Best Types of Baby Carriers for Travel (and Everyday!)

There are so many types of baby carriers out there. From slings, to soft structured carriers, to meh dais, and even shoulder harnesses – there are tons of options if you’re searching for the best type of baby carrier for travel.

Babywearing is, in my opinion, a necessity for traveling with babies and toddlers. Even if you’ve got the best travel stroller in the world, there are many situations in any trip that require you to have a baby carrier – or be stuck holding the baby in your arms all day.

There are lots of recommendations for specific brands of baby carriers out there, but I wanted to create a resource to explain what the different types of carriers are, and my insights into the pros and cons of each for travel – and for everyday use. I did link to some examples in each category, and shared my personal faves as well.

Ultimately, what works for my family will not necessarily be what works for yours, but I have a LOT of experience traveling with babies and toddlers (and a lot of experience babywearing), and can speak to what you should look for in a baby carrier for travel.

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Soft Structured Carriers

These are the most common baby carriers, and include the big names like Ergo, Lillebaby, BabyBjorn, and Tula. As the name implies, they are structured, with a comfortable seat for your child. They generally have buckles, making them the easiest baby carrier to learn to wear. They also tend to be very ergonomically designed to relieve pressure on the wearer.

SSC’s are a great choice for travel because the ergonomic design will allow you to wear your child comfortably for a long time. On the other hand, they can tend to get hot, and compared to other carriers, they take up more suitcase space.

While some, like the Ergo OMNI 360 pictured above, can be used in different positions, they generally don’t allow the same flexibility that some of the other babywearing options do. You will also need to adjust them anytime you switch between you and your partner, and any time you switch between differently-sized children.

Ergo is my personal favorite soft structured carrier, and has an awesome bundle package option on their website (and free shipping, too!) – find it here:

Ring Slings and Pouches

Ring slings are essentially a long strip of cotton, linen, or silk with two rings on the end. You can thread the material through the rings and it makes a comfy little pouch for the baby. These can range from being very inexpensive and easy to find, to luxurious like the high-end silk Sakura Bloom.

There are also pouch slings, which are the same idea but without a ring. I think of them almost like a cross-body bag for your child. They are not adjustable like a ring sling, so you have to have the exact right size for the age of your child. But they are super easy – you just throw it on and snuggle the baby in.

Many people love their ring slings, but I found the asymmetry to be too hard on my back, even with a newborn. For travel, I would only recommend a sling if you use one and love it already. They have a learning curve, and while they are perfect for snuggly time around the house and low impact walks, they are not as well-suited for long excursions.

Framed Hiking Backpacks

If you’re going to be doing a lot of hiking or plan to carry your child over long distances, you might consider a framed hiking backpack carrier. These differ from the soft structured carriers because of their metal frames, and most have features like suspension systems and harnesses that make them ideal for carrying more weight for a long time.

This is the only type of true baby carrier that I have no personal experience with, so here is a helpful article that I found from Switchback Travel comparing hiking backpack baby carriers. If you are an avid outdoors-person, this seems like a great option! If you’re sticking to the city or are a minimalist packer, these do take up a LOT of space and might not be worthwhile for standard travel.

Wraps

Wraps probably have the steepest learning curve of any babywearing device, but they also provide the most flexibility. A wrap is just a long piece of fabric that you wrap around your body in a certain way to create a perfect carrier for your child. Wraps are generally very inexpensive, and the big names are Moby and Boba. The Baby K’tan is another style of wrap that is sewn partially wrapped, so it is a little easier to use. The downside is that you need the right fit, but I loved this compromise for my first foray into babywearing.

I love wraps for travel because of the versatility. There is nothing to adjust when you switch between yourself or your partner, because you have to start from scratch every time you put it on. And that’s not as bad as it sounds – once you’ve got it down, it will take you hardly any time to get the baby strapped on and ready to go, with a completely custom fit that changes as the baby grows. You can also choose from several different ways to wear a wrap… you just have to learn how to do each different type of wear.

Wraps also come in several different materials, ranging from stiff, to stretchy, to soft. In Thailand, I borrowed a mesh wrap similar to this from a friend, and it was perfect for days at the beach. Depending on the material, most wraps are easy to throw in the washing machine, which is especially good when you’re traveling.

