Staying in a hotel room with an infant can be a challenge, but we've learned staying with a toddler can bring on an entirely new set of challenges! Here are a few tips to make your stay more enjoyable.
Amenities. Consider booking a hotel with a fridge, for storage of some toddler basics like milk, yogurt and some basic perishables that they enjoy eating. If you can book a room within your budget with a pool or extra bathroom/suite to give the little one a little space of their own, I highly suggest it. However, that isn't something we usually book (we rough it). If your toddler still sleeps in a crib call ahead to see if they have cribs to use on your stay.
Stop by the Grocery Store first thing. Whether you have a fridge or not, a quick trip to the store can help diffuse some of the toddler chaos. Buy whatever necessities you need for food: Milk, yogurt, fruit, we find that tortillas and cheese make for easy hotel meals (quesadillas) if you have a microwave and any other snack foods for traveling around during your stay. We carry raisins, goldfish crackers, granola bars and squeeze fruit pouches.
Safety. Outlets are a big scare for our current situation, we found that lining our bag with painters tape on trips to helps baby proof a number of things. Including covering outlets, tying up cords or to tape down the toilet seat.
Sleeping. We always use hotel cribs/pack-n-plays. Every hotel is very different on what this looks like. Sometimes its a beautiful fold-able crib with mattress...more often its a small pack-n-play with an oversized queen sheet. We keep a blanket and stuffed animal with Lorelai in her bed at home, in hopes that it helps her travel better when we bring those toys. We find that it does help, and make sure to bring both. We've also tried traveling with a crib sheet to help with the scent of home, but don't use that now with her blanky. A tip about sleeping....we usually try to put Lorelai in a corner/smaller space. Sometimes we open up the closet doors and stick her crib partially in (not closing the door) to give a bit of a sound/light barrier. We also use a white noise machine, which we found keeps her asleep even when I stub my toes or open the hotel room door. Depending on your child and your bathroom habits, the bathroom could be a possibility if you are traveling in a group or can use the facilities in another room if your child is sleeping. You can also find a way to hang up a sheet to help block the toddlers view of the rest of the room. This most recent trip we made a "pillow wall" to prevent her from seeing us across the room.
If we have a good idea of what the sleeping arrangement will be like, we also bring a mattress that fits in a pack-n-play if we feel that's what she will be sleeping in. Its a big thing to fold up, so we tend to bring it more on road trips or when we know we will need it. It seems like overkill, but we really think it helps her sleep.
Toddler Activities. There are a few easy activities for toddlers that pack well, my favorite of which is a bag of balloons. They pack well, are cheap and give them plenty of great fun. We pack books (although very light ones) because Lorelai would be lost without them. Crayons are a great addition to your activity kit, and paper is often already in the room. Walking the halls, swimming, or playing in the tub are also great hotel activities. Since our daughter is just 15 months old, building forts or just letting her explore keeps her pretty entertained. We didn't have to come up with any creative games for her.
Quiet Time Activities for you. Our toddler sleeps 12+ hours a night on the regular. That means there will be times in the room that she is asleep and we are awake. Books with reading lamps (or you'll have to make a little reading nook in the bathtub like me) ipads (and headphones) stocked with movies, E-readers or a laptop are great quiet time activities. Agree to take turns staying in the room and let the other parent wander around, use the hot tub, run errands etc.
What we don't bring: Baby monitor (some parents may both choose to leave the room and go to the lounge, we don't and are okay taking shifts if needed), pack-n-play (unless we are road tripping and have the space, we don't bring our own). Toys (she can stay entertained without a bunch of huge plastic things).
Other things to consider...have you looked at an Airbnb? We find they often are similarly priced, and give us more room/flexibility to keep our toddler more comfortable. Place to run around, a separate room to sleep in, some even will provide you with a pack-n-play. And you don't have to worry about noise of the neighbors as often (or the noise your kid will make!) Use this link and get $30 off your first experience.
Amenities. Consider booking a hotel with a fridge, for storage of some toddler basics like milk, yogurt and some basic perishables that they enjoy eating. If you can book a room within your budget with a pool or extra bathroom/suite to give the little one a little space of their own, I highly suggest it. However, that isn't something we usually book (we rough it). If your toddler still sleeps in a crib call ahead to see if they have cribs to use on your stay.Stop by the Grocery Store first thing. Whether you have a fridge or not, a quick trip to the store can help diffuse some of the toddler chaos. Buy whatever necessities you need for food: Milk, yogurt, fruit, we find that tortillas and cheese make for easy hotel meals (quesadillas) if you have a microwave and any other snack foods for traveling around during your stay. We carry raisins, goldfish crackers, granola bars and squeeze fruit pouches.
Safety. Outlets are a big scare for our current situation, we found that lining our bag with painters tape on trips to helps baby proof a number of things. Including covering outlets, tying up cords or to tape down the toilet seat.
Sleeping. We always use hotel cribs/pack-n-plays. Every hotel is very different on what this looks like. Sometimes its a beautiful fold-able crib with mattress...more often its a small pack-n-play with an oversized queen sheet. We keep a blanket and stuffed animal with Lorelai in her bed at home, in hopes that it helps her travel better when we bring those toys. We find that it does help, and make sure to bring both. We've also tried traveling with a crib sheet to help with the scent of home, but don't use that now with her blanky. A tip about sleeping....we usually try to put Lorelai in a corner/smaller space. Sometimes we open up the closet doors and stick her crib partially in (not closing the door) to give a bit of a sound/light barrier. We also use a white noise machine, which we found keeps her asleep even when I stub my toes or open the hotel room door. Depending on your child and your bathroom habits, the bathroom could be a possibility if you are traveling in a group or can use the facilities in another room if your child is sleeping. You can also find a way to hang up a sheet to help block the toddlers view of the rest of the room. This most recent trip we made a "pillow wall" to prevent her from seeing us across the room.
If we have a good idea of what the sleeping arrangement will be like, we also bring a mattress that fits in a pack-n-play if we feel that's what she will be sleeping in. Its a big thing to fold up, so we tend to bring it more on road trips or when we know we will need it. It seems like overkill, but we really think it helps her sleep.
Toddler Activities. There are a few easy activities for toddlers that pack well, my favorite of which is a bag of balloons. They pack well, are cheap and give them plenty of great fun. We pack books (although very light ones) because Lorelai would be lost without them. Crayons are a great addition to your activity kit, and paper is often already in the room. Walking the halls, swimming, or playing in the tub are also great hotel activities. Since our daughter is just 15 months old, building forts or just letting her explore keeps her pretty entertained. We didn't have to come up with any creative games for her.
Quiet Time Activities for you. Our toddler sleeps 12+ hours a night on the regular. That means there will be times in the room that she is asleep and we are awake. Books with reading lamps (or you'll have to make a little reading nook in the bathtub like me) ipads (and headphones) stocked with movies, E-readers or a laptop are great quiet time activities. Agree to take turns staying in the room and let the other parent wander around, use the hot tub, run errands etc.
What we don't bring: Baby monitor (some parents may both choose to leave the room and go to the lounge, we don't and are okay taking shifts if needed), pack-n-play (unless we are road tripping and have the space, we don't bring our own). Toys (she can stay entertained without a bunch of huge plastic things).
Other things to consider...have you looked at an Airbnb? We find they often are similarly priced, and give us more room/flexibility to keep our toddler more comfortable. Place to run around, a separate room to sleep in, some even will provide you with a pack-n-play. And you don't have to worry about noise of the neighbors as often (or the noise your kid will make!) Use this link and get $30 off your first experience.
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