Road Trip with 41/2 month old

[jodiefullagar]

We are planning a road trip from Brisbane to Sydney in Feb and I was wondering if anyone had any tips for travelling with a 4 month old?

I don't know if there are any threads about this - I did a search and there was nothing that relates to my situation.

We are planning to stop overnight on the way down. Was just wondering if anyone else has done a similar trip with a little baby and how the baby coped with being in the car for long periods?

[ETsMum]

We just drove from Bris to Dubbo with a 4 1/2 month old. He travelled really well. We went down in one day and back in 2. We left home at 3 in the morning and he slept for ages! I think we first fed him at Goondiwindi. We tried to stop and have some "outside the car time" but it was soooo hot. We had to play in the car!

My tips are:
keep offering bub water as the air con can dehydrate. Hope you've got air con :D
Don't pack much next to bub so someone can sit in the back and sing and play with bub when he/she is bored. We had a small suitcase that we just put on the front seat during those times.

We only had to make 2 extra stops for cuddles when bub had had enough on the way down and that was in the afternoon.

We took our time on the way back and also came back a different way and it was much cooler. We stopped o'nite in Glen Innes and stopped for lunch in a park for over an hour somewhere else etc.. and gave bub some wiggle and tummy time. I think the fresh air and sunshine can really help bub to sleep if they are stuck in a car all day so when you stop, try to have at least one good stop per day - not just fuel the car and feed the bub and go.

[the_queen]

We drove from Adelaide to my MIL's at Heywood, Vic (about 7 hours) for Vallerie's first christmas, she was 5 months old. She coped really well, we stopped a few times to feed her, but we had to stop anyway for toilet/food breaks for us grown ups. I sat in the back with her to begin with, but she fell asleep so I got into the front seat.

I think it's important to be organised, have a cooler bag on hand with bottles of water, moist flannels (in the heat, these are great for bubs to play with, and if they suck on them it gets some hydration into them), a spray bottle with cold water in it, etc. Some interesting toys, a dummy or 2 (if you're using them), cold teething rings if needed, spare nappies and wipes, plastic bags for used nappies. And plan to take twice as long to get there, to allow for "cuddle stops" (very important!) and feed/nappy change stops.

Have fun! :)

[Baby Girl]

I travel up and down from Sydney to Albury about once a month with my 3yr old and now 7 1/2 month old (her first trip was at 4 weeks).

The best advice I can give is to feed bub last thing before you leave, they will probably go to sleep until you stop (car motion and all that). I wait until bub wakes up before I stop for a long break, I will stop for a quick 5 minute stretch and walk around the car but if I have to get her out of the car I wait until she wakes up and then stop at the next place. Have a bottle handy so if bub does wake and is grizzly or hungry, someone can feed them until you get to a place you can stop.

Hang some bright toys that bub can play with in the car over the seat and at least there will be something for him/her to look at other than the sky out the back window!!

Babies usually travel well. Good Luck. If you and your partner are both going you will be fine. I do the trip on my own with both girls and I am still kinda sane!!

I have found that if they have a clean bum and a full belly that they will sleep for hours in the car!! I also try to plan my trip so I am driving when she would usually be sleeping. I usually leave after dinner (about 6 ish) both girls are asleep after an hour and we get in at about midnight and I can put them straight in bed and crash out myself. Or I try to drive through the day during what would be the normal times DD2 naps - our stops do get longer though if I do that as she likes to have a good bit of time out of the car and settles better if I don't rush her!!

[jodiefullagar]

Thanks for all of your replies. It really helps to know that other people have done it successfully and the tips are great.

Cheers!