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Started By
Message
Flying with young kids
Posted on 5/28/25 at 9:26 am
Posted on 5/28/25 at 9:26 am
We're flying for the first time with our son, who's just over a year old. We ended up buying him a seat under his own name so we could have a row to ourselves. Well now I've read online that sometimes airlines will either make you have them sit as a lap infant, or they have to occupy the seat by themselves (either in a car seat or big enough to sit properly). Otherwise they want to take that seat and book someone on standby and make you hold your kid. Seems like BS if I bought the seat to use how I want
Does anyone have experience with this? Ideally that middle seat stays open but we're still allowed to have him on our laps. Also any tips for flying with an infant is welcome. We're stocked up on snacks, screens, toys, etc but I'll take any advice i can get
Does anyone have experience with this? Ideally that middle seat stays open but we're still allowed to have him on our laps. Also any tips for flying with an infant is welcome. We're stocked up on snacks, screens, toys, etc but I'll take any advice i can get
5
Posted on 5/28/25 at 10:16 am to Ingeniero
You'll be happy to hear you're really overthinking the seat thing. There's no airline that's going out of its way to eject kids from paid seats.
Also, this would work in your favor. I once took a bump voucher worth over $600 for my kid because he was under 2 and I could hold him. You get all the benefits of giving up a seat without the cons of having to take a later flight.
Anyway, for kids under 2 you can hold them or have them in their car seat in their seat. When kids are over 2 they have to be able to sit in their own seat which can be a PITA during takeoff and landing.
As for one year olds, it can be brutal. If he's out of the infant carrier and started walking they are fidgety as hell. It's not relaxing at all and constant management of that. I don't know about y'all's kids but once they hit one they want to be held (and make random preference on who) and go where they want to go, which wasn't nearly the issue in the months preceding. They also start to get pissed when you take things from them starting at 1.
The golden era for traveling with a young kid is from 3 months to 1 year old. They start to come back around at 3 years old, give or take.
Also, this would work in your favor. I once took a bump voucher worth over $600 for my kid because he was under 2 and I could hold him. You get all the benefits of giving up a seat without the cons of having to take a later flight.
Anyway, for kids under 2 you can hold them or have them in their car seat in their seat. When kids are over 2 they have to be able to sit in their own seat which can be a PITA during takeoff and landing.
As for one year olds, it can be brutal. If he's out of the infant carrier and started walking they are fidgety as hell. It's not relaxing at all and constant management of that. I don't know about y'all's kids but once they hit one they want to be held (and make random preference on who) and go where they want to go, which wasn't nearly the issue in the months preceding. They also start to get pissed when you take things from them starting at 1.
The golden era for traveling with a young kid is from 3 months to 1 year old. They start to come back around at 3 years old, give or take.
This post was edited on 5/28/25 at 10:20 am
Posted on 5/28/25 at 11:05 am to Ingeniero
How long is the flight, and is it international?
Bring multiple pacifiers to equalize ear drum pressure, it's what makes most kids cry. Bring a couple, because at least one is going to get spit out onto the floor when you're not paying attention. Even if you already use tethers on them, just bring extra.
Doordash/Instacart to your lodging in advance, as much as you think you need versus packing bulky stuff (Cheerios, extra packages of wipes and diapers, etc.)
Oh, and get that kid a frequent flyer number. Mine have had them since about 18 months
There is a fierce debate that always rages about using a simple, easy, cheap stroller, versus the latest mommy "required" monstrosity when traveling. Your other concern will probably be formula/breast milk, and getting it through TSA and keeping it at the required temp until you can check into your lodging.
Bring multiple pacifiers to equalize ear drum pressure, it's what makes most kids cry. Bring a couple, because at least one is going to get spit out onto the floor when you're not paying attention. Even if you already use tethers on them, just bring extra.
Doordash/Instacart to your lodging in advance, as much as you think you need versus packing bulky stuff (Cheerios, extra packages of wipes and diapers, etc.)
Oh, and get that kid a frequent flyer number. Mine have had them since about 18 months
There is a fierce debate that always rages about using a simple, easy, cheap stroller, versus the latest mommy "required" monstrosity when traveling. Your other concern will probably be formula/breast milk, and getting it through TSA and keeping it at the required temp until you can check into your lodging.
