I’ve been a working + traveling mother in various capacities with all three of my children now. I’ve taken short trips and longer trips. Trips by plane and train and you name it. I’ve become accustomed to what I need to pack to pump while away and how to best manage bringing my milk home, too. Here I’m sharing some tips for traveling with breastmilk, because I sure remember the first time I was preparing I could have used all the help I could get.

 

How to Pack for Pumping While Traveling

• Get your pump + your parts + bring a manual pump just in case.
• I bring my pump and one set of pump parts as a carry on item if I’m flying. I usually have to pump during my travel time (in airport or on flight) and prefer to have it with me anyway. So, I pack one set of pump parts and pump in a bag to take with me. This includes one set of bottles to pump into + freezer storage bags that I transfer the milk immediately into and put in my small cooler – also packed in my carry on bag. (Note: It is not my preference to pump directly into the storage bags.)
• I pack an extra set of pump parts in a gallon sized ziplock bag and put them in my luggage.
• I pack extra gallon sized ziplock bags and and quart sized bags, too. I use the gallon sized for keeping each set of parts together. After use they can sometimes have spilled milk drops, so replacing them is necessary. I use the quart sized bags to fill with ice while traveling to keep my milk cold.
• Cleaning supplies: I bring a bottle of soap and steam clean bags. These are a life saver! I also tried this Medela sanitizer spray during my last travel and found it to be helpful when you quickly need to clean and don’t have a sink to do so.

How to Pump & Store Milk While Traveling

• I’ve learned so much about pumping throughout my three very different journeys. What I’ve recognized– because I have an under supply (or just adequate supply), is that I have to be very diligent in my routine when I’m exclusively pumping.

Here are the tips that work best for me:

• Be prepared with my supply boosting strategies if needed. Read all of those here!
• Pump at the same intervals in which I would be nursing if I was home with my baby. This isn’t always possible, but I do my very best to keep my demand the same while I’m gone as it would be if I’m home.
• Pump until my breasts are empty, not just for a designated amount of time. This has been huge in keeping my milk production steady while exclusively pumping. It’s also very helpful in my effort to collect at least as much milk as baby is drinking at home if I am off a bit in my pumping schedule.
• I always store my milk in freezer bags because they take up far less space than bottles + I’ll end up freezing the milk anyway.
• I’m sure to check the temperature of hotel refrigeration because often the small units are not turned to a very cold setting to conserve energy. Just be sure to check on this so your milk is properly stored!

How to Get Your Breastmilk Home

I have done this in a variety of ways, so I’m going to give some highlights.

1. Ship it home. During my most recent travel while pumping, I used a service called MilkStork to milk my milk home via overnight FedEx service. I did this for a couple of reasons: a. I have not been building my freezer stash greatly due to the fact that I am with my baby far more than I am not. Therefore, I didn’t have an extensive amount of milk to cover all of the days I was to be away; and b. I was going to be away for more days than milk is to stay in refrigeration for, so I would have had to freeze it and then take it home which makes me more nervous of spoiling milk.

Related: The Secret to Building a Breastmilk Freezer Stash as a SAHM

It was a really easy coordination process to get the MilkStork boxes delivered to my destination. The boxes themselves are conveniently designed as a little cooler unit to hold milk storage bags and are available in 32 ounces or 72 ounces. I did have to calculate how much milk I would collect based on the days I wanted to ship a box + have the milk delivered home to determine which size and what quantity of boxes I needed.

Once I had the boxes and filled with my milk + wanted to ship home, I had the option of taking the box to FedEx myself for overnight delivery, or when I was staying at a hotel, have the front desk ensure it was picked up by their daily FedEx visit. I did both based on where I was staying.

Considerations:

• Seal your milk bags tightly. I must have had a bit of a user error, because I (very) sadly lost a few ounces of milk in my first box that was overnighted home. The milk, otherwise, arrived safely just as it said it would – for both boxes that were delivered.
• Timing of FedEx Pick Up & Weekend Delivery. Different FedEx locations (and hotels) have different cut off times to receive a package for overnight shipping options. The hotel I was staying at had a very early day pick up, so I missed the opportunity to get my box to them (and wanted to pump that whole day before sending a box of milk home). One local FedEx location had a 7p cut off time and other had an 8p cut off time. There are options for Saturday delivery, but not in every area, so make sure to check this first. Sundays do not have delivery options.
• You can also order the boxes with a bag so you can use it to carry your milk on the plane (or whatever transportation you are taking). Because I most recently came home from my trip on a Sunday, it made the most sense for me to carry the box on with me for my flight home. This eliminated the need to pack a small cooler, which I have done in the past.
• The cost to ship (anything) overnight can be quite high. This is a service that more businesses are starting to recognize as a necessary reimbursement for employees, however that doesn’t mean all of them cover the cost at this time. I would have to make consideration of how much milk + when needed to be shipped home carefully to keep my cost as efficient as possible.
• If you have any more questions about MilkStork, visit the website and watch the video! It has a great explanation of how the process works.

 

2. Carry it with you.

• I have used both a small cooler with ice and the MilkStork box to carry breastmilk on a flight with me. Both have been sufficient, though the MilkStork box was much easier because I didn’t have to hassle with getting ice, melting ice, etc.. I trusted the cooler principles of the box itself and got the milk safely home.
• TSA does have to check your milk. I have never had any TSA agent or travel experience that stated my milk storage bags were too high of quantity. Most of my individual bags hold between 3-5 ounces each and last trip, I carried on nearly 80 ounces of milk. Be prepared for it to take a little extra time going through security because of your milk, though!
• If you are using a different mode of transportation and are using a cooler, be sure your ice will last for the trip or swap it out as frequently as you can to keep your milk at the appropriate refrigeration temperature. I just also took a train and had my breastmilk with, too. It was a relatively short ride, so I didn’t have to change any ice + had brought two ice packs from home. Dry ice is also an option!

 

Some other tips + encouragement for traveling with breastmilk:

• Pump and save as much as you can before you leave.
• Nurse your little one right before you go!
• Work at estimating how much your little one nurses + consumes through the night. This can be tricky, but do your best and stick to your schedule accordingly.
• Be as organized as possible. Organize a packing list. Organize ordering your MilkStork boxes. Organize your cooler transportation, ice or dry ice. You’ll want to feel as prepared as possible when you’re preparing to travel + pump.
• Pack extra. That spare set of parts will probably save you. You can never have too many freezer bags (though they are also so wonderfully included in the MilkStork boxes!). Pack extra snacks. You’ll be hungry.
• Get support. It’s going to feel like an extra job to pump and be away. But you can do it. Other mamas have and you will make it out okay, too. Check in with a friend, heck, write me a note here! Take pictures of your milk stash. Have someone at home send you a happy picture of your baby drinking that milk too. Anything to keep you happy too, mama. And sane. Because holy insanity it is sometimes when you are traveling + pumping.
• If you have more questions, I wrote this article for pumpspotting when Sylvie was still nursing + there are a lot more traveling with breastmilk resources over there too.

 

It may seem a bit daunting, especially if you are going to be away for an extended period of time, but, you can do it. Think through the logistics, make your packing list, stay organized and stay focused. You are capable! And, if you accidentally spill or lose any ounces along the way, just remember it’s totally okay to cry. And it will feel SO good when you get back home.

 

XO