Travelling, Breastfeeding, Pumping on the go

bbfactory

Active Member
I would like to share my experience for breastfeeding moms who travel.

The TSA ruling to permit BM onboard does not apply in asia and the 100ml restriction to liquids still remains. The exemption applies only when you are travelling with your baby, and they will allow only quantities that is sufficient for the flight.

I could not bring my DS when I went on a 4 day business trip from Singapore to Hong Kong, so I packed a large cooler bag, a large freezer container(LocknLock), Lansinoh milk bags and some freezer bags.

Prior to my trip, I arranged for a local ice company for dry ice to be delivered to my hotel room on the day of my departure right before I checked out.

On the plane to and from Hong Kong, I informed the fight attendant and pumped in the toilet once the seat belt lights went off. It was a full flight but luckily, I didn't have a queue waiting for me outside. I requested for the EBM to be chilled for the remaining of the flight and some ice to keep it chilled on arrival.

I had a bar fridge in my hotel room that I used to chill the EBM. Every morning, I would then bring the EBM, pack it into my freezer bags, place it into the freezer container, and leave it to freeze in the office refrigerator. To save space in the freezer container, I would lay the milk bags flat.
At the end of my last day at the office, I brought the freezer container filled with frozen EMM milk bags and asked the hotel concierge to keep it frozen. I made sure I wrote my room number clearly on the package and it's contents.

The next morning when the dry ice was delivered to the room, I collected my freezer container of EBM from the concierge. I poured the dry ice (6lbs) into my large cooler bag, put the freezer container(with lid) in a large laundry bag, and packed it in my luggage.

It's important to pack the milk bags so that they don't have direct contact with the dry ice to prevent freezer burn.

I checked my luggage in at the airport. The dry ice kept the EBM well frozen for about 10 hrs. I have been planning for this trip for long time and I am very relieved and glad that I have managed to transport over 30 bags (3-4 oz each) of EMM home successfully.

If you have any travel stories to share, or questions on travelling and breastfeeding/pumping pls feel free to contribute.
 


Hi bbfactory

WOW !!!! tats a lot of work and arrangement but guess is all worth it. Anyway thanks for sharing.

As for me I pump & throw away the milk. I know it is very wasteful. My heart ache each time I throw the milk away.
 
hi bbfactory, i'm impressed with ur determination to bring back the EBM.. i've one biz trip planned, still thinking how to handle this EBM thing.. *sigh*.. very tempted to just throw away aft each pump for convenience.. but then again, i'm not sure.. still thinking..
 
hi apple, eh2345,

i hope my post can give u some ideas for your next trip.

in retrospect, it is not difficult. everyone can do it with some planning.

give it a try and let me know if you succeed.
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i latch my bb when i'm home so what i found really difficult and tiring was to wake up every 3hrs in the night to pump and then spend another good 20mins washing and sterilising pump parts.

i'm really impressed with to those mums who solely express.

now i just try to avoid as many business trips as i can while i'm still nursing.
 
Hi bb factory and mothers planning to Pump-on-the-Go,

I just want to share my experience too after having gone thru this personally abt 2weeks ago.

I thank GOD for leading me to this thread and saw bbfactory's posting. Thanks once again, bbfactory, for your selfless sharing and tireless clarification on what to prep and bring.

Before my trip to US, I was almost settled to just pump and throw till I saw this thread and subsequently, gathered more info about BF & Traveling in tandem from other sources. When I had my lst child, I was partially BF. I was told to go to a Central Asia c'try for 10days! With lack of understanding and motivation and presumptions of what a developing c'try lack, I din even contemplate on how to exp and bring back the EBM. So I juz pumped and threw. Much as I wish to pump regularly, I didn’t manage to. As a result, my milk supply dipped badly when I came back.

