11 Smart Packing Tips For Traveling With Babies And Toddlers

Packing for traveling with kids is every mom’s nightmare and in my opinion, it’s a big reason why parents don’t want to travel with their little ones. As moms, we want to control and be prepared for all the situations. If the “mental load” at home wasn’t enough already, from preparing food to finding toys to rebuying diapers and toilet paper that run out, packing for travel introduces a whole other animal!

I have a 2.5 year old toddler named Serena and a 5 month old baby named Huntington, so my traveling tips come from packing for both kids and myself and going on family trips together for the last 2-3 years.

Note: I use a more minimalist approach to packing, so I keep clothes, shoes, toys all to a minimum. I’m not trying to break my back nor am I packing for style. If you’re a fashionista, this packing style may not be for you.

Create a list before you start packing for the family

When I packed for our Thailand/Philippines trip in Feb 2024, it was my first flight with 2 kids. It’s embarrassing to say, but I literally spent 4 hours packing. I was walking up and down the stairs of our house like a madwoman, mumbling to myself like Bruno in Disney’s Encanto (yes, my daughter keeps requesting this movie on replay), repeating things the kids may need, while trying to prevent important items from spilling out of my head. I mean…the terror that would arise if I forgot something important, right?! If this is you too, sit down, take a breath, and write a list like a sane person.

I have started using an app called Packing List, which I find to be convenient way to add, edit, and delete items. Before this, I was using Google doc and Trello, but it wasn’t very easy to reuse these lists because it required unchecking all items one by one, so I set out on finding an app.

I tried out 2 apps, Packing List and Packr, and I settled on Packing List for its ability to easily create categories with emojis and add/edit/delete items. Packr was great too as it has similar functionality, plus some. It had the weather for the dates, which I thought was really cool, and also premade lists for Toiletries, Essentials, Baby, Airplane, etc. It also prepopulated the quantity of clothes, but since I’m more of a minimalist packer, I felt like the premade lists gave me too much stuff I didn’t need or want to pack as well as higher quantities of clothes than I would like. However, if it’s your first time traveling, it might be worth exploring so you can see a longer list to avoid forgetting anything and see if you may need those items.

Packing clothes for kids

Packing clothes is a delicate balance between packing enough stuff that you need, but not overpacking so that your luggage is so damn heavy. We have a toddler and a baby, so they’re not contributing any muscle on the trip. In fact, they’re adding more weight! That means together, my husband and I are carrying the baby and the toddler (on and off) while lugging our suitcases and duffel bags. Less weight in the luggage please!

Pack each person’s clothes separately

In our family, my husband, Bryan, packs for himself and I pack for myself and the 2 kids. With the mountain of clothes I’m packing for 3 very differently-sized people, it would drive me nuts to dig through the suitcase to try to get a specific person’s clothes, while messing up all the folded clothes in the process. I’m trying to reduce chaos, not create chaos.

Some options to separate clothes

• packing cubes
• hanging travel organizers

In my oversized carry-on suitcase (that I use to check in on flights), I usually pack:

• my toddler’s clothes in 1 packing cube
• my baby’s clothes in 1 packing cube
• my clothes rolled up in my suitcase

However, I am experimenting with these hanging travel organizers. I used it for the first time in Las Vegas trip for my clothes. I’ll let you know more later.

Pack items in the least amount of bags

Even though we want to pack each person’s separately, we are aiming for the least number of bags. When Bryan and I had just Serena, we were able to pack for a 2 week Europe trip using:

• 1 diaper bag – for baby/toddler, so we always carry this along with us
• 1 duffel bag – for Bryan plus some diapers and wipes
• 1 medium suitcase (larger carry-on) – combination of my clothes and Serena’s clothes, family toiletries, more diapers
• 1 backpack – for my personal things like laptop, adaptors, plugs, hairbrush, and other miscellaneous

Now with an additional child, Huntington, I’d say we can do about the same, but we have to suck it up and get a large suitcase to fit my clothes along with 2 kids and double the diapers.

