Flying with Kids > Airplane travel tips

Find your airline's website in the FWK airline directory. Then search for information about flying with an infant or small child. What you find (or don't find) will tell you a great deal about how helpful they will be when you fly.

Check that your airline allows you to pre-book baby bassinet (sky cot) before the day of travel - not all will - Air NZ only allows pre-booking for infants of 8 months and less, otherwise you must wait until check-in to see if a bassinet is available.

Allow plenty of time at the airport for check-in, and connecting flights. Remember how much longer it takes to achieve anything with kids in tow and apply the same formula to your travel plans.

Smile sweetly and helplessly at everyone and you may get help and be able to queue jump - 'always keep the lid on your blender'.

Ask if your flight is full when checking in.  Some assistants will block out the seat next to you in a less full flight or offer you the option of seating next to a vacant seat.  This is particularly valuable if traveling with a toddler under 24months without a seat.

Get on the plane first and off the plane last to get a better chance of assistance from cabin crew.

Take a set of reins or a harness for a toddler so that you can let him walk around the terminal - but still keep him close at hand. This is a great bonus as you try to pick luggage from the carousel or present documents to airline, customs and immigration officials.

Look out for fast track customs and immigration check points for those traveling with infants.

Pack a small bag with just one diaper, a few wipes, a perfumed nappy sack and some rash cream if needed and place it in the seat pocket in front of you.

Some planes have a larger bathroom at the very rear of the plane with a correspondingly larger change table. Wait for this to become free if you have a larger baby to change, as airplane change tables are small.

On some airlines the cabin crew will prepare the change table in one of the toilet cubicles for you if you let them know  that you need to use one. That's a real help is you have a squirmy, smelly bundle to hold while wrestling with lowering a change table in the tiny space of an airplane bathroom - so the first time you need to make a change on the plane, ask an assistant where they prefer you to make the change, and take any help offered.

more about meals

Always test the temperature of food heated in the aircraft galley before you give it to your child.  If is often way too hot!

Take your own baby food, bowl and utensils for an infant. Some airlines do have tins of baby food on board - but most likely not what your baby likes best!

Disposable bibs are a great idea for infant mealtimes on board an airplane.

Disposable bottle liners that are pre-sterilised in a roll are excellent for long plane journeys. Carry a bottle of pre-boiled water with you too, then make up the bottle in the pre-sterilised bag and ask the attendant to warm it by standing briefly in a bowl of hot water.

Ask for bottles and meals to be warmed well in advance of when you need them. Cabin crew don't have a microwave and have to heat using hot water in the galley. This takes time.

Keep two diaper pins attached to your diaper bag. If you can get a window seat (most people will trade you) you can take a blanket and attach it to your seat and the seat in front of you for a privacy screen. People may even help you attach the pins when you're flying alone.

more about entertainment

Wrap toys to add to their entertainment value. Leave one end of the package open so that you can show the 'gift' to security staff if they ask you to.

Forget your policy on limiting screen time --- get as much relief as you can from the airplane children’s video channels and games. If you don't trust these, take a portable dvd player with your choice of dvds to view.

Bring toys out one by one - get maximum use from them, pack them away, then move on to the next toy.

Get older children to carry their own special tote with basic entertainment contents - stickers, colouring book, reading books, cassette tapes, dolls or cars etc. KidsTravelHappy.com sell a great travel toy tote that's good for this and also fits neatly under the seat in front for take-off and landing!

more about getting around

Snap on wheels for infant car seats (you can hire these from Plunket in New Zealand) are a real bonus if you've booked a seat for your infant and he'll be riding in his car seat. They can be taken onto the plane but take the assembly apart before check in to reduce the appearance of bulk. You'll love the convenience of wheels as you move around the airport.

Take a set of reins or a harness for a toddler so that you can let him walk around the terminal - but still keep him close at hand. This is a great bonus as you try to pick luggage from the carousel or present documents to airline, customs and immigration officials.

Small travel strollers will fit in the luggage bins of 747's or larger aircraft but airlines have become increasingly strict about not allowing these on board. (I'm using a MacLaren at the moment, stripped of it's hood and accessories - Ed.)

An infant front pack is really helpful so that you can carry baby while you push a luggage trolley.

more about travel health and hygiene

For bigger children who don't travel well - take along nappy/diaper sacks as sick bags. They tie up to keep the contents in and the odour neutraliser does help! Handy also for storing smelly clothes.

Because airplane bathrooms are small, keep a nappy, small pack of wipes/cotton wool, tube of lotion, lightweight plastic change mat/hand towel, flannel and nappy sack in a side pocket of your cabin bag.  Take only these essential items into the bathroom for each nappy change and restock the side pocket once you have resettled baby

Take a bottle of Rescue Remedy for everyone else in the family except baby.

No Jet-Lag tablets will help both you and your family arrive in good shape after a time shift. These tablets are safe for children to take as well as grown-ups. 

more about packing

Take an extra large purse as a carry on. That way you can fit in extra things like toys, snacks, wipes and a fresh diaper. Remember to check TSA guidelines to be sure you can take everything in your bag through security. Handbag Heaven have a fantastic range of oversized handbags to choose from.

A cabin bag with it's own wheels can hook over the handles of a baby buggy to aid in airport ease of movement.

Take a set of reins or a harness for a toddler so that you can let him walk around the terminal - but still keep him close at hand. This is a great bonus as you try to pick luggage from the carousel or present documents to airline, customs and immigration officials.

