Pack This Archives | Travels With Baby

Pack This! Inflatable Airplane Seat Extension for Flying Kids

Shelly Rivoli — Tue, 09 Oct 2018 19:36:51 +0000

When I saw the “family couch” introduced by China Airlines was recently discontinued, I wanted to offer up an alternative to help flying kids sleep soundly on long flights–on any airline.

Unfortunately, the BedBox (recommended here), which turns a kid-size rolling suitcase into a small bed or leg rest, is packing a hefty price tag of $199 US these days. But there is good news: this cost-effective solution for tiny travelers on any airline.

This inflatable leg rest becomes a seat extension for flying kids. Use it to create a lie-flat sleeping zone for babies, toddlers and preschoolers. For their older counterparts, leaving one chamber un-inflated creates a comforting footrest.

Use it at either one-third or two-thirds the maximum height. Some adults also like to use this foot rest on low setting for extra comfort in flight, including as a head rest by placing partially inflated on their airplane trays.

And don’t overlook these other uses for your inflatable leg rest. Ahem, THE BACK SEAT of the car. Plus, it doubles as an inflatable stool for extra seating once you reach your hotel or cruise ship.

Here you can see the different height options with dimensions shown. Tip: If your plane offers even less leg room (I’m looking at you, Spirit Airlines), simply deflate as needed to fill the space.

Note: This same basic inflatable leg rest / seat extension appears for sale under multiple brand and product names. But most seem offered with two washable dust covers (for top and bottom) and carrying sack. Click here to see customer reviews and prices on Amazon (thanks for supporting this site with your clicks!).

Click here to see more Pack This! recommended products for flying with kids and general family travel. Have you pinned this to your travel board?

Have you subscribed to Travels with Baby Tips?

More tips and advice are on the way! For help for planning travel of every kind–with babies and children of every temperament–in Travels with Baby: The Ultimate Guide for Planning Travel with Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler.

Have you seen the latest features at Family Travel 411?

Travel with Teens: Tips for getting and renewing U.S. passports

A Family Horseback Riding Vacation at The Alisal Guest Ranch

Bliss in the Ozarks: A Guide to Branson for Nature Lovers

The 411 on The Black Hills and Mount Rushmore with Kids

Safe journeys,

Shelly Rivoli, author of the award-winning Travels with Baby guidebooks

Twitter Facebook Travels with Baby on Facebook Pinterest

What?! Your kids aren’t babies anymore? Subscribe to Family Travel 411

Curious about this content? See my editorial content disclosure.

The post Pack This! Inflatable Airplane Seat Extension for Flying Kids appeared first on Travels With Baby.

Pack This! The Babymoov Babyni

Shelly Rivoli — Fri, 13 Apr 2018 18:43:12 +0000

Just in time for spring and summer travels with baby, the “Babyni” portable baby play gym or baby-size play yard is ready to help ease your family’s adventures. It folds into a disc to travel in its own carry case with shoulder strap, and pops up quickly with side-support “stays” and shade canopy–with zipping, fitted mosquito net to cover the opening when desired. The fabric provides anti-UV sun protection rated to SPF 50.

Of course, mastering the art of the quick-fold to fit it back into its carrying case may require some practice and ninja stealth, as with all of these “pop up” things. Nevertheless, it is doable (watch the video linked below for help), and the Babyni’s benefits for travel are clear.

Here are the top 3 scenarios where I think the Babyni will serve those with infants up to 6 months well in the months ahead (can be used for older babies, too, but I think this range is the sweet spot for this product):

Road trip pit stops.

Too much time in the car seat? At grassy rest areas and parks en route, the Babyni pops up instantly to provide a clean space for stretching and sprawling (and diaper changes when better facilities can’t be found).

Camp sites.

Have no fear, you’ve got an easy safe space for baby to play while you set up the tent or man the camp stove. Bugs bugging you? Just employ the snug-fit mosquito net over the opening.

Beach days.

Got a happy roller on your hands? This will help keep sand out of the mouth and eyes (yes, I’ve been there) and give partial shade from sun. Sheds sand easily when through.

Want to find out more and read customer reviews of the Babyni–and see a short video of set-up and and take-down? Follow this link to the Babyni on Amazon–your click-throughs help support this site! Thank you.

