https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 27 May 2026 12:07:05 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2731401 Tue, 02 May 2017 14:18:53 +0000 sojellybean 2731401@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>If your friends are picking you up at the airport, you could buy cheap seats and ship to them beforehand. If not, I would recommend checking a cheap seat in the box or gate checking in a travel bag.</p> <p>Great idea about using a carrier for your son! It makes it so easy to go through security. You have lots of time to plan still, so I would totally go for it! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2731374 Tue, 02 May 2017 13:20:31 +0000 Mrs. Pajamas 2731374@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Silva: Definitely go for it! Get your kids used to traveling early so they are used to it and you can explore the world wit them! We've traveled a ton with DD and she's totally used to it now. I would say bring your car seats for sure. Renting is insanely expensive (one time it was more than the car!) and you never know the quality. You can get bags or wheelie cart things designed to carry them through the airport which make it super easy. Your older LO might be able to wheel one maybe! Good luck. You'll be fine. Bring lots of snacks and have low expectations. Then you'll be fine. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2731210 Tue, 02 May 2017 08:34:46 +0000 looch 2731210@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My son is 6 and I will be completely honest here, we've been travelling with him since he was 4 months of age and I feel like we're just to a point where travel isn't a complete PITA.</p> <p>I feel like the biggest issue was really around gear, we needed so many things at first. Now, we don't have to bring anything outside of a high backed booster and it's a completely different ball game.</p> <p>I also think part of the issue with air travel in particular is that it's a lot of hurry up to get there and wait. We have TSA pre-screen and global entry and it's made a world of difference, particularly in travelling with a child, so if you have time to get it done, I'd really consider it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2730973 Mon, 01 May 2017 13:30:51 +0000 youboots 2730973@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Sounds like your kids are at good ages. We did a 12 day road trip from PDX to SFO. Only one day we drove over 5.5 hours. It supisingly went well. </p> <p>You can get these rollers that you put a car seat on and it works like a stroller at the airport. We did that for a recent flight and it worked great.</p> <p>We went to NOLA in late October 6 years ago and it was awesome. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2730963 Mon, 01 May 2017 13:17:26 +0000 erinbaderin 2730963@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Do it! We recently (a few months ago) spent a week in St Lucia with a 1 and a 3 year old and if somebody had said to me a few days before we left "You don't have to go" I would have totally taken them up on it and cancelled, but it was WONDERFUL. It's not going to be like a vacation with kids, but as long as your expectations are low you're going to have a blast, and you're going to make great family memories. The actual travel parts may not be the best time ever (although they might be fine!) but they will not be the majority of the trip and the rest of it will be great. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2730957 Mon, 01 May 2017 13:12:32 +0000 petitenoisette 2730957@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Do it! </p> <p>My one piece of advice is to reconsider leaving on a Monday. If you are stressed about it already I think it might make it worse to have an entire weekend to get prepared. There really is only so much to do to get ready when you are flying, can't/don't need to bring a lot of baby gear. We did Sat-Sat for our last vacation and I really liked it because we did have Saturday am to finish getting ready and then we had a day left of vacation when we came home. Just my 2 cents. </p> <p>I third the Cosco Scenera. Super cheap and easy. </p> <p>But seriously, go for it! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2730950 Mon, 01 May 2017 13:04:36 +0000 Adira 2730950@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We just got back from a vacation with our 2 and 4 year olds! It definitely wasn't relaxing, but it was totally worth it and so much fun! The kids had a blast and it was cool to have that experience with them.</p> <p>I don't have advice about the car seat though. We opted not to take ours and just booked a car service that provided them when we needed transportation. We did bring our double-stroller though, which was great for getting around the airports and just gate-checked it. I was glad we had it too for some of the places we visited, since there was a lot of walking around and our kids never would've lasted. Plus our 2 year old ended up taking a stroller nap at one point, which worked out great for us.</p> <p>Good luck! Have fun!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2730945 Mon, 01 May 2017 12:59:15 +0000 Dahlia 2730945@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DO IT! We've traveled a ton with our 21 month old - by car, train, plane, boat - and both domestically and internationally. Just expect the worse and it will go better than you expect :) </p> <p>We bought a Cosco scenario seat as our travel seat and we check it at baggage claim. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2730943 Mon, 01 May 2017 12:57:26 +0000 Silva 2730943@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Littlebit7: our local airport is pretty small and so there aren't a lot of flight options. I can play around with the flight time of the return flight a little. There was an evening flight that had us getting in at like 11pm </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2730940 Mon, 01 May 2017 12:52:29 +0000 Littlebit7 2730940@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>A) I think you should go for it. Your statement "if we don't do it now we might not do it for another 10 years" struck me. You should go! New Orleans sounds awesome. You just have to manage your expectations. It won't be super relaxing like pre-kid vacation travel, but it sounds like there will be other kids for your kids to hang with which is awesome.<br /> B) Is there a way to do a non-stop on the way back? A 6 am flight requires you to be awake (and the kids awake) at like 4 or 4:30 depending on how close the airport is. That can make for a miserable morning for everyone.<br /> C) I'd buy a cheap seat like the cosco scenara next. Its $45, super lightweight and easy to install. I don't trust rental car places to actually have a seat you reserved, or only have forward-facing if you need RF, or if they are in good condition, have been in an accident, etc etc. I've seen some brand new ones at the check in desk, and I've seen places that only have a booster to offer. I wouldn't risk it, personally </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/travel-tips-and-car-seat-question#post-2730917 Mon, 01 May 2017 12:19:47 +0000 Silva 2730917@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I was writing for travel tips and then nearly talked myself out of taking a trip at all! Offer me your wisdom, wise ones.</p> <p>We are beginning to plan a trip for the fall and are not big travelers. We've only ever done semi-local (like, 5 hours max) road trips with our kids.</p> <p>Our daughter will be 4 1/2, and our son will be just over a year. We will be staying with two different friends- both friends have kids, and will be able to get us a pack and play for the baby to borrow. We will probably just bring our carrier for the baby rather than deal with a stroller. The one-year old will be a lap infant on the planes.</p> <p>We haven't booked tickets or anything yet, but it looks like it will be a 6:00 AM non stop, just under 3 hour flight. we will hang out there (Atlanta), then rent a car do a day-long road trip (leave early, take a few stops) of about 7 hours to New Orleans. Hang out a few more days, then take a 6AM flight home with one 40-minute layover. That flight will be shy of 5 hours. In total it will be about a week long. We'll leave on a Monday so that we have all weekend to get ready, and then come back on a Monday (my husband will probably take Tuesday off to help settle back in).</p> <p>So writing it out has me very nervous. But we never travel and we're going to spend a few days with one of my best friends, and then a few days with my husband's best friends. They have both come to visit us and I feel like we need to return the favor (and they both live in fun places that will be lovely in November, just when its starting to get very cold here). We had a weird tax situation this year and ended up not having to pay in all of the money I'd saved (I'm self employed), plus got some back- so we kind of have this random cash we weren't planning on. We never save for trips (we just have other priorities) so this feels like...if we don't do it now it will probably be another 10 years (but by then my kids can carry their own stuff and will sleep like normal people, so maybe we should just wait!).</p> <p>SO I need a pep talk about how great this will be and how even though I will be exhausted I will be glad we did it because it isn't THAT much like torture to travel with small children (right?).</p> <p>Also- Car seats:<br /> I'm seeing mixed advice about buying cheap car seats and gate checking versus renting them with the car? </p>