Flying with a 15 month old

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I just flew on a nonstop to Las Vegas on Southwest. My son and snagged two aisle seats across from each other. We were pleased with our seats except for one thing...

 

A little girl, age 15 months, was a lap baby behind my son. She was adorable but the parents were clueless. This was a 5 hour non stop flight and they should have had a seat for her. They had not brought anything to entertain her- no dvds or laptop... no toys and frankly- there wasn't much room for them to entertain her because she was on their laps. They really didn't come prepared. This child did not sleep the entire flight and fussed. She was bored.

 

No parent can predict how a toddler is going to do on a plane- however.. these parents should have purchased her own seat and had an arsenal of new toys for her. They should have tried to walk her up and down the aisles to wear her out and done something to make her sleep- like read to her.

 

Instead the father allowed her to jump up and down on her tray table and when I shot him a look- he laughed like "isn't this cute?" No clueless parents it was not cute and my son who was trying to sleep was pretty annoyed with this kids jumping on the back of his seat.

 

I understand that there are some things parents can't control but these parents didn't do anything to make the journey fun for their child or the rest of us.

[Kerry's Girls]

Unfortunately, it seems like this happens all the time. I always feel sorry for these kids (and the people around them) because how are they supposed to behave in a confined space with no amusements? On flights we usually end up "sharing" a toy and some snacks with another family who I guess thought that an airline magazine would be enough for their toddler. It also reminds me of the news story I heard about a toddler and his father who were kicked off a plane because the kid had a tantrum when the ipad had to be turned off for take-off and the father couldn't get him buckled in. I guess I've always been so terrified of my kids mis-behaving on flights that I overpack amusements and treats.

 

Sorry you and your son went through that.

 

Best,

Mia

[mikesteg]

Ironically, our kids love the in-flight magazine, Sky Mall magazine, safety brochures and drink menu. :D Still, I don't think they'd be able to make it through a 5-hour flight without something more, and I wouldn't travel without 'stuff' even on a puddle jumper.

 

Unfortunately, this boils down to being a no-brainer for those of us who like to think, and a "not gonna happen'" for those who decline. I feel sorry for the kid though, because she isn't getting a fair shake with such MIA parenting. (Sorry for you son too, BTW.)

 

Jumping on the tray table has got to take the cake though... it would have served the guy right to have the table collapse on his lap, and perhaps serve the world well if he were not able to have more children afterwards. ;)

[donaldsc]

Instead the father allowed her to jump up and down on her tray table and when I shot him a look- he laughed like "isn't this cute?" No clueless parents it was not cute and my son who was trying to sleep was pretty annoyed with this kids jumping on the back of his seat.

 

.

 

They were wrong but you were also partly wrong. It is sort of "you are allowed one transgression and then I complain".

 

I would have gotten up and told the father that his little darling child was making it very uncomfortable for me and kindly requested that he stop her. The next time the kid did it, I would ring the cabin attendant call button and demand that she make the kid stop.

 

Sometimes you have to be proactive.

 

DON

[beachchick]

I would have called the flight attendant immediatly once the parents allowed her to jump up and down on the tray table. Not just because it's bothersome and rude to the person actually in the seat it's attached to, but because that is a huge safety issue! I can imagine what would have happened had the child injured herself: The parents say, "It's the airlines fault! We're going to sue. We had nothing to do with it." ARGH!

 

It's so frustrating when things like this happen because then completely responsible parents have to deal with the aftermath. Sigh.

 

Little story: On our flight to Hawaii this spring, there was a little boy of maybe 5 or 6 behind me (window seat). Partway into the flight, I felt the annoying "push" of feet hitting the back of my seat. My first thought was, "Oh, crud. I hate dealing with this." But then I kind of turned around and out of the corner of my eye saw that he was just so darn excited trying to see Hawaii out the window and saying, "Oh, I can't wait, momma!" He wasn't even aware that his little feet sideways off the seat were pushing the back of my seat and his mom didn't realize it either. I didn't have the heart to say anything because I would have ruined his innocent excitement.