Even though packing separately is good, we want the least number of bags because we’re still handling small kids too, which could mean holding their hands or putting them in the baby carrier or chasing after them. Either way, our hands need to be ready.

Plus, we can’t trust Serena and Huntington to carry their own bags or backpacks even. Serena lost a little backpack in the Philippines…luckily it just had 1 toy in it.

Combine everyone’s dirty clothes at the end

The first thing my husband and I do after coming home from vacation is throw all the dirty clothes in the washer. Since we do our laundry together, it makes sense to just combine the dirty clothes on the trip into 1 bag (like a trash bag), so everything in that one dirty bag goes into the wash. Easy peasy.

Pack extra clothes (more than 1 outfit a day) for your babies and toddlers

Why do I pack extra? For soooo many reasons like spit up, poopoo blowouts, pee while I’m changing the diaper. Enough said.

Pack clothes based on weather of the destination

Since I pack only a limited number of clothes, it MUST be appropriate for the weather. I look up the weather of the destination usually 1 week before the trip as well as 1 day before the trip by typing in the city and country name + “weather” into a Google search (Ex: “Bangkok, Thailand weather”), and review the weather on the specific days of my trip This helps me determine how I will pack.

What to Pack for a Baby

Item	Quantity for Hot Weather	Quantity for Cold Weather
Short sleeve onesies	1/day + 50% extra (2 extra minimum) Why do I pack extra? spit up, poopoo blowouts, baby boy peed while I’m changing him If I am packing for 1 week, this is about 10 short sleeve onesies. If I am packing for 3 days, this is 5 short sleeve onesies. If I am packing for 2 days, this is 4 short sleeve onesies.	1 or 2 This is just in case you find yourself somewhere where it’s hot.
Long sleeve onesies (or long sleeve onesie plus footed pants)	1 or 2 This is just in case you find yourself somewhere where it’s cold or in an air-conditioned room.	1/day + 50% extra (2 extra minimum) Why do I pack extra? spit up, poopoo blowouts, baby boy peed while I’m changing him If I am packing for 1 week, this is about 10 long sleeve onesies. If I am packing for 3 days, this is 5 long sleeve onesies. If I am packing for 2 days, this is 4 long sleeve onesies.
Jacket	1 This is just in case, even if it’s hot For our Thailand/Philippines trip, we ended up using this every time we went in the airplane, which was 3 times in total. This could also be used at really cold malls or places with high air conditioning. This is better if the jacket is waterproof for rain.	1-2 jackets If you pack 2 jackets, pack 1 light jacket for kinda-cold-but-still-sunlight weather and 1 heavier jacket for much colder weather. This is better if the jacket is waterproof for rain.
Socks	0.5-1/day Sometimes we wore socks, but most of the time we didn’t since it was hot. I like to have this on hand just in case our baby’s feet got cold and clammy, but in hot weather, we didn’t use it much. This can also be omitted or decreased to 0.5/day if you packed footed pants or footed onesies.	1/day + 2 extra I add extra just in case socks get lost or slip off baby’s feet. This can also be omitted or decreased to 0.5/day if you packed footed pants or footed onesies.
Hat	1 It’s nice to have a hat for the sunny weather that you can reuse throughout the trip.	0-1 I like to bring just in case but if you’re sure it’s not going to be sunny, it may not be necessary.

