Travelling with your stroller: tips for planes, trains and cities

Travelling with a baby or toddler does not have to be an expedition. With a lightweight stroller and a few fixed habits it simply becomes a day out with an extra passenger.

Flying

• Register your stroller at check-in, even if you take it as cabin baggage. Many airlines let a compact stroller through to the gate.
• Fold it only at the gate; until then it is your luggage trolley and your high chair.
• Put the fabrics in a cotton bag if the stroller goes in the hold, so it stays clean.

Trains and buses

• Travel outside rush hour if you can; most operators allow an unfolded stroller, but not always on a packed train.
• Put the brake on in the vestibule and hold the stroller with your foot as the train pulls away.
• A stroller that stands upright when folded fits in the luggage rack and does not cost a seat.

In the city

• Choose walking routes with wide pavements and mind the suspension: cobbles are no problem with suspension, and a nap-killer without.
• A bumper bar gives your child something to hold when you hop kerbs.
• Pack a rain cover even when the app promises sun. Folded, it fits in the basket.

To the beach

Large wheels with ball bearings roll over packed sand and boardwalks. Rinse the sand off the wheels afterwards and let the frame dry; bamboo copes with a splash of water, but does not like a night in salt.

Stroller packing list

• Rain cover and sun hat
• A light blanket that doubles as a shade
• A small bag on the handlebar for water, nappies and snacks
• A bike lock for terraces and museums