Plane Ride with a 5 Month Old

Hey T.,

I have an online travel business and get this request often. Here is a link to the TSA site that gives you information about traveling with little ones. I hope this helps!

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/children/index.shtm

T. Hicks, CRTA
www.hickstravelweb.com
www.earnwithtravel.info

We are flying soon too. It's not worth buying an extra seat for your 5 month old. It's kind of a waste of money. Some rental places have carseats and you don't NEED your base in your car. Bases are only for permanent car seat's for easier trasportation of baby. If your rental place doesn't have a carseat for you. It's SO much cheaper to buy a carseat there instead of buying a ticket for the seat. Have fun!

Hi T.,

Around 12 weeks we took our daughter to Orlando. She rode in my lap and we checked our car seat (I've heard horror stories about using car rental shops carseats). Call the airline and see how many extra bags you can check with a lap child (they typically do NOT count a checked car seat toward your quota).

Our daughter did great but was pissed that I didn't feed her as soon as she was hungry because we weren't quite ready for take off but once we taxied and I started nursing her she was happy as can be and pretty much slept the entire flight.

In March (she was 10.5 months) we packed her up and went to Paraguay, South America. We did buy an extra seat for almost every flight and took our Britax Boulevard for her to ride in. Go Go Kidz is a lifesaver if you have a convertable car seat. Worth every penny of the 80-90 dollars we forked out for it.

She practically slept the entire way both there and back (with layovers it is a little more than 24 hours each way) on the flights. She did much better than the 2+ yoas on my flights (I even think at one point a Brazilian stewardess gave one child some tequila or other hard liquor to calm him down so he wasn't running up the aisles).

The thing to prepare for is lost luggage. We got to Paraguay and the only bag that didn't make it was my daughter's (and it had most of the formula for her stashed in that bag). We got it 3 days later and luckily I had enough formula in my carry ons but I learned to keep an extra day or two of formula (get some of the individual packs, similar to the Crystal Light packets you use in bottled water, great for airports!!!! Babies R Us has them as does Walgreens) two days of clothes, pjs and diapers in a carry on. Don't be caught in a similar situation. That's probably my best advice along with forget annoyed peoples' stares. Glare back, it's kind of fun :)

Honestly, if your daughter is typically happy in the car, she will probably be happy in the plane at that age. Good luck and enjoy your trip south!

I know that if you want to put the car seat in a seat then you have to buy the seat.....and that they will let you bring the stroller on and the flight attendant will stash it up front until you get off. The newest thing though is no liquids......lotion, perfume, anything. If you have formula or breast milk you can bring that but they will probably ask you to take a sip to make sure it isn't an explosive.... lol.... Other then that arrive extra early so you don't get caught up waiting and end up extra stressed..... Oh, one more thing is as you take off and land your ears pop..... and so do babies. To help, try and get her to take a paci or bottle if possible during take off and landing to help relieve the pressure. I fortunately haven't had to fly with ours yet, but my sister in law is getting ready to fly from Oregon to Kentucky with her 3 1/2 month old..... so she is trying to get ready too. These are some of the things she has been telling me about. I hope you have a great trip, and no matter what, don't worry about what other people think while flying. If they can't understand that sometimes babies cry...then they can just get over it. Have a wonderful time......and good luck.
T.

Hi T.. When my first son was 7 months old, we took a vacation down to Florida. We made sure to leave around feeding time. I breastfed him at the time, so when we got up in the air I started feeding him to keep his ears clear. After he ate, he was out for the rest of the flight. We gave him a pacifier to keep him sucking. As far as all the gear, we checked in our stroller. When we got down there, we rented a car and the rental place had carseats you could use. So, we didn't have to worry about lugging that around. I don't remember it being any extra to use the carseat, but can't say for sure. If you're worried about the carseat being borrowed, I just laid one of his blankets over it, so he was on top of his blanket. Hope you have a great trip!

I've travelled with infants a couple times, and it wasn't nearly as stressful as I was afraid it would be. With my son, he just played on our laps the whole time, and smiled and cooed at the people sitting near us. Actually, one of the people riding right behind us was a flight attendant, and she held him for a few minutes to give us a break. Other than that, he had a hard time falling asleep, but wasn't really fussy about it. I think he was about 7 months old at the time, and it was also a 2 or 3 hour flight. We had a carseat available for him, but we didn't use it. They only fit in window seats, too. But, if you have one and they have a seat available, you can bring it on without paying for the seat. If you have a stroller with a carseat that snaps onto it, use it in the airport and check it at the gate. They will have it waiting for you as you get off the plane so you don't have to walk around with all your carry-ons and the baby, too. We found that we got through the lines faster because of the stroller at bigger airports. They would send us through a separate security check since we had to unload the stroller, fold it up, then take our shoes and the baby's shoes off, etc.