Anyway, this time round with my 2nd child, I'm total BF. With the notice to travel to US for a total of 6 days (abt 3days on land, 3days in the air/transit), I was really contemplating and worried abt keeping up with my milk supply and wondered if anyone has literally, successfully, brought back their FROZEN EBM. So here you go, a snapshot of what went in and out:

BEFORE FLYING
(1) Got Ready milkbags (to store the EBM)
(2) 2 tupperware containers (1 for sterilising the bottles and pumps, 1 for laying the milkbag flat and stored in the freezer).
(3) Milk PUMPS (extra accessories if you have, in case of any mishaps)
(4) Bottles (I brot 4big – AVENT 9Oz, 2 small – AVENT 4Oz)
(5) Sterilizer tablets (it helps to read the usage if you’ve never used it before. What I did after reading the instructions - I took the Tupperware container and made a marking on it after I filled it up with the desired amt of water for sterilizing. This saves u the trouble for gauging how much water is required/exact for sterilizing purpose each time you need it)
(6) PIGIEON 200ml milk bottles detergent
(7) Ziplock bags in various sizes & types (they are a saviour! will get to each's usage later)
(8) Brush (for cleaning the bottles and pump)
(9) CARREFOUR cooler bag for frozen foods (bot it @$9.90 from Suntec; it's blue in colour, and can be found near the racks close to the frozen foods section. Some may consider COLEMAN hard-case box, but they’re more expensive and bulky.)
(10) A pair of scissors
(11) A roll of masking tape
(12) Some used cloths (to wrap the dry ice)
(13) Some rubberbands (bring enuff to tie the loose ends of the used cloths used to wrap the dry ice)
(14) Some laundry bags (you’ll see the use later)
(15) Froze the ice blocks for hand-carry whilst on plane/transit/out meeting.
(16) Got a letter from a Certified Lactation Consultant to certify that I’m a lactating mother. It may/may not be needed, but I did it just in case the security officers probed and probed.
(17) Printed out the TSA policy on carrying on board EBM (ref: http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/children/formula.shtm, http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/sop/index.shtm#milk. http://www.tsa.gov/press/releases/2007/press_release_07202007.shtm). However, I urge you to check with TSA for the most current policies, as “changes is the only constant” with policies (recall, in SG, “2 is enough”, then “Have more if you can afford” policies/slogans?!)! Anyway, I got them printed, and thank GOD I had them with me. Cuz I was questioned during my transit at Narita, Tokyo, and the printed policy ‘saved’ me.
(18) Checked with my hotel that there are places (usu. supermarkets) nearby where I can get dry ice to pack my frozen EBM home.
(19) Finally, some Fenugreeks to keep my supply going!


ON PLANE/TRANSIT
(1) I had with me; hand-carried, an insulator bag where in it were 1 ice block, 2 big bottles, 1 small bottle, milk pump & a piece of hankie.
(2) Another hand-carried bag with I stuffed my laptop, another big bottle (which I stored in a small ziplock bag) and more ziplock bags (bigger ones).
(3) During check-in/checkpoint security, it never failed when they checked on my insulated bag. So I’d explain that I’m a BF/lactating mother. Except in Narita, Tokyo, checkpoints at Hong Kong, US had no issues after they looked at the contents. For Tokyo, the1st male officer insisted that I couldn’t bring it onboard, and asked where my child was. So I’ve to repeat myself again that I’m a BF mum & traveling alone and showed them the policy and the letter. Reckon it’s their language limitations; I was referred to a 2nd female officer, whom, again told me the same thing. Which I in turn, stayed firm, repeated the same story, and insisted politely that she read what’s printed. Afterwhich, I was referred to a 3rd female office (who spoke better English & perhaps more senior). She asked to open the milk bottle, which I said SURE but requested that she be careful, lest she dirtied the milk. She opened up, smelt it and then gave me the clearance. It might sound all so daunting, but fear not. Just be calm, show them the policy, and repeat the facts.
(4) After clearing the checkpoint security, it’s now on plane. As bbfactory correctly pointed out; I pumped only in those hours where the toilets were less occupied. The initial fear of hogging the toilet was overthrown once you got to doing it in the “less busy toilet hours”.
(5) Whilst on board (I was traveling with UA), I asked for some ice to keep my EBM chilled; as UA’s policy is not to permit any storage of passenger’s medicine or whatever stuff in their freezer/fridge. On my way to US, the air stewardess gave me the ice in a refuse bag (those they use for pple to vomit in) and I poured them into the big ziplock bag and then put my bottled EBM into it. 1 such bag can keep the EBM chilled for abt 3-4hrs. Thereafter, I juz poured away the melted ice and kept refilling till the plane taxi. However, on the leg back, I just put the bottled EBM mik in the refuse bag directly, and then to avoid accidental leaking, I put the refuse bag with the EBM into a big ziplock bag. Found out that the chilling effect was even better that way. And small the refuse bag may look, it can actually house 2 big bottles with ice amidst them and yet able to keep them chilled well!
(6) Depending on your engorgement or milk supply, express as per desired (even a short 5-10 mins can yield some BM if you don’t feel good staying in the toilet for the usu 30mins or so duration of pumping).
(7) I was fortunate that during most transit (usu 2hrs), I was able to express in a more spacious toilet. So, I did that before I hopped on to another plane.
(8) One thing I found useful and perhaps necessary is to know how to use your hands to do manual expressing. As mine was a long haul flight, my pump soon became too ‘used/dirty/smelly’ for expressing unless I wash it. Hence, I hand-expressed during the last few hours.

