Going on a trip with a five-month-old baby? We did it in Portugal in May. As new parents, we continue of course to travel with a little more organization but always with as much passion. Travel is now discovered through the eyes of our little one, our comfort to all guarantees a successful trip with wonderful memories in the head. I share with you our experience and what we brought in our luggage.

1. Flying with a baby

We flew from Montreal to Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal, which is about a six and a half hour flight. We flew by night which allows our baby to fall asleep for the night. Here are our tips and tricks for traveling by plane with a baby:

• I recommend for babies who wake up easily and are sensitive to noise to wear noise-canceling headphones that fit their small ears.

• For their comfort, bring familiar accessories. We took a blanket he knows well, pyjamas with zippers, his pacifier and a feeding bottle. Toys that he likes and if he often drops them on the floor, I recommend toy clips, very practical everywhere (not just on the plane), you can hang them on the stroller, bag, baby carrier, etc., so baby throws them in vain, the toys will not fall on the floor at the risk of losing or dirtying them. For breastfeeding, there is also a soft and breathable blanket that can be easily attached around the neck to wear over baby and thus create privacy.

• Depending on the airlines, a flight attendant will come and see you to explain the safety measures and if there is a way to hold baby during take-off and landing. For our case, we had baby drink during take-off and landing to help unclog their ears.

• You can also ask for the “bassinet” in the plane, it will be hung by a flight attendant on a bulkhead further forward of the plane. It is not possible to reserve it before, it is usually first come first served.

• Car seat or not? If you want to have your car seat on the plane, then you will have to book a full seat. In our case, as baby was only five months old, we preferred to have him with us in our arms. We went to the gate and left the car seat and stroller before boarding.

• In business class with baby: are we allowed? We asked ourselves the question (just in case) and yes of course that even if baby cries, because it is a baby, babies are allowed in business class. The advantages are: a seat that extends completely like a bed and much more space since you have your own cabin and are not glued to the next door neighbor. Meals are better, TV is bigger, drinks and snacks are available on demand.

• Baby’s milk and liquid at security check. There is no limit with liquid and formula when you have a baby, but security will scan them to check what is inside the jars or bottles. So plan extra time for this verification.

I also had baby in the baby carrier and no agent asked me to take him out of the baby carrier to pass the security checkpoint. Of course they scanned me, but otherwise I had no problem at any airport.

2. Baby travel bag

Our baby’s travel bag is a backpack rather than a handbag or shoulder bag because I find it more practical to carry it on the back especially if there are other luggage to carry. In it I always put:

• Spare pyjamas, a bodysuit, a pair of socks and gloves if baby ever catches a cold
• Several bibs
• A bottle and its powdered milk or ready-to-drink milk. A spare pacifier, if you ever lose the first one
• A small plastic spoon and a small collapsible bowl (if baby has started to eat)
• A moisturizing cream with its shower gel. A sunscreen.
• A beanie for the evening and a hat for the sun during the day
• Diapers and wipes. Baby products are available and easy to find in Portugal, we bought other diapers at the supermarket
• A medicine in case of fever and I also have a small baby nasal care kit in case of a cold
• Towels, if you put the baby in a public place to change them or to lay down them anywhere
• Noise canceling headphones
• A baby nail clipper, it seems strange but our baby has nails that grow quickly, he can scratch himself or us with them, so we always have it on hand. It is even allowed in cabin baggage
• New toys can be interesting while traveling because he will be intrigued by the novelty
• We have a small portable travel device that makes sounds, it can be music or white noise, it soothes our baby
• A camera or a baby monitor if you can. Convenient for his naps in another room

3. Portugal with baby

Well arrived in Lisbon, we collect our stroller not at the exit of the plane but at the baggage carousel. For the rest of the stay, here are the main highlights of our trip :

– Portugal is a country that is very family-friendly and kids-friendly, since from the airport you can go through the line that prioritizes families with children. You will avoid almost all the lines in Portugal, monuments, museums, public places or other, you can always ask to go through a special line for families.

– What cities did we do? As we had a baby and did not want to always be on the go but also wanted to see most of the country, we stayed three days in each city: Armaçâo de Pêra in the south, then we went up to Nazaré to finish in Lisbon. The sea air did us and baby a lot of good, the southern beaches were beautiful and let’s not talk about those further north in Nazaré, including Praya do Norte which has been on the international scene since 2011 for its biggest surfable waves in the world. For those who have seen the documentary 100 Foot Wave, you will learn about the formation of these huge waves at the edge of this beach.

– In the Algarve, you will see some magnificent landscapes with very beautiful hikes. We did the one called Percurso dos Sete Vales Suspensos (Seven Hanging Valleys Trail) which is 5.7km, or about 2-3 hours walk. When baby is only five months old, trips like this are really fun because we can take baby everywhere with us. We had him in a baby carrier all along and even if he won’t necessarily remember it, I still consider it a very nice experience to discover so much with their big curious eyes.

– Baby carrier or stroller? For me it was definitely a baby carrier. There were two or three streets where the ground was flat and where the stroller could be used, such as the street by the beach in Nazaré or the one in Armaçâo de Pêra. Otherwise all along our trip the streets were cobbled or sloping and in Lisbon the sidewalks were very narrow and yet we did not take a big stroller. Otherwise at the airport too, the stroller could be practical with the luggage to carry in addition. So I would recommend a compact stroller and the baby carrier.

– It is true that it is not necessary to rent a car, especially if you stay in Lisbon because parking can be expensive or it can be a headache to find a place, but as we were traveling with several luggage all over the country, we chose the car. The prices are very reasonable: for 10 days of rental, we got it for $120 CAD including the transponder (a chip installed in the car to pay the tolls without stopping) with the company Cheap Rent, which we booked in advance via discovercars.com. Add the toll fees which came to us at 80€ for the whole stay. We brought our own car seat because often the costs can be expensive to have it added to the rental. The roads and highways are very well maintained and I did not find the Portuguese “dangerous” on the road, compared to other countries in Europe.

I hope this article could help and that you enjoyed our experience in Portugal with our five-month-old baby. Please let me know about your experience or if you have any questions.

Obrigada! 🙂