When I told people I was planning to travel to a foreign country while 7 months pregnant, I got looks like I was crazy. His look turned to shock when he heard I was going to a developing country: Egypt.
“Is it safe to travel while pregnant?”
“Could you be pregnant?”
“What if something happens???”
There are some legitimate concerns about traveling abroad while pregnant — but they can be easily addressed by making some smart travel choices and precautions.
This is not your last chance to travel
Apparently, most people think their lives come to a screeching halt once they have a baby. They have to travel “whenever they still can.” There is even a name for the Persian pregnancy holiday – A”Baby Moon:“
Fear that your “last chance to travel” is an awesome reason to plan a trip!!!
It is absolutely possible to travel with a child. In some ways, traveling with a baby is even more fun (like you get priority treatment and ease from the locals). So don’t feel pressured to get out and travel “while you still can.” There will be many opportunities to travel later.
Get the timing right
I am one of those unlucky women who meet Hyperemesis gravidarum Confuse Hg with morning sickness during pregnancy. I’m talking about spewing blood because the vomit has cleared your throat. I’m talking about the IV transition because I don’t keep the water down…
So going was a bad mistake Backpacking while 4 weeks pregnant. I had to cut the trip short. There is no fun on the entire trail!!!
But, because this was my second pregnancy, I knew I would probably stop pumping at 6 months. So when I planned my trip to Egypt.
You never know how you’ll feel as your pregnancy progresses, so here’s what I recommend when planning a trip abroad.
- Go over 6 or 7 months: In general, these are the best months for most pregnant women. Hormones and morning sickness have been dealt with, but you’re not so old that you tire easily.
- Don’t wait until the last minute to plan your trip. If possible, hold off on planning your trip until you know how you feel.
- Check the refund policies: Most travel insurance policies do not allow this Pregnancy as a reason for cancellation. So, make sure you understand the cancellation/refund policies. If you decide to cancel the trip otherwise you will be out a lot of money because you feel so bad.
You may not be able to get travel health insurance while pregnant
One of the biggest problems with traveling abroad while pregnant is that almost no travel insurance company will offer coverage to pregnant women.
If something happens during your trip, you’ll be stuck with the bill!
Consider the case of Jennifer Hakolik Kimmel and her “Million dollar baby“The Canadian couple were on vacation in the United States when Jennifer went into labor prematurely. Two months in the ICU ran up a hospital bill of $950,000 — none of it covered by their insurance policy. Was not included!
I admit that the thought of being saddled with a huge hospital bill scared me. Before going to Egypt, I intensively researched the cost of giving birth there, as well as how much a night in the ICU would cost. Egypt is a poor country, so the costs were not high – so I was willing to take that risk.
Know airline policies for pregnant women
Flying during pregnancy: Absolutely safe. The main reason airlines ban flying while pregnant is because they’re afraid you’ll give birth in the air.
As such, many airlines do not allow pregnant women to fly after 36 weeks (or 32 weeks if you’re multiples). You may need a doctor’s note before you are allowed to fly. This was the case with Air Cairo. The note wasn’t supposed to be more than 7 days old, so I actually had to detour to Egypt – which was actually a cool part of the trip?
You can get a good deal on airline pregnancy restrictions Here.
Choose the right climate
Since you are already going abroad, you might as well choose an acceptable climate! The whole reason we chose Egypt for our trip was because it was January.
Whenever someone was fighting the snow, we were swimming in the Red Sea!
However, there is no way in hell I’m going to Egypt in the summer while pregnant. For a summer trip, I would choose a cooler country like Norway or go to the mountains.
Plan just one activity a day
In general, I’m not the type of traveler who tries to see/do a zillion things. But I knew how to make it even easier while I was pregnant.
I made a list of things I wanted to do in the Ecch floor. Then intended to do only one: Some days we were able to do more than one thing per day, but only if I still felt up to it. It kept the pace relaxed so I didn’t inadvertently push myself over the limit.
Consider the bathroom situation
One piece of travel advice for pregnant women that is often overlooked is the bathroom situation. Since pregnancy makes you pee like crazy, isn’t that something that shouldn’t be neglected?
Going to the bathroom actually turned out to be the hardest part of traveling abroad while pregnant. After this ordeal, I recommend it to other pregnant travelers here.
