Touring Germany In Early Spring With Baby: Products To Ease Your Way

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While this blog is mainly devoted to child development topics, sometimes it’s fun to write about related but different things. Today is one of those days. 🙂

I just got back from a quick week-long trip to Germany. I traveled with my mother, sister, and brother-in-law…and my 11-month-old daughter. It’s that last little detail that I thought I’d share about here: traveling to Europe with a baby. I did lots of research on everything from typical Spring weather to air travel with a baby to tips and tricks for Europe before heading out with her. Today I wanted to share a part of what I researched and what worked well for us, including the products I used to make it a smoother trip. (I do receive a small commission, at no cost to you, for purchases made via the Amazon links below).

Early Spring in most any country is notorious for having questionable weather. One day it might be bright and sunny and the next day chilly, rainy or even snowy! I looked into the average temperature and rain fall in early April and I came prepared. It made all the difference in being able to enjoy our trip, no matter the weather, even with a baby. 🙂 I planned for temperatures between 30-60 degrees Fahrenheit with rain, wind, and cloud cover with the occasional sunny day. Let me show you what we packed to be able to enjoy our trip.

Stroller Considerations

Stroller Rain Cover

I’ve had this universal rain cover for several years now. And it’s served me well. We first used it on a chilly trip to Victoria, BC, Canada in early Fall with a young one-year-old. And I’ve used it over and over ever since. I love being able to take my babies out in the rain, wind or even snow without them being exposed to the elements in quite the same way I am.

In Germany, we used the cover on rainy days to, obviously, keep out the rain. However, we also used it on windy/chilly days to help provide insulation and a wind break. Works great.

Just a heads up on stroller use though: while there were some places we used a stroller (like on a Rhine River Cruise and WWII cemetery), we didn’t use it much at all. Cobble stone streets, narrow halls in old buildings, crowds at festivals and popular locations and stairs all over made it impractical to use frequently. I was expecting this and prepped for using my baby carrier more often than not.

All Things Baby Carrier

The baby carrier we personally use and enjoy is the LilleBaby All Weather. I like that it is so versatile as far as positions you can hold your child, starting from newborn/fetal holds up to toddler/back holds. And it feels sturdy for both me and my child. There are definitely other awesome carriers out there that would work great for your trip. Just be sure you get one you’re comfortable wearing for several hours. It will make your visits to the Old Town centers, ruins, cathedrals, and festivals so much easier to navigate.

As I mentioned earlier, spring still has hit-and-miss weather. Having a baby strapped to your chest might not seem like the best idea in inclement weather. However, I can attest that it can be done. Here’s how we kept little lady cozy in her infant carrier.

All-Weather Infant Carrier Cover

I got this cover a few months before we left to be able to test it out. It’s basically a universal sleeping bag for your infant carrier, insulating baby from the cold and from light rain and snow. It even worked well for a short bout of heavier rain. (However, I wouldn’t recommend it for consistent, moderate to heavy rain). It did what I expected for the majority of the trip: insulted baby girl from the cold, protection from sprinkles and mist, and provided an awesome wind break from the chill. (It also has a suuuuper cozy pocket on the front to keep your hands warm! I loved it!)

Baby Booties

Under the cover, I dressed my daughter in long sleeved onsies, pants, and sometimes a light jacket and beanie, depending on how cold it was. I also always had her wearing these awesome booties.

These booties wrap around her ankle and secure with velcro. If given opportunity to play with them undisturbed for a few minutes, she has occasionally been able to take them off. But, for the most part, they have stayed securely on her feet. They kept her feet cozy warm when she might have lost her socks otherwise (’cause, babies, that’s what they do).

As a bonus, I felt comfortable having my daughter, who is just learning to walk, take walking breaks while wearing these. They aren’t fit for long walks outside on concrete (they’d get ripped up fast) but for short wiggle breaks, they fit the bill. They kept her feet warm and clean.

Pacificer Clip

These clips work great for keeping baby’s pacifier from falling to the ground while being carried all around Europe on your chest (or back). Simply loop your baby’s favorite paci on one end and clip the other end to their clothes or your carrier. Done. Also works well for the airplane, the stroller, the car, restaurants…basically, you just need these when you have a baby who loves their paci!!

