Flight Travel with a 16 month old! plz help?
squuishee asked:
I have traveled serval times before but have never takin my daughter with me… She is 15 months will be 16 months at the time of travel… She will be sitting on my lap and the trip is about a two and a half hour flight..With one transition. inbetween . I need some advise from how many suitcase and stuff she will need being away from home with me for 1 month, what kind of stuff is most important to take and she can walk so would i need a stroller or a kiddie leash? Also what kind of toys are good to keep her inertained on the flight and am i allowed to bring her bottle/sippy cup aboard? What about snacks? what can i carry them in so security won’t complain? Please I need all of the advisei can get from moms who travel with their *****… Any tips os tricks of the trade? My daughter is very energetic and hyper like anyone her age and i want a smooth trip!
Tracking Your Child Has Never Been Easier!
I have traveled serval times before but have never takin my daughter with me… She is 15 months will be 16 months at the time of travel… She will be sitting on my lap and the trip is about a two and a half hour flight..With one transition. inbetween . I need some advise from how many suitcase and stuff she will need being away from home with me for 1 month, what kind of stuff is most important to take and she can walk so would i need a stroller or a kiddie leash? Also what kind of toys are good to keep her inertained on the flight and am i allowed to bring her bottle/sippy cup aboard? What about snacks? what can i carry them in so security won’t complain? Please I need all of the advisei can get from moms who travel with their *****… Any tips os tricks of the trade? My daughter is very energetic and hyper like anyone her age and i want a smooth trip!
Tracking Your Child Has Never Been Easier!
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you should not bring a stroller because that want help you. second you should bring two bags for you and one for your daughter that’s all. and to entertain her is to get her a book or coloring book to color in that is what you need when you take your daughter on this trip.
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stroller is very good unless u want boredom 2 set in and who does not love to spend time with their child or children.Most of important things is to not over pack, i say 8 outfits for her and 10 or 12 for you should be enough even though it don’t feel like it. you will survive , i promise. the rest is just buy food.
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If she can walk well and far, then don’t bother with a stroller. But if she is going to need carrying thru airports, or you’ll be chasing after her, then you’ll be exhaused since she’ll be on your lap too. Take a small umbrella stroller and they’ll take it at the airplane door and return it there at the end of the flight.
Yes, you are allowed baby food, juices, formula, medicines, etc, even tho it exceeds the 3 oz limit. Personal items NTE 3 oz should be in a 1 quart sandwich bag. Anything such as baby food, juices, formula, medicines, makeup, etc, that exceeds 3 oz container should be separate and DECLARED at EACH security checkpoint. See the TSA official website for all the details. BE CAREFUL, you have to follow lots of links to gather all the information.
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You need to call the airports you will be traveling through, as some are more stringent about the rules.
For example, I am traveling with a 9 month old this Christmas, and the Salt Lake City airport told me to bring dry formula and use water from fountains or purchase bottled water once past security, as they would not allow me to take liquid formula past security. Dry snacks they don’t care about.
Sometimes children have problems with their ears popping when the cabin is pressurized and it can make them miserable. So during the beginning of the flight, have your daughter chew on something or sip on a sippy cup, as this can help relieve the pressure in her ears.
I have three children (now 8 years, 5 years and 9 months) and have traveled with them a lot. My children have enjoyed coloring books, stories, magnetic toys (pieces are harder to lose) and small play doh kits (found at Wal-mart with small tubs of play doh and ‘cookie cutters’). For my older children, I also take a movie player along so I don’t have to pay for headsets, but I don’t know if your daughter is old enough to sit through a movie.
Is your flight early? I find that my children often sleep through a majority of the flight if they had to get up early to get to the airport. So make sure you have a blanket and any snuggly or special toy she needs to sleep (remember, many airlines no longer provide pillows and blankets).
Tracking Your Child Has Never Been Easier!
I’m a former Flight Attendant and I fly a lot now with my three kids internationally since they were babies.
Toddlers are tough to fly with because they are very active and hard to reason with. They don’t like being confined and the negotiation techniques that work so well with older children don’t at this age.
First the question about the stroller. I found the stroller useful even though mine weren’t big “stroller children”. They didn’t sit nicely but it carted the carry-on bags when I wasn’t pushing a child in it. I used the leash only for my son, who was a bolter. You know if she is one too, and if not, skip it.
What I did find mega-useful was a good baby carrier. A good one by definition should go to age two (front packs, like the overpriced Bjorn, which are killer on the back, only go to about 6 months of age). I used a sling but a wrap, pouch or quality carrier is good too. If she or he was sleepy or tired, I could pain-free carry them and push the stroller. Mine alternated between walking, the carrier and the stroller.
Airports can be big and it can be a lot of walking for a toddler, who seems to have a lot of energy but if you make her go for a long time, you may have a very unhappy camper on your hands.
For packing, it depends on how often you can wash. If you’re visiting someone’s home, I always bring 5 outfits for my kids each. I also brought at least three days’ formula. Be sure to pack two suitcases (or whatever your limit is) because if you only pack one, and it’s oversized, you’ll be charged whereas you wouldn’t if you do two. If you have to pay for the second, that might be cheaper because overweight charges are high, trust me! I’ve paid them…
About snacks and security, everything reasonable is fine. They are stricter with liquids but have exemptions for children. The worst too that can happen is that they take something away. Just take what she likes and isn’t too messy on board.
Try to wean her off of any bottles before leaving. If not, make sure she drinks them at room temperature and use the kind of bottles with disposable liners. I premeasured the powder ahead of time and then just threw the liners away as I used them. Sippy cups are easier to clean and carry. You can use the kind that you can throw away but I just had washable ones, even for long flights. I don’t recommend juice boxes (unless she’s totally hooked). Toddlers squeeze them and ****** the juice out. You don’t need extra messes to clean up!
Don’t forget a change of clothes for you both…even on a short flight, things spill!
To entertain her, at that age, any coloring gear is good. They love to color and draw. Stickers, pipe cleaners, play dough are good, if she likes them. Bring only *silent* toys. Even ones that make quiet noises can be annoying (because toddlers love to play them again and again). I don’t recommend turning off the sound (experience speaking) but make sure the toy is noise-less.
A trick I learned from my mom when I flew as a child was to give her a new toy on board. Get one for each leg of the trip. Keep it yourself and surprise her on board when she gets bored. It’s a good tantrum-stopper!
Don’t worry too much about ears. It’s actually a myth that they need to **** on something on take-off and landing. It’s actually at the *top* of descent, not landing that is the trickiest for everyone (not just kids) so just make sure she’s awake at those times. Offer drinks but don’t insist if she refuses and if she falls asleep on take-off (as children so often do) do NOT wake her to make her drink. It’s not necessary. Ear problems in children are overrated (and usually it’s some other reason they’re crying) so please don’t fret. I don’t do anything special during those times and in all our flights, my children have never had problems. It was rare at work too.
Take your daughter to the doctor a few days before flying and have her ears checked that they are clear and infection-free (not all infections have symptoms). Healthy ears can handle pressurization changes.
About 8 years ago, I wrote an article on flying with children for an expat newsletter. I later put it on a blog so that parents had access to non-commercial information from someone with both practical and professional experience on the web. Over the years I’ve expanded it, adding tips from parents around the world.
Feel free to visit;
I also put a lot of car seat information which may or may not be relevant to you so read those sections if so.
Have a good trip!