IN HOTEL
(1) Once I touched down and checked in hotel. I quickly sorted the EBM and poured them into the EBM storage bags. Thereafter, I laid them flat in a container, covered it with its lid and requested the hotel staff to put in it in their freezer. I also politely assured that it’s FREEZER, not fridge.
(2) Pump as per required. I pumped about 4-5 times in a 24hrs cycle.
(3) Using the pre-marked container, I just poured the required amount of water in and put the sterilizing tablet to sterilize my bottles and pumps. I checked with the hotel to make sure that the tap water was drinkable too. However, to play safe, I subsequently went out to get mineral/distilled water to sterilize the pumps. In US, there’s this supermarket called SAFEWAY which I bought the ‘NUSERY’ brand water used to make bb formula. So, I felt all the more assured that the quality of water should be alright for sterilizing my pumps. I did not use hot water to cleanse the bottles & pumps again though. The sterilizing tablets I used did not need that, and thank GOD for these wonder tablets!
(4) Once I gathered about 3 packs of EBM or more, I’d bring them down and put it in the container that already consisted of my frozen EBM. Once filled, I’d put the packs of EBM into a ziplock bag (use the one for freezing purpose, gallon size ones) and laid them on top of the container (which’s already filled with packs of EBM), and put a rubberband over it. It’s important to label the ziplock bag and container; that they belonged to you and to ask that they be handled with care. So by now, you’d know why I said ziplock bags are a saviour and you may want different sizes/types for the various purposes.


BEFORE CHECKING OUT
(1) My flight was scheduled at 12+pm, and I reckoned I need to get to the airport by 10am. Hence, counting back, I reckoned I need the dry ice by 8am to give myself ample time to pack
(2) Got dry ice from SAFEWAY supermarket. According to the prevailing UA rule, I was only permitted to check-in &.or hand carry, in total 2kg/4.4lbs of dry ice. I was traveling with another colleague, so I reckoned I could have 8.8lbs & got them.
(3) Back to hotel, I collected all my frozen milk from the freezer. I stacked them, including 1 filled to the brim, 11Oz, chilled bottled EBM) nicely into the 2 tupperware containers. Sealed them with masking tapes. Dumped each container into a laundry bag, tied each up.
(4) Wrapped the dry ice with the used cloths (will last longer this way), and tied the loose ends with rubberbands. Hence, I ended up with a few bundles of dry ice. Laid and spread some bundles of dry ice in the CARREFOUR bag for frozen food, then put in the 2 containers which were housed in 2 separate laundry bags prior. Then laid and spread the other bundles of dry ice to cover the 2 containers. Be cautious when handling dry ice thou, take care not to handle with bare hands, best to use some dry cloth.
(5) Poured the dry ice fragments (not much left) which I did not have enuff cloth to wrap, over the containers.
(6) Zipped the CARREFOUR bag up, put masking tap over the bag.
(7) Dumped the bag into another big laundry bag, tied it up, and put the FINAL BIG BAG into my check-in baggage.

And so, that’s what I could manage thus far. The rest, I could only pray and leave it to GOD. The flight back to SG (incl transit) was abt 20hrs, plus 4hrs preparing time and traveling time to/fro airport, the 8.8lbs of dry-ice kept all my EBM (total of abt 16 packs of 6Oz) in perfect frozen state for about 24hrs. And I discovered too that; the bottled of chilled (NOT FROZEN) EBM which I slotted in the Tupperware container was FROZEN! So, you see, the dry ice were really super! The only only hitch was, my CARREFOUR bag had a few holes; I reckon the dry ice probably burnt into it. But, it’s really nothing, considered my gold in it were intact!

I was full of anxiety when I reached hm; and smiled myself to sleep to that triumphant discovery! In any case, MURPHY’s law did take place; 1 of my checked-in baggages got routed to the wrong destination! But really thank GOD, it wasn’t the one I checked in my EBM! Hence, u can see, after all the trouble, you can only leave it to GOD to arrange the best!

