Celebrating a babymoon in Thailand

It seems to be quite popular, the babymoon. After the honeymoon, one more holiday together before the (first) baby is born. Some travel agencies even have special arrangements for a babymoon. To Thailand, for example, to relax with your partner in a resort, on the beach or at the swimming pool, enjoy good food and reminisce about earlier trips to this beautiful country. Or visit the parents again, who either spend the winter or have moved to Thailand permanently. Still showing the big belly!

Of course pregnant women can travel, but good preparation is almost a requirement, because there are possible risks involved. It is highly recommended to oversee these risks and to take the necessary measures. Not preparing properly can have very unpleasant consequences, especially with a premature child.

Egypt

I come to this subject because of the bizarre story that was in the news last week about an 18-year-old girl from Rotterdam, who gave birth to a son during a holiday in Egypt. That was by no means a babymoon, because the lady in question claimed that she did not even know that she was pregnant. The baby just came into the world spontaneously! Big trouble, because she couldn't travel back to the Netherlands without a passport for the baby.

The local authorities and the Dutch embassy were probably informed via the parents in the Netherlands. When, after a few days, no passport was made available by the embassy, ​​the press was informed and very unfairly shamed about the "laxity" of the Dutch government. The crisis service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had to resolve this quickly and, exceptionally, they did.

The mother will be in the Netherlands by now, but undoubtedly there will still be a financial tail for her and her parents (father of the baby unknown!).

Born too early

The SOS Emergency Center reported in a newspaper article a while ago that they are confronted on average once a month with a “premature”, an earlier than planned birth of a child somewhere abroad. This can be for a medical reason or simply, the baby does not obey the law of nature and announces its arrival earlier than 40 weeks.

No passport

This does not have to be a problem if it happens in a Schengen country, but if the child is born prematurely in a (far) foreign country, such as Thailand, the mother or both parents will be faced with major problems. The baby can't just go back home with you, because it doesn't have a passport. That passport is provided by the embassy, ​​but that takes time and, moreover, a declaration must first be made to the local authorities, which involves a lot of paperwork. In any case, it is certain that the holiday is extended involuntarily.

There is a specific procedure for the declaration of a child born in Thailand who will have Dutch nationality, which is described in detail on the embassy's website. I assume that the same will apply to a future Belgian baby.

Prepare well

Proper preparation means in the first place consultation with the midwife to determine whether traveling is justified. If, after investigation, the answer is affirmative, a medical certificate of no objection will be drawn up, preferably in English, which may be required for, among other things, the airline you are flying with. The rules for making a flight as a pregnant woman can differ per airline. It almost goes without saying that one checks in advance with the health insurer to what extent the costs of a birth abroad are reimbursed and taking out good travel insurance is also part of this. It also seems logical to me to look closely at the medical facilities in the vicinity of where people spend their holidays in Thailand.

Finally,

Given the affair in Egypt, I thought it advisable to write an article on this subject. I have not gone into depth on the various aspects, because I am not a specialist. The internet is chock full of information about premature children, about traveling by pregnant women, about procedures for reporting abroad. I don't wish it on anyone, just let a child come into the world at home, so that the father can go to the town hall on his bicycle for the declaration of the new citizen of the world.