We recently returned from a 3,214-mile round trip journey to the state of Rajasthan in northern India. We spent a week exploring the cities and historical sites of Jaipur, Jaisalmer and Jodhpur. It was our first visit to Rajasthan, and our first family vacation with our 4.5-month-old in tow.
Note: When we did this trip, we’d lived in India for half of Saira’s life, so she was already fully acclimated to living here.
If you’re thinking of doing a similar trip, here are some things we’d want you to know based on our experiences:
To stroller or not to stroller:
Don’t bother with one. The streets and lanes and tourist sights are not conducive for pushing a stroller. You’ll be winding up and down stairs, over rough cobblestone and through tight crowds.
It was much more practical for me to wear Saira in my Baby K’Tan. When she got tired of that, she nestled happily in the crook of my arm, facing outward and taking in the sights.
To car seat or not to car seat:
We chose not to bring our car seat on this trip. Originally we had planned to do less driving and more bussing.
To bus or not to bus:
We chose neither of the public transportation options (bus or train), though this was a decision that unraveled as our trip progressed. We had planned to take a 12-hour overnight bus from Jaipur to Jaisalmer, but in the 11th hour, decided against it and bought one-way flight tickets. That was a decision I still feel extraordinarily confident about.
We thought we’d take a bus from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur (five hours) and from Jodhpur to Jaipur (six hours) but we met a guy, as one does while traveling, and he quoted us a good price for a private AC car for both of our road trips. Yes, please.
We probably would’ve bussed it if Saira wasn’t with us. But the online reviews were terrible and our Indian friends here cautioned us, so we chose the reliable and reliably comfortable option. With temps in the 100s, I wanted the guarantee of AC on my face on demand. Thank you, Saira.
To desert glamp or not to desert glamp:
We had AC, an en suite bathroom and the most plush down comforter, so it hardly feels credible to call it camping. You can totally do this with an infant. (The desert camp I would not do with Saira – not even sure I would do this without her – is riding camels into the sand dunes and sleeping under the stars on some blankets.
Our decision to involve her in the short Jeep tour and 30-minute camel ride to the sunset point evolved. Initially, I wanted to stay back at the tent because I didn’t want her out in the heat. But by 5, the evening had begun to cool and in the shade, it was cooler outside than in our tent. (It took some time for the AC to eradicate the sun’s oppressive sweltering beating.)
She slept through the Jeep ride and by the time we got to the camels, it was, again, cooler, and our guides assured me it would be OK. I handed sleeping Saira to our Jeep driver, donned my Baby K’Tan wrap, snuggled her into it and got on my steed with one hand supporting Saira’s head and the other holding our trusty umbrella to ward off the sun’s dying rays.
She woke up with about five minutes left of the camel ride, and we enjoyed the sunset over the sand dunes, taking turns sliding down them on a boogie board. Her and I took a breastfeeding break in the Jeep, she slept on the short ride back to the camp and we refreshed ourselves for the evening entertainment of Rajasthani song and dance.
She enjoyed some of the dancing and music, hung out with the camp’s manager and then insisted on quiet time and possibly a bed. Her and I retired early to the tent where I gladly tucked her in – it had been an eventful day for her four months of life.
So yeah, do the desert camp. Be prepared for the moments you want it to end, but know those are passing and you’ll (hopefully) count it as a trip highlight, as we did.
To breastfeed or bottle feed:
We’ve been breastfeeding, so we kept breastfeeding. Honestly, Saira’s need to eat coincided with my need to sit under a fan, so it worked out. Mostly I was able to feed her in the comfort of our room and when that wasn’t available, then, well, I fed her where was most convenient and cool.
To touch or not to touch:
Lots of people touched her cheeks and hands – some asked, most didn’t. Some took pictures of her – some asked, some didn’t. Other people wanted to hold her. One woman in particular appeared to be sleeping on her stoop, bolted upright when she saw Saira and gestured to hold her in a way that felt like a command. She looked crestfallen when we politely declined. Another lady wanted to touch Saira and when I smiled and said, “no,” she grabbed my arm as we walked by and didn’t let go until it was impossible for her to keep a grip against my pace.
