Plan the journey around feeds and naps

Babies are surprisingly good travel companions once you accept that the timetable belongs to them. Before you book anything, work out roughly when your baby feeds and sleeps, then build the journey around those windows rather than fighting them. A three-hour drive that starts just after a full feed and a nappy change will usually go far more smoothly than one that begins hungry and tired.

For longer trips, break the route into chunks of no more than two to three hours. On Britain's motorway network, service areas generally appear every 30 to 40 miles, and most have parent-and-baby parking near the entrance, a changing facility and somewhere to sit with a bottle or a breastfeeding cushion. If you are heading to Scotland, the Highlands or rural Wales, plan your stops more carefully, as facilities thin out quickly once you leave the main routes. Look ahead on a map and note towns with a supermarket or a leisure centre, both of which almost always have clean baby changing rooms.

If you can, travel outside peak times. Setting off at 6am is rarely popular, but a baby who sleeps through the first two hours of a journey is worth the early alarm. Avoid Friday afternoons on popular routes and bank holiday weekends if you have any flexibility at all.

Pack the changing bag properly

The nappy bag you use for a quick trip to town needs upgrading for a short break. Think in terms of a full day out, then add a bit more.

• Nappies and wipes: roughly one nappy per two hours, plus four spare. Carry a full pack in the boot as backup.
• Changes of clothes: two for the baby, one for you. Blowouts and spilled milk do not respect your packing list.
• Feeding kit: bottles, formula in pre-measured pots, a flask of hot water if you are formula feeding, and a muslin or two. If breastfeeding, a light scarf or cover helps in busy places.
• Layers and weather cover: a rain cover for the pram, a sunshade, and a hat for both sun and cold.
• A sling or carrier: genuinely useful on cobbled streets, in old buildings and anywhere a pram will not fit.
• Small comforts: a familiar blanket, a dummy, a couple of toys, and a plastic bag for anything wet or soiled.

Keep a separate small pouch with the essentials for a quick change, so you are not emptying the whole bag on a service station floor.

Choose accommodation that works for a baby

Where you stay matters more than where you go. A room with a separate living area or at least a seating corner makes evenings far easier once your baby is asleep at seven o'clock. Self-catering cottages and lodges are often the simplest option: you get a kitchen for sterilising and washing, a washing machine for the inevitable stains, and space to spread out.

When booking, ask specific questions rather than relying on "family-friendly" labels.

• Is a travel cot available, and does it come with a proper mattress rather than just a base?
• Is the room on the ground floor or does it have a lift, and is there space for a pram without blocking the door?
• Can you check in early, or at least leave bags while you settle your baby?
• Is there a bath rather than only a shower, and is the water temperature easy to control?

Budget hotel chains and pub-with-rooms stays are often perfectly adequate, but confirm the cot in writing. A room advertised as suitable for a family may still mean a sofa bed for an older child rather than anything for an infant.

Getting around once you arrive

Britain is a mixed bag for prams. Cities are generally good: most buses have space for one or two prams, and pavements are wide enough in modern developments. Older towns are harder. York, Edinburgh's Old Town and parts of Bath and Oxford come with cobbles, kerbs and narrow doorways, so a sling is often the practical choice for a day of sightseeing.

On trains, reserve seats where possible, aim for the carriage with the accessible toilet if you need changing space, and ask staff for help with ramps. On the London Underground, step-free access is improving but still patchy, so check your specific stations before committing to a route. If you are driving, look for parent-and-baby bays at supermarkets, retail parks and many attractions, and remember that blue badge bays are not for general family use.

Feeding, changing and eating out

Breastfeeding in public is protected by law across Britain, and you are entitled to feed wherever you are otherwise allowed to be. In practice, most cafes, pubs and museums are relaxed about it. If you would rather have privacy, large department stores, National Trust properties and many libraries have parent rooms.

For bottle feeding, ask staff to warm water or provide hot water for a flask. Most will say yes. When eating out, go early. A 5pm table in a pub or family restaurant is calmer, quicker and far more forgiving of a baby who decides to sing. High chairs are common but not guaranteed, so a fabric seat harness that clips to a chair is a light thing to carry and worth having.

Work with the weather, not against it

British weather rarely cooperates fully, so plan each day with one indoor and one outdoor option. A National Trust garden and a nearby museum covers sun and showers. Pack a rain cover you can fit in seconds, and dress your baby in layers rather than one thick outfit, since heated cafes and warm cars can quickly become too much.

Finally, build in slack. An ambitious itinerary with a baby in tow is a fast route to a miserable afternoon. Two outings a day, with a proper rest in between, will leave everyone happier, and you will see more of Britain than you expected.