 

beachchick

[Cruisin' Chick]

I'm surprised that a flight attendant didn't come over to stop the "playing" with the tray. I'm guessing that they were busy doing other things, but I can't imagine that if any did notice, the father would have been spoken to, right away. Maybe I would have suggested to him that he could hurt his daughter, and see if he realizes the danger. And then if not, buzz for an attendant. It does seem like a safety issue, plus it was bothering your son and possibly others too.

 

My daughter has been on only one set of flights, when she was 3. But I made sure to bring toys to occupy her, as well as toys for the cruise. I wouldn't have expected her to not be bored and that the airline would have provisions for entertaining her. (we actually got upgraded to first class on one leg of our return flight...and she fell asleep!)

[rebeccalouiseagain]

At least when she was bouncing- she wasn't crying. I think we were both so worn down by the experience.

 

Tips for flying with toddlers...

 

Buy them a seat.

 

Bring the infant seat for an infant or a car seat for a toddler. They do better when they are in a comfortable seat.

 

Get connecting flights rather than a longer non-stop. Babies and Toddlers need to have diaper changes and anyone who has flown knows this is next to impossible onboard. It's gross to change a poopy diaper in the plane! Ugh.

 

Run the crap out of the kid in the airport. There are lots of places for kids to run and play between flights.

 

Have a plan. Try to keep them awake prior to take off. Change their diaper immediately before boarding. Bring lots of healthy interesting snacks- like goldfish crackers, raisins and fruit chews.

 

BUY water or milk in the airport to bring on board- don't rely on the flight attendant to provide beverages prior to take off. I find that juice will make them hyper and more apt to have bowel movements onboard. Milk is thicker and it more satisfying when you feed it to them during take off.

 

Babies and toddlers have sensitive ears and I always gave my kids bottles at take off- this helps with the pressure in their ears. Never had ear problems.

 

Bring along their favorite naptime music, books, a laptop with their favorite DVD and also some new DVDs and books to peak their interest. Purchase soft headphones- not the type that fit in the ear itself.

 

If you aren't mentally prepared for a day of hard labor- don't fly with a toddler. In fact, I don't recommend it because it just won't be enjoyable for all involved.

[donaldsc]

At least when she was bouncing- she wasn't crying. I think we were both so worn down by the experience.

 

Tips for flying with toddlers...

 

 

 

If you aren't mentally prepared for a day of hard labor- don't fly with a toddler. In fact, I don't recommend it because it just won't be enjoyable for all involved.

 

All of your ideas are good ones.

 

I do have 2 better ones however - drug em or put alcohol in their bottles. LOL!!

 

DON

[Cruisin' Chick]

Great tips there.

 

One of my pet peeves about parents of infants/toddlers in any location are those who will change diapers in public, especially if they don't use changing pads.:eek: I always took my little one into a restroom or out to the car if not at home.

[Mimajo]

At least when she was bouncing- she wasn't crying. I think we were both so worn down by the experience.

 

Tips for flying with toddlers...

 

Buy them a seat.

 

Bring the infant seat for an infant or a car seat for a toddler. They do better when they are in a comfortable seat.

 

Get connecting flights rather than a longer non-stop. Babies and Toddlers need to have diaper changes and anyone who has flown knows this is next to impossible onboard. It's gross to change a poopy diaper in the plane! Ugh.

 

Run the crap out of the kid in the airport. There are lots of places for kids to run and play between flights.

 

Have a plan. Try to keep them awake prior to take off. Change their diaper immediately before boarding. Bring lots of healthy interesting snacks- like goldfish crackers, raisins and fruit chews.

 

BUY water or milk in the airport to bring on board- don't rely on the flight attendant to provide beverages prior to take off. I find that juice will make them hyper and more apt to have bowel movements onboard. Milk is thicker and it more satisfying when you feed it to them during take off.

 

Babies and toddlers have sensitive ears and I always gave my kids bottles at take off- this helps with the pressure in their ears. Never had ear problems.

 

Bring along their favorite naptime music, books, a laptop with their favorite DVD and also some new DVDs and books to peak their interest. Purchase soft headphones- not the type that fit in the ear itself.

