Traveling to California with a 15Mo. Old

I'm about 99% sure that you can take a bottle/cup of some sort and snacks. Our family flew here from Chicago and no one gave them trouble about it.

You can take snacks for your toddler. Some airports let you take water, some don't. Last weekend the KC airport let me but my return airport didn't let me. You can check each airports website to see what they allow.

The Denver airport is actually really large and there is a lot of room for your child to run around.

Good luck!

My 2 year old daughter and I went to Cancun, Mexico back in May of 2007. She wasn't 2 yet. It was an experience with her flying. She is a busy little girl, and likes to make alot of noise. So some people were not happy about my daughter being on the flight coming back home to Kansas.

Make sure you have some suckers for her to suck on, because their little ears get clogged while the the plane is ascending from the ground. You want them to swallow alot, to constantly pop their ears. My ears were killing me and I was the one not happy. But the suckers worked for her, except she wouldn't stay still. lol

Let her run around at the airport, because you will have no choice when they start getting bored during layovers. At 15 months there is nothing that keeps their attention.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

A.,

I fly weekly for work (in fact I'm writing from an airport during a layover) so I can help you. We flew with our daughter (now 10 mo) when she was 3 mo, 4 mo, and even went to Hawaii with her at 7 mo. We take her to CA whenever my inlaws don't come to KS that month. Anyway, they let you bring as many snacks as you want. We had an entire bag of them and toys. As far as liquids, you need to only have one bottle of water or juice or milk/formula as a carry on that is for her. Keep it out when you are going through security. Use it during the flight. Then, when you get to Denver, you can buy more of whatever you need for the rest of the way. Do the same on your way home. Denver airport has a food court and upstairs above it(ride the esculator up) there is a little play area. Depending on which terminal you land in and take off at, you may need to take the subway that is below the airport in order to transfer. Hope that helps.

C.

A 15 month shouldn't be too bad to travel with. At least she is enough of a baby that if she cries people will be pretty forgiving. (This is compared to a 3 year old crying and whining.)

From what I remember the Denver airport it is pretty small and quiet. The layover could be a great time for your daughter to just run around and make some noise. 2 1/2 hours is a pretty short layover. (I once had a 12 hour layover in Lisbon)

Happy Traveling.

I traveled this summer with my two children. We had a 4 hour layover in Detroit, but it went pretty quick. My daughter is 4 and enjoyed watching the people. My son is 7 and he played his Gameboy and looked around a lot. We walked around and got a sandwich at a snack bar. Then, snacks from the machine before boarding our connecting flight. Lots to see to keep them interested.

We were able to take snacks in their bags. We did not take drinks, however. I packed each of them a backpack with some cheap new toys, playing cards, mini photo albums, small blanket, stuffed animal from home, markers, paper, coloring book, gum, raisins. When my daughter started to get bored, we'd pull out something new. My son did pretty well on his own. This made it more entertaining, and gave them both something to look forward to. We received compliments on both of their behavior, so something worked!!

You might want to take a pacifier or sippy cup for the little one to suck on in case her ears pop - this has helped us in the past, but gum did the trick this time! Good luck. And enjoy the flight.

Hi A.,

You already have some great advice, just wanted to add some ideas that I used with my girls when they were about htat age, we travel every year to Argentina (day and night flight) so flying to Denver.....easy as cake!:)
Things that helped me a lot: chewable fruit snacks so your baby can chew while landing and whenever you feel your ears tight or plug. I am not shure if it is because they are chewing or because they like the "candy" but it helps!
Other thing, baloons! Many size and colors, water baloons the little ones, you can put some anywhere! They are little and don't take any space and you can inflate them any time you need them (make sure you take enough in case they pop:)
Lollipops, they are great for emergencies!
A new toy, one that is not big but that will keep your child entertained just because he has never seen it before (you know how it is).
You can also get favors for birthdays, they are very inexpensive and small enough, like, balls with lights, light sticks if you travel at night, musical instruments (the tiny plastic ones for parties ar not noisy) A couple of your favorite books to read to him over and over....
Something to doodle on? Once I got a pencil that has for colors in the lead and my little one spent a long time trying to figure it out.
My kids always enjoyed the trips, and even slept wondeful at night. Don't forget the stroller for any waiting at the airport, he might even take a nap while waiting.
And most important of all, relax! He can sense if you are nervous and that won't help.
Have a great trip and enjoy your stay with family.
Mariana Abadie
www.MyKidsFirst.com