This got a little overwhelming, especially when I would have a group of five or six women and/or young girls gather around us at regular intervals in the already-crowded palaces and forts we were exploring. Our tour guides were helpful in warding people off and Murali reminded me that I didn’t have to acknowledge every person who wanted to greet her. We instituted a no-pictures and no-strangers-holding-her-policy. We became adept at recognizing when people’s hands were moving in for the cheek-squeeze and kindly asked them to refrain.
Other tips:
- Take an umbrella
- Don’t be out in the hottest part of the day
- Be mindful of hydration (for you and baby)
- Shower baby every day
- Indian airports have infant care rooms which are totally awesome
- If you’re like us and stay in hostels in old parts of the city, treat yourselves to a nice hotel on the last night.
- Be prepared for air pollutants. In some cases, I covered her face with a blanket.
We like to travel light and on this trip, we had two carry-ons and one backpack. One carry-on was mostly Saira’s stuff and the backpack was her diaper bag. Here’s a peak into some of the things we took for her, keeping in mind that we didn’t do laundry for a week.
What to pack and what not to pack:
- PACK: A blanket for every day (our favorites are light muslin ones which are perfect for just about everything you can think of: sun shade, padding to sleep on, burp cloth, cover.) There’s a lot of dust so it was imperative to have a clean one every day.
- PACK: Two onesies a day. Yep, we took 14 and only brought home two we didn’t use.
- PACK: PJs and not necessarily one for every night. We re-used some.
- PACK: Two packages of wet wipes. We underestimated how many we’d use for hands and cheeks, so ended up buying more.
- PACK: The diaper-changing pad thingie, which I was totally skeptical of when I added it to our baby registry, but it’s been used so many times. Sometimes it’s used as a diaper changing pad and other times as padding when we lay her down on tables and floors.
- PACK: Diapers to last a week. We took 48. Came home with six.
- DON’T PACK: Your breast pump. I thought maybe I’d pump a bottle a day to have when we were out. Useless idea.
- DON’T PACK: Her mosquito net. We took it, didn’t use it, left it at a stop and had to buy a replacement. However, I’m glad we had it just in case. So … maybe pack it?
Our itinerary and the sights we saw:
Thursday – Early morning flight to Jaipur. Sightseeing all day. Spent the night here.
- Amer Fort and palaces (two-hour paid tour)
- Nahargarh Fort (one-hour self-guided tour)
- City Palace (one-hour self-guided tour)
- Hawa Mahal (photo opp)
- Jal Mahal (photo opp)
Friday – Sightseeing in Jaipur. Afternoon flight to Jaisalmer. Spent the night here.
- Jantar Mantar – Jaipur (one-hour self-guided tour)
- Jaislamer Fort
Saturday – Sightseeing in Jaisalmer. Spent the night here.
- Jaislamer Fort
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Patwon Ki Haveli
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Salim Singh Ki Haweli
Sunday – Damodra Desert Camp
- Jeep tour
- Camel ride and sunset on the dunes
- Evening Rajasthani dance and art performances
Monday – Drove to Jodhpur. Spent the night here.
- Evening dinner at Pal Haveli
Tuesday – Sightseeing in Jodhpur. Spent the night here.
- Mehrangarh Fort (two-hour paid tour)
- Ghanta Ghar
Wednesday – Drove to Jaipur. Spent the night here.
- Evening Rajasthani dance performances
Thursday – Relaxed in our hotel. Caught an evening flight home.
- Jawahar Circle Garden
Overall, traveling with Saira wasn’t a drudgery, and that’s a good thing, given the meaning of her name.
For her, the trip contained all of her favorite things: Mommy and daddy holding her nearly all the time, long walks and lots of things and people to look at. By the end of the trip, we were all ready to get home to escape the heat and constant curious stares, and we were also, #truetoform, planning our next trip before this one had completely ended.
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