 

If you aren't mentally prepared for a day of hard labor- don't fly with a toddler. In fact, I don't recommend it because it just won't be enjoyable for all involved.

 

As a mother and grandmother, having flown with children, toddlers and infants, these are all great tips, save one. Not everyone can afford another ticket for a seat for a toddler.

 

We will be flying with my daughter and her 10 yr old and 21 month old. We are all very aware of kids kicking seats etc. (even in movie theaters), and always watch out for this as well as concentrate on keeping them occupied. But another seat? Not possible.

[ToddlerMom]

As a mother and grandmother, having flown with children, toddlers and infants, these are all great tips, save one. Not everyone can afford another ticket for a seat for a toddler.

 

We will be flying with my daughter and her 10 yr old and 21 month old. We are all very aware of kids kicking seats etc. (even in movie theaters), and always watch out for this as well as concentrate on keeping them occupied. But another seat? Not possible.

 

I'm sorry but I don't understand how one additional seat makes the trip completely unaffordable. Does this mean that you would not take this trip at all if your grandchild if the grandchild was over 2?

 

Besides it really isn't safe to have children on your lap. See http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39290777/ns/travel-family/t/debate-renewed-over-flight-safety-infants/#.T_SZ5cWoySo

 

Relevant quotes "Everything on a plane — including coffee pots — has to be restrained during takeoff and landing and in times of turbulence, notes Marshall, a former flight attendant. Everything, that is, except young children sitting on a parent's laps."

 

"

Take the case of the United Airlines DC-10 that crashed in Sioux City, Iowa, in 1989. The parents of the four lap-held children were told to put their children on the cabin floor and hold them in that position while the adults assumed "the protective brace position." But three of the parents reported to investigators that they were unable to hold on to their babies and a 23-month-old died.

Five years later, a USAir flight crashed in Charlotte, N.C. Among the 37 who were killed was a nine-month-old baby held by her mother, who survived. NTSB investigators believed the baby might not have sustained fatal injuries if she had been properly restrained in a child-restraint system."

 

 

The child on the crash in Iowa died from smoke inhalation and not from injuries in the crash. The child was on the floor, in accordance with the instructions of the flight attendants" and the child's mother couldn't find him after the crash. Can you imagine the anguish of that poor mother?

 

 

 

We flew several times with DD before she was 2 and one time without a seat for DD. I really regret that now knowing how unsafe it is. I was simply ignorant about the risks and assumed that since it was allowed that it was safe.

 

 

As people always say on this board, the laws of physics are still in place on vacation so bring a carseat - well the laws of physics are still in place with an under 2 year old on an airplane.

[higgib]

Flying out of London to Auckland via LAX, in the row in front of us, a family with 4 young children, two aged about 5 or 6, one toddler, and a small baby. They expected the toddler and baby to use the bulkhead skycots. This family had used at least 4 overhead lockers for all their stuff (how? max 4 bags for 4 seats???) Our stuff was in lockers about 3 rows behind us. Just after takeoff, the father decides to change the toddler's dirty nappy on his seat. (He then helped his older kids with their meals, and all without washing his hands). We are stuck behind them - no place to go. I called the flight attendant and asked him to show the family where the appropriate place was to change nappies and wash hands. Thankfully we had a stopover in LA, so were able to leave them behind. But 12 hours where this child was running up and down the aisle, yelling, or it's parents were clambering around on the seats getting stuff out of the lockers. It was a VERY long flight!!!

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I think it is totally selfish to fly from London-Austrialia with kids that age. My mother rents a place in South Africa every year and I have a standing invitation and I personally would NEVER fly for the required 22 hours it takes to get there. Even without kids!!!

 

If family wants to see your kids- let the adults fly to see you! Makes so much more sense.

[Mimajo]

I'm sorry but I don't understand how one additional seat makes the trip completely unaffordable. Does this mean that you would not take this trip at all if your grandchild if the grandchild was over 2?

 

You obviously are not one that has to save for 2 years to afford such a trip.