- Make sure you can squat: Public bathrooms aren’t exactly known for their cleanliness — do you really want to sit in them? If you can’t sit on them, you’re going to be in trouble. Anyway, squats are great exercises to prepare for childbirth. 😉:
- Consider the urinal chimney: If you can’t squat, then get it Urinary tract:. This makes it possible to urinate standing up.
- Map out some good restaurants: As is the case in many developing countries, finding a bathroom in Egypt was very difficult. Local restaurants didn’t have bathrooms (seriously!) and cafes usually had men-only bathrooms (which might just be a bucket in the corner!!!). Tourist restaurants invariably had good bathrooms, so I mapped them out so I knew where to pee.
- Carry tons of wipes and antiseptic gel. Once you have a baby, you’ll be carrying a lot of this stuff. For traveling abroad, these come in handy for wiping down disgusting surfaces and cleaning your hands – don’t expect soap in every bathroom!
Budget for luxury transportation:
Generally I’m fine taking cramped mini and crowded trains. But, at 7 months pregnant, I wasn’t keen on getting stuck in Egypt’s crowded local transport.
It probably would have ended with me finishing up or passing away. Or, worse, someone punching me in the stomach.
Luckily we were able to afford taxis everywhere (we used Uber to avoid haggling with crooked taxi drivers). We took things a step further and even hired a private driver to take us between cities.
Since it was Egypt (and not, for example, Norway), it was not too expensive. In developed countries, such luxury travel will definitely cost more.
Even a short taxi ride each day like in Europe can add a huge amount to your travel budget. But public transport in developed countries would not be so crazy. So really think about the cost vs. Worry less and budget your trip accordingly.
Certain activities will be off limits during pregnancy
In the weeks leading up to my trip to Egypt, I was Googling things like “can you ride a camel while pregnant?”
It turns out that camel riding is a relatively safe activity when pregnant (horse riding, however, is not). But, to play it safe, I still decide not to ride a camel while in the pyramids.
I’ve also had to go sandbaring, quad biking, and going indoors with low oxygen levels). Unfortunately, it was just that After I got into one of my excursions in the desert in a jeep that made me realize that off-roading can be off limits too! Fortunately, the ride wasn’t too hard – but I still held on tight to prevent my stomach from bulging too much.
Playing it safe with food while pregnant
Another big concern I had about traveling to Africa (or any developing country) while pregnant was getting stomach bug food.
most of the time, Food poisoning during pregnancy Not particularly dangerous. The biggest risk is that you will become dehydrated.
The best thing to do is to avoid food poisoning in the first place.
- Drink only safe water. I stuck with bottled water. I have one too Soar Mini Water Filter: If bottled water is available IST.
- Remember to avoid ice cubes and juice too! Unless you know they are made from safe water, drink them.
- Be careful about street food. My doctor told me not to eat any street food. But that’s half the fun of traveling abroad! So I was rather cautious about the street food I ate. I stuck with something that was deep fried because that would have killed most of the bacteria. I am a vegetarian, but would have avoided all street meat regardless.
- Take probiotics for the first few days. This will help your body adjust and fight any “bad” bacteria it comes into contact with.
If you deal with stomach problem The CDC says: It’s best to wait for it to go away on its own (if it’s severe, that’s when you’ll want to contact a doctor). You will need to stay hydrated while waiting for the diarrhea and vomiting to subside.
mine Traveller’s First Aid Kit Always stocked with electrolytes. It has also activated charcoal and other remedies for food poisoning.
Enjoy the memories
Traveling when I was 7 months pregnant was the best decision I’ve ever made – both for me and my family.
It was a much needed break from all the worries of pregnancy. For the first time in months, I stopped brazenly Googling everything pregnancy-related. I was able to relax and enjoy myself!
More importantly, I was there to spend some quality time with my husband and elder daughter.
If I had more risk, then I would not travel. But for any other pregnant travel addict who needs a break from focusing on their growing baby, traveling is great for your mental health.
My only regret is that I didn’t take more photos using my bump. It would have a funny picture of my stomach with a pyramid sticking out of it. 🙂
Have you traveled abroad while pregnant? What points would you add?
Image credit: Squat Toilet:by: Maxim Kozlenkofor , for , for , for , . Creative Commons: Attribution Share Alike 4.0 International License:
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