Potty Training While Traveling

Key Takeaways

• Keep routines familiar. Bring your child’s potty seat and practice using it before the trip.

• Plan ahead. Schedule bathroom breaks every two hours and pack wipes, extra clothes, and a plastic sheet for overnight stays.

• Limit liquids during travel, but don’t let your child get dehydrated.

• Stay flexible. Expect setbacks, and offer comfort if your child feels anxious or constipated. If your child has started toilet training, travel may be tricky. Help keep things on an even keel by sticking to your normal, at-home routine as much as possible. You can reduce your child's wariness of using the toilet in unfamiliar places by bringing her potty seat along (if possible).

General Travel Guidelines

• Limit liquids if you are going by car or plane, but don't overcompensate so much that she becomes dehydrated.

• Plan on mandatory pit stops at least every two hours.

• Insist on a potty stop before you leave and at all rest stops along the way.

• If you're traveling by plane, take your child to toilet at the airport before you board.

• You may want to return to using training pants; if so, be sure they're used just for the trip.

• Be sure to bring wipes, a plastic bag, and a full change of clothes.

• If you're traveling overnight, carry a plastic sheet for the bed, and pack another one as a floor cover if you're using a portable potty.

• Watch out for constipation. It's often brought on by a change in diet, and it's a big barrier to staying dry.

• If your child refused to go in a strange place and is acting painfully overextended, put her in a warm bath and let her know it is okay to pee in the water, as she inevitably will. Once that happens, she'll likely realize that it's okay to go away from home and the problem is unlikely to recur.

Travel and Public Bathrooms

• Before you leave home, try to get your child to sit on the toilet. She doesn't need to produce anything, just to try.

• Either carry the potty with you or locate the bathrooms as soon as you arrive at your destination. It's unrealistic to expect a young child to wait when he feels the urge to go.

• Model good hygiene by using toilet seat covers or toilet tissue to cover the seat and by washing your hands thoroughly afterward.