Travel

Traveling with a baby in tow can be a challenge. With the security measures in place for air travel today, it may seem impossible to think of taking baby on an airplane with you. However there are ways to make traveling with an infant less of a hassle.

On most airlines, children under the age of two years old aren’t required to hold a ticket. They can be considered a “lap child”. Not having to purchase a plane ticket will of course, save you quite a bit of money, but, if the fare is low enough, consider purchasing your child a seat if the flight is more than an hour and the infant is more than one year old. Many airlines will give you a reduced ticket rate on your child’s ticket.

If your child has his own seat, you’ll have far more room for him to sit comfortably, spread out a few toys, and even fall asleep.

Scheduling is everything when it comes to air travel with baby. If you can get a flight in the morning just after breakfast, your child will likely be in a better mood and more tolerant of the experience. Think twice about scheduling a flight at nap time if your child gets cranky. While there’s no doubt that it’s great when your child falls asleep just after takeoff, a cranky baby or toddler is no fun to maneuver through security or on an airplane.

Be prepared to feed your baby a bottle or give him a pacifier during takeoff and landing. The sucking motion can alleviate ear pain during the changes in elevation. If you’re traveling across the ocean, ask if your airline has seats with infant beds. These seats are located in the first row past a cabin wall. The infant bed attaches to the wall right in front of your seat and provides a comfortable place for baby to sleep. These seats don’t typically cost more than another seat, but you will need to reserve them in advance. They cannot be used during takeoff or landing, but otherwise you have a great place for baby, without any additional cost.

A stroller is one of your best friends during travel with your baby or toddler. When you check in for your flight, tell the airline representative that you wish to “gate check” your stroller. They’ll give you a tag for the stroller and you can use it all the way to the end of the jet way as you board the flight. Then it will be brought to this same spot on the jet way when you deplane at your destination.