For naps, our kids often sleep in the car on our travels. But I do know some people who have used a Slumberpod for keeping the pack and play extra dark during nap time!
How to Pack Less when Traveling with a Baby:
We are minimalists and have learned to pack less and less when we travel with our kids. I know it can be overwhelming to figure out what to pack for traveling with a baby, but fight the urge to bring your entire house. Think of what you TRULY need and what you can get away with not bringing.
For example, the little blow up baby baths we think are kind of a waste. Do you really need to bring a bathtub with you? Or can you take a shower or use the vacation rental bathtub? These questions are ultimately up to you to decide. But think carefully to avoid overpacking.
We think the more stuff we bring with us, the more stressed we are. It’s too much to carry, and we’re more likely to forget something when we leave. If you’re also nervous about traveling with your kids, here are our 9 Tips for Enjoying Family Vacations!
Let me know in the comments what you would add to this packing list for traveling with a baby!