The second trip, our daughter was a year old, and VERY active. The flight was tiring keeping her corralled in our seats, but once again, she wasn't fussy. That was a 5 hour flight, and the flight attendant actually took her and walked the aisles for 10 minutes or so to give us a break. We had books and a few toys with us that she enjoyed. Our son was 3, so we took a laptop and some videos, and that kept him happy for hours.

For both trips, I was still nursing, so I nursed during during take-off and landing to help their ears, and the kids did fine.

Good luck, and have fun on your trip!

Don't worry at all. I took two kids on a 4 hour flight who were 1 and 2 1/2 and it was much easier than I thought. I actually was so nervous about the flight that I made my husband fly home, only to get off of one airplane and jump right back on another one to fly with me so he could help me with the kids! It was nothing though. One thing I'll say that is really helpful is that you can put your baby in a stroller, and roll her right onto the airplane! They will take your stroller for you when you get on the plane, and hold it in front for you during the flight. Then, when you land, they will bring it back to you so you can have it while you're walking off the plane. It really helps and I strongly recommend doing it. As far as taking off goes, if you keep her occupied, either by eating a special snack, or sucking on a bottle or pacifier while you play with her, she will do just fine. The key with my kids was not letting them get scared. I just kept playing with them and keeping them distracted so that they didn't pay very much attention to the change in altitude and the loud sounds of the plane's engines.

Oh, someone mentioned taking the carseat on the plane. This may be what works best for you, but keep in mind a couple of things. First, you will have to purchase a ticket if you do this, whereas if you take her in a stroller and hold her, you will not have to pay for her to have her own seat. Stewardesses will normally allow people to switch seats as soon as everyone is accounted for, so chances are, you'll be able to be place in a row where the seat next to you is unoccupied anyway, and she'll be able to sit next to you if she gets tired of being held. Don't be afraid to ask if this is possible. They only have to wait until all of the passengers are on board before they can allow shifting of seats to happen. Also, and this is an even bigger issue. We were told that it would be easiest to take our kids' carseats on the plane because they would be more comfortable. BUT, noone had warned us of how difficult it would be carrying them through the airports!! When you have a child, you have carryons that have everything you think you could possibly need right? Well, try picturing having your carryons, your baby, your carseat, a stroller, and then having to go to baggage claim!!!!! My husband and I were literally about ready to fall over in Denver when we arrived! It was so hard to carry all of it! If I had to go back and do it all over, I would've left the carseats and just checked them in for when we arrived. It made it much much harder, using them on the plane. Just something to keep in mind....

I don't nkow if you breast or bottle feed. Breastfeeding is easiest because you don't have to worry about the bottles, the water (which is legal to take no matter the size) and formula. Plus, breastfeeding helps their ears clear more quickly because a baby has to suck harder at the breast than they do at the bottle.
Either way, feed while acending and decending. Tell the people at the counter that you have the baby and would rather be at the front or the back of the plane and they will be happy to try and move you if possible. You can take the car seat/base/stroller all the way to the gate and have them check them there so you don't have to carry her through the airport. Assuming she's sitting in your lap and you didn't pay for a ticket for her, they may suggest that you hold her against your shoulder for take off. Nod and smile and then go back to holding her to feed her as usual.
Good Luck!

Oh, and if you ARE breastfeeding, just remember that you have that right and no one can tell you to cover up or that you have to do it in the bathroom or anything. There is no where in the US that you can't openly BF in public, no matter what people might tell you! So stand up for yourself and your baby and politely tell them that you are within your rights to feed her how and where you like.

Anytime under 6 months old is the PERFECT time to fly! We flew cross country with our son dozens of times before he hit 2 years old. Most of those flights where just me and him. Take the carseat for the plane.. it'll keep him contained and you get your arms free. If he's on your lap, you can't do anything -- including having the little tray down for your drink or food. He's used to the carseat so he'll be ok and probably sleep if the flight is around his naptime. Put the carseat in rear-facing just like a car - you'll be able to interact with him easier and feed him easier.