Bonus tip, you can also attach some toys to clips like these. It helps if your baby is a throwing/testing gravity stage. 🙂

Travel Bag

I have previously used Travelon products and was pleased with them so I decided to take a plunge and spend more a bit more than I was planning on for a travel bag. And I was very pleased! If you’re not familiar with Travelon, they specialize in bags of all kinds for travelers who want to keep their items secure. In the case of this back pack, it has latches for keeping the zippers closed/locked, RFID blocking pockets, reinforced straps to make them slash proof and so on. I wasn’t exactly worried about pick-pockets in Germany but I did like that I could store our passports in the RFID blocking pocket while also latching that pocket closed. I felt less worried about our passports that way.

I also liked that this bag has a nice wide opening and a decent number of pockets and compartments for organizing our things. I used organizers like these to make it easier to access what I needed. I didn’t have to dig through the entire main compartment of the bag to quickly get what I needed both on the airplane and while touring. It felt like it was just the right size for my back and for holding what I needed for travels.

Travel Bag Turned Diaper Bag

Using the system of small packing organizers and other similar small pouches, I was easily able to add my basic diaper bag contents into my travel bag next to the other typical travel gear like snacks, water, sunglasses, etc.

I have a Skip Hop Portable Changing Pad/Clutch like this one but to be honest, I’ve only used it maybe once in the four years I’ve had it. I very briefly considered bringing it with me but making my own turned out to be just the ticket. It fit into my bag easier, was much less bulky, and honestly, just felt easier to use. This is what I put together:

• a medium-size wide-mouth make-up bag similar to this one
• my favorite changing pad (more on that in a minute)
• the hard-sided clam shell wipes case that I pulled out of the Skip Hop Changing Pad (I guess it came in handy for something!)
• and then I added 2-3 of baby girl’s typical diapers, wipes (into the clam shell) and some travel sized diaper rash ointment

Boom da-doom. Done. And it fit perfectly into my backpack in an easy to grab little packet. I had my Costco-sized wipes packet and extra diapers in the car/carry-on for refilling as needed.

It was surprisingly difficult to find a simple hard-sided wipes box like the one I pulled out of my Skip Hop set. The ones I found online to show you had straps and all kinds of other “fancy” things on them. Just a simple, sleek hard-sided clam shell seems to be too much to ask for. But here are some options that might work, I just can’t vouch for them: Oxo Tot and Uber Mom.

Now, about my *favorite* changing pads: I very much disliked the pads that came with my diaper bags. They were small, flimsy and too slippery. When I found these, I was over the moon. They’re large enough to have baby lay completely on the pad, having no part of her on a public changing table or the ground. They’re light enough to fold down small and carry everywhere. The bottom is easy to wipe and water proof while the top is soft material that is cozy for baby. (Yes, it can get dirty from bowel movements but with a little stain remover, I’ve never had a problem getting it clean). I seriously recommend this product to all new moms. And I’m strongly recommending it to you, now, as you’re planning a big trip with *your* baby. Seriously, click on the picture below and get yourself one (and maybe a spare for wash day). I doubt you’ll regret it. 🙂

Miscellaneous

Here are a few other items that I’m so happy I brought with me on this trip.

I initially was looking at phone lanyards due to my fear of leaning out of a boat or a train or off a castle with my phone to take a picture and then dropping my phone. Turned out that never happened but the reassurance was nice and the lanyard was helpful in other unexpected ways.

This particular lanyard has a wrist strap and a longer neck strap. That’s the one I used the most. I lengthened it to its max length and then tucked my phone into my back pocket like I normally would without the lanyard on.

It helped to have my phone connected around my neck when I was trying to juggle taking pictures as well as caring for a baby. And it helped with butterfingers from the nature of touring, with cameras in and out of pockets all the time. And for when baby wanted to grab and throw whatever she saw, including my phone.

I hope these ideas have helped ease your mind about travel to Germany with your infant in Spring when the weather is a bit unpredictable. I’m sure many of these suggestions would also work for traveling to Europe with a baby in Autumn as well. Let me know about your trip in the comments below! I’d love to know how it went. 🙂

Happy Parenting! xoxoxo

As an Amazon Affiliate, I may receive a commission, at no additional cost to you, if you use one of the provided Amazon links. All opinions shared are my own. You can review my full privacy policy here. Thank you for supporting Parenting on a Rollercoaster through your purchases.

Hello! I’m Briana!