 

I really don't appreciate your insinuating that we do not take the safety of our children seriously. This post started with passengers being annoyed (and rightly so) with a lap child misbehaving. Nothing was mentioned about safety in regards to purchasing a seat for a toddler. You are going in a totally different direction.

[calikak]

We just got back from a trip to Hawaii with our two kids, and I couldn't believe the number of compliments we got about how well our 8-month-old did on the plane. I mean, she WAS pretty good because we did our best to keep her either entertained or asleep as much as possible--but it was like people were expecting her to be a screaming mess the whole flight. I guess that's because there are too many people whose babies ARE a screaming mess on long flights. You definitely have to go into it with a strategy for how you will keep them as quiet and unfussy as possible for as much of the flight as possible, otherwise it's just not fair to the other 100 people trapped in that big metal tube with you.

 

Also, we learned something about flying with a five-year-old: don't put them in a car seat on the plane, it only puts them in a better position to kick the seat in front of them and you get to spend the whole flight repeatedly telling them to stop swinging their legs. (As opposed to flying with an 18-month-old, in which case it's best to have that car seat so that they are strapped down/contained in a seat that is familiar to them.)

[ToddlerMom]

I'm sorry but I don't understand how one additional seat makes the trip completely unaffordable. Does this mean that you would not take this trip at all if your grandchild if the grandchild was over 2?

 

You obviously are not one that has to save for 2 years to afford such a trip.

 

I really don't appreciate your insinuating that we do not take the safety of our children seriously. This post started with passengers being annoyed (and rightly so) with a lap child misbehaving. Nothing was mentioned about safety in regards to purchasing a seat for a toddler. You are going in a totally different direction.

 

It doesn't matter that no one has brought it yet. It's just not safe. I'm not saying that you don't care about saftey. I suspect like most people who don't buy seats for their under 2 year old you don't realize how dangerous it is. The fault for that lies with the FAA and the airlines.

 

People write on this board about planning to ride in taxis and they open themselves up to the inevitable carseat question. They don't appreciate being asked about it either. But that doesn't make it wrong to make the point again that children are safest in carseats, in both cars and airplanes.

[mikesteg]

 

It doesn't matter that no one has brought it yet. It's just not safe. I'm not saying that you don't care about saftey. I suspect like most people who don't buy seats for their under 2 year old you don't realize how dangerous it is. The fault for that lies with the FAA and the airlines.

 

From the article posted previously: "More than 7 million children under the age of 2 fly on parents' laps on American carriers each year, according to government estimates." That amounts to 161 million.... but let's say 100 million to account for the rise in air travel over the years.

 

They list 2 fatalities since 1989. The risk of death is essentially zero. Those damn statistics, eh?

 

Injuries may be another matter, but none of the articles really bother to address that.

 

The NTSB's says there is "no clearly defined relationship" between air travel and auto travel. That's obviously statistical BS. Nobody has bothered to prove that some number of people will drive instead of fly, but realistically they will. And it's known that car travel is more dangerous than air travel per mile.

 

As a side note, according to the article the NTSB has raised this due to the crash in Montana. As far as I can see, everybody on the plane was killed... so car seats would have helped how?

 

At least the FAA is using rational and objective criteria, whether an individual agree with it or not. The NTSB either is on a crusade or was instructed by some politician, who probably has stock in Graco, to go after this issue.

