In less than one year old, my baby girl, #SiennaLittleExplorer has traveled to seven countries in the world and some places in Indonesia. She’s been six times to Flores Island (including Labuan Bajo, Komodo National Park’s islands and around), Yogyakarta, several times to Bandung, Mount Bromo, Surabaya, several times to Bali, Pekalongan, and many more. And having the experience of traveling alone with my baby, I will vote for these three items, which I think they’re the best child carriers for travel!
1. ERGO baby 360.
A wonderful gift from your grandparents in the States! Yeayyy! Our friend, Joel Bacha, highly recommended this one, so we asked your grandparents to buy it for you.
It’s the BEST carrier. It’s so comfy and you always fall asleep whenever we put you in it.. (and you can sleep forever in this ERGO!). Plus, this carrier enables me to carry other stuff with my hands. Having two hands free make a big difference when you travel, especially when you’re traveling with a baby. Trust me. I think this is the best advantage of this baby carrier.
A funny story, one time I was waiting in the ATM machine in Labuan Bajo and I had Sienna Little Explorer in the ERGO. There were two ladies also waiting in line. Suddenly, one of them said, “Wow! There’s a baby in it! I thought it’s a bag pack!” hahahahahhaa… She was so tiny (3 months old), people didn’t see her head coming out of the “bag pack!”
2. Mamaway Baby Sling
I got this baby sling from the baby store “mother care”. I love this one because it’s not only so light, but also it’s the best carrier if you want to breastfeed your baby while walking around.
I carry this baby sling every where I travel with baby Sienna. Since she’s still nursing, I can just breastfeed her and cover it with the sling, and keep exploring places. Perfect!
There are several styles to use this baby sling and I learned all those styles from youtube (of course!)
3. MacLaren Quest
And… this is her “car”! We had to wait until she’s 3 months old to put her in. Why? Because this baby stroller cannot recline all the way back until it’s flat. So, she’s always in a sitting position. We waited until her neck and back are strong enough to sit.
This baby stroller comes handy if I need to walk far. Instead of having to carry her on my shoulders – with either Ergo baby or the sling — I can just put her in this stroller and push her around to enjoy the places. It’s easy, not so tiring for mommies! The only down side is it’s not as compact as the other two baby carriers. It’s quite big and heavy. But, hey, it makes my traveling journey easier and less tiring. So, I have no complaints! 🙂
Another best thing is… whenever I push Sienna Little Explorer in the stroller, she starts observing her surrounding quietly, smiles and waves to people around her, and whenever I stop walking and checking on her, she always smiles at me, too! Ahhh.. heaven! 🙂
So, those are my pick for the best child carriers for travel. How about you? Which ones are your favorites? 😉