This post is sponsored by Kidco, who graciously provided me with 2 PeaPod beds to try out in exchange for my honest review.
One of the hardest parts of travelling with twins (besides the two babies part) is what to do with them for bedtime in hotels or AirBNBs! Earlier this year, for our Toronto trip to SMILE Therapy for Kids, we were able to fit both into one playpen for sleeping, which was provided by the Airbnb we stayed at. It wasn’t ideal as they sometimes bumped each other and it wasn’t the most comfortable bed for them, but it worked.
Last month, I took the boys to Kelowna for our second SMILE intensive and wasn’t sure what I was going to do! Our Airbnb did not offer any cribs or playpens. At first I thought I’d bring my own (it was a road trip vs flying like earlier this year). But, the boys are too big to share so that meant lugging 2 playpens, which aren’t exactly space saving.
I soon realized that wouldn’t work, either. I have a Jeep Wrangler and between bringing regular stuff like clothes and diapers, I also had to bring Jaxon’s giant positioning chair, Axel’s highchair, my Vitamix to make blended food for them and of course, the stroller! That filled up the back of the Jeep so full already, I couldn’t even see out the window!
Then I found the Kidco PeaPod Travel Beds online. Sooo glad I did! Even luckier for me, Kidco was generous enough to provide me 2 of them to try out for my trip.
The basics: the PeaPod is a pop-up style tent bed that folds up into the size of a dinner plate! It has a zipper on one side so you can contain the babe, and an attached sleeping pad on the bottom. The regular size (what I have) fits kids from 1-3 years of age approximately, and they also have a Plus model that goes up to age 5.
It was so easy to fold these up and throw them in the Jeep! Major plus. Would also be great for air travel in a suitcase (or if you’re cheap like me, throw them in your stroller travel bag when you get to the gate so you don’t have to waste space in your suitcase and can check your stroller bag for free – I always jam extra shit in there before boarding). I have the Mountain Buggy Duet stroller (2014 model) and the Mountain Buggy XL travel bag fits it well (though SNUG) and there is extra room to throw blankets, toys, all kinds of shiz in before zipping it up. #CheapMomHack
I think these would also be great for a beach day or for the park for shade on a sunny day too, though haven’t tried that yet.
Anyway, my first impressions! So they’re very easy to unfold (literally take it out of the case and it pops up – done). Padding-wise, I think it was too thin for a hard floor. So I took a mini crib size mattress (a thin cheap one that was $20, like this one), put a sheet on it, and it fit perfectly inside the Peapod for some extra padding. I think the included padding would be fine if you had these resting on carpet or even a thick blanket, though.
Specific to tubies, I liked the double zipper because it allowed me to zip it all the way up except for a small opening to run the tubing out for their night feed. I syringe feed during the day but at night we use the Infinity pump to run whole milk for 2 hours. When the feed was done, I was able to disconnect the tubing, flush it and then zip up the small opening without waking them up. Nice!
One minor drawback is that at first the boys would not sleep in these because they were both fascinated with the “crinkly” and “swooshy” sounds the tent material makes when you touch it (just like any polyester!). It was actually quite funny. Both were just kicking and grabbing the mesh and tent sides and Axel was laughing. Once that novelty wore off after the first day, it was totally fine. So I would just recommend getting your kids used to it for a few naps before you go on your trip.
Axel did manage to undo the zipper and get out one night BUT this is because I did not have it all the way done up (I forgot to close the small tube opening). He pulled on the mesh until it undid the zipper (must have taken him awhile) and army crawled out, the little turkey! He was very motivated to get to a nearby roll of paper towels. (He is part cat, after all.) Zipping the zipper all the way up the side as intended would have prevented that.
All in all, these PeaPod beds are well worth the money and excellent for travel, especially air travel! I can’t believe many other travel playpens are $200+ whereas these are only $75 each (Canadian $). Definitely worth it and a lifesaver for trips like our physio intensives! We’ll be taking them with us to Toronto in March 2020 for our next intensive for sure. So glad we have them!
You can buy the Kidco PeaPod Travel Bed on Amazon, Buy Buy Baby, Toys R Us (currently only the Plus model) and many other retailers. You can also buy directly from Kidco on their website.
1 comment
Thanks! What mattress did you buy to add into it?