 

~~~~

 

Going back to the original topic: as someone pointed out, putting a child in a car seat actually puts them closer to the seat in front (and in a better position to kick.) Contrary to the expert option, a typical child will not sit in a 'stationary' car seat for 5+ hours, no matter how much entertainment you provide. Then what do you do with them?

 

That's another reason that we love our CARES harnesses.

[celle]

I think it is totally selfish to fly from London-Austrialia with kids that age. My mother rents a place in South Africa every year and I have a standing invitation and I personally would NEVER fly for the required 22 hours it takes to get there. Even without kids!!!

 

If family wants to see your kids- let the adults fly to see you! Makes so much more sense.

 

Sometimes it is unavoidable - not selfish!

 

My daughter-in-law works as an immigration consultant, helping people emigrate from the UK to Australia or New Zealand. Every year, she has to return from the UK to these countries, for courses to update her certification. It's not a choice - if she doesn't do this, she loses her job.

 

Twice now, she has flown UK-Australia-NZ-UK with a lap baby (2 different children). She's a very organised person, a hands-on Mum, and a bit of a hygiene-freak (ex nurse). She continues breast feeding until after this journey, so she does not have to worry about bottles and clean feeding supplies. She won't change nappies anywhere in public, but uses the rest rooms - says the baby is as entitled to personal privacy as any adult. She takes lots of things to amuse the baby in flight and says that usually the baby adapts to flying with no problems. Mind you, both of her babies have been happy, settled infants and they seldom cry anywhere.

 

This year, the older child, at 2 years old, did the journey with her Dad (they met up with Mum and baby sister later in the trip). Little Miss Two has now flown many times and she knows the procedures. She's quite at home going through security - has her own little back pack, with toys and other necessities for her journey, and puts it on the security screening belt all by herself. This time, she had her own seat, and was really excited about that.

 

She enjoys flying, but she has parents who take the time to prepare for the trip, and who are willing to keep her entertained and well-behaved. She does her running around in the airports and knows she can't do it on the plane. She has her favourite books, which are read and re-read. and she is a whizz at using the game applications that can be downloaded onto an I-Phone - heck she's better at using that phone than I am!

 

What it all boils down to is this:

 

• Sometimes, travelling with young children cannot be avoided.
  
• If you must travel with your children, plan ahead, take things to amuse them, and be prepared to work hard in flight to keep your child amused and quiet, so other passengers are not inconvenienced.
  

[circuitrider]

Tips for flying with toddlers...

 

Buy them a seat.

 

If you want to buy my kids a seat, I'll gladly take it! But if the airline lets me book a lap child, then I won't feel bad doing so (I should note that all my kids are over 2 now, but they have both flown as lap children). Tip: Though I don't use infant seats (our car seats aren't approved for airline use), you could take yours along just in case there's an extra seat. If not, then it'll just count as one of your carry-ons.

 

Bring the infant seat for an infant or a car seat for a toddler. They do better when they are in a comfortable seat.

 

If you already have an infant seat approved for airline use, bring it. If you're currently shopping for a car seat, check into ones that are approved for airlines too. But if you already have a non-airline-approved car seat, I personally wouldn't worry about it (but that's just me...I'm not you!). Not sure I'd bring a seat for a child older than 3 or so.

 

Get connecting flights rather than a longer non-stop. Babies and Toddlers need to have diaper changes and anyone who has flown knows this is next to impossible onboard. It's gross to change a poopy diaper in the plane! Ugh.

 

Have to disagree with you here for multiple reasons. #1, our son does great on flights except for the descent (hurts his ears...yes yes we've tried everything with varying levels of success). One flight = one descent, and one possible fit. Three flights = three descents, and three possible fits. #2 and #3, how long do you need between flights? My mom just had a nearly 6 hour layover turned into an hour (and only because they delayed the second flight by about an hour), then she was almost late for her NEXT flight. Very stressful...and she wasn't traveling with two young kids. So #2 is for long connections turning your 8hr trip into 16hrs, and #3 is for the added stress from trying to make the connections.

 

Me, I try to book the cheapest flights with the lowest number of flights. I'll gladly pay a SMALL premium to reduce the number of flights. Exception, I don't mind a long day layover (where we have time to explore the area), kinda adds to the vacation.

 

Run the crap out of the kid in the airport. There are lots of places for kids to run and play between flights.

Yes, don't just make them sit the whole time in the airport, and then make them sit on the plane. But not every airport is kid friendly. I was surprised that LAX didn't have a kids' play area (least not that I could find).

 

BUY water or milk in the airport to bring on board- don't rely on the flight attendant to provide beverages prior to take off. I find that juice will make them hyper and more apt to have bowel movements onboard. Milk is thicker and it more satisfying when you feed it to them during take off.

 

Guess it depends on the kid. If they're prone to airsickness, I'd probably shy away from too much milk (note, I'm talking about older kids, not infants...I wouldn't deny a 6mo his/her milk for a 12+ hour flight!). And for water, we just bring empty water bottles and fill them at the fountains past security.

 

Oh, if you have really young kids, TSA seems lenient about bringing milk. I've brought small containers (the ones you can get with Happy Meals) through without issue. They may have to test it since it's over 3oz. And they had no issue with them being frozen (had a whole day of flying ahead of me, so figured this would make them last). Another note...no I wouldn't give cow's milk to an infant...in this case our child was between 1-2 years old.

 

Babies and toddlers have sensitive ears and I always gave my kids bottles at take off- this helps with the pressure in their ears. Never had ear problems.

With our kids, it's the descent that seems to cause the most problems. But yeah, we bring them something to snack on during takeoff and landing. When everything works as planned, I give my oldest something to eat every 1,500 feet or so when descending. Our youngest is fine with some suckers (except she tries to find the stash and eat them during the flight too).

 

Bring along their favorite naptime music, books, a laptop with their favorite DVD and also some new DVDs and books to peak their interest. Purchase soft headphones- not the type that fit in the ear itself.

 

Yes, and even if you are 100% positive your child will refuse to wear headphones, bring them anyway. I was made to turn off a laptop playing a video because I didn't have headphones for my daughter. Now...the sound was all the way down (yes, she was happy watching a movie with no sound), I tried to demonstrate this, but the flight attendant didn't care...no headphones, no video playing. So the cabin was introduced to our 2yr old's complete meltdown (yes, I kept her in her seat, but she was definitely screaming). So just plug the headphones in so you can show them that you are indeed using headphones.

 

There's something else I want to point out. You want to be considerate both of your current seat mates, AND your future ones too. Sure, your child might be quiet for an extra 5 minutes if you give in to some demand...but they'll remember that, and be even more demanding next time. So that 5 minutes of quiet turns into 30+ minutes of crying/whining/kicking/etc. on the next flight. No more candy = no more candy...it does not mean no more candy unless you start to cry, so here you go.

[lrowe70]

Wow, judgmental post op. I guess your children are perfect.

Honestly I'm surprised with the replies in this thread. Isn't this the family board, several of you sound like child-haters. I'm probably taking this post a bit too personally as we just returned from a trip where my child had moments on public transport where he probably did not meet your standards of baby-traveling excellence. Quite frankly he had a few moments where he was awful, but I do not believe that makes me a bad, selfish parent. We did what we could to make him comfortable and to respect those around us, but babies don't always do what you want.

 

My goodness. They should have bought an extra seat?

Why, you don't know their child at all. For 1, that costs money, a lot of money. Our recent flights would have cost well over an extra grand had we got our baby an extra seat. For 2, some kids don't do well with their own seat. I'm thinking here of my own child. He screams his head off when we take public transport and isn't in a lap. Even when we do have a seat for him, be it plane, train or bus, we always hold him in our laps.

 

Ummm and laptop and electronic games new toys.

Once again, maybe that works for your child, but that doesn't work for all. My son, pays attention to that stuff for about 2 minutes and then will throw it aside. Like heck and I'm going to waste all that precious carry-on space for you to have 2 minutes worth of not having to hear him. And honestly I think that sounds like a set-up for a very spoiled and/or zombie-like child later on.

 

Walking the aisles, well that depends. Many times that isn't an option due to turbulence or take-off or landing.

 

Babies and children on planes don't bother me. People with bad body odor, heavy drinkers, and adults who get so terrified they grab your hand and cry every time the plane starts to bump(yes, this did happen to me once) annoy me much more than any child.

[higgib]

