Hellobee Boards Topic: Have you flown with a lap infant?

Hellobee Boards Topic: Have you flown with a lap infant? https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Fri, 22 May 2026 15:00:11 +0000 Rubies on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-256447 Mon, 13 Aug 2012 06:20:43 +0000 Rubies 256447@https://boards.hellobee.com/ LO was 6.5 months when we flew to Florida (3 hour flight) and I barely handled it. She slept for the first 1.5 hours (both way) but after waking up, she wanted to play/crawl/explore/etc. and wasn't happy to just sit with us. I half wished we got her her own seat but thought it was a little ridiculous since she was so little. LO is now a year old and if we took a flight now, I think I would consider getting her her own seat. 808love on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-256441 Mon, 13 Aug 2012 03:24:04 +0000 808love 256441@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Mrs. Bee: my flights had similar departure times as yours and due to an unexpected stopover/rerouting and wind patterns we were on the plane for around twelve hours each way. Going there was just long but bearable and coming home during the day was a horrendous chore, counting the hours that ticked by. I Was worried about the safety with the no carseat but we were much more comfortable with more space to stretch. We scoped open seats nearby so one of us moved to save the open two in addition to our two. Another helpful thing was that we brought our own pillow. Also organize your two carry ons really well (like bags within bags) since there is limited space to dig around in different go-to areas. Clothes, diapers, toys, food, etc. purrpletulips on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252691 Thu, 09 Aug 2012 07:30:40 +0000 purrpletulips 252691@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We flew with DD as a lap infant at both 16m and 18m. All flights were no more than 3hrs and did not coincide with nap or bedtime. However, she slept on all legs of the trip. IcebergMom on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252660 Thu, 09 Aug 2012 06:56:54 +0000 IcebergMom 252660@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I had LO on my lap today for a 1.5 hr flight. She's 12.5 months and dice great. Nursing helps. And knowing the person next to you realllly helps. Mrs. Pen on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252359 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 17:44:32 +0000 Mrs. Pen 252359@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Mrs. Bee: oh my gosh I have never seen those bassinet things... that is so weird but strangely cool.. I flew with DS when he was 4 mos and had him in the maya ring sling the whole time. It was great, he did so great and slept most of the time both ways. When he wasn't asleep, he was happy. I either nursed him or gave him his pacifier during takeoff/landing and he was fine. His ears didn't seem to bother him. I actually don't think he would have slept so well if he had been in his own seat just because he has always slept better on me than in his carseat. Baby Boy Mom on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252353 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 17:37:40 +0000 Baby Boy Mom 252353@https://boards.hellobee.com/ 3 months- kind of annoying but not too bad 6 months- the easiest, he could sit up but wasn't moving yet 12/13 months- ok at night but really bad during the day ( was already walking and had no desire to sit still for a minute). It was a tad easier when the seat next to us was free but IMO didn't make a big enough difference that I would have bought a seat. Mrs. Jacks on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252347 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 17:25:00 +0000 Mrs. Jacks 252347@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We've taken 12 hour flights with a lap infant. It didn't really get bad until she turned about 18 months and became a total wiggle worm. Otherwise it was a lot of sleeping and snuggling and reading books :) Sha on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252333 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 16:55:24 +0000 Sha 252333@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Mrs. Bee: max was big for one too when we flew, but he jammed in there and did sleep for several hours. and it was also good just to have a place to put him and his stuff to free our hands once in a while. you probably already are, but call soon bc sometimes they get booked up and at least on our airline we had to request in advance and pay a fee, i think about $150 or so SugarplumsMom on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252304 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 16:25:41 +0000 SugarplumsMom 252304@https://boards.hellobee.com/ My friend that flies internationally with her boys suggested bringing a sleeping bag. She lays her boys on the ground (at her feet) to sleep. But for babies, I've heard good things about the bassinet. Even if you bought your tickets last minute, if you arrive to the airport early enough, I believe they will make room for you and give you the bulkhead seats. I've seen in happen twice. Mrs. Bee on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252299 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 16:22:08 +0000 Mrs. Bee 252299@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Sha: i'm going to ask for one. olive is on the longer side so i don't know if she'd fit, but doesn't hurt to try! DisneyBee on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252296 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 16:20:30 +0000 DisneyBee 252296@https://boards.hellobee.com/ we flew from California to Hawaii when my son was 16 months old. it was a 6 hour flight, and he did quite well. even the other passengers were complimenting us on how well-behaved he was. we gave him a bottle at take-off and he slept for 2 hours straight, which helped. then we fed him when he woke up and kept him occupied with toys, one at a time. sandy on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-252294 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 16:17:37 +0000 sandy 252294@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We flew with LO when she was 8 months old - from Seattle to Alabama (with connections in Dallas and then Houston on our way home). We packed a backpack full of her toys (non noisy ones mostly) and some books and snacks. She loved playing with the food pouches and eating puffs. She doesn't use a pacifier but we tried to give her one and she mostly chewed on it. At that time she usually napped every 1.5hrs but she was wide awake most of the time. I nursed her at take off on all of the flights. She liked playing with the non-toy items - magazines, water bottle, Tupperware container of her puffs...she LOVED eating puffs (this was the first time I gave them to her). Sha on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251907 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 11:38:28 +0000 Sha 251907@https://boards.hellobee.com/ can you get the infant bassinet that screws into the wall? we flew internationally when my son was 11 months and he was a bit big for it but it was still really helpful to have a place to put him and he did sleep for a few hours in there. we also tented it with an A&A blanket to make it a bit darker/quieter. Weagle on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251900 