Travel tip: Have diapers delivered to your destination

Here's how Michael avoids jamming his suitcase with baby care supplies:

My wife and I are planning a trip, but rather than buy and pack all of the supplies that we need for our 5 1/2 month old, we just ordered from Diapers.com a week's worth of diapers, wipes and formula and had everything shipped directly to our cabin. The package should arrive a few days before we do. We checked with the proprietors before we placed the order.

Angie (my Baby Cheapskate go-to source for these things) -- any experience with Diapers.com vs. Amazon in this case? Pricing? Service?

Comments

[Kookaburra]

Great tip!

I buy diapers from them alot and have never had any problems. I also always get the best deals there because they accept manufacturer's coupons and they have coupon codes for 1st time buyers (NOWSAVE5 for $5 off). They also have free shipping, a free 1-year Parenting magazine subscription, and cash back incentives. Not bad at all.

Prices on the items I use tend to vary depending on what specials each website has (e.g. Amazon often has good rebates on Similac, Diapers.com now has a 10% off club to buy into).

The big difference for me has been with service. I've never had a single problem getting my Diapers.com orders exactly when I expected. Amazon on the other hand has backordered items for weeks and in some cases, months. When my daughter was a baby I had more than one order I had to modify or cancel because by the time the size diapers I had ordered finally arrived, she'd have outgrown them.

[Marcy]

In major metropolitan areas, we scout out grocery delivery services in the area for times when we won't have a car.

Of course, we pay a premium for diapers a lot of the time, but we also get breakfast foods and kid friendly snacks while we're at it (and one big bottle of shampoo and conditioner for the family so we don't have to do the 3 oz thing while flying.)

When we are going to places like Disney World, where we use their transportation and don't have a car, it's a nice savings to not have to eat every meal out. Plus, since you can carry your own water into WDW, that covers the delivery fee right there for us!

It was just as handy in pricey Las Vegas.

[Sandy]

We used to order from the local Safeway or other grocery stores. Not just diapers but also baby food jars and formula. And we'd make sure that we ordered for the stay and including the trip back home. We order bottled water as well once. This way we traveled with just a cabin box, overnight bag and backpack (which included diaper bag supplies) and were able to keep travel light. BTW we rented a car when we landed and made sure we asked for a car seat when making the reservation.

[Liza]

We've just gone with finding a grocery store and buying on arrival.

[White Roses]

This is a great idea! The only point I'd make is that, if you're planning on bringing back souvenirs, the diaper space going out becomes great souvenir space coming back. But, next month, we're going to our timeshare in Vegas, and we won't be souvenir shopping, so this sounds like a fantastic alternative.

When we went to Costa Rica, souvenir space coming back was at a premium, so we're glad we took all the diapers with us.

[Cher]

I discovered this post on Mom Blog Network.com and just wanted to say, thanks for a great post! We will definitely try out this helpful tip for our next family vacation.

[Marilyn Terrell]

Wow, that's a whole extra bag you don't have to pack! And these days with luggage restrictions at airports, that's a huge advantage.

[Julie]

I have used Diapers.com for at least 5 months and have always gotten my order in the time frame quoted, and sometimes faster. I started with them after a referral from a friend who has used them for a year and a half.

We get the Seventh Generation diapers and wipes that are next to impossible to find locally. Recently I purchased a discount card that gets me $6+ savings on each jumbo pack, and will pay for itself in a total of five orders of diapers. Other items are the same price to slightly more than what I would pay at the Super Target, but I don't have to make the trip to the store.

[Michael - Family Hack]

A little twist on this is to ship your luggage home via UPS. It saves you the hassle of dragging suitcases through airports, taxis, shuttle busses and customs while trying to keep your kids under control too.

Michael
http://www.familyhack.com

[Ali Vigil]

Good tip! I had never even heard of diapers.com, and I think I'm going to try them for our upcoming vacation.

[phyllis]

this is a great tip. we just came back from a trip and we shipped ourselves a booster seat...i never even thought of doing it with dipaers and i order them online all the time!!! crazy.