Baby sleep on holiday: what disrupts it and what helps
Your baby doesn't know you're on holiday. Their body clock certainly doesn't.
A change of scene is meant to be the relaxing part. Then you remember you are travelling with a small person whose sleep runs on routine, darkness and familiarity, none of which fit neatly in a suitcase. Whether you are heading an hour down the coast or a couple of time zones away, a holiday tends to unsettle baby sleep in two places: the clock, and the journey itself. We asked two baby sleep experts to take one each.
The clock: helping your baby adjust to a new time
Our first expert is Lucy Bagwell, a certified gentle and holistic infant sleep consultant and the voice behind 2nd Star to the Right. You can find her on Instagram at @secondstartotheright_sleep, and her website is secondstarsleep.com. We asked her to take on the time difference: how to help a baby adjust to a new time on holiday, and back again once you're home.
Travelling with a little one can feel daunting, and one of the questions I'm asked most often is how to manage time zone changes. For long-haul trips or significant time differences, you may be tempted to start adjusting your baby's schedule before you leave. You absolutely can start nudging towards the new time zone but I tend not to recommend making major changes in advance. It's usually easier to adapt once you've arrived. If the time difference is slight, especially when the local time is later than at home, you may find it works well to stick close to your home schedule. A later bedtime and morning wake-up can mean you get to enjoy dinner out or spend more time exploring, rather than heading back to the hotel for an early bedtime. If sticking to home time isn't practical, here are my top tips to help your little one adjust.
Switch to local time as soon as you can. Start following the local schedule for meals, naps and bedtime. It doesn't have to be perfect from day one (and probably won't be), but try to avoid letting your baby sleep the day away, as this can make adjusting take longer.
Use light to your advantage. Natural daylight is one of the best ways to help reset your baby's body clock, so spend plenty of time outdoors during the day including naps on the go if that works for you. At night, keep lights low even if they're awake for periods. Portable blackout blinds can be extremely helpful to enable full darkness at your aimed for bedtime.
Keep bedtime familiar. You may not be able to recreate your usual bedtime routine exactly, and that's okay. Instead, focus on a few comforting cues like a favourite story, a familiar lullaby, or a sleep sack that smells like home. This is to help signal that it's time to sleep and predictability is naturally comforting.
Be patient. Jet lag affects babies just as it affects adults. Larger time differences can take up to a week to fully adjust to, so try to keep your expectations realistic and give everyone a little extra grace.
Most importantly, enjoy your trip. Even if sleep is a little funky or looks very different to at home it doesn't mean it's permanent. It's okay for sleep while away and sleep at home to not look the same. Every moment passes!
The journey: travel days and settling in somewhere new
Our second expert is Katie O'Hara, a qualified baby and child sleep consultant and the founder of Cosy Cubs. You can find her on Instagram at @cosycubs_uk, and her website is cosycubs.co.uk. We asked her about the journey itself: the travel day, and settling a baby once you arrive somewhere new.
As the founder of Cosy Cubs, one of the questions I'm asked most often is, "How do we manage sleep when we're away from home?" My biggest piece of advice is simple: take the pressure off. If you can, align flights or long drives with your baby's usual nap times, but don't stress if it doesn't work out. Travelling with little ones in tow comes with enough challenges already!
Think of travel days as being about flexibility rather than perfection. Whether your baby naps in the buggy or in a sling, it's all sleep, and that's what matters. Keep feeds, cuddles and comfort close by, and don't worry if naps are shorter or later than usual.
Once you've arrived, recreate a little piece of home. Pack your baby's usual sleeping bag, comforter (if age-appropriate), white noise and a portable blackout blind. One of my most cherished baby essentials, and something I recommend to all my Cosy Cubs families, is a good air-permeable pram or cot cover (ideally from a reputable company with real evidence behind their safety claims, as there are a lot of untested copies around). It's a total game changer for creating a dark, familiar sleep environment wherever you are. I also love bringing a slept-in cot sheet from home, as the familiar scent can be incredibly comforting.
Finally, stick to your usual bedtime routine as closely as possible. Those familiar cues help your little one feel safe, even in a holiday cot or a grandparent's spare room. Sleep may be a little unsettled for a night or two, and that's completely normal. Holidays are about making memories, not chasing perfect sleep.
If you do use a pram or cot shade, it is worth knowing that not all are made to the same standard, and the market has plenty that have never been safety tested at all. SnoozeShade is designed to newborn toy safety standards, the strictest category there is, and independently tested for airflow, suffocation and CO2 rebreathing. The EziBreez® mesh is air-permeable, so air flows through it freely. Sixteen years and more than 500,000 families on, that testing is still the starting point for everything we make.
One thread runs through both: light
Read both experts and the same quiet detail keeps surfacing: light. Familiar darkness is one of the strongest signals to a baby's body clock that it is time to sleep, and it is the first thing to vanish in a bright hotel room or on a sunlit afternoon walk. Daylight in the morning helps reset the clock, and darkness at bedtime tells them the day is done, whether that bedtime is happening in your own nursery or a rented apartment two hours ahead.
A wobbly night or two will not undo your baby's sleep. Get the light right, hold on to a couple of familiar cues, and give everyone a bit of grace while you all adjust.
Holidays with a baby are rarely the serene highlight reel. Sleep will wobble, naps will land in odd places, and some nights will be harder than others. None of that means you have done anything wrong, or that it will last.
"It's okay for sleep while away and sleep at home to not look the same. Every moment passes."
Lucy Bagwell, 2nd Star to the Right
Questions parents ask about baby sleep on holiday
How long does it take a baby to adjust to a time difference on holiday? ▼
It depends on the size of the shift. A one or two hour difference often settles within a few days, while a bigger change can take up to a week. Getting outside in daylight and moving to local mealtimes and bedtimes as soon as you arrive usually helps things along.
Should I change my baby's routine before we travel? ▼
You can gently nudge bedtime earlier or later in the days before a big trip, but many parents find it easier to adjust once they arrive. For a small time difference it is often fine to keep close to your usual routine and shift on the day you get there.
How do I get my baby to sleep somewhere new? ▼
Familiarity is your friend. A comforter, a favourite story or lullaby, white noise, a slept-in cot sheet from home, and as much darkness as you can create all tell your baby it is time to sleep, even in an unfamiliar room. The more of your home wind-down you can recreate, the quicker most babies settle.
Will one bad night undo everything? ▼
No. A single unsettled night, or even a few, will not undo your baby's sleep. Babies are more adaptable than we give them credit for, and most drift back to their usual pattern within a few days of being home.