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 11:33:53 +0000 Weagle 251900@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I want to follow this. We're flying with LO @ 4.5 mos, and I'm flying back solo with her. I need tips! Honeybee on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251820 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 10:44:55 +0000 Honeybee 251820@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We flew cross country with DD when she was 15 months (and I was pregnant with #2, so it wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world!). We lucked out, I guess, because on most of our flights (3 out of 5) there ended up being an extra seat, and other travelers were willing to move around a bit so we could have it. The extra seat was really nice, but it wasn't terrible with DD on our laps. Just kinda crowded because airplane seats are so close together these days, regberadaisy on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251802 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 10:35:18 +0000 regberadaisy 251802@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @sorrycharlie: I'm thinking of flying solo with M as well in early November. She'll be...7 months ish. chopsuey on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251791 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 10:27:17 +0000 chopsuey 251791@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Mrs. Bee: I always fly with Lo on my lap. We flew at almost 3 months, 4 months, 11 months and 13 months! Wasn't bad at all. Just made sure to pack toys books and snacks and flew around nap time or right after she woke from a nap. I'm sure olive will do fine! Good luck! looch on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251779 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 10:20:01 +0000 looch 251779@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Only once at 6 months of age. We had bulkhead seats and used the clip on bassinet. sorrycharlie on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251770 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 10:14:28 +0000 sorrycharlie 251770@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Favoriting this! We plan to fly with LO next summer or fall, somewhere from 9-12 months. Clementine on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251766 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 10:10:39 +0000 Clementine 251766@https://boards.hellobee.com/ This post is so appropriate. I've traveled with DS alone once when he was 2 months to visit family and all he did was sleep so that was awesome. We'll be flying again the end of this month and he'll be 6 mos, not sure what to expect this second time around. Good luck with Olive! Long flights to Asia are hard even for adults, I hope she sleeps the entire time! If she ends up crying no worries, there are always a ton of babies going to Asian on these flights. Maysprout on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251725 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:45:02 +0000 Maysprout 251725@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We took two 6-7 hour flights and two 2 hour flights when LO was 12 months old and she was a lap child for all of them. For 3 out of the 4 flights we ended up with a seat for her anyway just because no one wanted to sit by us ;) . We flew at night for the first trip and she slept almost the whole way, my arm got tired so I laid her down in the empty seat for awhile, which was nice. The return flight was about 7 hours and there was no empty seat but it was during the day and she just got passed back between my husband and I. She took 2 naps during that time which surprised me since she wouldn't normally do that. My husband got up and walked around the plane with her a few times. I changed her diaper a few more times than I normally would in the bathroom. It's not super pleasant but the change of scenery helped her, even if it was just watching water turn on and off in the bathroom. I also wasn't shy about people interacting with her, if someone wanted to engage her then I was very encouraging of her playing peek a boo with a stranger. They also had ice cream on hand so the one time she got really antsy the flight attendant brought out some vanilla ice cream and that did the trick. Mrs. Yoyo on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251717 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:33:20 +0000 Mrs. Yoyo 251717@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We did a 4-hour flight to Vegas with Baby Y at 7.5 months. He took two short catnaps, and the rest of the time he was awake/squirming/whining, even with guerilla nursing. Honestly, it was pretty exhausting keeping him happy. I hope it works out for you! Maybe Olive will be a better plane sleeper. MamaCate on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251715 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:32:10 +0000 MamaCate 251715@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We flew with LO at 6 months. We did one 4 hour flight there and 2 2 1/2 hr flights on the return. She did really well. On the way there she nursed on takeoff and then took about a 45 min nap then was up. She liked looking around and seeing everything and we brought some toys and books. It was nice to be able to handher off to DH. If you have a close connection, like we did on the way back, it was a little hard to get her to nurse on landing and then takeoff again. No advice on that, just something to look out for. My only other advice is from a seasoned mom who used to fly cross country with kids regularly. She said to have a secret bag of new toys, just from the dollar store or whate er, to vreak out when the kidsget bored with everything you brought. Good luck! BabyBoecksMom on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251706 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:25:55 +0000 BabyBoecksMom 251706@https://boards.hellobee.com/ DD was just under 5 months when we flew with her. It was only a 2.5 hour trip so it wasn't too bad, but trying to feed her was so frustrating because the seats are so close together and she kept kicking the guy next to me. regberadaisy on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251685 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:12:51 +0000 regberadaisy 251685@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I've never done this before but I would think since there is two of you you can switch up and it won't be horrible? Mrs. Bee on "Have you flown with a lap infant?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/have-you-flown-with-a-lap-infant#post-251680 Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:11:42 +0000 Mrs. Bee 251680@https://boards.hellobee.com/ How old was your LO? How was it? When we flew with Charlie at 12 months, we got him his own seat. He slept in his car seat most of the way both times. We are SO glad we got him his own seat because it was a 6 hour flight. This time, Olive is 10 months but we're not getting her her own seat because our tickets were purchased last minute and cost a small fortune for me, Mr Bee and Charlie. It will be bedtime on the flight out there, so I think Olive will just sleep on the boppy if I nurse her at take off. The flight back though, is at 11:30am, so it might be a little tougher, but I hope we will be ok. How was your experience flying with a lap infant? Do you wish you had gotten them their own seat?