The year 2019 has come to an end, and we are busy preparing for our first flight to Lisbon with our seven months old son. Daddy being on (paid) leave time, and mummy utterly flexible working from home (or everywhere), we make use of this special family time given to us in order to travel both Portugal and Spain. If you’ve followed me over the years, you will know about my love for Portugal, the Portuguese people as well as their great food … similar with Spain, as I’ve already written many useful travel stories and advice for you here.
Now of course that Liam is with us, everything has changed. And at the same time, it hasn’t. Because our travel modus is hardly different from the one practised pre-baby. We will again stay with the locals as much as we can (locals I know from previous trips to Portugal and Spain), follow their day-to-day rhythm and advice, book accommodation on the spot and decide according to Liam and his needs what we will do each and every day. This means: Lots of chillaxing, and being prepared to just stay for a little longer, if we like it somewhere.
Can’t wait to share moments like these with our baby son: Sunset by the sea in Albufeira, Algarve during autumn 2015.
So what will we pack, and how exactly do we prepare for this trip with our baby?
(Baby) Passport.
A passport for babies is required in Austria and valid for two years, free of charge. All you need to bring is a passport picture (cute for the baby!), a birth certificate and a residence permit, as well as “the baby itself” (the authorities need to check on him, it seems). A matter of just a few days, and we’ve had Liam’s passport in hands this past summer. Of course, we’ve also checked for the validity of our own passports.
Luggage.
If you think that travelling with a baby means you move half the house, you are both right and wrong. It does, of course, depend as much on your individual baby’s needs as on your attitude, I believe. We really try and minimise our luggage, not bringing too many things we can also buy in the countries we visit (diapers, towels, etc.), as well as of course washing clothes several times during the trip. Liam’s little clothes will be split among our two travel bags, and there is also space in our hand luggage as well as his baby stroller. Should be good ..!
Travel buggy & baby slings.
A few weeks ago, we have decided to buy a travel buggy baby stroller for the road. One that folds in on itself in one go, easily fits into hand luggage on airplanes and is also easy to handle on the road, around buses, etc. In addition, we have our baby slings each that Liam loves to sit in.
Check out our fancy travel stroller, complete with rain cover, carrying bag and baby slings (top left). The bear is just for the photo (of course).
(Baby) Medical Stuff.
If required, we can always contact our baby doctor via WhatsApp. He has also prescribed a number of medical items we may need (and hopefully of course, we won’t): Antibiotics for baby, something against diarrhoea, insect bites and more. We may carry more stuff for Liam than for ourselves! And yet, I am not worried as among the seven languages I speak, there is also Portuguese and Spanish. We can always ask and handle things on the spot, if necessary, even go to the doctors there.
The right wear for the right weather.
Thinking about Southern Portugal and Spain during winter, one of the first things I imagine is: Hardly any central heating, and much cooler houses than the thick, insulated ones we live in here in Austria. We will therefore pack Liam’s winter sleeping bag, a light hat for indoor use (for instance on the plane, bus, etc.), and his usual winter wardrobe. Him and us will want to stay warm and happy!
A glimpse of the few things we need and pack for our baby son Liam.
Baby food while on the road.
For the past two months already, baby Liam has been eating his solids four times a day in addition to being breastfed. He loves to eat virtually anything! Let’s hope it stays like that for a long time still. As for this trip, we will pack two of his daily meals for the entire trip: His little oat and semolina solids for breakfast and dinner, which only need hot water to serve. The package size we have should last for a few weeks easily. Which leaves his veggie/meat and fruit meals throughout the day. I do believe we can easily buy baby food in the countries we visit. In addition, we have shopped a small thermos that keeps his daytime food warm for when on the go. It should all work out pretty well, as I am also flexible with breastfeeding him anytime if needed still.
Taking baby food with us: The thermos depicted here will hopefully be worth it when out and about with Liam.
His favourite toys.
At seven months old, Liam is already quite mobile regarding holding, shaking and hunting for his favourite toys. We will therefore pack a few of his favourites, though we are aware that most of the things we will encounter on the road will serve as impromptu toys for him.
My parents brought us this cute little kangaroo travel bag from their trip to Australia. Naturally, it has to come with us 😀
Last but not least, a few of the things we need around Liam daily.
A bag of baby wipes, diapers for a few days, baby clothes. I am not particularly worried though, as we can surely shop for anything we need in the countries and cities we visit. Loving the adventure of it all!
Did we miss something? Let’s check out other mum travel blogs.
You are never really alone. Even if you are facing a situation for the first time, it has never been so easy as it is now to just look up the Internet for advice from those who’ve done it before. My international mums publish here (“Inside The Travel Lab“, I particularly like Abi’s useful blog post about “Flying with A Baby“) as well as here: “As The Bird Flies” Frankie has two kids now and is very experienced around travelling with them.
Do you, too, have any more pieces of advice for us that I might have missed? Let us know.
We look forward about keeping you updated of our whereabouts. Stay tuned on Social Media!