On take-off and landing either give him a bottle, a pacifier, sippy cup of water or spoon yogurt or other food into his mouth. You want him swallowing. Take the stroller through the airport with you and just gate check it at the last minute. Put a small stash of wipes and diapers and 'airport toys' in the basket and leave them in the basket when it's folded. It's a few extra things you won't have to lug onto the plane. Skip the base - it's not necessary for most infant carseats and just takes up more room. Carseats are just as safe without it although it makes life a little easier. If you do decide to bring it, just check it with the luggage and don't bring it onto the plane - there's no need for it.

Bring an assortment of small, colorful, 'new' toys for him to play with. Don't underestimate the 'fun value' in a crinkly airline plastic cup. :-)

Make sure you pack an extra change of clothes for you - or at least a shirt. You never know when the kiddo will decide to spitup all over. Bring extra clothes for him, too. My general rule of thumb was 1 diaper per hour on the plane plus 2-3 for the airport (stashed in stroller) and it was always more than enough. Bring a change of clothes for baby, including long pants/sleeves even in the summer. Also a blanket. Sometimes planes are cold, sometimes they're hot - dress him in layers. Lighten your diaper bag as much as you can by putting stuff in the checked luggage... think about everything... will he really go through 5 disposable bibs on a 2 hour flight? Probably not. The less you're lugging through the airport, the better!

If you have a large enough suitcase, pack the base of the car seat in it. Travel with your car seat and stroller through the airport, then gate check all that you can. Babies this age do fairly well as long as they have something to suck on upon take off and arrival. It's when they are older that has been the real challenge for me! Good luck, and remember, almost everyone on that plane has been in your situation, so don't feel too badly if your baby cries some!

I would ask her doctor about her ears too, sometimes the pressure hurts their ears and there might be something you can give her for it. Just a thought!!

Definitely take the stroller and gate-check it. If your car seat fits on top of the stroller, I'd do the same with that. I traveled with my little one by myself (my husband was active duty in the Marine Corps) and it wasn't nearly as bad as I had expected. For the airplane ride, my daughter cried once we got seated, but as soon as the plane started to move, she was asleep until we landed. We even had a lay-over one time, and I thought it would be terrible, but it wasn't bad.

Car rides are a different story. I made only 2 (long - 12 hrs) car rides with her. One was when she was 7 weeks old and the other when she was about 7 months old. Both had the same result, she was essentially really good the whole way there, and didn't ever really get cranky, aside from feeding times, until the car ride home when we were about 1.5 hours away from home. I would definitely rather fly than drive, but if you have to drive, now that he's 7 months old, maybe you can get a portable dvd player for him and let him watch the Wiggles, I know my daughter loves them. Good luck!

We recently flew to Nebraska with our four month old. We flew out very eary (6 am) and flew back very late (6pm) hoping that she would sleep most of the time. One thing we did which was a mistake was that we changed planes both ways. We were trying to save money but that is a bad idea with a child so small. Anyway, just be prepared for them to be awake and take a bottle and quiet toys to keep them occupied. I held her on my lap during the flight although I have heard that if the plane has an extra seat, you can put the car seat in that seat or you can buy the child a seat. I think that if she had been in her car seat she would have slept the entire way. As far as taking everthing, that was no problem. We just red tagged the stroller and car seat at the plane and we checked the base. Obviously, if your child is going to use the car seat during the flight, you won't have to check the base or the seat. I guess how the baby reacts depends on how your baby is naturally. My little girl is very alert and usually on takes 30 minute naps at a time unless she is in the car. We only had a prblem on the second flight; she started to get fussy because she was up early and tired. The plane was small but I just stood right at my seat and swayed with her which put her to sleep for the last little bit of the flight. Hope this helps and have a great trip!

we fly with our kids all the time. The first time we did my son was around 6 months. Definetly give your child a bottle during take off. Landing is a little different since they come down gradually. If it does bother your baby...a pacifier will help. My doctor said I could give a dose of tylenol before we got on the plane just in case. Also, buy new toys that your baby has never seen, so if she gets fussy you can give her a "new toy". New toys in a baby that young is like winning the lottery for them. That will keep her occupied for a while, but in all honesty....if you are feeding her during take off the hum of that plane is most likely going to put her to sleep. It still happens with my son and he is 2 now. (Even with out the bottle)
You are lucky that it is a short flight. I thought that around 5-7 months was the easiest time to fly with a child, they tend to fall asleep easier, and they are not mobile and want to get out of your lap the whole flight. She will be content just sitting with you. You will do great. Good Luck.