When my first kid was 5 months old we traveled to Hawaii as a family for about a week. My husband’s boss let us use a rental he had while some other friends of ours were there as well. Our 3rd kid was 13 months old when we took a family vacation to Mexico. We rented an Airbnb and took our family of 5 to a new country for a month. Since our kids were such different ages when we went on these trips, we bought completely different items for each of these trips, here’s what was different about what we bought and used in Hawaii for our 1st kid vs. what we used in Mexico for our 3rd kid. Hopefully this helps you know what you need to buy for your trip with a young baby!
Hawaii With Our 1st Kid- 5 Months Old
Baby hat– we wanted to make sure to keep our baby’s head safe from the sun. We hardly used it in Hawaii and brought a hat like this hat with us to Mexico, but never really used it.
Sand free blanket– we wanted to make sure that our baby had a positive experience in the sand and a place to change his diaper. We ended up using this for our Mexico trip too.
Rash guards- we got these to protect him from the sun. They have also been used on my other two kids during the summer.
Breezy wrap– this was a great light weight carrier that made it easier to go places. Amazon doesn’t sell the exact same one anymore, but this one is very similar. We unfortunately lost or sold this before we were able to use it on our Mexico trip.
Nursing cover– I was exclusively pumping for my son and wanted a way to cover my pumping while on the plane and out and about. I stopped using a cover with my second kid, so this was not useful after she was born.
Wet bags– we used cloth diapers for our son while we were in Hawaii, so I needed a few extra wet bags to hold the used diapers while we traveled.
Sun tent- we didn’t buy this, but we borrowed it from our friend’s friend who was in Hawaii around the same time. (Pretty much everyone in Alaska goes to Hawaii in the winter) It was nice since our baby was very sedentary, but I wouldn’t buy one for myself.
Umbrella stroller- again we didn’t buy this but borrowed it. We used it one time and it would have been easier to use a baby carrier.
If we were to go again with a 5 month old we would bring a breezy wrap, a sand free blanket, and rash guards.
Mexico With Our 3rd Kid- 13 Months Old
Sun canopy floaty– we planed to have our daughter in the water so we bought this. This was a huge mistake. Our daughter hated it and wanted nothing to do with it.
Rash guards- again to protect our baby’s delicate skin we got rash guards. Our daughter wore one every day.
Swimsuit- since we planed for our baby to be in the water we needed her to have something to wear.
Water shoes– since our girl is walking she needed a way to make sure her feet stayed safe in the water.
Sand free blanket– we used the one that we got when we went to Hawaii.
Stroller– we didn’t buy this specifically for our Mexico trip, but we used it during the trip. It was amazing for in airports, and when walking around.
If we were to travel to Mexico again with a 13 month old, we would bring rash guards, swimsuits, water shoes, a sand free blanket and a stroller. All the extra things aren’t going to improve the trip and likely won’t be used enough to buy them.
We bought about the same amount of things for both trips but with our 3rd we were a little more careful and tried to consider how much use it would get. These trips were such different experiences, and yet so similar. I know I was stressed out for the Hawaii trip, while I was much more comfortable in Mexico with 3 kids. If you are considering going on a trip with a young baby, I would encourage you to do so if you can afford it. It’s such a great experience and it will be lasting memories at least for you and photos for you child to cherish forever.
