When the baby is here and you’re staying at home, it’s easy to get bored. Of course, sitting at home all day with no one to talk to sucks. Why don’t you just plan a trip with your partner. Maybe he or she also has some time off for parenting and so there’s nothing standing in the way of discovering the world. Because together you are stronger than alone. Travelling with a baby can be quite draining. Long tours through Europe, a child who constantly wants to be breastfed. Maybe you should wait a few months until the Newborn is a little more robust. But then you can start travelling, because you should make the most of this valuable free time since such an opportunity for quality time spent with the family most likely won’t come again.
Why take a campervan trip during your parental leave?
The campervan is an enclosed space in which the baby feels comfortable and considers it home. Of course, you should travel in summer or spring, because in autumn or winter it is usually already very cold and it can get too cold for the baby in the campervan during the frosty nights. Spring is a wonderful time for a motorhome tour across Europe or to individual countries. Do you already know Poland and have spent some time there? How about the Baltic States afterwards or a campervan road trip across Sweden up to the North Cape? When camping, you are connected to nature, the baby is exposed to very little stress and you experience beautiful places you haven’t seen before. You have time for your trip. It doesn’t matter if you stay an extra day at a campsite or a whole week. No employer asks for you and your labour. Especially after a difficult birth, taking time off with a campervan is exactly the right thing to do. This time together in the child’s first year is something no one will give you back. The little being gets used to you and your help and forms basic trust. Especially when you are travelling and your soul is light, the bond with your child becomes even stronger.
Advantages of parental leave
As mentioned above, there is no time pressure when you use your parental leave for campervan travel. Camping offers everything you need for an easy life. The focus is only on your child, you and the few everyday things. You have time to take care of your Newborn, you can take long walks with the pram across the campsite and relax in nature. The body needs strength and new energy to withstand everyday life with the baby. Children are usually more balanced in quieter areas themselves. Also, there is no hectic household life waiting for you in your campervan. Your partner can take care of the few things that need to be done, such as washing up or cleaning the vehicle. Did you choose parental leave for two years or just one year? This also plays a role when you are travelling a long way. In two years you get less money and can save much more in your own campervan than at home. Self-catering is the order of the day. The baby food for the slightly bigger baby can also be prepared on the gas cooker. When breastfeeding, no one needs any cooker or anything else, quite naturally the baby can get its food from the mother.
What do you have to think about before going on a campervan trip?
When travelling in a campervan during parental leave, however, there are a few things to bear in mind, for example that the climate should not be very hot. Because the campervan heats up from the inside and that can harm the baby in summer. Especially during the first couple of months, it is important that the baby is not exposed to temperatures that are too high or too low. It needs a lot of rest and often sleeps all day. At night, on the other hand, it comes in to be fed and cuddles. This is also important for the baby. If you sleep in the alcove, you should secure the upper bed with bars, because the child could fall out as soon as it becomes more mobile. It is also important that the little one sleeps with the parents, especially at the beginning of the campervan trip, when it is in unfamiliar surroundings. With time, it will adapt and get used to life on campsites. Destinations such as Poland, France, northern Germany, Denmark or Scandinavia are very good, because the climate is not too warm here. The Baltic States and Finland are also ideal destinations for campervan travel. In spring or autumn, Italy is also very attractive. Tuscany with its wide fields and cypresses or the coast of Elba, the offshore island. Sardinia and Corsica are also wonderful camping destinations during parental leave.
Camping holidays are a very good idea during parental leave, as the time is not limited and the baby will soon feel at home in the campervan. The location changes, but the living space remains the same, including the bed where the baby sleeps. It should sleep close to the parents so that it feels comfortable. If mother and father are on parental leave, this can be used for a camping holiday that lasts longer. However, you should pay attention to the climate and the time of travel. Destinations in the north are better, as the campervan often heats up massively in summer and this can often be dangerous for babies and small children. Therefore, it is important to always park your camper in the shade and not to travel to countries that are too hot. Italy and Spain are popular destinations in late autumn and early winter. In summer, on the other hand, Scandinavia is more on the agenda.