Bottles and road trips: How to travel with formula and still have fun
Travelling with a formula-fed baby
When I looked for advice online about travelling with a baby, it seemed like every article's main tip was to breastfeed.
I can understand why. It's ‘easier’ to get out of the house with a breastfed baby than to travel with formula and lug around bottles and all the other equipment that comes with it.
Breastfeeding was my plan and when it didn't work out, I grieved for yet another choice taken away. Even after stopping breastfeeding, we had quite the journey ahead of us. I know lots of other parents will relate to struggling to feed their baby.
It took us a little bit of time to figure out how to travel with formula, particularly as we had to make up formula on-the-go rather than making bottles ahead and storing in the fridge.
Travelling with a formula-fed baby does require more planning and carrying more supplies but is definitely do-able. Thankfully, there are quite a few positives to formula-feeding too and I came to appreciate this in time.
What you’ll find in this guide:
How to prepare baby bottles and formula
How to store bottles in the fridge
How to warm formula or make bottles of formula when out-and-about
How to sterilise bottles on a stove top
What to pack when travelling with bottles
SUPER IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS
This is information is of a general nature only and is absolutely NOT medical advice.
I am a parent sharing what has worked for us and our child, not a health care or feeding specialist.
Please chat to your child's health professional for feeding advice. If you’re having difficulties that your child’s health team can’t solve, seek a referral for a speech therapist specialised in baby feeding.
Always follow the instructions on your formula tin. Incorrectly prepared formula can be dangerous.
For information on the safer preparation of formula, check out the World Health Organisation guidelines.
I also like Raising Children Network for general information on child development - including baby feeding.
A camp chair and a bottle in the Bunnings car park was the best spot for this hungry formula-fed baby on our road trip!
Preparing water for baby formula
Wash your hands with soap and ensure you have a clean area to prepare bottles.
Boil fresh water. If you’re using a kettle, start with an empty kettle and add fresh water.
Let the water cool to a safe temperature. This will take 30 minutes, sometimes longer. Do not leave water longer than an hour.
Read the instructions on your formula tin. This will tell you how much water to add to your bottles.
Pour the cooled boiled water into sterilised baby bottles, adding the correct amount for your baby’s serving size.
Store sterilised bottles of water in the fridge or follow the steps for preparing baby formula.
To store baby bottles of water in the fridge:
Place cap or lid on the bottles and ensure they are tightly closed.
Put bottles into the fridge immediately after filling (and within an hour of boiling the water)
Store sterilised bottles with cooled boiled water in the fridge for 24 hours.
Preparing baby formula to serve immediately or to store in the fridge
Wash your hands before preparing formula.
Prepare water for baby formula using the instructions above.
Re-read the instructions on the formula tin, this will tell you how much formula to add to your baby bottles.
Scoop the formula and level off the scoop. If your formula tin does not have a levelling edge, you can use a sterilised knife or similar.
Reseal the bottle. Gently swirl the formula to mix into the water, then shake vigorously to mix throughly.
Always add the water to bottles first.
Adding water first means you’ll add the correct amount of water. If you put formula in the bottle first, it’ll take up space and make it too difficult to pour the exact amount of water to the bottle.
Serving the formula immediately
Place the teat on the bottle.
Check the temperature of the formula. Tip the bottle up gently and place a few drop on the skin on the inside of your wrist. The formula should feel warm but not hot.
Feed baby. The bottle is safe at room temperature for 1 hour. After an hour, throw away any unused formula and put the bottle aside to be washed and sterilised.
Storing formula in the fridge
Follow the instructions above to prepare water and then make formula in bottles for your baby. After you have throughly mixed the formula, place the bottles in the fridge immediately.
Bottles of pre-made formula can be stored in the fridge for 24 hours. After 24 hours, throw out any used formula and set the bottles aside to be washed and sterilised.
Babies can drink cold formula!
Many babies won’t drink cold bottles. But if your baby prefers cold formula, great! They’ll get the milk faster and it’s one less thing for you to worry about.
It gets little squishy feeding formula in the car! Sometimes it’s the best option on tricky city road trips.