already sounds like you have some wonderful advice. i flew from tulsa, ok to california with my 20 month old son years ago. the good news is he slept on one flight both ways so that was nice and on the flight he was awake on he really wasnt much of a problem. he loves books so we read almost the whole flight. i did bring drinks and snacks for him but this was before 9/11 so i'm not sure how it works now. you will get a drink on the flight and i know that when we flew the attendents were so nice and helpful. our layover was cut short because of a delayed flight so all i know about the denver airport is that it seemed huge when i had to run the length of it carrying my son and heavy take on bag...lol. but it sounds like that would be a great time to let your little one down to strech her legs. at that age she will probably be happy to run around and just check stuff out if there isnt much to do. anyway good luck hope you have a good flight and so sorry to hear about your dad my thoughts and prayers to your family.

In addition to the doodle board, books, snacks, portable DVD player, etc... I always take ear numbing drops for the kids ears. You can get a perscription from your doctor. They are inexpensive and last a long time. And the most important things to remember to take are patience and a sense of humor!

I just took a trip (alone, i.e. my husband did not go with) with my 14 month old to Germany. He did great - much better than I expected. My suggestions: carry your baby in a backpack-style-carrier if possible, even if you are bringing a car seat. It is much easier to control the curiousity when they are trapped and you're on the move. Don't bring so much in your carry on that you are overwhelmed, but a few small things, especially anything that lights up, are good. If you can, sit in the bulkhead (where the trays are in the arm rest) so your baby is less likely to disturb others, but can still make some racket. If that's not possible, ask if they can put you in an empty row.
As for snacks, I have had no trouble in the 5 round-trips I have made with my son at various ages.
Good luck, and I am sorry about your father.

We traveled with our then 13 month old this past May to California. Fortunately, we did not have lay overs but a direct flight. I have been to the Denver airport…it is a nice airport and very big! There will be plenty of room for your toddler to get out and play and stretch the muscles! My son was still on the pacifier when we traveled and that seemed to help during take off and landing to prevent his ears from popping. I brought tons of snacks, but you won't be able to bring a drink on. I brought his sippy cup and then just asked the flight attendant to fill it with juice/milk/water. They were very accommodating. My advice is bring lots of snacks and some of his favorite toys and books. A lot of people recommended that we buy him a seat so we could strap him in his car seat. We considered it, but didn't want to spend that much money so he just sat in our lap and did fine. Good luck!!

Hi A.,
I actually have quite a bit of experience flying with little ones. My husband has worked for the airlines since '94 when our two oldest were just 2 and 3. One of the greatest inventions is the Crayola Color Wonder markers. They only mark on color wonder surfaces. That should keep her pretty well entertained. It is at that age for some reason that they become most sensitive to the pressurization. If you put warm hands over her ears and hold tight it should help at least a little. You are allowed to take snacks on. You ARE NOT ALLOWED to take ANY beverages through security check point at ANY airport. You are however, allowed to purchase beverages once you get through security and take it on the plane.
Denver International Airport is massive. If you don't have to leave the gate area you will be fine. With only 2 and a half hours you wouldn't have much time to leave security anyway. You would have to take a train from the gate area which is about 30 minutes roundtrip.
Be sure to double check your toiletries. All liquids must be in a quart sized zipper bag and not more than 3.5oz of liquid per container. Only one zipper bag per person and you have to take it out of your luggage to be screened.
One more thing, if your daughter is flying as a lap child (no ticket) most airlines require you to show proof of age, a birth certificate.
My husband works for Southwest Airlines and I have friends who work at DIA if you have any further questions please feel free to email me at ____@____.com.