I was recently in a car accident with my kids. Everyone is ok, but insurance did agree to reimburse me for a new car seat for my daughter. Her new car seat arrived yesterday. We are going on a family vacation tomorrow, flying across country, on Southwest Airlines. I plan to check her car seat so we have it when we arrive on the east coast. My question is this. Would you take her brand new car seat and check it? I'm concerned of how it will be handled, lack of care, etc. Or we do have a spare car seat (not the one from the accident) that we could take. We are flying with 6 kids and have a layover in Baltimore, with a change of planes, so I'm not really interested in lugging it around and taking it on the plane with us. They are both Radian's and weigh about 20 lbs.
Take the spare.... it willl work just fine. The other thought is that you can rent one w/ the rental car (if that's what you are doing...) Have a fun and safe trip.
I would use the carseat on the plane for your child's safety.
I would choose one that is light weight, like an Evenflo Maestro for a child at least 3, or Scenera if rear-facing and under 40 lbs. Depends on the child's size, of course.
Radians I would save at home! :) They are heavy.
I'd take the spare.
Check the spare. When we flew, the airline allowed us to check it for free, which was pretty cool because I had stuffed it with what wouldn't fit into my carry on, so it was all free. ;)
If you decide to try gate checking, you could get a small luggage hauler, and strap the seat to it. Then it becomes a handy little stroller, or you can pile your carry-ons into it.
I agree with Jenny O! When my kids were younger, I refused to let them fly without their car seat. In the long run it made flying easier for both my husband and I, and it helped my kids because they were comfortable in their seat. I have heard to never check car seats at baggage claim because of the way they are handled. I would at least check it at the gate before boarding the plane. Your spare car seat would work just fine.
I would take the spare
Take your spare, but NEVER baggage check a car seat - take it on the plane or gate check at the very least.
Take the spare and check it for ease of mind, vacations should be stress-free :)
I would not take the new one.
We have a bag. like this one http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2960524
And we gate check it. that way it does not need to go through the conveyers etc.