Because airplane bathrooms are small, keep a nappy, small pack of wipes/cotton wool, tube of lotion, lightweight plastic change mat/hand towel, flannel and nappy sack in a side pocket of your cabin bag. Take only these essential items into the bathroom for each nappy change and restock the side pocket once you have resettled baby

Very few airlines (if any) will allow even lightweight travel strollers in the overhead luggage bins so bring a stroller bag with you to keep your stroller clean in while it's traveling in the hold.

Cheap tickets sometimes have hidden restrictions - like tough cabin baggage weight limits - so check yours carefully before you start to pack.

Get children to carry their own back packs to lessen your load.

Leaving the U.S.? Don’t Forget Your Passport! Click Here for help to arrange your official travel documents.

The safest way for baby to fly is in an approved car seat used as a flight seat or using a CARES flight harness. Check the base of your infant or toddler car seat to look for the FAA approved sticker --- if you can't find one, check the manufacturer's instructions or contact the manufacturer to find out if the seat is approved for use in airplanes.

Print out a copy of the FAA's Childproof your Flight brochure (pdf), read it, and also take it with you when you fly --- especially if you are going to fly non-US airlines, which do not always allow car seats on planes without authoritative persuasion. Use this brochure as part of your authoritative persuasion if you have to. Please note that airlines usually ask that car seats are located in window seats so that other passengers can access their seats easily.

If you are not able to purchase a seat for your child under 2 years old, you will be asked to hold your child on your lap. You must then comply with the local regulations for securing (or not securing) your child by means of a lap or belly belt during take-off, landing, and turbulence.

	In Europe, Asia, and Australasia you will be asked to secure your child on your lap using a lap or belly belt.  You may also use a Baby B'Air travel vest during the main flight section of your journey, but you will be asked to use the lap belt in addition during turbulence.
	In North America and Canada lap-held children under two years of age must be held on your lap or in the burping position without any form of harness. You may only use a Baby B'Air travel vest during the main flight part of your journey, but not during take-off or landing.

CARES flight harness --- This product is approved by the FAA for use as a child safety restraint during the entire length of airplane flights. It has an equivalent safety rating to an FAA approved car seat.

The CARES flight harness is an easily transportable 'H' construction harness that you attach to a regular airplane seat and lap belt. It is suitable for children aged 1-4 years who weigh 22-44 pounds. It is much more easily transported around an airport or an airplane than a car seat (it's small --- you can fold it away) and can be used in any airplane seat, not just the window seat. (Airlines ask that car seats are strapped into window seats only so that other passengers can access their seats easily.)

You must purchase a child fare seat for your child (even for a child under 2 years of age) if you want to use the CARE harness. You cannot use it for a lap-held child.

Helpful travel sleep products

The location of many bassinet seats immediately in front of the screen is unsettling for some babies, and can be irritating to parents trying to coax toddlers to sleep.

Take cotton sheets to wrap baby or a toddler and to erect as a light shield over a bassinet. (I'm using Bubba Blue wraps just now, but any bassinette sheets will do - Ed)

A baby sleeping bag is great if you have one. This way you don't have to put baby next to those horrid, scratchy airline blankets, and you can pick her up to leave the plane without waking her is you're lucky!

It's a myth that babies are lulled to sleep by the plane's engine noise. Try to stick as much as possible to your baby's 'go to sleep' routine.

Talk to your doctor before you fly about whether using sedatives is right for your baby or child. Some children travel well with sedatives, others become even more hyperactive than usual.

Take lipstick and a small mirror in your hand luggage - if you're having a bad time, take two minutes to put on some lipstick and give yourself a pep talk in the mirror.

Look out for fast track customs and immigration check points for those travelling with infants.

Be prepared to lose stuff (and don't get fussed when you do).

Treat any time to relax as a bonus.

Keep smiling at the baby.

Ignore rude people, especially those whose job it is to help. Only you can know the right way to handle your child.

more about travel planning

Shop around the travel agents and take your children with you. If the agent can't wait for you to leave - take his advice and spend your money elsewhere.

Consider booking seats apart from one another if traveling with a partner. This way, one adult can rest whilst the other entertains the children.

Get your departure cards from your travel agent and fill them out at your leisure at home, instead of in a mad rush at the airport.

To help decide whether or not to book a full child's fare for a toddler, see how long you can last with him on your knee in the armchair at home.  Then make your choice...

Check that your airline allows you to pre-book baby bassinettes before the day of travel - not all will - Air NZ only allows pre-booking for infants of 8 months and less, otherwise you must wait until check-in to see if a bassinette is available.

Work out responsibilities clearly between parents before setting off.

Leaving the U.S.? Don’t Forget Your Passport! Click Here for help to arrange your official travel documents.

Do you need a travel visa? Click Here to find out

Consider booking seats apart from one another if traveling with a partner.  This way, one adult can rest whilst the other entertains the children.

Take your own baby supplies. The further from home the plane is, the fewer supplies there will be.

The further from home the plane is, the fewer baby supplies there will be. Be prepared. Take your own!

As soon as you board, put your pack of wet wipes into the seat pocket in front of you to keep stickiness at bay.

Keep track of baby's regular routine using a dual time clock, and gently adjust baby's routine as your holiday progresses --- dual time clocks are available online from Magellans.com.