Toddler Sleeping Arrangement in a Hotel

We went to Disney a few months ago and had a 2 bedroom condo at the Floridays. We got the crib thinking she might feel more comfortable in that (she was almost 3), but she slept right in the middle of the big double bed. She slept fine - probably from the exhaustion of Disney. We put extra pillows on each side of her to help prevent her from rolling off. She didn't fall out once. You could probably request a crib and see what she prefers. Good luck!!

If you are worried about her falling off the bed I would put all the bedding on the floor and let her "camp out". She will probably think it's fun. Or maybe just sleep with her. I always slept with my daughter when traveling in hotels and she slept pretty good since it was a special treat to have mom in her bed. No need to bring extra stuff that way.

In hotels, we have used chairs, coolers, anything next to the bed to use as "bed rails," just have to be creative. Good luck!

My boys are 6.5 and 3 and have slept in many hotels in our various travels, and all hotels have pack and plays, some have cots. However we usually get a double room (two beds) and one sleeps with each child. We have also made them a bed on the floor with extra blankets and pillows and hats worked out fine too.

Don't stress, she is 3yrs old and can handle a bit of change, she'll be fine in a bed, on the floor, or in a pack and play at the hotel. Call your hotel and ask if they have a cot or pack and play.... most hotels don't have a charge for this.

I didn't read everyone else's responses, but what we did and still do is just ask for a room with queen sized beds, not full. Our oldest either sleeps between us or we push the bed up against the wall, if it can, with either my husband or myself sleeping on the outside. Good luck.

I have 4 children, and each time we've traveled with one being fresh out of the crib, I pushed the hotel chairs together. Some hotels have the nice cushy arm-chairs, which make a nice 'bed' for the little one, but when we were reduced to the wooden chairs, I put them up against the wall with the back toward the room to keep the little one from falling out.

You could also talk to the front desk, sometimes they have bed rails or roll-aways designed for toddlers in your situation.

Best of luck!

I am in a hotel with my daughter, who is two and half, right now. My daughter rolls A LOT when sleeping so we were going to bring a bed rail along but forgot it SO this is what we did:

pushed the full size bed up against the wall and then took four - five pillows and put them all around the "bare" or non-wall side of the bed under the sheets to create a safe non-fall zone for my daughter. We tucked the sheet under each side of the bed to keep the pillows in place.

My daughter is a very light sleeper so thankful we have always been able to get a room that has a bedroom and seperate living room so she can nap and go to bed early in peace.

Best of luck! Also call ahead and ask the hotel what they have, they may have a Pack-N-Play, bed rails or crib to help accomadate you better.

I am with you - the better the kids sleep the better the entire vacation will be! I don't know if you're going to get away with not carrying something. FYI, I will be in the same situation this summer. I just purchased and haven't even received it yet, Regalo My Cot Portable Bed. I don't want to lug my pack n play either, and this is more like a bed. Good luck.

Some hotels actually have pack and plays that you can use for sleeping or cot works too. When we stayed at a hotel with 2 toddlers my husband slept with one and I slept in other bed with the other. My husband and I blocked them from falling off one side and the other side we stacked pillows up and also tucked the blanket tightly underneath them so it was tight and they couldn't fall out. It worked well.

L.~
Depending on the hotel you stay at they should have an option for a chrib/pack n play. I work for Choice Hotels and our hotels offer that free of charge! It's a nice little perk to have! Good Luck!
~T. T. :)

I have my daughter lie sideways in the bed so she is close to the headboard and use pillows on the other side of her. It seems to give her comfort and she does it at home sometimes too! Good luck!

We are expecting a new baby in Feb. so on our week long Thanksgiving trip this year, we decided we needed to get the 2 year old to try out a new thing instead of the pack n play (although we have 2 cribs at home, so she still sleeps in that regularly) - we found oune of these "ready bed" inflatable beds at Big Lots, it has a built-in (removable & washable) cover/sleeping bag, and an included battery powered pump, it is very compact when uninflated, rolled up in its own carrying bag, about the size of a very small sleeping bag....it was only $15 there. She did GREAT IN IT!!! Only rolled onto the floor the first couple nights, and stayed alseep even rolling out over the little bumpers.

Here are some links to where you can find similar things:

http://www.amazon.com/tag/ready%20bed

(this one is EXACTLY what we have)
http://cgi.ebay.com/Winnie-Pooh-READY-BED-Inflatable-Slum...

http://www.leapsandbounds.com/catalog/product.jsp?product...

She went right back to her crib at home with no problems, too, so if you had to use a pack n play, you'd probably be ok, too!

Good Luck!