You might also like:

Tips for Planning Great Beach Vacations with Babies and Toddlers

Pack This! Pop-up sun tent for family beach vacations in Hawaii, Thailand, Mexico, Santa Cruz…

Browse all of our Pack This! features

See our “Best of” recommended baby and toddler travel gear

Have you subscribed to Travels with Baby Tips?

Where will you travel next? Stop by our sister site and get inspired!

Ten Tips for a Smoother London Vacation with Kids

Six Amazing Ireland Family Vacation Destinations

The 411 on Glacier National Park with Kids

Ten Things You Should Know Before Taking Kids to a Broadway Show

Safe journeys,

Shelly Rivoli, author of the award-winning Travels with Baby guidebooks

Twitter Facebook Travels with Baby on Facebook Pinterest

Curious about this content? See my editorial disclosure here.

The post Pack This! The Babymoov Babyni appeared first on Travels With Baby.

Review of the BubbleBum Inflatable Safety Booster for Travel

Shelly Rivoli — Fri, 12 Jan 2018 19:42:42 +0000

My review of the Bubble Bum Inflatable Safety Booster (Updated!) – After using the BubbleBum backless inflatable booster with all three of my children–and several of their car-pooling friends, I thought it would be great to update this post and share with those of you who may be wondering about it now–or for a trip in your future.

But first, pin it to your travel board for future reference and to help others!

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links to help fund this independent website at no cost to you. Two Bubble Bum boosters were provided to me for review purposes with no promise of a positive review. My opinions are always my own.

The Bubble Bum has been a great solution for us many times, and we’ve even loaned ours to friends for their travels. Read on to see for yourself if this inflatable safety booster may be just the thing to help ease your family’s travels.

If you’re like me, the first thing you may wonder upon hearing the words “inflatable safety booster” are, is any booster that’s “inflatable” actually safe for road use?

Pack it flat or rolled into its own travel sack, and travel on with the cushy Bubble Bum.

Safety? Check!

I was surprised to learn that, not only was the BubbleBum invented by a nationally certified Child Passenger Safety Technician, but the creators have had it tested and certified for BOTH U.S. and European safety standards–something most child safety seat manufacturers don’t bother with.

Even more surprising? The Bubble Bum even passed the European safety testing when DEFLATED. (What?!) To be clear, its certification reads:

“BubbleBum is crash test approved and meets and exceeds the EU ECE R44.04 and the US FMVSS 213 safety regulations. These entail both crash testing and materials testing.”

So, I’d say they’ve got safety covered with this one. But how does it play out during travel?

The BubbleBum shown deflated and rolled in comparison with the car’s seat.

Traveling with our two BubbleBum boosters

Yes, it can be rolled up to fit in its own travel sack at about 12″ Long x 6″ Diameter. But for our purposes, it was perfect to leave our two Bubble Bums as flat as possible and instead pack them right inside our youngest child’s car seat carrying case.

We checked them all through to Hawaii for free in the car seat travel bag (car seats are checked free with most airlines, but suitcases, notsomuch — see Flying with a Baby or Toddler Best Tips Online for more hacks).

When we reached our rental car, and rain began to fall, the girls were able to sit inside the car and finish inflating their seats as it poured. Like Therm-a-rests and similar products, the Bubble Bum begins inflating as soon as you open the valve, but giving it the final taught breaths and sealing it off with a twist at the same time can be tricky.

Likewise, when deflating the BubbleBum, I found it necessary to use my knee to keep the rolled seat totally deflated while closing the valve to prevent it from re-inflating. This wasn’t a problem, however.

The one draw back we found was that it was very difficult for our girls to route the safety belts through the red clips each time they got back into the car, partly because one had a car seat on that side of her and partly because it just is a little tricky.

We got used to helping them with this, though it has been nice to no longer need to do that with their standard boosters! While there is an optional shoulder belt positioning clip that might be helpful with the younger children using this booster, we did not need it.

Click here to see the BubbleBum at Amazon – and thank you for supporting this site!

Other things to consider…

The Bubble Bum rolled and ready for transport in its own travel sack.

Thanks to the two Bubble Bums provided for our review, we had no problem fitting our three kids across the back seat of our rental car during our vacation. At only 13 inches wide, and weighing less than 2 lbs., it is also ideal for carpooling with extra children.

Better still, its packability makes it easy to send along to school with your child on days when someone else might pick up.

I would also like to mention, that with a thin layer of memory foam on top of the “bubble,” it’s also surprisingly comfy (yes, I had to try it myself!).