PM me if you've any further queries
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Hi bbfactory and jajos
Amazing! Thanks a lot for sharing. I will be having a day business trip as well and still thinking how to manage expressing BM, as I will be visiting my client's office for a meeting.
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sigh.. has been hinting that I do not need to go, but my boss wants me to be there.
 
Hi Jajos

Wow...your attention for detail is really impressive. Just wondering which pump you are using and was there a power source in the toilet or did you use your battery pack?
 
My experience was, back in Singapore customs, nothing. When plane lands, you just get off, and go collect bags. I think it's also good if you have a bio-metric passport. Faster mah. My passport is a biometric passport. So, it was self-service. Just slot in passport to scan, place thumb for thumbprint scan...ok, cleared. The go baggage claim.

The "problems" are more of brining it ON BOARD a flight.
 
jajos - you are awesome!! i'm really inspired by you. I have a upcoming trip in Oct, also to US and hope I can repeat what you did! Can you give me your email or contact number so that I can consult you if I encounter prob during my preparation?
 
Hi mummies,
so great that i found this thread!..
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can i check whether is it possible for us to bring the PIS adv pump into the plane and pump with batteries??

anyone tried pumping milk at yr seat? I will be travelling with my husband, so thought of pumping at my seat, covering with shawl instead of hogging the toilet.
 
Any experienced mum can help me?
possible to bring PIS adv onto the pump n pump with batteries or must we use manual pump?
 
hi shannon baby,

Yes u can pump with PIS with batteries. Thats what I did. I did it in the toilet at a time when there was not many pple using it. I toyed with the idea of pumping at my seat but I didn't go ahead eventually because it was a night flight and most passengers were asleep (didn't want the pump to be too noisy to those seated around me).

Actually, where will u be heading to? U can consider pumping at the nursing room at the airport before take off. Much more convenient.
 
hi lin,

thanks so much for yr reply.
I will be heading to Peru, with stopover at Amsterdam. Its a long journey, thus may need to pump on the plane.
 
Hi Shannonbaby,

I see. In that case just bring yr pump with batteries, and your milk bag to store the milk. I passed the ice block and bottles of breastmilk in ziplock bag and had the crew to store the milk in the fridge for me. Just before landing, they returned the bottles to me and I packed it before getting off the plane.

It's quite easy actually so don't worry about it. With the PIS, I was done within 7 minutes of pumping (I timed!) in the lavatory.
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hi lin,

wow, 7min! I need 30min with my PIS thus feeling super stressed if I am going to pump in the lavatory. duno is it becos my pump motor having prob. I am pumping 3 times a day nw, abt 1000ml.
 
hi shannon baby,

choose a time when most pple will not be using the lavatory, eg: when passengers are asleep or like 45 mins after the meals are served ......

avoid just before/after meal times, just after take off or just before landing.

Don't be stressed lah. if u think it's possible to pump at yr seat, then just go ahead because i think it's feasible. just bring shawl and make sure the pump is not too noisy to others ard u.

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I pump 4 times a day, yield abt 1300-1400ml
 
Hi mummies
I m so thankful for the thread! Was lookin out on whether can bring EBM on plane anot! Great! Thanks to all the mummies who have so kindly and detailedly shared their experiences!
 
hey, thinking of bringing back chilled (not frozen) milk in Medela bm bottles and checking in in luggage, anyone tried before and got leak out or not due to pressure changes? thanks

thought i donwant to risk losing my bm in case some security officer refuses lor..
 
Hi mommies,
thanks for sharing! I will be traveling soon and need your advice on some questions:

1) Which brand of cooler bag are you using?
2) Are the EBM still frozen when you reached home?
3) Can we continue to freeze the EBM after we reached home?
4) For those who only chilled (not frozen) the EBM, how long more can we store the EBM in fridge after reaching home?


Thanks!
 
Hi Al,
I've been to another few trips where i transported chilled milk in milk bags. To prevent spills, I put all the milkbags into a ziplock bag and then placed them into a hard plastic container so that I could check in my luggage.

i don't know if your bottles will hold out coz i've had a few experiences where my shampoo bottle leaked and popped due to the air pressure. u can try but i'd recommend keeping the bottles sealed in a ziplock bag. Let us know how it goes ok?

