Can the Maldives be done with a baby? Well of course! Ok, but how about staying in a water villa with a baby? Still yes, with some careful planning.
I would think staying in a Maldivian water villa is probably on most people’s bucket list.. And we’re no different.
So, if we were going to the Maldives of course we had to stay in one! But how would that work with a baby?
Now when we originally booked, bub was only 9 months old and not walking.
Then when we were travelling he would be 13 months. So we knew there was a very good possibility that he might be walking by then..
But what we weren’t expecting was that he started walking literally two weeks after booking!..
So fast forward, and now we’re really not sure how this will go with a walking, running and climbing toddler.
As you can imagine the lead up to the trip was filled with some anxiety.
I scoured YouTube trying to find videos so I could suss out if the water villa was “baby proof” enough.
From what videos I could find, the villa doors seemed secure enough, and at least there were railings on the balcony. But they weren’t exactly toddler friendly..
So I decided to invest in an infant life jacket. Which bub was just going to have to wear while we were in the villa.
Also brought a wrist buddy, so that when we were walking along the board walk, we wouldn’t have a lil man overboard situation.
Buying these things made me feel a little better about the situation. But as the trip neared closer I was still equal parts excited as anxious.
Check out this walk around clip of where we were staying – Brennia Kottefaru 🏝
Flying to the Maldives with a baby
We knew flying with a baby would be tough. But we were hoping for the best. Tried to be strategic and booked a night flight as bub usually sleeps through.
We also booked our flights as soon as our accommodation was confirmed, and when travelling with an infant on Singapore Airlines you can preselect your seats. And since we were booking five months in advance, we were able to secure the bassinet seats.
While we started off strong, about two hours in our best laid plans turned to shit. Somehow, though, we all made it through the 1st, 2nd and 3rd leg. But only just.
A 24-hour transit is never ideal at the best of times. Let alone with a little person, who just so happened to be teething 😬
Massive shout out to all the people on the flights that were awesome though. I know there would of been alot of people hating us as we were THAT family!.
But was surprised how many people were actually nice, helpful and supportive. And thankfully our trip home was much, much better!
Bassinet seat tip
For three flights we chose the forward zone seats which were right behind business class.. But to change it up on one flight we booked the bassinet seat further back near the emergency exits… Oh, how I wished we booked these seats for all the flights! Here’s the pros and cons of the seats:
Pros of the forward zone, window, bassinet seat
- We were able to get a window seat.
- One of the first to get off the plane (Which is a great option when your baby has screamed the whole flight, and you want to avoid everyone!)
Cons of the forward zone, window, bassinet seat
- Have to walk up a whole cabin to get to the toilets. Which is especially hard with a baby, infant or toddler.
- No space to just stand up or walk around unless you go all the way back to the toilets.
- Less chance of having a spare seat in your row as people like to sit up front.
- Arm rests don’t lift up.
Pros of bassinet seat near emergency exits
- Had room to stand up, both in our seats and near the doors.
- Seating area in general felt more spacious.
- Could walk around a bit.
- Scored a spare seat in our row.
- Arm rests lift up.
- Close to toilets (Usually I’d say this was a con but with a baby it’s a pro haha)
Cons of bassinet seat near emergency exits
- Can’t get a window seat as you can’t sit in the emergency exits with an infant on your lap.
Packing list for taking a baby to the Maldives
Since we were staying quite far out, we knew a trip to the local supermarket or store wasn’t quite possible. So, we made sure that we packed anything that we thought we might need for a week 🎒👇
- Life jacket
- Wrist buddy
- Floatation ring or arm floaties (Whichever bub prefers)
- First aid kit
- Prescription meds (Just in case)
- Any other over the counter meds – pain relief, allergies etc
- Nappies
- Wet wipes
- Formula and packaged baby food
- Sunscreen and after sun care
- General toiletries
- Hat and sunglasses (Whether bub wears them is another story 🙃)
- Swimmers
- Summer clothes – lots of singlets, shorts and t-shirts
- Couple of light long sleeve shirts and pants
Tips for taking a baby to the Maldives
- When booking your accommodation, try book a place that has a clinic on the island. Or at least research where the nearest one is. As all islands are either a speedboat or seaplane transfer away. (So if no clinic on the island – Best to keep location in mind in case of emergency.)
- Make sure you visit the Dr before your trip. That way bub can get any recommended travel vaccinations.
- While there get some scripts for any meds that you might need. For example: basic antibiotics, something for travellers diarrhoea, antibacterial ointment etc.
- Get bub some swimming lessons. Trust me you’re going to be in that turquoise blue water pretty much the whole trip! So best to get bub familiar with the water 💧
- Pack enough nappies, wet wipes, sunscreen etc. Because if you have to buy them at the resort it’s going to be $$$
- Try book a bassinet seat if possible (most major airlines have them but age/weight limits vary.) As it will hopefully make your flight a bit more comfortable and tolerable.
So, as you can see you can defintely visit the Maldives with a baby or toddler!
The scenery is absolutely beautiful, the locals and staff are friendly and helpful, and it’s a great place to chill out and make some awesome memories as a family ❤️
But, looking back on our trip, I probably went a bit overboard with the precautions.
As we didn’t really end up using the life jacket while in the villa. Or use the wrist buddy, as bub wouldn’t keep his shoes on, so we had to carry him everywhere instead!
And thankfully we didn’t need to use any of the prescription medication either.
Although the whole trip didn’t completely go off without a stitch…
But luckily it was just Dad who needed them 😆 And the island we were staying on had a clinic 😏!!
Which just goes to show, better to be prepared, and safe than sorry – because anything can happen!