Making bottles of formula on-the-go
You’ll need:
Baby bottle of sterilised water from the fridge
Formula
Hot water (from the kettle or a thermos)
A travel mug or other large, tall container that your baby bottle fits into
A clean cloth, tea towel or paper towel
A clean, stable surface away from little hands and bodies
What to do:
Add hot water to your travel mug or container. About half full is probably a good place to start.
Gently place your baby bottle into the container of hot water. Take care not to burn your fingers!
Let the bottle stand in the hot water for a few minutes (we thought about 5 minutes for a 150ml bottle).
Carefully remove the bottle from the water and wipe the outside dry.
Add the correct amount of formula to the bottle. Swirl first and then shake to mix.
Check the temperature.
If it’s warm (not hot!), feed to baby. Discard unused formula after 1 hour.
If it’s too hot, allow to stand and cool down. Re-check the temperature until it’s safe for baby to drink. Reduce the amount of time you warm the next bottle.
A few tips for travelling with formula
Set a timer for a few minutes to make sure you take your baby’s bottle out before it’s too hot. You’ll work out the right amount of time with a bit of trial and error. Start with 3 minutes and increase from there.
Keep your travel mug of warm water. After your baby has finished with the bottle, use the water in the travel mug to rinse it out. This will make it easier to clean up at the end of the day and lessen the extra work of travelling with formula when you reach your destination!
“Ready-to-drink” formula and travelling
Ready-to-drink formula would be a much safer option when camping or travelling.
The formula typically comes in single use sachets, and the milk in these is sterile.
Unopened packets of ready-to-drink formula don’t need to be kept in the fridge.
We haven’t personally used ready-to-drink formula - I didn't realise it was an option when we were unpowered camping with Sprout!
Some things to consider:
It’s more expensive than powdered formula
You still need to sterilise your baby bottles before use
The brand of formula you’re feeding your child may not have a ready-to-drink option
Powered formula is more readily available than ready-to-drink formula
A park or playground is always a great spot for a bottle if the weather is nice.
What do we pack for travelling with formula
We pack a 'bottle bag' separate to our nappy bag for long days out.
If you were only out for a few hours at someone's house you could just pack a bottle or two and some formula.
In our bottle bag you'll find:
7 fridge-cold bottles inside an insulated lunch box
6 dispensers of formula
A thermos of hot water
A travel mug (large enough to fit our bottles in)
A clean tea towel or cloth
Bibs
A pouch of baby food (6+ months)
We spend most of our travel days outside and away from any facilities.
It absolutely looks like a lot to lug around and it’s heavy - but it’s everything we need! We can go anywhere and not have to worry about how we’ll feed our baby.
We pack a cooler bag large enough to place our bottle lunchbox inside with everything else we need. We've found this is the easiest way to carry everything for making bottles. We often leave this bag in the car but it does fit in the bottom of our pram.
Extras for staying overnight:
Bottle warmer
Steriliser (or large pot and slotted spoon)
Bottle rack (or paper towel)
Formula tin
Extra bottles (we had 12 bottles so we only had to wash once daily)
Basin, bottle brush and dish liquid
Kettle (or large pot)
Older babies are playing outside, in the dirt, crawling and still putting everything in their mouth!
Sterilising baby bottles on a stove top
There are times when it’s good to know how to sterilise your bottles using a stove.
I highly recommend keeping a butane camp stove at home if you have a formula-fed baby. Our power went out 2 -3 times whilst Sprout was still bottle feeding and I was very grateful we had a gas stove and access to drinking water without needing electricity.
You’ll need a pot and water to sterilise the bottles. Most bottle packaging echoes the World Health Organisation instructions for sterilising.
Start by thoroughly washing the bottles and all parts with warm soapy water and then rinse.
Place the bottles, teats and caps into water on a rolling boil (lots of fast bubbles) for 5 minutes.
After 5 minutes, remove carefully using a slotted spoon or tongs.
Dry on a bottle rack or paper towel and allow to cool completely before use.
Older babies and sterilising bottles
To be super clear, all of the advice from reputable websites such as the World Health Organisation encourages sterilising baby bottles until at least 12 months. This is the safest choice.
Arguments for stopping sterilising bottles:
* Babies are eating and drinking from non sterile plates, bowls and cups from 6 months.