I think the BubbleBum folks should consider making a grown-up version for long-haul drivers and also the elderly who can use a little extra padding, and may no longer be the height considered safe for airbags (what, you weren’t expecting that in the Travels with Baby blog!?).

Click here to see the BubbleBum at Amazon – and thank you for supporting this site!

BubbleBum vs. the RideSafer travel vest

While the BubbleBum is a far more affordable option to the RideSafer travel vest for older / larger children at least 4 years and 40 lbs., I would note that it does not work for the 3-year-olds and smaller 4-year-olds, as the size small RideSafer travel vests do (recommended for 3 years and 33 lbs. and up).

Like the RideSafer travel vest, it can be used with shoulder-only safety belts. Though the RideSafer 2 (deluxe) also includes a safety tether so it may also be used with a lap-only safety belt when a tether anchor is available.

In select states with strict “elevated booster seat” requirements, the Bubble Bum meets this criteria for use in private vehicles. Unlike the RideSafer travel vest, which is not a seat and never expires, the Bubble Bum has a 4-year life.

Click here to see the BubbleBum at Amazon – and thank you for supporting this site!

You might also like:

How to Travel with a Car Seat (Without Losing Your Mind)

For more travel car seat, booster, and car seat alternatives, see Great Products & Gear. To browse all Pack This! features, click here.

Previous post: Ask Shelly – Best winter weekend getaway with a baby in Northern California?

Safe journeys,

Shelly Rivoli, author of the award-winning Travels with Baby and Take-Along Travels with Baby guidebooks

Twitter Facebook Travels with Baby on Facebook Pinterest

Curious about this content? See my editorial content disclosure.

The post Review of the BubbleBum Inflatable Safety Booster for Travel appeared first on Travels With Baby.

Pack This! The flat, easy-packing travel night light

Shelly Rivoli — Wed, 08 Nov 2017 17:58:03 +0000

Shower caps, hair conditioner, ironing board–towels for more than two people? You never know what might be missing from your next hotel room. But chances are pretty good there will not be a night light waiting for you. When you travel with children and babies, this little convenience can make a big difference in your ability to get safely around a portacrib in unfamiliar (and crowded) territory, check on your infant or nurse in the night, and in anyone’s ability to get to the bathroom in the dark of night in a timely manner.

I’ve found that traveling with a virtually flat LED nightlight like this to be a real sanity–and potentially-stubbed toe-saver. It also helps the kids settle down a little faster when we don’t need the bright lights on up to the very last moment that everyone is in bed. And because there are enough things to remember to pack for our family of five already, I try to always keep it in my travel toiletry kit in between trips. It takes up almost no space there and, unlike many other night lights, there is no glass light bulb to break as I sit on my suitcase stuffed with souvenirs.

These eMotionlite travel night lights are designed to be easy on the eyes (10 lumens of 2700K, warm white) and just bright enough to be helpful but not disturb sleep (affiliate link – thanks for supporting this site!). They offer up to 50,000 hours of use and automatically shut off when they sense daylight.

Of course, if I happen to stay at the hotel ahead of your visit, there is a small chance there might actually be a night light awaiting you–I have been known to accidentally leave them behind now and then. For that reason, I recommend getting a pack of two or more so you’ll have a back up ready to go.

Click here to browse more Pack This! recommendations and, as always, you can head to the Travel Gear & Products section to find my recently recommended travel strollers, travel beds, and other gear travel with babies and young children.

Previous post: Five Tips for Travel During Potty Training

Have you subscribed to Travels with Baby Tips?

More tips and advice are on the way! For help for planning travel with a baby–or toddler or preschooler, order or download your copy of the award-winning Travels with Baby: The Ultimate Guide for Planning Travel with Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler.

Have you seen the latest features at our sister site, Family Travel 411?

The 411 on NYC with Kids

The 411 on Oregon’s Bend with Kids

Ten Ways to Live Like a Local Family During Travel

The 411 on Nice, France, with Kids

The 411 on Guatemala’s Lake Atitlán with Kids

Safe journeys,

Shelly Rivoli, author of the award-winning Travels with Baby guidebooks

Twitter Facebook Travels with Baby on Facebook Pinterest

What?! Your kids aren’t babies anymore? Head over to Family Travel 411

Curious about this content? See my editorial content disclosure.

