In case you haven’t heard, we are traveling to three countries in Europe this summer. I’m super excited because the majority of the trip is going to be exploring Scotland, which we haven’t been to before. Matt’s mom is fully Scottish and actually still has relatives in Aberdeen, and we will get to meet some of them while we’re there. I am eager to adventure through a place that has such meaningful history with Matt’s family.

While we are thrilled to be traveling, it is going to be worlds different this time around. Not only are we going for longer than we normally do [almost 2 weeks], we are taking Ainsley, who will be turning 1 while we’re in Paris [lucky girl!]. That means more packing, more luggage, more organizing and more of a strict schedule. I’ve been researching everything, from what to do in the different cities we’re visiting to what to pack for a baby in Europe. I thought I would write this blog to those of you wondering how it’s even possible to travel abroad with a little one. I’ll do a post later on for my baby travel must-haves, but for now, I wanted to give a few tips for planning a trip abroad with a little one.

1. Babies under two don’t need a plane ticket when traveling domestically. When traveling internationally, you do have to pay a fee. Check with your airline of choice to check that fee [typically, the cost is about 10% of your ticket price].
2. Try to book your flight at a time that the baby needs to sleep. Going to Europe typically means traveling over night. We chose a later flight, so the hope is that she sleeps a lot on the way there.
3. Make a list of the places you want to go when in a certain city, and make sure there’s no cost for a child.
4. Research the laws for carseats in the given country. We are renting a car to drive through Scotland. There was the option of renting a carseat there, but since we can check our carseat for free, we saved a little bit of cash and did not rent one there. The option of whether or not to bring a carseat is also important to consider in cities with good public transportation. We will be in London and Paris, so we are able to walk a lot and take public transport, eliminating the need for a carseat and allowing us to leave it in the hotel room for the second half of our trip.
5. Look up some social taboos for the places you are going. For instance, a crying baby or even an extremely loud baby in a restaurant is a major faux pas in Paris. That being said, I’ve been looking up places that are less formal to eat with a baby. We are also thinking of doing some picnics in the parks so we don’t have to worry about restaurants 🙂

As always, I welcome any advice you can give this new mummy 🙂