11 Easy Survival Tips For a Road Trip With Baby!

Okay, so you’re planning on a road trip with baby! Maybe it’s your first road trip, or maybe your last one went poorly so you’re looking for some tips. Having a baby in the car for long periods of time can be overwhelming, but with these 10 quick tips you’ll be an expert in no time. Once you get the hang of it, road trips with a baby are actually a breeze! Road trips with a baby can actually be really enjoyable once you set yourself up for success.

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Table of Contents

1. Plan to Leave Right After Feeding and Diaper Change

Of course, leaving after a feeding and diaper change can be difficult to coordinate if you have other kids to coordinate around. However, leaving when your baby is “optimized” is your best chance to get some miles on before having to make a stop. If you fill up their bellies, you can hopefully have a solid 2-3 hours of sleep before you have to make your first stop.

2. Set up a Mirror on the Back Seat

Having a mirror on the back seat is very helpful so you can check on your baby without making a stop. I was always slightly paranoid about having those tiny little babies in their car seats for a longer period of time. Being able to see them breathing and sleeping peacefully will give you peace of mind while you’re driving. The back seat mirror is also helpful to see if they lost their pacifier or kicked off their blanket. We still used a mirror until our toddler turned to facing forward so we could keep tabs on him while we drove.

We use this mirror, and it’s made a huge difference in helping our road trips go smoothly!

3. Plan Ahead for Frequent Stops

Planning for frequent stops is a MUST when traveling with a newborn baby. Of course, you can always stop at random gas stations or travel stops when baby is getting antsy. But with the frequent stops, you have an opportunity to stop at some great places that you would normally just pass right on by.

When I’m planning a road trip with baby, I map out fun potential stops about every hour. That way, when the time comes to stop, you can land at a fun place you’ve wanted to see instead of some dirty gas station or some random pullout on the side of the road.

4. Check the Car Seat Expiration and Make Sure it is Secure Before Leaving

Making sure your car seat is secure before leaving on your road trip is super important. You’l want to check the car seat’s expiration date and confirm it’s installed correctly before leaving for baby’s safety and your peace of mind.

For more car seat safety tips, check out this website – they have great tips for making sure your car seat is secure and baby is safe!

Wondering what you need to pack for taking a road trip with baby? Here is our full packing list for a road trip with a baby!

5. Put a Sun Protection Cover Over the Window

One thing that woke our kid up more than anything was the sun shining in his eyes and on his face. These window covers will block the sun from baby’s eyes AND help prevent a sunburn. We actually had one of our kids get sunburned during our Hawaiian road trip through the car window! If it’s not too hot out, you can also use a car seat cover, but that is the less ideal option because it can trap heat and you won’t be able to see your baby!

Check out the window covers here!

6. Expect Your Trip to Take Longer

Gone are the days where you can take a road trip and only stop once. When taking a road trip with baby, you’ll want to add at least an hour to your expected drive time. Your new style of road trips will have added stopping time to feed, change diapers, and stretch legs. So if you are meeting other groups at your destination, try to overestimate the amount of time it is going to take you to get from point A to point B. It never hurts to add in some flexibility to your itinerary!

7. Make a Playlist to Relax Baby

One of the tricks we use when baby gets fussy on a road trip is to play some music they like. Whether you want to lull them to sleep with a lullaby playlist, or just keep them happy with some kids tunes, you’ll want to have a playlist ready and downloaded. Another thing we’ve done in desperate times is to sing some songs ourselves in the car to help the baby be comforted by your voice. Singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star is not my ideal road trip activity, but it beats listening to a screaming or crying baby!

8. Have Someone Sit in the Backseat

Having an adult sit in the backseat for at least part of the trip can be helpful, especially if the baby is a newborn. There is nothing worse than having the baby lose their binky and start crying as you’re driving down the freeway and can’t reach them to get it back in their mouth. It also may help ease your anxiety if you’re worried about your newborn in the car seat!

9. Set Your Expectations Appropriately

As with anything related to traveling with kids, don’t expect everything to go smoothly every time. It’s likely that you’ll have some mishaps and have to listen to some crying along the drive. So as long as you set your expectations appropriately and don’t expect everything to go perfectly, you’ll be fine!

For us, the first day and night whenever we are traveling is usually the hardest. After that, the trip usually goes a lot smoother. Before long, you’ll be an expert at taking a road trip with baby. And wherever you decide to go it will be so worth it!

10. Don’t Overdo it!

While you might be eager to get out and explore with your little one like I was (I didn’t travel much while pregnant because I felt sick!), it’s important to start slow. We have found that the max amount of time we can road trip with a newborn baby in a day without going a little crazy is 3-4 hours. As they get older, it gets a little easier for them to tolerate time in the car seat. But every baby is different, so do what works well for you and your family. We’ve also spent the night halfway on long trips to split up our driving time.

11. Pack What you Need

Preparedness can make a huge difference when you’re traveling with kids. We make packing lists everywhere we go to make sure we don’t forget anything. Then we can focus on the fun stuff while traveling!

Here are all the Baby Road Trip Essentials you’ll need!

Okay, you’re ready to hit the road! Now that you’re an expert at taking your baby on a road trip, check out our travel guides to get your started on planning your trips.

AND if you like travel checklists (they can be incredibly helpful when traveling with kids), use our packing lists and checklists to make sure you don’t forget anything important.

Happy travels!