Hi Lee

1) I've used the carrefour cooler bag for long trips. Big and cheap. I've also used fridge-to-go. they are all good, depending on ur budget.
2) Yes. With a good estimate of the amt of dry ice required for the duration.
3) Yes. up to 3 mths in the freezer.
4) i'd say 5 days is a good gauge, assuming that you've kept it well chilled. in any case, if it's gone bad, babies r smart, they won't take it.

good luck ladies and share your success story!
 
Dear BB Factory, Jajos & all mommies who shared on this thread..

Just wanna say a BIG THANK YOU! I read this thread and followed your advice and managed to successfully bring back 4 days worth of EBM!! The advice really works!

I travelled from Singapore to Belgium on SQ -- about 12-14hrs flight in total and will post some of my experience here.

Expressing on plane
I expressed on board the plane with a nursing shawl and got the stewardess to put my EBM & cooler pack in their fridge.
You may also like to ask them for some packets of dry ice -- they use it to keep their ice-cream frozen. This will help to keep your cooler bag cold enough to endure a transit.

Storing EBM
I labeled my milk and put it in containers as per advice above. A couple of things to note. For a 4 day trip, you will need at least 3 lock&lock containers of abt 9" by 6".

I used the barfridge in the room to store my milk until i had a couple of packets to bring down to the hotel's freezer. I was a bit kiasu cos the frige so I surrounded the fridge with ziplock bags of ice-cubes as well.

I'd also suggest that you make sure you know where they put your milk and make sure they put everything at the same spot. They had trouble locating my milk cos it was stored in different freezers in the hotel.

Bringing Frozen EBM Back
i bought dry ice (got the conceirge to buy it for me) 2 hrs before i was scheduled to leave the hotel. Dry ice cost S$24 but the transport to buy dry ice cost S$140!!!! In any case, I think dry ice is readily available from supermarkets cos i think they bought it for me from there. Packed the dry ice as mentioned-- use a scoop/cup when careful when handling the dry ice else you will get freezer burn.
I put everything into the carrefour blue bag and chucked it inside my luggage (the larger size type, not the carryon lugguage size ok). So you better bring an extra bag along else you wont have space in your luggage for clothes and the carrefour bag.

My journey back was a 12 hour flight, plus all the travelling time to/fro airport, the frozen EBM managed to remained solidly frozen for approx 14-15hours.

Ok that's all i can think of for now, but feel free to PM me if you need more info or help ok?!

Once again thanks to the mommies here... if not for your advice, I wouldnt be able to do it!

Cheers,
Pam
 
Oh forgot to add, I am using Medela PIS Freestyle. I also have 2 set of breast pumps + connectors. So to minimise sterilising, I used the sterilising wipes when I am on the plane and at work, and used their milkbags. When I am back at the hotel, I sterilise using pigeon tablets in a tub of water, with the required amount of water marked out as advised by Jajos.
 
Hi All

I am thinking of travelling (holiday) via package tour. Do you think is possible to bring back the EBM? Cos will be staying in different hotels. haiz
 
Hi jajos,

I am a breastfeeding mum who needs to travel to US to work for 2 weeks next mth. I have some qns to ask. If you see this msg, can u pls email me at [email protected]

I would deeply appreciate that.

Thanks.
 
Hi All,

This is really an enriching thread. I'm also considering to go on a trip, but still considering F&E or guided tour. My feel, is that it will be difficult to have the pumping sessions on a tour as scheduled oredi packed.

Would like to check for those who travel, did you pump as many times as you nurse/latch, i.e. still maintain the same of feeds? I tink It will be hard to hit 6-8 sessions in 24hr and worried my supply will then drop.
 
Hello mummies,

I've just gotten back from a 10 day work trip to Scotland after the advices here and would like to offer some of my encounters too.

In Glasgow, Scotland its not possible to obtain dry ice from supermarkets. I asked every possible one (Waitrose, Iceland, Tesco, Sainsbury's, Marks and Spencers) and none of them stocked it. My hotel was unable to locate any dry ice company either.

For myself, as I was attached to the University of Glasgow, I asked the staff there and they advised that dry ice is actually EXPLOSIVE when kept in sealed compartments (eg. hard-sided luggage) and they cautioned that I may be stopped at airport security. The explosive effect is due to the large volume of CO2 gas generated when the dry ice evaporates. They actually demonstrated to me by getting a small plastic container and putting in a chunk of dry ice, sure enough within about 5 mins there was a loud bang and the cover popped open.

