Travel Gear

The JL Childress is the gate check bag most UK flying parents end up buying after their first trip. The bright orange nylon is unmistakable at baggage reclaim, the shoulder strap makes carrying through a terminal manageable, and the heavy-duty fabric has survived the kind of baggage hold treatment that would destroy a flimsy bag. For holidays flying with a pushchair, this is the practical default.

Buggy hooks are the most underrated pushchair accessory and these Clippasafe clips are the ones to buy. Two hooks under £8, universal carabiner fit, and 5kg load capacity each — meaning you can hang two decent shopping bags, a changing bag, and a beach tote from your handlebars without drama. Every parent discovers buggy hooks by accident and immediately wonders why they did not have them sooner.

If you already trust the Koo-di Sun & Sleep Shade at home, this is the travel version: same UPF 50+ mesh construction, same universal fit, but designed to fold flat into a compact pouch for the suitcase. On a hot summer holiday — Costa del Sol, Greek islands, even a blazing UK staycation — this is the shade you want. The nap-shade function is particularly useful abroad: babies are more likely to nap on holiday if the visual cues match home.

A portable changing mat transforms holiday nappy changes from a horror show into a manageable event. The OXO Tot folds down to a slim clutch that drops into a changing bag outer pocket, unfolds to give a clean wipeable surface wherever you are — airport floors, restaurant baby-change shelves, beach huts. The storage pockets hold exactly what you need for a quick change. At under £19, this is the travel accessory we wish we had bought before the first holiday.

The hiccapop fan is the accessory parents on beach holidays genuinely cannot manage without. The flexible gooseneck gives you total control over where the airflow goes — at baby height, at the hood edge, or pointed backwards at a toddler on a buggy board. USB-C recharging means no hunting for AA batteries in a foreign supermarket. If you are going anywhere warm with a baby in a pushchair, pack this.

The Hauck Cozy Me fills the gap between a bulky winter footmuff and no footmuff at all. TOG 3.0 is the right warmth for European shoulder-season trips, UK spring and autumn holidays, and any destination where evenings are cool but days are warm. The zip-off top is a genuinely clever detail — turn it into a snuggle bag for just the legs when the temperature rises. Under £28 for a travel-appropriate footmuff is fair.

A compact travel rain cover is one of those things you do not realise you need until you are in a foreign city and it suddenly pours. The BabyTrack folds tiny, weighs almost nothing, and is genuinely universal in fit. It is not the best rain cover on the market — at home you want something with proper ventilation — but for a holiday bag or nappy bag backup, it is the right answer. Buy it before you travel, not at the airport.