This New App Simplifies Traveling With Tots
Traveling with your kiddo is a daunting task for any parent, whether you’re planning a hike with your baby, trying to board a plane with a toddler or thinking about an international trip with your school-aged children (like these families who globe-trot together). Just packing all the baby gear is enough to make your head spin.
One intrepid mom, Natalie Kaminski, realized how hard it is to travel with essential items when she and her family took a trip to Chicago. The NYC-based mom of two thought that they would rent a car and a car seat once they arrived, but getting hold of a seat proved difficult. “All baby-gear services required advanced reservations. We ended up buying a car seat from a store and returning it at the end of our trip,” Natalie tells us. “This made me wonder why there were no better options, especially now that we have all these other on-demand apps and services, such as Uber and Airbnb. Thus, the idea for goBaby was born!” Meet goBaby (free on iOS).
The goBaby app is kind of like Airbnb for baby gear. Say you’re visiting New York City but don’t want to pack a stroller. In the app, input the dates you’re traveling and choose the type of gear you need. You’ll get a list of all available items for rent during that time period. Scroll through your selected list, look at photos and compare descriptions and delivery options. Once you’ve found the item you want to rent, submit a booking request just like you would on Airbnb. GoBaby will notify you when your request has been approved and your gear is reserved.
Rental through the app is currently available in NYC, San Francisco, Boston, Chicago, Miami, Orlando, Los Angeles and Austin. In addition, the company is coordinating with a delivery service to make it even easier to receive and return rented items. Natalie shares, “We are also exploring partnership opportunities with companies that offer complementary services, such as stroller cleaners, and will be adding a feature where traveling families can locate family-friendly activities near them.”
Since its launch a few weeks ago, the response from parents in NYC has been enthusiastic. Parents of toddlers enjoy renting out gently used equipment for some extra moola on the side, while travelers who don’t want to lug everything along to the Big Apple find that it’s super useful to see what an offered item looks like before choosing to rent it.
Most traveling parents already have their hands full just with kids and carry-ons. Being able to rent essential equipment like a car seat, stroller or Pack ‘n Play instead of hauling bulky gear in a car or on a plane is a much-needed option for families on the go.
Will you be trying out this app? Tweet us @BritandCo!
(Featured photo via Getty)