Seeing this, I did not dare to take back the dry ice and relied on hand-carried Fridge to Go to keep the milkbags frozen till airport, and asking the plane crew to keep the milkbags in freezer compartment onboard the plane. I requested the FTG to be kept in the plane freezer as well and the 12 hours FTG was able to keep my milkbags quite well frozen during the journey and waiting at airport (about 3 hours), the transit (another 2 hours), and on the way back from Changi (about 1.5 hours).

This is just FYI to mummies who may want to take note of the above..
 
Hi hi, read this thread a while back, and took some of the wonderful advice here when I travelled to UK recently. So now, I would also like to share my experience with others
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For me, I wanted to BRING frozen ebm THERE, not pump there and bring back, as I had baby with me, so I just latched instead of pump while there. I was afraid that I might be jet lagged upon arrival, so if I had some ebm with me, my MIL could help me feed the baby if I really really needed sleep for a while. I flew British Airways, and brought the ebm with me as check in luggage (not carry on).

Before flying, called BA to check on their policy regarding dry ice (Qantas shares the same policy). They said:
a) Dry ice amount should not exceed 2.5kg
b) Dry ice and bottles of milk has to be placed in a container/bag that is not air tight (e.g. vacuum container). A freezer/thermal bag is ok.
c) The luggage containing the dry ice has to be labelled on the outside. Write/print DRY ICE (big font) on an A4 sized paper, and tape it securely to the outside of the suitcase, and also on the actual freezer/thermal bag.

Different airlines may have different policies regarding dry ice, so best is check with the airline you're flying with.

Also, regarding dry ice:
1. Cold Storage, FairPrice and Sheng Siong, all don't sell dry ice.
2. Get dry ice or frozen gel packs from Zenaco CO2 Pte Ltd, www.dryice.com.sg. These people were great!
3. Bring your food/ebm/whatever down to Zenaco and get them to pack it for you. I brought my frozen ebm down to their office, someone called Mr Tan helped me. He placed all my bottles into a styrofoam box, and instead of normal dry ice, he gave me a gel pack, which keeps cool at MINUS 18 deg. He placed one of these packs into the styrofoam box, and topped up the remaining space with some dry ice chips. He then sealed the whole box securely with lots of tape. I said the airline told me that I had to declare the dry ice and label it as well, he told me not to bother. He said if questioned, tell them that I am using a gel pack instead. He said he has helped others pack their stuff in this manner as well, and no one has ever had problems. Total cost of box with gel pack and dry ice chips was only $10 I think. Don't remember exact amount now, but it's definitely less than $20. From the time the styrofoam box was packed to the time I reached my final destination, it was more than 24hrs. Everything inside the box was still frozen rock solid. The gel pack works miracles!

Btw, I did bring 2 small bottles of ebm with me on board my return flight for baby's consumption. I stored these in the Medela 80ml storage bottles (the slim tube-shaped ones). When I went through airport security, I placed both of these bottles in the standard quart-sized ziplock bag, and since each bottle was less than 100ml, they were very ok with it.

Hope this helps someone who has to fly long haul soon.
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hi mummies, the usual pigeon breastmilk storage bottles will not be able to meet the 100ml liquid restriction on the plane.
is there another form of breastmilk storage?
i'll be travelling to US this Sun and am thinking how i can express onboard of the long journey.
hope to hear your experiences.
 
yes thats right.
i just came back fm msia.

i pour all the EMB into 4 bottles n store inside the fridge-to-go.
Handcarry all the way.

Just make sure you are always with your baby, cos you need to so call declare the milk n water is for the baby.

I even bring a hot flask filled with water.

No issue at all.

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I am going HK on business next week and will be staying in Landmark Mandarin Oriental in Central. I am thinking of expressing breastmilk and bringing back to Singapore. I have some questions:-

1) Is it really necessary to use dry ice? Or Ice Packs will do? considering it is just a 3hr plus flight between HK and SG.

2)Is the bar bridge in the hotel room strong enough to freeze the EBM? Or i really have to get the conceirge to put it in hotel's freezer? I am paranoid they will mess it up (didnt put in freezer compartment, misplace my ebm, etc etc)

3) Any supermarket in HK sell dry ice? If not, where can i buy dry ice?

Thanks in advance
 
I just came back from a business trip recently. Before flying there I did some research on expressing milk while on the go. And I found this site. So lucky to have the advise from all previous mummies who have done it before so I was mentally and physically prepared for this task.

