Sleep Tips For Travel
It’s understandable to worry about travel and how it will affect your baby’s sleep, we get it!
But remember that babies don’t know travel can be stressful—they’re just living in the moment and enjoying the new sights and sounds. That said, there are many things you can do to smooth the way to optimal sleep during your trip:
Sleep tips for traveling with baby:
If your baby sleeps in their own room at home, do everything you can to give them the sense of a separate space when you’re away. Find as quiet and dark a spot as you can for them to sleep. It’s ideal if your baby or child has their own room, so they keep the feeling of independent sleep they have gotten used to at home, but if there isn’t another room, a creative solution like around a corner, behind a piece of furniture, or anywhere they can’t see you in your bed. Parents have also told us they put their baby’s crib in a large walk-in closet in the hotel room (make sure there’s ventilation if you do this of course). You can use a large bathroom as well.
Hold on to your routines and timing as much as possible.
Bring your baby’s familiar lovey, pjs, books, sound machine or anything else that will remind them of their sleep environment at home. This will become more important the older they get.
If you’re in a hotel, blackout is usually very good. If you’re not sure about the windows where you’re staying, you can buy travel black out shades or pack dark trash bags and painter’s tape to put over the windows of the place your baby will be sleeping. You may want to consider one of the products like the Slumber Pod that goes over the Pack n’ Play to create a dark environment and an independent feeling so that your baby doesn’t have to think about and look at you during the night!
Bring a carrier on board an airplane. Your baby may need you to walk the aisles with her to fall asleep.
Many parents use a portable crib or Pack’n Play as baby’s bed away from home. If you can, use it at home once or twice so baby is familiar with this alternate sleep place.
Do everything possible to maintain your curious stance and give your baby some space, while at the same time, knowing that it’s normal for sleep to be bumpier during travel. Be prepared to put the Sleep Wave back into place, if need be, once you get home. The biggest mistake we see is when the over-helping associations that start during travel, continue once the family is back home.
Should you use the Sleep Wave while you’re traveling?
Well, we don’t recommend starting the sleep wave method while on vacation, but if your baby knows the sleep wave already, then yes it’s really useful as a way to signal to them that the way we sleep when we’re away from home is the same way we sleep at home.
Be sensitive to the change in environment and know that your baby may need a little warm up time in the new environment before they can be expected to sleep independently. Show your baby their sleeping space ahead of time. Walk through the room and talk to them about it (even babies know what you mean), do a rehearsal with stuffed animals, or talk through the routine with your child.
Baby sleep and time zone changes
If the trip is under a week, you may never shift your baby or child to the new time. For example, if you’re traveling from California to New York, your baby’s internal clock will tell her it’s her normal 7:00 p.m. bedtime when the New York clock says 10:00 p.m. If that works for you and it’s a short trip, you might want to just keep her on that time, or end up somewhere in between. Use blackout fabric, garbage bags or another creative strategy to cover the windows for early morning light.
For a longer or overseas trip with big time zone changes, shift your baby gradually to the new time. Use daylight, especially morning light, to stimulate and reset her internal clock. In general, babies adjust at least as quickly as we do to time changes, so allot about a day per hour of time difference. As soon as you arrive back home, begin to gradually shift back to your normal schedule. Going outside first thing in the morning to see natural sun (even if it’s cloudy) is a strong signal to the brain and will help adjust to new time zones.
Baby’s naps on the go
Normally, we know how much it helps for babies to nap in their familiar space at home, at grandparents or at daycare. We typically only recommend a stroller or carrier nap for babies under five months or for “cheat” naps when you’re just starting the Sleep Wave. But when you’re traveling, it’s ok to use the stroller and carrier on days when you have activities planned or events to attend that you don’t want to miss out on. If your baby is still taking 3-4 naps a day, you’ll want to have a few of those take place at your home away from home. Some babies are more flexible than others so you may have to play around with this. Once you’re back home, it’s key to get back on track with naps in baby’s usual sleep place most of the time.
Whether you’re traveling or staying home this holiday season, we wish you peace, joy, health and of course, happy sleeping!