Jessie

Contact your hotel. They may have roll-away beds to rent or use during your stay. Roll-away beds are typically low to the ground so you daughter should be ok if she rolls out if it. Some hotels have stuff for child proofing the room, maybe they have guard rails too.

Most have free cribs or pack'n plays available. That's what we do.

one more thing to add that i have not seen is we have taken off the hotel bedspreads and made their own special bed on the floor. if there are 2 beds use both bedspreads. my boys would get excited to do this. we were worried about them rolling off the beds, too.

I would NOT bring a porta crib since all is going well with toddler bed. Ask the hotel for an arrangement that has a sofa bed. These are lowere to the ground and will make your child feel special and on vacation.
At 3 years old she is not in much danger of falling out of bed.

i am a 54 yr old mother of 2 in 30s, 1 in 20s and a 14 yr old - will be first time grandma in Feb.

We purchased a blow-up toddler mattress from Step Ahead. It has bumpers on the side so my daughter did not fall out. Also it came in a small bag so it could easily fit in a suitcase (about the size of a duffle bag). A toddler sheet fits on it too so we brought the Little Mermaid sheets she was used to sleeping on. My daughter slept great in it. However, just make sure you plug in the air pump as soon as you get to the hotel because it takes about an hour to charge to blow up the mattress. Enjoy your trip!

Call the hotel and see if they have a cot you can place in the room. When we had to take our twins to an out-of-town funeral thats what we did, and it was at no additional cost. If they don't have the cot they may have an alternative that you can use for free or at a rate worth paying to not bring a pack-n-play.

We have 2 toddlers (3 1/2 and 2), so in the past, we would get a King bed at a hotel and all sleep together. They thought that was a special treat and just loved it. During our last trip, we tried 2 full beds instead, and had both boys sleep together in one bed. They did fine there, too. The 2 year-old yelled when he couldn't get up into the bed (but he eventually figured it out), we didn't have any issues with anyone falling out. I'd leave the side rails, pack n' plan and sleeping bag at home! Have a nice trip! :)

What worked for us is to have a roll-away cot sent to our room upon check-in (or some places let you "reserve" them and they will be waiting for you in the room). Then we've either: put it against the wall and moved the bed against it (which is usually a little higher, acting like a rail of sorts that they can't roll over or out of), or if the bed won't move, take the mattress off the cot and put in on the floor in the corner. Some people have done with in the closet or dressing area as well, so the TV or light doesn't bother a sleeping child when the adults are still awake. You might have to take a look at the room when you get there to see the best configuration, but if you have that cot it will provide you with all the padding and bedding you need.

At many hotels you can rent or just ask for bed bumpers and they will have them. When we go to Disney we ask for them and get them for free. Most hotels also have a pack and play you can rent if you go that route.

I have found that a childrens sleeping bag works well, our daughter thinks it is neat because its a special thing.
-E. R, mother to 4year old daughter

My daughter is also 3 but she started to climb out of her crib at 18 months so she's been in a toddler bed for a while now. When we stay in a hotel, we get 2 beds and i sleep in the bed with her - 1 bed isn't enough room if it's not a king as she kicks in her sleep.

When we travel we take along a small tent & let our son sleep in that. It gives him his own space & he thinks it is more fun. It also blocks out some of the light & of course visual stimulation that can be very distracting to toddlers.

Several of our friend also do this & we all swear by it.

Good luck.

It also works when camping, just put the small tent set up inside a larger on & they have thier own little room.

Hi L.!

Most hotels have a cot that you can wheel into the room.

This can be her "special" bed. Also, by Feb, she will be used to the whole bed thing! Have fun!

I read your question yesterday, but didn't have any good advice that someone else didn't already mention. Then I received my one step ahead catalog in the mail and noticed they had this inflatable bed roll that straps onto any bed. It cost about $40. If you don't get a catalog from them, then check out their website at www.onestepahead.com. It said it inflates in 5 minutes with an air pump. The roll acts as a guard rail on the side of the bed.

HTH,
A.

L.,

Hotel sleeping is just tricky, especially for kids who aren't used to it. I would put her in the middle of the bed with a pillow barracade on either side so she won't roll off or ask the hotel to bring in a cot or even a portacrib if you have to.

To get our kids to sleep in a hotel, we wait until their bedtime and darken the room and tell them to go to sleep. If someone is having a hard time, my husband or I lay next to them. It takes longer than normal because they are in an unfamiliar place, but eventually they go to sleep. After they do, we can turn the TV on really low until we are ready to go to sleep.

We also take a break every afternoon on vacation to come back to the hotel and nap. It really helps my kids enjoy their vacation more. Their naps are never as long as at home, but we all need the rest.

Good luck,
S.