Successful Sleeping Away

Tips to getting a good nights sleep when you stay away with babies / toddlers

If you’re staying away from home this Christmas (or any time of the year for that matter), you’re going to want your little darlings to settle to sleep with the minimum of fuss to give you a few hours of peace and quiet at the end of the day. Who knows, Santa may even need the extra wrapping time!

Achieving a routine that works at home can be hard enough, without everything being disrupted by new surroundings, not to mention having the most exciting day of the year just round the corner. Years of staying away with little ones in campsites and hotel rooms has given Amy Jenkins some valuable experience in this arena, and inspired her to set up Toddle Off, an online store dedicated to supplying all the amazing gadgets and doodahs that she’s discovered along the way that make staying away with children a doddle. So we asked her to put together a few tips and recommendations to help you enjoy your time away from home this Christmas, and hopefully give you the chance to put your feet up and relax.




Even if the environment is different, try to keep as much of your usual ‘at home’ routine as possible. Try to put your child to bed at the same time as home, don’t be tempted to keep them up, as an overtired baby will struggle to settle.


Bath time can be a great way of relaxing little ones and giving them the hint that it is time to sleep. Travel baby baths can be a lot of fun and can be used in a shower. When camping I’ve even warmed water in a kettle and given my little boy a bath in the middle of the field with our Flexibath!


Even if the surroundings are different, a sound that plays at bedtime at home can work wonders to soothe and relax an unsettled baby. I have used a sleep sheep since my little boy was tiny. It is a cuddly toy that plays a heartbeat and other relaxing sounds. These days I just take out the bit that plays the noise and leave the rest at home when we want to travel light. Lullaby music or white noise on your smart phone or on a baby monitor can also work well.


Taking your own bedding or sleeping bag can help to make the travel cot smell more like home.


A bedtime story is another really good cue that it is time for sleep. Also, when you leave the room and say good night, it is nice to leave your little ones with a favourite toy.


Darkness is a pretty good signal to little ones that it is time to sleep! There are lots of black out blinds out there and we’ve tried a few. We favour the Lights Out Black Out Blind. It is compact when packed away and covers a variety of different window shapes and sizes. It attaches with just one sucker so it is really quick to put up. We also like the Magic Blackout Blinds because they are so compact. If you can’t black out the entire room, there are clever designs out there that black out just your travel cot.


If you go out for the evening with your baby the last thing you want to do once you have settled them to sleep is wake them back up again! Getting a sleeping baby from a travel cot into a car seat and then into their cot at home can seem like a military operation! We’ve discovered the Slumbersac which has pockets that let you pass the straps through the sleeping bag, making the whole experience a lot easier.


Choosing the right travel cot can really help make bed time less stressful for mum and dad. You need to have a really good think about which style is best for you – the traditional rectangular style or a tent style. Whichever you choose, it needs to be easy to put up.


If your little one is old enough to sleep in a single bed it can really reduce the amount you have to pack. There are different types of travel bed guards, from a traditional metal frame to foam bumpers and inflatable tubes. All of which help to keep your little one secure in bed while they sleep.


Even though it sounds counter-intuitive, a good daytime nap can help your little ones to sleep at night by preventing them from getting overtired. Just make sure that the nap isn’t too late in the afternoon otherwise they won’t be ready to sleep at bedtime. When you are out and about there can be lots of distractions to prevent babies from nodding off. We have found that pushchair black outs are brilliant for reducing these and also offer sun protection during a nap.

Finally, things are different away from home and that’s half the fun! Sometimes no matter what we do, it just doesn’t work for us so I give up and let the little monkey stay up for a bit longer! Good luck!

Toddle Off provides advice, reviews and products to make travelling with your little ones a breeze! Toddle Off is a dedicated place just focusing on bringing on the best travel solutions for families with young children.

They do the searching for you and bring together on one website the best, most compact, multi-functional products for your holiday or weekend away. They are also brimming with ideas and are working on bringing their own travel solutions to the market.

Visit the Toddle Off website

Check for special offers from Toddle Off.