Posted on 5/28/25 at 11:13 am to LemmyLives
quote:
How long is the flight, and is it international
HELL no
Direct, under 3 hours.
quote:
Bring multiple pacifiers to equalize ear drum pressure, it's what makes most kids cry. Bring a couple, because at least one is going to get spit out onto the floor when you're not paying attention. Even if you already use tethers on them, just bring extra.
He's off pacifiers and formula since he's over a year but we'll bring a bottle with some milk or juice for this
As far as the seating question, I'm still seeing conflicting info. Of course reddit can't just be helpful and has to give you a holier-than-thou lecture about how you ALWAYS need to fly with a car seat! Safety! Reading the actual helpful replies, if you buy them their own seat you're risking having a flight attendant fuss at you for them not being in their assigned seat during takeoff and landing. Your options are: buy them a seat and bring the car seat seat OR don't buy them a seat and you have to hold them at all times. Buying seat AND holding them is apparently a problem for some retarded reason
Posted on 5/28/25 at 11:23 am to Ingeniero
quote:
bring a bottle with some milk or juice for this
Bring the pacifiers as backup. If kids aren't hungry or thirsty, they still need the swallowing motion, and they may reject the milk or juice.
Reddit is ... you get it. With a kid that young, as long as you're not doing dumb shite like letting them crawl around on the floor! while boarding, if you're composed and pulled together, you'll probably get ignored. If it was Turkish airlines, you could stick your kid in the exit row and probably not even catch more than a glance :lol" The reason I mention the international airlines thing is partly because Reddit (at least AITA) seems to have a disproportionate amount of SE Asians, Brits, Canadians, and Aussies on it. How FAs act can vary greatly depending on what airline. You'll get much less variation on a domestic carrier, although Air Canada FAs are some of the rudest FAs I've ever met.
Posted on 5/28/25 at 12:13 pm to Ingeniero
Car seat has to be on window.
He only need to be seated on take-off / landing.
I assume if you want to keep him in lap for landing, that would be fine.
He only need to be seated on take-off / landing.
I assume if you want to keep him in lap for landing, that would be fine.
Posted on 5/28/25 at 12:31 pm to Ingeniero
people fly with kids all the time
Posted on 5/29/25 at 6:49 am to Ingeniero
we flew a bunch when both of our kids were that age and they did fine. Always in a car seat and they usually stayed in for the entire flight unless it was more than a couple of hours. Their ears start hurting when landing and they don't know how to clear them so a bottle or a pacifier will help. Pretty uneventful.
We flew from Charleston, SC to Ramstein AFB on a cargo plane loaded with cases of ammo headed down range with our daughter when she was 6 weeks old. The only seating on those flights are jump seats along the edge of the cargo hold. I have a picture of her and myself laid out on top of the ammo crates sound asleep. They normally refuel those flights in mid air but that time we had to land in Iceland and refuel so we had two takeoffs and landings and landings were eventful because of the ear thing. Other than that its no worse than flying without kids.....
We flew from Charleston, SC to Ramstein AFB on a cargo plane loaded with cases of ammo headed down range with our daughter when she was 6 weeks old. The only seating on those flights are jump seats along the edge of the cargo hold. I have a picture of her and myself laid out on top of the ammo crates sound asleep. They normally refuel those flights in mid air but that time we had to land in Iceland and refuel so we had two takeoffs and landings and landings were eventful because of the ear thing. Other than that its no worse than flying without kids.....
Posted on 5/29/25 at 7:06 am to Ingeniero
quote:
Buying seat AND holding them is apparently a problem for some retarded reason
I've never heard of this, nor can I imagine an airline doing this
You will be fine, you actually did the smart thing by buying a seat for the little guy instead of making him a lap child. I would imagine you are bringing a car seat anyway for your trip, so go ahead and put it in the window seat, have your wife in the middle and you take the aisle. Try to tire him out before the flight, let him walk around the terminal before boarding, then once you are seated, strap him in and fill his belly and fingers crossed he will fall asleep. Keep several pacifiers at the ready,
If he want's out, then you can have him in your lap, but no way in hell will an airline say you have to use the seat or we will take it from you.
This post was edited on 5/29/25 at 7:07 am
Posted on 5/31/25 at 12:14 am to Ingeniero
From our experience a 3 hour flight the car seat will be worth it. Strap them in and let them sleep.
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