Baby Items that are not weather-specific

Item	Quantity
Diapers	6-8/day Adjust this based on your own baby. This is based on your best guess. Worst case, you’ll go out and buy diapers at a grocery store or supermarket…not the end of the world.
Wipes	1-2/week I buy the big Kirkland wipes, which have quite a lot. If you run out, then worst case, you’ll go out and buy diapers at a grocery store or supermarket…not the end of the world. We had to buy wipes when we were in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, but my husband kept complaining about how small and dry they were compared to the usual ones we use, so now we try to make sure we pack enough wipes to last the whole trip.
Bibs	2/day for drool and spit up We used to pack 2 bibs per day since our baby spits up often or else we would change his outfit, but his neck got a little red, so now we’re trying to not wear bibs for him as often. Now when he spits up a little, sometimes we just take a wipe and clean it off his onesie, unless it’s a lot, then we will change his outfit.
Burp cloths	1-2/day Depending on how much your baby spits up. You can also just use small towels from hotels if you don’t want to pack this.
Milk bottles	0-2 If the baby is with me, I will always breastfeed. If he is not with me, then I give my breast milk to someone who will have to bottle feed. I usually will bring 1 bottle with me just in case, I go get a massage and my husband watches baby or we both leave and someone else is watching baby.
Breast pump	1 I will usually bring both the Hakka manual pump to catch milk while I am breastfeeding baby, especially if I know someone else will watch baby at some point, and the Madela hand pump just in case the baby is not with me or sleeping. I prefer bringing the hand pump because of how light it is and how quickly it takes to pump. Most of the time on trips, I’m always breastfeeding. In my international trips, I think I used the manual pump only once. However, if you exclusively pump or on a trip without baby, then a double electric pump might better suit your needs.
Nursing cover	1 But what if baby spits up on it? This has happened to me many times. I just wash it at whatever bathroom sink I’m at with some handsoap and let it dry.
Changing mat	1 You can place a changing mat on top of a changing table or even on grass or a chair.

What to Pack for a Toddler

Item	Quantity for Hot Weather	Quantity for Cold Weather
Short sleeve shirts	1/day + 50% extra (2 extra minimum) Why do I pack extra? food spills, art spills, toddler changes their mind If I am packing for 1 week, this is about 10 short sleeve shirts. If I am packing for 3 days, this is 5 short sleeve shirts. If I am packing for 2 days, this is 4 short sleeve shirts.	0.5/day (2 minimum) I find short sleeve shirts more versatile because if it’s really cold, they will have a jacket over anyway. If they enter a heated room, then they can take off their jackets and be in short sleeve shirts.
Long sleeve shirts	1 or 2 This is just in case you find yourself somewhere where it’s cold	1/day Toddler will also have extra shirts that are short-sleeve to supplement.
Shorts	1/day Toddler will also have extra pants to supplement.	0-1 This is just in case you find yourself in a heated bedroom.
Pants	2 I feel like it’s always good to have pants on hand just in case the weather turns cold. I also find pants more versatile than shorts…like it’s ok to wear pants in hot weather and cold weather, but not ok to wear shorts in cold weather. Also, for some reason, my toddler just likes pants more, even though we were trying to convince her to wear shorts in Thailand and the Philippines.	1/day + 50% extra (2 extra minimum) Why do I pack extra? food spills, art spills, toddler changes their mind If I am packing for 1 week, this is about 10 pants. If I am packing for 3 days, this is 5 pants. If I am packing for 2 days, this is 4 pants.
Jacket	1 This is just in case, even if it’s hot For our Thailand/Philippines trip, we ended up using this every time we went in the airplane, which was 3 times in total. This could also be used at really cold malls or places with high air conditioning. This is better if the jacket is waterproof for rain.	1-2 If you pack 2 jackets, pack 1 light jacket for kinda-cold-but-still-sunlight weather and 1 heavier jacket for much colder weather. This is better if the jacket is waterproof for rain.
Socks	0.5-1/day Sometimes my toddler wore socks, but most of the time she didn’t since it was hot and she wore Crocs.	1/day + 50% extra (2 minimum) If I am packing for 1 week, this is about 10 pairs of socks. If I am packing for 3 days, this is pairs of socks. If I am packing for 2 days, this is 4 pairs of socks.
Shoes	1 pair I like something like Crocs or Natives, which are shoes that are breathable and easy to slip on and off and are waterproof.	1 close-toed pair If it’s cold, I like my toddler to have close-toed shoes, so it’s warmer and easier to walk longer.
Hat	1 It’s nice to have a hat for the sunny weather that you can reuse throughout the trip.	0-1 I like to bring this just in case but if you’re sure it’s not going to be sunny, it may not be necessary.

