Staying at a Hotel with a Baby

Whether it is your first time staying overnight in a hotel with a baby or your twentieth, staying at a hotel with a baby can FEEL overwhelming and stressful, but it doesn’t have to be!

Here are my top 10 tips for staying at a hotel with a baby. With these tips you are sure to gain some confidence back and feel prepared for your overnight stay. 

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Try to stay in a hotel room that is a suite

I prefer to stay in a hotel that has a separate bedroom and living area. Having that extra space makes night wakings and feedings a bit easier. It is also simply more enjoyable for you to have your own sleeping area separate from the baby.

Usually rooms with a separate bedroom and living room also have a refrigerator and microwave which is a MUST for families! 

My top three affordable hotel chains that have these one or two bedroom suites include Residence Inn, Homewood Suites, and Embassy Suites. 

Both Residence Inn and Homewood Suites have full kitchens which provide even more space for baby feeding needs while the Embassy Suites has a mini fridge, microwave, and small bar sink.

Bring your own pack ‘n play or travel crib

If we are driving to a vacation destination, I prefer bringing my own pack ‘n play or travel crib. This ensures that I will actually have one at the hotel I am staying at. 

There have been a couple of times when I have been at a hotel, and they did not have a pack ‘n play available. 

Another option if you cannot bring your own is to rent one from an online baby gear rental company such as Baby Quip. I have had fantastic experience renting from this company while traveling. They have basically everything you can think of so if you cannot bring it yourself, rent it from Baby Quip!

Bring a sheet for the pack ‘n play or travel crib

Whether you are borrowing a pack ‘n play from the hotel, renting one, or bringing your own, I also recommend bringing your own sheets for it.

First of all, the hotel may not even have a sheet available.

Second of all, it just feels cleaner to me to have my own sheets.

Finally, I always buy sheets for my pack ‘n play that are similar to the sheets in our crib at home. At certain ages babies don’t know the difference, but my 1 year old does seem to be more comfortable when the pack ‘n play sheets feel like his crib sheets.

Bring your SlumberPod

Whenever we travel, I ALWAYS make sure to have my SlumberPod with me. If you have never seen or heard of SlumberPod, it is a blackout breathable tent that fits over the pack ‘n play. 

The most glorious thing about the SlumberPod is that your baby or toddler can sleep in the dark, and you can still be awake with all of the lights on.

I am telling you, the SlumberPod is a game changer when traveling.

Before purchasing my SlumberPod, I would have to put the baby in a closet or the bathroom to try to find some darkness especially during daytime naps. 

Now I do not have to worry. It is always dark with the SlumberPod. 

Bring a sound machine or two or three

Our family LOVES white noise sound machines. Dare I say we cannot sleep without them.

Thankfully, these white noise machines are fairly light and easy to bring when traveling. 

I usually make sure I bring a sound machine for every place someone will be sleeping. 

I love these sound machines that plug into an outlet and for always on the go sound that also is a bluetooth speaker, this sound machine is a MUST HAVE!

See photos of both of these sound machines below.

My babies always sleep much more soundly with a sound machine.

It is also helpful for keeping other sounds out while the baby is sleeping whether it be nap time or earlier in the evening before everyone else has gone to bed.

Bring dish soap

I always bring dish soap in a travel sized container when I am staying overnight in a hotel.

It is imperative that I am able to wash my bottles, pacifiers, sippy cups, etc. with dish soap.

Here is the link to the travel dish soap containers I use.

Bring lots of extra plastic grocery bags for dirty diapers

When I am traveling, I always make sure I have disposable plastic bags with me to put dirty diapers in. 

This is a good way to store dirty diapers until I can find a proper garbage can especially when staying in a hotel room.

Putting the dirty diapers in these bags keeps the room from getting smelly and just feels more sanitary and clean. 

Also, I am not a fan of changing tables so when I am out and about whether it is traveling or running errands, I will do a diaper change in the car, and then I can put that diaper in a plastic bag until I can get to a garbage can. 

Plus, plastic grocery bags are just good for any kind of trash you may have and don’t have a proper place for.

Remember everything you need to pack for the baby

I always start to make a list a few weeks before traveling of everything that I will need for my trip. 

When something pops into my head, I jot it down so I have a running list of all the items I need to pack.

Then when I pack, I check everything off as I put it in the suitcase, carry on bag, car, etc.

Doing this will help decrease the mental load and stress the day before or the day that you depart. 

Depending on the age of your baby or toddler, what you pack may vary.

In general, make sure you have feeding supplies- bottles, formula or breastmilk, pumping equipment, dish soap, sleeping supplies- pack ‘n play, sheets, SlumberPod, sound machine, diapers, wipes, clothes, swimwear, plastic bags, a few toys, stroller, baby carrier, and anything else you may need.

You may want to think about what items you could purchase at a store when you get to your destination if you don’t want to weigh your suitcase down. Some of these items include diapers, wipes, formula, snacks, etc. 

Lay everything out you will need for the night before going to bed at the hotel

Before I go to bed each night at the hotel, I always lay everything out ready for any night wakings. 

I will have diapers and wipes ready to go. Have your plastic bag next to them too.

 Additionally, I will have my bottles set out where they need to be. I even measure my formula out ahead of time and put it in a container ready to go.

If there is anything else you will need for the night, have it ready too!

I do all this ahead of time in order to keep the lights down in the middle of the night and make feeding go more smoothly.

It just makes me feel less stressed about staying at the hotel with a baby when I have planned everything out and have it all ready to go!

Try to stay on a routine but be flexible too!

This is my biggest tip when traveling with kids of all ages. 

Being on a routine is beneficial for everyone but not always possible when traveling and that is OK. 

You do not need to plan every moment of your vacation stringently around your routine. 

Just make sure you do build in some downtime or time for rest each day as that keeps everyone calmer and helps with moods. 

Typically, if we can, we do a morning activity and then after lunch try to go back to our hotel for a nap or quiet time. This might be the time that our older boys will enjoy the hotel pool.

I know this is not always doable especially if you are visiting a major attraction or national park that will take most of the day. 

On these days, consider bringing this travel sound machine for a nap on the go. 

If sleeping is off for a day or two, you will get back on your schedule.

We often get off schedule during vacation and I stress about it but as soon as we get back home we are able to settle back in.

Babies like kids are pretty resilient so do your best to keep things fairly consistent but if you can’t, it is not a big deal.

Make sure to enjoy your vacation and not get stressed if the baby hasn’t been sleeping as well as normal or if you miss a nap.

Traveling and staying at a hotel with a baby is SUPER doable

Hopefully, these tips will help make staying at a hotel with a baby a whole lot less stressful and maybe even enjoyable. 

Traveling is very doable with a baby and so I suggest definitely doing it if you can! You will not regret it!

For some more road trip travel tips for kids of all ages, check out my post Road Trip Essentials with Kids.

SAVE and PIN this post to refer back to it for your travels. Also, I would love it if you would SHARE this with a friend or family member who may be looking for some tips for staying at a hotel with a baby.

Links to recommended travel products:

• SlumberPod
• Baby Quip baby gear rentals
• Electrofan noise machine
• Electrofan Micro2
• Travel bottles for dish soap and other toiletries

May you LOVE your adventure. KW