One downside of wraps is that the lack of structure can also mean lack of ergonomic support. You can position the baby perfectly on your body if you know how, but a wrap can’t distribute the load in the same way that a soft structured carrier can. They tend to get more challenging as kids get older and heavier. They also hold the baby tight against your body, which can get pretty sweaty, depending on the material.

Meh Dais (or Beh Dais)

This is my current carrier of choice for travel. I am in love with my Fidella meh dai (the Fly Tai). It’s kind of a mix between a wrap and a soft structured carrier. Meh dais, a traditional Chinese carrier, have a little bit of structure in that they have a seat panel and sometimes reinforced or padded shoulders, but instead of buckles. they are secured with long strips of fabric like a wrap. This gives them a lot more flexibility than the SSC’s, and you don’t need to worry about making any adjustments when you switch between wearers.

They do have some learning curve to wear, but they are easier than a wrap – especially to get some of the more “advanced” wears, like my favorite back-carry! They take up less room than a structured carrier, and you can toss them in the laundry machine – a huge bonus. I think this makes them a perfect choice for travel.

You might see these referred to as Mei Tais and pronounced like the tropical drink, but that is not the proper naming structure and is considered offensive by many. Stick with meh dai or bei dai – the traditional Cantonese and Mandarin names for these carriers. This is the only reason I hesitate to recommend Fidella, actually – I love my meh dai, but I do not love that they still use the outdated naming.

There are other similar-but-different styles of carriers from Asian cultures, like the Japanese onbuhimo or the Korean podeagi. If you look into meh dais, consider checking these out as well!

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Kangaroo Shirts

Kangaroo shirts are a bit of a new fad, including lots of options popping up for men, but they are technically not a baby carrier. These are shirts designed to hold the baby close to you, and are perfect for skin-to-skin contact. Great for snuggling a newborn around the house! Not great for travel, as they’re not a hands-free way to transport your child. The baby is nestled sweetly into the shirt, but it is not safely supporting the baby for you.

Shoulder Carrier

This is another new thing that I don’t really know much about. The MiniMeis is kind of like a hiking backpack carrier, but it puts the baby up on top of the shoulders instead of on the back. Interesting idea, and very heavily marketed towards dads (and to be fair, I do tend to see more fathers shoulder-carry than baby-wear).

I would love to hear someone’s feedback about how these really are for travel. I think it would be a fun option for the baby to see everything, but it does take up space because, like a hiking carrier, it is structured.

Hip carrier

I’ve been seeing this pop up on my ads a bunch lately. (Always with a grandma using it – not sure what google thinks about me!) It’s basically a padded seat that attaches to your hip and creates a spot for the child to sit. I’m chucking this in with “maybe good for around the house, but not for travel”.

Finding more babywearing resources

Choosing the best type of baby carrier for travel can be daunting. You’ll ideally want to leave some time to practice babywearing around home before your trip, so that both you and your child are comfortable with it.

One resource that I found extremely helpful when I was learning to babywear (and then later when I wanted to learn a new style of baby carrier and then AGAIN when I wanted to learn some advanced carries) was a local babywearing group.

This group was formerly part of Babywearing International – an amazing nonprofit that hosted local meet-ups and lending libraries, as well as having a super informative website. I’m not linking that website because……..

….now it’s become a CBD oil sales page. Called Babywearing International. Ugghhh.

HOWEVER. Many of the local chapters still exist! You can find them by searching for your city (or maybe state) + babywearing. My local chapter, Seattle Babywearers, holds a monthly meeting where they will teach you all about your carrier, and even have dozens of carriers that you can borrow for a few months to try out. How amazing is that?!

There are also lot’s of great babywearing groups on Facebook, where you can get all of your questions answered, and even buy used carriers from people who know everything there is to know about babywearing. This is my favorite of those groups, called The Babywearing Swap. I have learned so much from this group, and bought from them as well.

I hope that this list has given you the information that you need to start narrowing down exactly what type of baby carrier is going to work best for you, whether it is for travel or just for your everyday life. Feel free to leave me any questions in the comments – I am happy to help if I can!

And side note – if this website ever turns into a CBD oil sales page… I’m either dead or laughing my way to my private island in the Caribbean.

to pin for later: