Plane Travel Sanity Laws: For the Insane Traveling Families

Guest post by Sarah from A Teacher at Heart:

Nap time in a Vietnamese Airport.
WARNING: This is way too much information and it isn’t a fun topic. I’m sorry. If you have more questions after reading this, please feel free to leave a comment and I’ll try to help you out! Chances are I’ve had the same question.

Let’s face it, for any parent, the thought of traveling with a baby, no matter how far, is not a pleasant thought. Since we have have been living in China for our child’s entire existence, until all of 3 days ago when we moved to Calgary, Canada, we have had quite a bit of experience traveling with a little one. Here are the stats:

Our Plane Trip Stats:
  • Between the US and China- total travel over 24 hours, with one layover per trip. We’ve flow this trip 4 times, there and back. (I’ve flown most of these trips on my own and hubby has joined us later.)
  • Hong Kong: Total travel about 3 hours each way.
  • Vietnam: 6 separate flights between all of the cities we visited.
  • Thailand: 10 hours each way.
  • Calgary: 4 hours from Houston! AND happy to say, this is our new home! (Again, I made this trip alone with the little one!)
  • Carter actually has American Airlines Platinum status.
First Law: Plan Ahead.
You can’t do this enough. This is the biggest key to maintaining your sanity.
  • Plan your trip door to door. So if you are driving one hour to an airport, be prepared. If you are checking in 2 hours prior, be prepared. If you will be waiting in long lines at Customs, be prepared. (Games, snacks, books, etc.)
  • Call your airline to let them know you are traveling with an infant to see which ways they can accommodate you.
  • Seat or Lap Child? There are two options when purchasing a ticket for your child. They can have their own seat or you can pay a portion of a ticket and hold them the entire time. If you are traveling with out assistance, I suggest purchasing a ticket for your child. It can get pretty stressful with a Wild Thing on your lap and stranger in the seat next to you. Though, I’ve flown both ways (alone) and survived. So no worries!
  • Requesting the Bulkhead.

This is the front, right behind First Class. It’s a larger area, with more leg room and reserved for people with babies first, then really frequent flyers. It is first come, first serve so you need to reserve on the phone. Then your arrival time should be about 30 minutes before everyone else…. That’s right, arrive 2.5 hours before takeoff to be on the safe side. I suggest this mainly for people who have chosen to fly the Lap Child option. The extra space is nice but on the downside, the armrests do not raise up. Just something to think about.

  • Request a bassinet. We used this up to 8 months.

This is free on the airplane. Free and fabulous! It hooks into the wall of the Bulkhead so if only for an hour or two, your hands are free too. Make sure and request this when speaking to the airline.

Yup, he’s hanging on the wall. And see that arm and TV to his right? That is First Class.
  • Organize a carry-on of just Baby Stuff: In this large bag, organize the items listed below into smaller totes. Then put the small totes and snacks under the seat in front of you. The rest goes up above until needed.
  1. Blankets.
  2. Little toys. Think McDonald’s Happy meal/Dollar Store toys. Quite, little and many.
  3. Stickers=amazing. Just stick them on anything…like the magazines in the seat back.
  4. Clothes Pins: Like the stickers…. clip’em anywhere.
  5. Books.
  6. Diapers, wipes, the whole sha-bang.
  7. Snacks. Dry, not too messy.
  8. Sleep-time ritual tools. Pacifier(s), PJ’s, formula, tata’s, Hooter-hider, Boppy Pillow, etc.
This picture was on our first flight. Before we “perfected” the One Large Baby Carry-On. Notice the three separate bags and much too large stroller. Waaay too much to carry.
  • Prepare for take off. We use the trusty ‘ole pacifier to assist in keeping his ears popped. It has never been an issue! I’ve heard of other parents using a lollipop.
  • Navigating the Airport with Your Stroller:
  1. Note: If alone, you will have to go through security without assistance. Don’t even expect them to help you lift your stroller. If your anywhere but America though, you’ll get to go through a VIP line and bypass 99% of the inspections. So Nice!
  2. Bring an umbrella stroller that is foldable and liftable with one hand. Chances are, you are holding your little one with the other hand. You can bring the stroller with you to the gate and check it right before you get on the airplane.
  3. For some odd reason, lots of airports have metal poles right in the middle of the escalater entrance. The less bulky the stroller, the better.
  4. Final stroller note: They are often slid down a ramp to the ground for loading onto the airplane. One stroller, right after another, until they are stacked up on the ramp….in a tangled manner. This is why we travel with a cheap-o stroller.
Second Law: Set Reasonable Goals. (Here are mine.)
First, for him to sleep as close to his schedule as possible. Sleep is quiet and sleep makes him happy. Let the Flight Attendants know you do not want to be disturbed if your little one is sleeping. NO MATTER WHAT!
Next, for him to be happy.
-So we play! Lots of reading, stickers, toys and snacking.
-Another fab sanity move is going for a walk to the bathrooms to wash hands. He loves it! (Sad what you resort to while in need.)
-Also, if happiness means we are walking up and down and up and down the aisle for 3 hours. You better believe we are doing just that. Because, awkwardly walking down the aisle is much less stressful than a fussy baby.
Finally, allow for help. (This was a hard goal for me but is a must have.)
-I’ve had random, kind, angel-ladies offer to play with Carter at their seat for a bit. ALWAYS, accept. This is God, sending his helpers! The deal is, when you accept you are in agreement that someday, you will do the same for someone else. It’s worth it! Trust me!
-It is fun for them and a break for you. Run to the restroom at this time.
Third Law: Don’t be too hard on yourself or your little one.
This can (will) be a bit stressful but think about who or what is waiting for you at the end of your trip! It is worth it!! When it gets super stressful just repeat my mantra: “This is one bad day. Just one bad day.”
LINK UP:
Since every child and every trip is different, we need all the help we can get!! If you have any Plane Travel Trips, please link them up below.
……………

Sarah writes for A Teacher at Heart along with her mother, Rita and sister-in-law, Suzie.

This teaching family writes to support and inspire every person involved in raising children.

19 Comments

  1. Kristina, woo hoo, way to go!! It looks like we've had similar experiences! Never easy, but some how we've all survived. Ha ha. I love how you said "no one cares that you are traveling with alone with a child" so so true.

    Deep breaths, deep breaths. :)

  2. We plan on traveling to India at least once before Baby Brother turns two. Big Sister will be 7 or 8, but has NEVER been on a plane. These are great times I can use for both kids! Thanks!

  3. One tip for walking up and down the aisle with your baby – don't get too close to the cockpit. The flight attendants will have a cow. I've had them freak out on me on several different airplanes for walking my (otherwise screaming) child up and down the aisle. Stick to the middle to back of the airplane, and you should be fine.

  4. Last year we took our 1-year old daughter to Germany to visit my husband's family. This year we're going again, but as a 2-year old. I can guess that they'll be completely different trips. When she was 1, I was still breastfeeding, she was in an infant car seat and was entertained by little things. She wasn't walking yet, so it was disgusting to see her crawl on dirty floors. Even a (male) flight attendant advised me to pick her up when she was crawling down the plane's aisle. It's nice that she can now walk, but she can also RUN (away)! This year she will be more curious but harder to manage. I'm going to take you up on the sticker and washing-the-hands ideas.

    Last year we took a cheap-o umbrella stroller, and it got lost during the first lay over. At our destination, my father-in-law's friend lent us hers for our visit. Thanks for the packing ideas!

  5. My girls love their car seats, so I take a travel stroller and roll their car seats in it while the baby is strapped to me in a front-carrier. It's a lot to haul, but my daughter was so much happier in her car seat than on the flight where I tried to hold her. I will always purchase their own tickets if at all possible. Also, diapers, wipes and clothes! My baby had the worst blow-out diapers on airplanes. I'm so glad I had researched ahead of time & knew about the fold down changing tables in the bathrooms.

  6. I have no extra tips but stand in awe of you amazing mamas who travel with little ones. We took our son, aged 15 months, on a 2 hour flight… and there were five adults to help with him, the lone child. You ladies are awesome for your great travels with children!

  7. Thank you SO much for this post. I will be traveling overseas with my 3 month old later this summer. I had no idea about the bassinets! That will be such a lifesaver.

  8. We lived in France for 2 years and traveled back and forth. I would recommend getting a seat for a baby if you can afford it. It's nice when they can sleep in their car seat (bring on) like they would in the car when traveling.

    Also, our toddler and 5 yr old got a kick out of the mini post it notes. Make silly faces, pictures, etc. and stick them to the seats and windows around you. And they come off easily.

    I would recommend a back pack for your carryon. That way you can wear it and have hands free. Also, you don't have to worry about having a big bulky bag over your shoulder and bumping everyone has you are boarding. Also, ask to board early and give yourself time to settle into your seats and get things arranged before everyone else boards. Your child can also explore his new "area" and seat while you are getting settled.

    Also, you can reserved kid's meals on long-haul flights (call 24hr ahead). They usually have kid friendly food- applesauce, nuggets, etc. Even if they don't eat, it at least keeps them busy playing with it for a few minutes! If you have a lap child you can request your child's meal first and then have them bring your meal at a later time after your child is done. Other wise you will have 2 food trays on your one tray.

    Happy traveling! Great tips!

  9. Great tips- thanks so much! I especially loved the part about accepting help from others. Totally agree, though it's hard. We live in the UK and frequently travel, but you still had some tips I hadn't thought of or articulated that well. Thanks again!

  10. What great additional tips everyone has!!!

    Loved Anonymous' sticky note idea! Totally my style! Light, quite, many and disposable!!

    Liz Busby, thanks for linking us up!! :)

  11. Great tips, Sarah! We, too, fly frequently with our little peas and have used many of the same strategies as you have. Love your clothespins idea – hadn't thought of that before! And we also learned the hard way to bring a small, cheap-o stroller when flying.

    We try to buy a seat for long-haul flights, as you suggested, it's just so much more comfortable for everyone. But for short-hauls we don't bother.

    A couple of tips to add – if there are two adults, we suggest that only one adult boards in the 'pre-boarding' with all of the bags and gets everything 'set up', while the other adult and the baby/small child wait to board LAST. That way you don't have a wriggly tot in a small space complaining about having to sit down for a long time, especially if you end up being on the runway for a while. We try to minimize the time they have to sit still.

    Also, we find that it's better to break a long-haul trip up with stops (unless it's overnight), so they can get off and run around an airport in between legs, rather than trying to get non-stop flights as we would normally have done.

  12. I have traveled from Oman to Australia several times alone with my three children and yes it can be stressful but I keep telling myself it's only 24 hours and worth it to see family. This year I have another bub so that makes an 8, 5, 3 and 8 month old so I chickened out and opted not travel this summer!

    A few tips. Bring a change of clothes for the kids. We had a really turbulent ride once and everyone was sick. Portable kids headphones for the inflight entertainment as often they only have adult size for kids. If you are in the bulkhead some airlines don't allow the kids to sit on the floor, I once had an attendant yell at me! Light muslin wrap or similar for the bassinet. Long sleeves for the kids as it gets cold. If your taking formula or food on the plane be aware some airports make u open the bottles at the security checkpoint. Wipes, wipes and more wipes ;-). Chewy sweets for take off and landing for their ears. You should wear easy wear clothes that can be sponged off in a bathroom. Socks for the kids as those floors are scanky indeed and slippers if they are going to the toilet as the floor is often wet. For kids an ID braclet or similar with your flight number and gsm / cell. Make up an airport bingo game, easy to play for long delays. Oh gee I could go on and on, sorry I talk too much. Happy travels to everyone.

  13. i never even imagined there were bassinets! i've even had the pleasure of sitting in the bulkhead w/a screaming infant (sorry to anyone on that flight w/me) and no attendant offered such a thing, and i'd never seen such a thing, next time i'll know to ask ahead….thank you for your great list!

  14. Mama Pea Pod: Love your pre-boarding in shifts idea! We're totally going to have to do that next time we fly as a family!!!

    Isra: I totally forgot to mention a change of clothes!!! I also, love your airport bingo game!! What a great idea for little pre-schoolers!!

    Moominmon: Giiiirl, I feel your pain with the screaming infant. So embarrassing and STRESSFUL. Some airlines only have bassinets on super long flights. Some have them for every flight! And sometimes, they just plain "forgot to load it on the airplane" (loved that one.)

  15. I am SO glad I read this. We have two relatively short flights coming up in August and September, but these will be our first experiences with an infant on a plane! I am going to start preparing NOW.

  16. We used a lot of these ourselves & our daughter has her own frequent flyer numbers/miles as well–she’d flown eight times by her first birthday! We’ve always bought her her own seat & put her carseat in it (when she was under two & it was optional)–still use the carseat even though she’s older now. She’s used to sitting in it & she knows that she’s expected to stay buckled up while in it. On the one trip we thought we could manage with her on our laps, we ended buying a one-way for a seat for her for the return trip. Money. Well. Spent. Also, we purchased a Go Go Babyz that attaches to the back of a regular carseat, turning it into a stroller of sorts, so you can just push/pull it through the airport. The wheels can stay on in the plane seat, but they do need to be removed when installing it in a car on the other end. Absolutely BRILLIANT. Plus, when she wanted to walk to burn off a little energy, I’d just put my carry-on backpack in the carseat & give my shoulders a little break. It’s definitely something to test out before leaving home though. It fit beautifully on our Britax Marathon, but it was a lot harder to use on our Britax Boulevard. The flight attendant was actually threatening to cut the plane’s seatbelts to get the seat out (they insisted on running the seatbelts through the back of the car seat rather than just over the top, like they should have & always have on every other plane ride). We seriously sat on the plane for 40 min. after the last passenger de-planed with everyone from the flight attendants to the captains to the maintenance personnel trying to get the seat out. Not fun, esp. after a long day of cross-country flying.

    When she got to be a little older, i.e., 1 1/2 years, she was greatly entertained with a box of BandAids. I let her open each one herself (prolonged the experience) & didn’t care that she was literally covered head to toe with them when we arrived. Stickers, the same, but BandAids were a big deal b/c Mommy didn’t allow free play with those at home. You can bring sealed juice boxes/milk on the plane, but if it’s breastmilk in a bottle, some TSA agents WILL make you open it so they can test it. Def bring a change of full change of clothes for the little ones. We, too, had the worst diaper blowouts on planes–I think it has something to do with the pressure changes. If the clothes she was wearing weren’t ones on loan from my sister, I would have thrown them away. Oh, and always carry a few empty Ziploc bags in your carry-on. We also loved the Graco universal stroller for use with the infant car seat–super lightweight & easy to use, one-hand fold, etc. I would usually wear my baby on the front in a Baby Bjorn & have my backpack carry-on on my back. Her infant seat would be strapped onto the universal stroller & sometimes I’d give our carry-on a “ride”. Then when we’d go through security, board the plane, etc. My hands were free to load the stuff onto the scanner belt, fold up the stroller for a gate check, etc. Excellent use of money & kept the carseat at easy access for either a gate check or taking onto the plane to put in her seat.

    Happy Travels!

  17. The Go Go Babyz is great, but using a cheap luggage cart and bungee cords is just a easy and less expensive! Always check your carseat at the gate, not at check in! It’s less likely to get damaged that way. Often you can bring your car seat on FOR FREE if you didn’t buy a ticket and there’s open seats on the plane. Ask at check in. It’s a risk, but we’re traveling (to move there) to Korea in 2 mos and the tickets are $800 each one way. I will just risk it and hope for the best. Make sure to have a gate check bag (can be bought at walmart.com) for the car seat so it stays clean if you have to check it. Also, wrap bungee cords around strollers you will be checking. The more compact they are, the less likely to get damaged. often the latches are flimsy so this helps keep it together if the latches fail. If your baby is on baby food still, the Plum Organics or Ellas Kitchen squeezy packs of food are wonderful! Take bottles of water on board even if you breast feed. It’s for the baby afterall, if it means keeping mama hydrated and the 4 oz containers of water they will give you won’t cut it! i have found a WONDERFUL backpack at http://www.okkatots.com. HEAVEN ON EARTH. Pricey but there’s a place for everything!!! I got 14 size 3 diapers in it! Plus a whole slew of other stuff. Hope that helps!

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