Toddler Items that are not weather specific

Item	Quantity
Diapers	4-6/day Adjust this based on your own toddler. This is based on your best guess. Worst case, you’ll go out and buy diapers at a grocery store or supermarket…not the end of the world.
Wipes	1-2/week I buy the big Kirkland wipes from Costco, which have quite a lot in one pack. If you run out, then worst case, you’ll go out and buy wipes at a grocery store or supermarket…not the end of the world. We had to buy wipes when we were in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, but my husband kept complaining about how small and dry they were compared to the usual ones we use, so now we try to make sure we pack enough wipes to last the whole trip.
Sippy Cup	0-1 We don’t pack this for our toddler anymore as she is more proficient at drinking, so she can drink out of any open cup or closed cup with a straw. However, when she was between 1-2.5 yrs, I would pack this or else she just spilled water/milk/juice everywhere and I got tired of changing shirts and wiping floors.
Toothbrush	1
Kid’s Toothpaste	1
Ipad + Ipad charger	1 Don’t judge me, but sometimes it just helps at restaurants and car rides when my creativity has gone low.
Activities	3 I try to pack 3 activities that are light enough to leave in the diaper bag to use on airplane rides, car rides, and restaurants.
Snacks	3 I try to pack some snacks for the ride. This includes fruits, cereal, granolas.

Pack 2-3 Toys Per Ride

I aim to pack light, so I prefer 2-3 toys or activities on top of the Ipad for each plane ride and car ride. I’d go with 2 toys if the ride is 4 hours or less and 3 toys if the ride is longer than that. These toys or activities must be light, reusable, and something we don’t mind losing (not their favorite toys). We place these in the diaper bag to make sure it’s carried onto the plane with us and to be used at restaurants or other places that the kids may get restless at. I’m definitely not trying to bring their entire toy box on vacation with me. As we travel, we will be exploring more often than we are in the room, so the places we go to and novel things we see along the way will entertain our little ones much more than these toys. We can also buy toys, activities, or souvenirs along the way that will peak their interest and serve as a momento for the trip.

Toys to bring on a plane should:

• be lightweight
• be reusable
• not have a lot of pieces that can fall and get lost
• not be devastating if you lose them
• be new or have not been played with in a while

See some examples of toys I pack for my toddler on flights.

https://diaperstodestinations.com/top-9-toys-to-entertain-toddlers-on-a-flight

Pack Snacks For The Ride

Besides nourishing your children, snacks can also be a fun activity that occupies them and can be a mood changer if they are hungry and cranky. I try to always pack snacks for plane rides (carry-on, not check-in) and car rides (snacks are in the same row as the parent, so parent can easily pass snacks to the kids). This can include fruits (tangerines, bananas, cut grapes, cut apples), cereals, chips, granolas, crackers.

On my first international flight with Serena in Europe, I made the mistake of packing several of her favorite cereals and some tangerines because “What if she won’t eat anything? At least I know she’ll eat this.” (Serena is not food-motivated most of the time). As a result of my fears, we literally carried these bags of cereal with us to all 4 different countries that we went to in Europe, and we would still buy some snacks and drinks at every city. I told myself never again. Just pack a few snacks for the plane ride or car ride, and we can buy a few snacks at each city or country we go to. As a huge plus, it is so exciting to try new foods and snacks from new places. I was pleasantly surprised by how tasty the tomato hummus was in Rotterdam and how accessible the grocery stores were.

Avoid packing liquids when you can if you don’t need them like juice, fruit pouches, milk, or chocolate milk over 3.4 oz. Liquids above this quantity are not allowed. I try not to pack any liquids as a snack.

