Tips for Traveling With a Toddler

Cole has been on a airplane 6 times in his short 14 months of life. The first time to Columbus, Ohio, the second to Dublin, Ireland, and the third to Kansas City, Missouri. The first flight was fairly easy. He was only 3 months old and the flight was nice and short. He slept for most of it.

Flying to Columbus

A month later we hopped on a plane to Ireland. That flight ended up not being too horrible either. Air Lingus has bassinets built into the aircraft, which was a God send on our 7 hour red eye flight.

Traveling with a 14 month old is MUCH different than a 4 month old. Here are a few suggestions that I found made the trip much more bearable:

BUY A SEAT!!
We made the mistake of not purchasing Cole a seat on our flight. You can legally have a "lap child" until the age of 2. Southwest allowed us to take the carseat on on the way out because the flight was not full. We had to hold him on the way back. In the carseat your child understands that they cannot get out (just like in the car). On your lap your child thinks they can get down at play (just like at home). Cole falls asleep in his carseat easily, but had a much harder time falling asleep in my lap. When he did, I couldn't move and ended up with a very sore butt!

Fly during naptime
I've read tips before that say not to let your child sleep on the way to airport. This is terrible advice in my opinion. The last thing you want to do is fly with an overtired child, who is way off his/her normal schedule. Try to schedule a flight at a time while naptime is in the air and let your child sleep in the carseat.

Gate check your stroller
On most airlines baby items either don't count as checked luggage or two items count as one. If you choose to gate check something, it doesn't count at all. Keep your baby in the stroller through the airport and leave it at the gate. The flight attendants will have it waiting there for you when you arrive at your destination.

Pre-board
Different airlines have different policies on this, but most allow parents with kids under 4 to pre-board. Do it! Or if you don't want your child to have to sit for any longer than necessary, have your husband (or anyone else you are traveling with) pre-board and save two seats. This way you can get the seats that are most convenient for you and your baby (whether it be an aisle seat, so they can stretch or a seat near the restroom for older toddlers).

Take toys
Preferable ones that don't make a ton of noise. The people around you may not appreciate hearing your toddler's animal train play the same songs over and over quite as much as you do!

Take snacks
Fill your carry-on diaper bag with tons of snacks. When Cole got antsy, he got a snack. He was thrilled!

Take sippy cups and buy drinks after security
You can take food through security, but you can't take drinks. So pack some sippys in your bag and buy the drinks once you get through security. If you run out you can always ask the flight attendants for something (provided it's not one of those "passengers get nothing airlines")

See if your hotel has cribs
Most do. In my experience, most will give you a pack n' play free of charge. This will prevent you from having to check and haul around another piece of luggage. Remember to bring your own pnp sheets!!

Use an overnight diaper
With all the extra liquid Cole was consuming, he peed through his diaper in no time flat. If your flight is a few hours, use an overnight diaper and then you won't have to worry about changing your baby during the flight (unless there is a poop, of course).

Relax!

Try not to stress out. Traveling can be stressful, but try not to let your child see you freak. They will feed off of you, so stay positive and relaxed.Flying to Kansas City!

Happy Traveling!