Dubai with a baby

Practical tips

Traveling with a little one can be challenging, especially when heading to a different time zone and worrying about how your baby will cope with the changes. But don’t worry, o ur daughter was 6 months old when we went on vacation to Dubai, and she had a fixed feeding and sleeping schedule at home. This made me a bit anxious beforehand, considering there was a 3-hour time difference in Dubai. I ‘ve put together practical tips to help you plan a stress-free trip to Dubai with your baby. From dealing with the time difference to arranging bottle feeding and ensuring a good night’s sleep, I share my best advice and experiences. Read on to discover how you can enjoy a relaxing vacation in Dubai with a baby.

This blog is written by Sophie.

Share & pin this blog!

Dubai with a baby - time difference

As new parents, our vacation to Dubai with a baby was quite an experience. It was not only the first time we traveled with our little one, J., but also the first time we visited a country with a time difference. We were a bit worried about how our baby would cope with the time change, but we had a clever plan to make the transition as smooth as possible.

Upon arriving in Dubai, we decided to stick to our home clock for the first day. This way, our baby would have her last evening bottle at the usual time of 7:30 PM at home, even though it was already 9:30 PM in Dubai. So, we gave her milk at 9:30 PM, put her to bed, and woke her up in the morning to start the day at the local time.

Because we wanted a bit more relaxation on our vacation, we decided to wake our baby at 8:30 AM instead of 7:00 AM, as we do at home. This worked perfectly since her first evening bottle at local time was later. It worked like a charm, and our vacation went smoothly. Since then, we’ve applied this trick on our other trips, even where there’s no time difference. It works perfectly, and our vacations have become even more relaxing. After all, vacation means sleeping in longer!

Get our FREE preset for the very best vacation photos

Subscribe to our newsletter

Dubai with a baby - Bottle feeding

During our vacation, we also wanted to explore the desert, but we knew it was important to have enough milk for our baby with us. We came up with a smart solution by bringing boiled water in a thermos. This allowed us to prepare warm milk all day, possibly supplemented with a bottle of cold water. This way, we didn’t have to worry about the temperature of the milk for our baby.

Another tip we discovered for giving her milk in restaurants was that every restaurant in Dubai could warm a bottle for us, but only using a bain-marie. No restaurant could offer us a microwave. It’s important to request the warming in advance, as bain-marie takes a bit longer, and we all know that a hungry baby in a restaurant is not ideal! 😉

Dubai with a baby - Naps

One of the most important items we took on our trip was the Deryan travel crib. It’s the most convenient baby bed to travel with. It fits perfectly in our suitcase, weighs almost nothing, and is easy to carry. Additionally, the crib is UV- and mosquito-resistant, which is fantastic when we travel to warmer and tropical destinations. But most importantly, it allowed our baby to sleep comfortably anywhere. We used the Deryan travel crib at the beach and by the pool. Our daughter slept like a dream, and we felt reassured.

These were my tips for an unforgettable trip to Dubai with a baby. Have a great vacation!

About Sophie

Hi, I’m Sophie, and together with my husband Seba and our daughter J., we will embark on a world trip at the end of June 2023. At the time of departure, our daughter will be almost 2 years old. We have taken this step together because we want to witness our daughter grow up. We feel like we miss too much of her very short childhood and want to enjoy it to the fullest. We also want to escape the daily routine and embrace a seize-the-day mentality. Additionally, I’ve always been in love with the world, and I want to meet and get to know it from all angles.

When I look back at all the trips I or we have taken, both within and outside of Europe, I particularly remember Portugal with a very warm heart. In the summer of 2021, we rented a van and drove along the entire coastline #babymoon. The country offers a beautiful diversity; beaches to dream about, nature to hike in, and cities to get lost in. We set off with the idea of starting in the south and leisurely making our way back up the coast toward home. We had nothing else planned. Going with the flow gave us a wonderful trip.

It is with that mindset that we now want to travel around the world. Okay, it requires a little preparation: we have outlined a rough route, taking into account the rainy season, high or low season, and local festivities, but beyond our first flight and first accommodation, we have and will not book anything else. We do want to visit 4 continents in 12 months, so we are planning for 3 months per continent.

Follow Sophie on Instagram: @twee.en.ik.reis.mee