There are so many really good points made on this board, and some very helpful advice on how to manage this very tricky challenge of taking small kids on planes. For myself, other than a couple of very short (about 1 hour or so) flights between London and Scotland, I did not take my kids on a plane until they were 4 and 6. I can not really understand why anyone would do this at the beginning/end of a fun trip, although I appreciate that as someone else said, if the trip is for work or family reasons it is sometimes unavoidable. One other thing I found interesting to read about is the car seat question. On one occassion whilst travelling with my then 2 year old, we had obviously bought a seat for her. As we were hiring a car at our destination, we had her car seat with us, and schleped it all around our departure airport and onto the plane. We put it on her seat secured by the seat belt, and strapped her in. We were then told by the cabin crew that we would only be allowed to do this for a child under 2, and children older must sit on the aircraft seat and use the belt provided. They then insisted we remove the seat, and took it away to put into the hold. I had previously contacted the airline and told them the make/model of carseat, and they had confirmed that is was suitable to use on the aircraft. This was on budget airline Ryanair, so don't know whether different airlines have different rules?

[celle]

There are so many really good points made on this board, and some very helpful advice on how to manage this very tricky challenge of taking small kids on planes. For myself, other than a couple of very short (about 1 hour or so) flights between London and Scotland, I did not take my kids on a plane until they were 4 and 6. I can not really understand why anyone would do this at the beginning/end of a fun trip, although I appreciate that as someone else said, if the trip is for work or family reasons it is sometimes unavoidable. One other thing I found interesting to read about is the car seat question. On one occassion whilst travelling with my then 2 year old, we had obviously bought a seat for her. As we were hiring a car at our destination, we had her car seat with us, and schleped it all around our departure airport and onto the plane. We put it on her seat secured by the seat belt, and strapped her in. We were then told by the cabin crew that we would only be allowed to do this for a child under 2, and children older must sit on the aircraft seat and use the belt provided. They then insisted we remove the seat, and took it away to put into the hold. I had previously contacted the airline and told them the make/model of carseat, and they had confirmed that is was suitable to use on the aircraft. This was on budget airline Ryanair, so don't know whether different airlines have different rules?

 

If you live somewhere like New Zealand, as we do, you have to fly to get everywhere outside of our country, whether it is for work or leisure. And most of our flights are long-haul.

 

We can't take car seats on to the aircraft for our babies to sit in - the car seats have to be checked in. My DIL puts her baby into a soft, front pack, baby carrier for take-offs and landings, and for negotiating the airport, as she often has to check the small umbrella stroller.

[DG2007]

I wouldn't necessarily recommend milk as a the drink of choice for young kids on flights. I had the unfortunate experience of sitting in front of a toddler who drank some milk before take off only to vomit it all up an hour later. YUCK! The smell alone was hideous. I helped her mother clean up the mess but there were a few "grumpy" passengers who had no sympathy for either mother or child.

 

It comes down to entertaining your child, keeping them well fed and hydrated (whichever beverage works best for them), and knowing what will work best for your child. And unfortunately, even with the best planning (even with a seat for the child), things may go poorly. Planes seem to bring out the worst in a lot of people - small and large.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I wanted to respond to a previous poster. I have two sons ages 24 and 11 and both my kids did fly from age 3 months on. I had to adapt to their changing needs.

 

The point was- these parents sat there like deers in a headlight. I was like "Duh- no toys! No videos! Really?" Why did they think this kid would sit and stare. How boring.

 

I totally blame the parents- not the child.

 

I think it is really about having a plan because I doubt these parents were really happy on the plane. I'm sure it was harder on them than on us. So it isn't that I am trying to slam the parents but hope that these tips might be helpful to others.

 

I don't begrudge anyone a vacation but there are limits. New parents often don't know when they are in the planning stages that a toddler is completely different from an infant. Apart from ear problems- infants are relatively easy to travel with. They aren't mobile. Once a child becomes mobile- especially between the ages of 9 months- 2 years... they will not be happy to sit still for more than a few minutes. You have to be able to distract them and play with them constantly- unless they are sleeping. Been there- done that. All kids in this stage have short attention spans. So parents need to understand this.

 

I never said NOT to travel with kids- just to be mindful of their needs. When my son needed to move around- I walked him down the aisle. If the flight attendant asked us to sit down or something like that- we would but I know passengers would rather have parents walk the aisles than listen to screaming.

[mommy22girls]

Not all parents who don't buy their child a seat are irresponsible and clueless. I've flown with my daughter several times and she's been great. Plus the price of an airline seat these days is costly. Please don't judge, you really dont know their circumstances or finances. Sorry they ruined your flight.