*Babies are drinking increasing amount of standard tap water from 6 months.
* Babies are likely mobile, crawling on the floor and then putting their hands in their mouth.
* Baby is putting toys in their mouth that are not sterile.
* “I never sterilised my baby’s bottles and they turned out fine”
Reasons for continuing to sterilise bottles:
* Milk/formula is an excellent breeding ground for bacteria.
* Bottles can be difficult to get thoroughly clean by hand washing alone.
* Babies are at a higher risk of getting sick from unclean equipment given their young age, immature immune system and the volume/frequency of milk (bottle) feeds.
*Individual risk profiles vary. What is suitable/safe for your neighbour’s baby (or mine!) may not be suitable for your own child.
What do you think?
I think the most important part of the argument for sterilising bottles is the level of cleanliness you are confident in when washing bottles. You also need to be confident that the water you are using to wash bottles is safe. Only wash bottles in water that you would be happy for your child to drink.
I feel that sterilising for older babies is a great safe guard in case any parts of the bottle are missed when washed.
I really thought we would stop sterilising around 6 months, but it's become part of our routine so we've kept going (Sprout is 9 months). It would make it much easier to travel with formula if sterilising bottles could be skipped.
We plan to move into our caravan and travel after her first birthday, when bottles will be far fewer. If we move into the caravan before that, we would probably ditch the sterilising step - after all, she was eating grass and licking shoes just last week!
(June 2023 Update: We did ditch the steriliser shortly after Sprout’s first birthday and used standard tap water without boiling for her formula. She dropped her last bottle at 15 months. Hurrah!)
A sunny spot for a coffee break during our road trip - newborn Sprout is fast asleep again after her bottle of yummy baby formula!
How we make travelling with formula easier
Have enough baby bottles
If you're bottle feeding full time and it's in the budget, I recommend having enough bottles to only wash them once a day at a time that suits you.
Jetboil and travelling with formula
We have owned a JetBoil for several years (pre-baby) and it has been well-worth the investment for us.
quickly heat water to warm bottles
boil water to make a bottle (allow it to cool before adding formula and serving to baby)
make clean up easier with warm water to rinse out bottles
But my favourite thing about the JetBoil for baby feeding times actually has nothing to do with making bottles and everything to do with making coffee! It’s easily my favourite ‘luxury’ item that we carry on road trips.
Formula dispensers
Formula dispensers are little containers designed to carry around formula when you’re out-and-about. They have a little spout to tip into the bottle, which is the advantage over using a standard plastic container.
Add a serve of your baby’s formula to the containers, then when you’ve warmed up a bottle of sterilised water, you can easily tip the correct amount of formula into the bottle and give it a good shake to mix.
So much easier than carrying a tin around and perfect for making 3 AM feeds a little bit easier!
Carry your own bottle prep station
We carry a camp table and a couple of camp chairs in our car any time we travel. It’s great for turning almost any spot off the road into a more comfortable stop for everyone.
It’s also much easier to find some kind of shelter from the sun or rain. There are far more options if you’ve got your own table and chairs.
Pack for the adults too
Add snacks and an extra thermos for hot drinks to your bottle bag. It’s easy to skip over the adults when there’s so much to pack for a baby, but these extras will make your road trips much more pleasant.
Travelling with formula, can it be fun?
Travelling with a baby is hard work and using formula definitely adds to that work load.
When your baby starts solid food and reduces the number of bottles in a day, it gets easier. Travelling with a baby who doesn’t need formula anymore is much, much easier!
It’s good to remember than for most babies, formula and bottles will be around for 12-18 months. Eventually, this will be a thing of the past, however difficult it is right now.
The great thing about travelling with formula is being able to share the task between parents. We generally take turns in feeding Sprout on our road trips, which means she gets time and cuddles with each of us throughout the day.
What’s most important is that travelling with a baby can definitely be fun! We loved our days out and road trips so much, that we decided to sell our house and live permanently on the road with our baby!
After some bumps along the way, we’ve finally worked out how to make formula feeding work for us.
Hopefully some of these tips will help other parents to travel with formula - whether that's just to get from A to B easily or to spend more time outside with their little ones!
