Travelling with a child is never easy and on my recent trip to Chail, I learned a few tricks to make it less challenging and more enjoyable. Chail is one of the most beautiful mountainous regions in Himachal Pradesh in North India. This means caring for your little one at high altitudes as well. So here I am, sharing my experience, hoping to help the new mommies travelling for the first time with their toddlers.
This was one of my close friend’s wedding at Chail hence we were full of excitement and this required a lot more than usual planning. Wedding – Check, Mountains- Check, Baby- Check.
My little one is year old so keeping that in mind, we made sure to keep a few things in consideration to make our journey memorable.
Plan an easy trip (preferably according to baby’s sleeping patterns) with frequent stops along the way to allow the bodies to adjust to the changes. If your baby sleeps well in the car, plan your departure time according to his nap time so that he will sleep through most of the journey. As I mentioned in my earlier post, Ojas falls asleep easily in a moving car, so he was sleeping most of the time and we would try to make pit-stops only when he was awake, to keep our journey smooth.
Baby essentials: Apart from regular essentials, there are a few extra bits to bring along at high altitudes, where the most important thing is to keep your baby warm, so take plenty of layers. Also there are more damaging ultraviolet rays that are closer and more intense, so it’s highly recommended to protect baby skin from sun damage. Make sure to always cover up the baby and invest in a good baby-safe sunscreen. Keep the baby stuff handy like extra diapers, bibs, wipes, hand towels, sanitizers, mosquito repellents, sunscreen, medicines, stroller, some of his favourite toys etc.
Mountain sickness: At higher altitude some babies might get mountain sickness too often or if they are travelling for the first time. If your baby has altitude sickness he may:
Vomit





appear more tired or irritable than usual





will not sleep well





lose his appetite





seem generally unwell





headache and feel dizzy




Consult your doctor before travelling on approval, request him to prescribe the emergency medicines. Travelling to higher altitude will make your baby tired and dehydrated, increase the fluid intake. Try to stop at stable elevation to feed the baby.
Understanding baby requirements: When we reached our hotel Ojas was lightheaded and had a stomach ache. At first we failed to understand his needs and thought it’s just the change of environment and also seeing a lot of people (since it was a wedding venue) could be the reason for his discomfort but after trying several things, much to our anxiety, to keep him calm we learnt about his situation and made sure to give him proper medicine and care, post which he slept well for few hours. Later, before stepping out we always ensured that he took proper sleep and feed, tried to make the baby comfortable with new surroundings and people but keeping the baby mood in mind. Do not force your baby to go to people he is not comfortable with.
Looking forward to more adventures with my baby.
Comment below if you have some tips to share with us.