The post Pack This! The flat, easy-packing travel night light appeared first on Travels With Baby.

Pack This! Travel-Friendly Suction Cup Hooks

Shelly Rivoli — Wed, 13 Sep 2017 16:44:00 +0000

Portable, damage-free, suction cup hooks–I’ll take five, thank you.

Confession: Every once in a while, I have a forehead-slapping moment where I, one who has blogged family travel for a decade now, realize another simple family travel hack I can’t believe I didn’t think of years ago. This is one of those.

Years ago –> I picked up a couple of clear plastic suction cup hooks just like these to use at home–one for each of my daughters’ wash cloths so we could hang them to dry in between uses over the bath tub. They are very easy to put up–just get the suction cup wet, hold to the wall, and “clamp down” by moving the hook down into place.

Yet every time we traveled somewhere that bathing suits were needed, I would feel mounting frustration when the hotel, resort, cruise ship, or vacation rental did not provide a suitable place to hang wet bathing suits.

And of course there would be wet bathing suits–in our case, eventually five at a time. And hanging them over the shower curtain rod or from towel bars just puts the dripping water where you don’t want it.

As I recently cleaned out our bathroom closet, I came across these plastic hooks and thought, there must be some very useful application for these–don’t send them off to charity just yet. SHAZAAM. Within 24 hours, I found myself with a wet bathing suit in my hands, squeezing all the water out that I could, and trying to dangle it just so from the shower nozzle so that it would drip-dry without slipping off onto the shower floor.

Of course, mine wasn’t the only swim suit to consider. And that’s when the visions of clear plastic suction cups danced in my head–“Why aren’t these in our travel kit?!” I shrieked at the shower wall.

Suffice to say, next time they will be.

Want to add them to your family’s travel kit, too? Looks like Amazon has a package of six in three different sizes at about 50% off (thanks for your click-through!).

For more clever products and gadgets to ease your family’s travels, browse all Pack This! recommendations and see the best in baby travel gear recommendations including lightweight travel strollers, convertible car seats, travel beds, and more.

Have you subscribed to Travels with Baby Tips?

Previous post: Planning Tips for Travel with Children 4 to 5 Years Old

Have you seen the latest features at our sister site, Family Travel 411?

The 411 on Northern Ireland with Kids

The 411 on Guatemala’s Lake Atitlán with Kids

Great Maui Vacation Rentals for Multi-Gen Family Vacations

The 411 on North Carolina’s Crystal Coast with Kids

The 411 on Santiago with Kids

Safe journeys,

Shelly Rivoli, author of the award-winning Travels with Baby guidebooks

Twitter Facebook Travels with Baby on Facebook Pinterest

What?! Your kids aren’t babies anymore? Head over to Family Travel 411

Curious about this content? See my editorial content disclosure.

The post Pack This! Travel-Friendly Suction Cup Hooks appeared first on Travels With Baby.

Pack This! The Portable Washing Machine

Shelly Rivoli — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 16:57:19 +0000

“Scrubba” looks like a happy bright green dry bag you might take out on the kayak—and you can actually use it for that, too. But inside, it has hundreds of secret scrubbing “nodules” that work as a modern-day washboard, making tidy work of a soapy sloshing of up to two adult-size T-shirts, two pair of socks, and two undies at one time (just think how many onesies might fit in there!).

The peek-a-boo window and water level guides help ensure travel laundry success.

It’s designed to use less water–just half a gallon up to 1.5 gallons–per load and give cleaner results than you can with sink-washing in just 3 to 5 minutes including wash and rinse cycles. And a microbial-resistant surface eliminates any fear of “funk.” There’s a peek-a-boo window so you can watch your progress, too.

Scrubba-dubba-doo, just 3 to 5 minutes a load should do.

Of course, it has definite appeal for the backpacker, but as I see it, Scrubba’s practicality extends over to car camping trips, cruise ship cabins, hotel rooms, and the roadside turnout with a car-sick child (me again, recently, which made me wish I’d already had this in the car–doh!), and practically any travel situation involving kids.

Click here to read more about the new Scrubba, including customer reviews (and thanks for helping to support this site with your click-through!). You might also appreciate these Five Travel Laundry Hacks for Families I wrote about for my Family Travel 411 site, and don’t forget a handy travel clothes line for drying those clean togs–here is Amazon’s Number 1 Best-selling Travel Clothes Line (5-star average from over 900 reviews!).