Actually I used normal ice and cloth to pack my frozen milk. But it didn't remain frozen. some of the top packs melted in the coleman container. So I decided to give my baby drink those that have melted (take it as melted in fridge). She took it gladly. Anyways the cargo compartment of the aeroplane is normally very cold.

But if its possible to find dry ice, I think should use dry ice. For my case its because hotel previously said can help to buy. then on the day before i fly out, they say can't find.. So I got no choice, use my ice pack and normal ice.

basically You have to constantly go to the conceirge to store your milk as the bar fridge can't freeze them. Just make sure that the conceirge knows that it is breastmilk and explain to them that you need it to be froozen (like rock hard) then they'll know. and they always change shift (i.e.change people) so remember to mark your milk bag with our room number all over. I always asked the person who helped to take the milk out (normally kitchen staff) to wait while i pack the milk and then bring it back to the same place to freeze again. So dun need to explain it all over again. But for this, you got to make sure the first person get it correct.

As for where to buy dry ice, maybe can get the hotel to find. but please be ready for cases like mine.

Overall, with a little planning, alot of logistics, alot of help, and alot of perserverance, U can bring your milk back.

Cheers
 
I'm 2nd time mummy and wan to BF longer. My 1st exp not so gd. So wan to do my part better this time. But i might need to travel for 2 wks to Hawaii when my bb is 2 moths old. This thread allow me to noe a lot more. I jus nd to collect as much info as possible now.

Could i Fedex or DHL 1 wk supply back? Any mummies try before? I tot of courier 1 wk supply then self carry another wk back.
 
Hi Purelyz,

I also contemplated fedexing my milk supply back. I cant remember the exact details but believe you can do so -- just that overnight delivery may be a tad pricy.

give DHL/Fedex a call to check =)

Cheers
Pam
 
Hi mummies.

I have a preloved Medula Pump in style breast pump for sale. Bought online in Jan' 2010 for $599. Warranty valid until Jan' 2011.

FYI, I felt it was worth the money spent as I didn't have much breastmilk and the hospital grade pump really helped get as much as I was able to produce. Have happily managed to feed my boy BM till now. Stopping cos returning to work.

(http://www.firstfewyears.com.sg/warehouse/list.htm?pid=15)

Condition: 9/10
*Hospital-grade breast pump/all parts in working order*
Price: $ $399 nett

Includes these items:
* GR8X Inflatable Breastfeeding Pillow
* New design shoulder bag
* Battery Pak (8AA batteries not included)
* 4 collection containers & lids
* 2-24mm PersonalFit Breastshields
* Breastfeeding Information Guide
* 2 valves
* 4 membranes
* Instructions

PM or sms me at 9680 1400
 
HI Mummies,

I travelling to Philipines this sun till thurs and I really hope to bring my Expressed Breast MILK...
I printing this thread so tat I can follow thru.

If any mummies have any advices...please share with me....before I fly off.
 
Hello all,

I will be flying to Tokyo on Tuesday and fingers crossed I am able to bring back my EBM too.

I think I'm gonna buy a couple of those freezer bags for storage in my luggage.
 
Hi - i've just been asked to go on a business trip and it looks like there's a lot of preparation and i'm worrried that i will not have time to get everything in time for my travel - so stressed
sad.gif


Anyone has "Fridge to go" bags they want to let go? Thanks
 
I called SQ today.
They are still very rigid, still no go with breastmilk /ice blocks / coolant etc handcarry on board as of today, 6 sep 2010.
100ml restrictions continue to apply for all liquids and gels.
Check in is ok.
 
Hi,
I've been travelling with SQ and bring EBM onboard (lot of them), there's no restriction for EBM so far. I just got back from my trip few days ago.
 
Anyone knows if SQ n LH allow ice blocks n ebm onboard? I'm travelling to Europe by sq n there's a transit flight on LH, wonder if I will b able to bring onboard the internal flight e ebm.

Thks!
 
Anyone have any idea where to buy dry ice in Barcelona? The hotel doesn't seem very committed to getting it for me so...
 
Update(FYI)

As is with anything, service quality is dependent on the person.

Dry Ice company:
Abello Linde S A
c/ Bailen 105
Tel
- 902.426.426
- 902.476.74.00
- 600.522.463 (mobile) Ms. Griselda

dry ice in Spanish = yelo seco
 



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