Travelling with Babies & Toddlers: Making Sleep Work While You’re Away

Holidays are a lovely chance to spend time together as a family - but let’s be honest, travelling with young children can be a bit of a juggle. While routines might shift slightly during travel, there’s still a lot you can do to protect your child’s sense of predictability and rest.

Whether you’re planning a staycation, flying off to sunnier shores, or visiting family abroad, here are some practical tips to help your child sleep as well as possible during your trip - and settle back into routine when you return.

1. If You're Crossing Time Zones...

• For trips less than a week: It’s usually easier to stick to your home time zone. This avoids the challenge of having to adjust twice in a short space of time.

• For longer holidays: Try gradually shifting your child’s schedule by about 10 minutes each day in the week leading up to your trip. This makes the transition to the new time zone a little gentler.

2. On Travel Days

• If you're home for the morning nap, try to get a solid one in - it helps start the day on the right foot before a potentially stimulating travel experience.

• If flights or long drives coincide with nap time, do your best to help your little one rest while in transit. Many children will need a bit more support to fall asleep in a new setting - feeding, rocking, or motion can all help.

• If naps don’t go to plan on travel day, that’s ok. Instead, focus on calm and familiar bedtime instead and try make it slightly earlier bedtime which can compensate for a disrupted day. 

• Don’t forget to pack comfort items that support sleep: soothers, bottles, snacks, a favourite blanket or cuddly toy. Anything that feels familiar will be reassuring in a new environment.

3. Once You Arrive

Even if the location is different, try to keep your child’s sleep cues and rhythms as familiar as possible.

1. Stick to your usual wind-down routine
Bath, books, songs, sleeping bag - whatever your routine is at home, do your best to mirror it while away. These are strong sleep associations that help your child feel secure.

2. Use the environment to your advantage

• Spend time outdoors during the day to reinforce natural light cues.

• In the evening, dim lights and keep the room cool, dark, and quiet.

• Blackout blinds and white noise can be really useful, especially if room-sharing.

4. Create separation if room-sharing

If your child isn’t used to sharing a room with you, try to create a little visual divide between their sleep space and yours. A sheet draped over a chair or rail or tucking the cot into a corner of the room can help.

5. Stick with your general schedule as much as you can

Meals, naps, and bedtime don’t need to be exact—but keeping things loosely in line with your child’s usual rhythm will go a long way toward reducing overtiredness and meltdowns.

4. Handy Travel Sleep Essentials

Having a few well-chosen products to hand can make a big difference. These are items I often suggest to families who are travelling:

• A familiar sleep sack from home

• A breathable muslin blanket for layering, comfort or as a shade

• A portable blackout blind for bright bedrooms or nap spaces

• A UV-protective buggy cover – perfect for naps on the go

• A compact white noise machine (or app)

• A sling or baby carrier for airport naps or busy days out

They’re not magic fixes - but they can help you recreate the sleep environment your child is used to, which provides comfort and consistency.

5. Be Flexible With Naps

• It’s not realistic to expect perfect naps every day when you’re away - but if you can protect at least one solid restorative nap during the day, ideally in a quiet space, it can help keep sleep on track. 

• If naps happen in the sling, buggy, or car, that’s okay - life doesn’t have to stop while you’re away. Just bring along anything that helps your little one switch off: a blackout cover, white noise, a comforter, etc.

6. When You Get Home

It can take a few days (sometimes up to a week) to fully settle back into your usual rhythm after a holiday. Stick to your regular routine as much as you can, even if things feel a bit off at first. And if you’ve slipped into any sleep habits you don’t want to keep - like rocking to sleep or extra night feeds - start to gently phase them out.

Before you head off…

Travel won’t always go perfectly and that’s absolutely fine. A few off days won’t undo all your hard work - especially if your child already has a strong foundation of good sleep habits to return to when you get home. Try to enjoy the moments, even if naps happen on the go or bedtimes run late. You can always get back on track once you’re home.

What matters most is your child’s sense of safety, connection, and enjoyment - not maintaining a perfect schedule