Babywearing and Traveling
By Olga Nguyen
‘It would be worth learning about babywearing for this trip alone!’ exclaimed
my husband at the end of a particularly trying journey.
Indeed, babywearing on this trip, and many others, has made travelling
with a baby or toddler much easier for us, so I wanted to share with you
our hints and tips on babywearing (further referred as BW) when travelling.
Babywearing for going through the airport or on a train journey: my
experience
 I
was really glad during our last flight (see Figure 1) that I had a carrier
with me. It kept my toddler secure and close to me in an environment that
was hectic and new to her and provided the opportunity for her to nap close
to me and nurse whenever she wanted whilst I could have my hands free for
all that needed doing when going through the airport.
We have also made a few train journeys ( Figure 2 and Figure 3) with our
daughter and once again, BWing has proven essential for getting there and
back in a smooth fashion. Well, as smooth as it gets when you are travelling
with a baby or toddler!. I certainly liked being able to get to a platform
using the escalator rather than having to rely on overcrowded or nonfunctional
lifts, as I would have, had I used a stroller.
Choosing a carrier for going through the airport or travelling by train
The factors involved in choosing the carrier for plane or train are fairly
similar, and so the list below is applicable to either situation.
The ‘ideal’ carrier choice for travelling will vary from person
to person. Here are
a few factors to consider.
- Are you at ease with using the particular carrier that you are considering
for your trip? It may be an obvious question to ask, but some people
do learn how to use a new carrier faster and easier when doing it in
a pressured situation (which going through the airport may be for some);
others do not want the added stress of getting to grips with the new
carrier while coping with the hassles of travel.
- Will you need to wear your baby for extended periods of time on this
trip? The answer would vary depending on your particular travel arrangements,
such as the duration of time you expect to spend at the airport. (For
example, whether you expect people in queues are likely allow travellers
with young children to go to the front of the line, as they do in Russia
occasionally.) You might also consider whether you have connections,
and if you generally prefer to be prepared for a number of eventualities,
such as
 unexpected delay due to weather conditions or mechanical problems.
If so, you probably would want a two-shoulder carrier unless you can
wear your baby comfortably in one-shoulder carrier for long stretches
of time. In Figure 1 you can see my BWing at the airport in a wrap, and
in Figure 4 you can see Jess BWing baby Reese in a pouch at the airport.
My personal preference is a carrier that I am comfortable wearing for
a long stretch of time (just for that unlikely off-chance of us getting
stuck in the airport and similar things). For the last trip we took (three
flights, a long journey for an airport transfer, and three hours waiting
for the connection flight – I am sure there are longer and more tiring
flights to do, but this was bad enough for us!) I found the comfort of
a wrap ( Figure 1) absolutely indispensable, but any other carrier that
provides long-term wearing comfort would work just as well.
- Will you have to take your carrier off/put it on often? If so,
a ring sling, a rebozo or a pouch might be good for you, or a pre-tied
front cross carry in a wrap or a pre-tied front carry in a mei tai.
If you are travelling with a toddler who wants to be picked up, put down,
and picked up again, you may be likely to be taking a carrier off and putting
it on again (or leaving it pre-tied instead) often anyway.
Also, even if pick-me-up-put-me-down toddler is not an issue, one point
where you may have to take a carrier off when flying is at airport
security. Experiences vary as to whether the airport security is likely
to ask you to take off your carrier for security check. In my experience,
on flights to and from the UK (none of which have been to the USA), the
only time I was asked to take off a baby carrier at security was when I
was going through the metal detector and something unrelated to the carrier
set it off. All other times I would go through the security without any
request to take off the carrier or take my baby out of it. Of course, this
is just my experience and yours will vary depending where you are flying
to and from. It seems that for the USA, until August 2006, it was standard
practice for the security to request this: babywearer Carole’s experience
was that on all 14 round trips (28 flights!), security requested the carrier
be taken off. However, since August 2006, USA security has allowed any
carrier that won’t set off the metal detector to stay on. However,
there’s no guarantee that this will continue.
If you tend to take a carrier off rather than leave it tied on, it is
worth considering whether you can put it on whilst holding your baby or
toddler at the same time. This may be important if you are not happy about
putting your baby on the surfaces available, or do not want your toddler
to run away just at the crucial moment of crossing the border for international
flights, etc.
- If you are travelling with your partner or friends, are they likely
to carry your baby? If the answer is yes and they use carriers, you
may consider either packing another carrier for them if the carrier if
you are going to use is sized and will not fit them, or if they do not
know how to use it and are not willing or have no time to learn how to
before the trip. choose a carrier that suits a variety of wearers. Or
of course, you can just decide to carry the baby/toddler yourself and
give your hand luggage to your travel companions!
- Will you have to carry any hand luggage whilst wearing your baby/toddler? If
you are, do consider the compatibility of your hand luggage and the carrier
that you are choosing. For me, a wrap in a front carry and a small to medium-size
rucksack has been a good combination; or a ring sling with a messenger
bag (the latter being worn on one shoulder).
- Is your baby/toddler likely to be still napping (or, indeed, to have
already fallen asleep for the night) when you have arrived, and do you
want to be able to transition your child to a carrier without disrupting
her sleep? If you do, (e.g. you can not work around trains/flight
timetables to avoid this happening, or if your baby’s naps are
unpredictable etc), then think about which of your carriers you would
be able to put on without waking up your sleeping baby/toddler. For me,
it has been a wrap and a ring sling – on one of our train journeys
( Figure 3), I really appreciated being able to arrange a carrier around
her and to get off the train without waking her up, instead of having
to wake her up to get off the train. Of course, some babies and toddlers
are happier to be woken up than others, and some are happier travellers
than others, so whether this factor would be applicable to you would
depend on your baby’s and your own needs at the end of the journey.
Of course, the above list is far from being exhaustive, but hopefully the
ideas there can be useful as a start when choosing a carrier for your plane
or train journey.
As always, use your common sense and usual safety precautions when
using your carrier when travelling. Apart from the usual safety precautions,
consider what you can do to make more safe your putting a carrier on and
taking it off in a crowded place, where some people tend to rush without
noticing the others. Below is a list of suggestions, which is by no means
exhaustive:
- choose suitable places to put on your carrier or to take it off. Obviously,
if you are using a wrap or a Mei Tai, doing it whilst standing on the way
of many people who are rushing past and can step on your carrier or catch
it with their luggage is not ideal. Neither is doing it near the escalator
(if the steps can catch the fabric), or too close to the train platform.
Just use your common sense and pay attention to your surroundings and you
are bound to find a safe place to put your carrier on. For example, next
to a bench/sitting area in an airport or a train station may be suitable,
provided that it looks like a place safe for putting a carrier on to you – you
can both rest your carry-on luggage there and put Mei Tai straps or wrap
tails there when putting either of those carriers on if you do not want
those to drag on the floor or to be caught inadvertently.
- consider pre-tying a carrier and keeping it on – this will save
you looking for good places where you can put a carrier on safely;
- as always, do make sure that your line of vision is not blocked in front
carries, both when putting on and using your carrier. This will save you
tripping over that unexpected step or bumping into somebody or their luggage
in a crowded place like an airport or train station.
Enjoy your journey!
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