Share Most Toiletries and Essentials

The whole family can share toiletries. I usually like to pack most of these items in travel-size (3 ml or less) so they can be carried on the plane if needed and to lighten the load in my luggage. These include:

• water bottle (an empty water bottle if I’m going on the plane that can be refilled with water at the airport after crossing TSA)
• toothpaste (1 for adult and 1 for toddlers) – Since my toddler still eats her toothpaste and hasn’t figured out how to rinse and spit water out, I make sure to pack separate toothpastes, 1 for us adults and 1 for kids (fluoride-free so that it’s ok if they eat it, which she seems to do)
• shampoo (I have travel-size adult shampoo and baby shampoo, but decided this isn’t necessary. Once baby shampoo runs out, everyone will use the same travel-size shampoo)
• conditioner
• body wash or soap
• sunblock
• hand sanitizer
• mosquito repellant spray (if tropical weather)
• floss
• hair brush – I share my hair brush with my daughter

To be more minimalist, you probably don’t have to pack shampoo, conditioner, and soap since if you’re staying at a hotel, Airbnb (check amenities as some do provide and some don’t), or friend/family’s house since they are usually provided. However, I’m attached to my expensive Korean shampoo so I like to pack my own toiletries.

Some toiletries that you don’t share

I think this is obvious for hygiene reasons, but I’ll mention it here.

• toothbrush
• shaver

Pack Based on Activity

If you’re doing any special activities that require special gear, you should pack that too. Luckily for small kids, they can’t do THAT much. These are special activities that we have packed for.

Activity	Potential Items
Swimming	– swim diaper – swim suit – goggles
Wedding, Funeral, Formal Dinner, or Photography	– dress or suit – formal shoes
Hiking	– baby carrier or hiking backpack – water bottle – light jacket per child – shoes for toddler or warm footies for non-walkers
Snow Activities like Skiing, Snowboarding, or Sledding	– snow jacket – snow pants – gloves – beanie

Avoid Overpacking

I’ve been on 2 international trips and many small trips with a baby or toddler now, and it’s exhausting to lug around a baby, a toddler, and a whole shit ton of luggage. Thus, we have adopted a more minimalist approach to packing. If you’re doing any special activities that require special gear, you should pack that too. Luckily for small kids, they can’t do THAT much.

Here are things we don’t pack:

• strollers – We just rock on with baby carriers. They are way lighter to bring and more versatile when you’re walking up and down stairs and escalators. However, it can start to weigh on you so make sure you have had some physical training first or else just bring the stroller.
• pack and play or cribs – sometimes hotels and Airbnbs have cribs or pack and plays for babies and toddlers. However, we just do without this. I cosleep with the kids so as long as there is a mattress that fits all of us, then that works for me.
• baby gate
• baby mat – I just keep the baby in the carrier most of the time or let him lay on the bed or a blanket on the floor.
• many jackets – jackets take up a lot of room and add a lot of weight, so I try to pack only 1 or 2 max per person if the weather varies a lot.
• towels – this is provided in all of the hotels, Airbnbs, and family/friends places I’ve been to
• blankets- this is provided in all of the hotels, Airbnbs, and family/friends places I’ve been to
• pillows – this is provided in all of the hotels, Airbnbs, and family/friends places I’ve been to
• baby bath tub
• stuffed animals
• bunch of toys
• medicine – We’ve been lucky and they’ve both been pretty healthy, but if they got sick (our toddler was constipated once at our Hawthorne Airbnb), we’d probably just pick up medicine wherever we at the local pharmacy.
• snacks – just enough for the car/airplane ride. I will buy some snacks at wherever we travel to as it’s fun to try snacks from different cities and countries.
• juice or milk – I will usually stick with water and buy some juice and/or milk at wherever we travel to
• books – Even though we read together every night at home, I haven’t packed any books on any flight or car ride so far, and my toddler hasn’t asked about it, not even once. I imagine this to change when she is at the reading age, and it can occupy her for longer periods of time by herself.

What do you pack?

What do you pack? Is there anything on this list or off this list you can’t live without or is a game changer when packing for your babies or toddlers? Leave a comment below, and please share with other families that are about to travel with small kids if you found this helpful.