We booked a family trip to Phoenix in January. This is our first plane trip for our kids so we are clueless of what to expect when going through airports. Please provide me with advice on car seats, formula, baggage, etc. We are in Canada so it will be an international flight. Also my kids will be 6.5, 5 and almost 8 months.
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What type of seats are you taking? (As in booster, bucket, convertible, etc)
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My best tip is to gate check your stroller, not at the luggage counter. Most agents will let you take your stroller (and kids) through the Nexus line, which helps a ton with fidgety kids.
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@bhbee: I think the youngest will still be in a bucket. And we are thinking boosters for the older two.
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@Raspberry: Right. They usually take them as you are entering the plane correct?
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@Lindsay05: Yes, just tag it before you leave check-in and you leave it by the door and the other side will bring it up to the same place. You might have to wait a little bit for the handlers on the other side but it’s not usually too long.
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@Raspberry: Ok. It’s all of these procedures that I have seen other people do that are now making me anxious
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I have always found other travelers to be extremely helpful when I travel with my little. And I always smile and take offers of help, someone will usually offer to make sure my little doesn't run away while I fold the stroller on the jet bridge or hold coffee while I adjust something.
On Southwest I go straight towards the back of the plane and pick and empty row, often I end up with a whole row or at least I end up with someone who chose to sit next to a baby/kid. My daughter has made many plane friends this way. There was one man my age who was on a work trip away from his kids that did puzzles with my daughter the whole 2 hour flight. It was glorious, I got to relax, and he was so happy to play with a kid in the middle of his 3 week travel.
We have a travel car seat and I check it at the check in counter. I know the safety over the top mom's won't do it but I can't manage a bag, stroller, car seat and kid all by myself for a whole airport. Also make sure you take a stroller that will fold to fit through x-ray, makes security way faster! Kids can leave shoes and light jackets on. Babywear if you can, you can leave baby up and they just swab your hands. I did this until my little was nearly 3. Made it so much easier that she couldn't wander off.
Take lots of snacks! And ask the flight attendants for cups with lids, spills happen way less that way.
I'm a naturally anxious person and it hasn't been improved with my svt earlier in the year so I try to remind myself as much as possible that anything forgotten in replaceable and that it's only a limited amount of time. You will hear your kids whining and crying far more than anyone else and most people are kind hearted, especially other people. I've had so many people make my travels easier
Oh and if your kids will allow it leave them with the flight attendants while you pee! The kids will love the attention and the ladies or gentleman always think my kid is a kick
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Baby wearing is great for the airport.
I would also suggest getting your 8 month old a seat ( I know its more $) but I could not fathom trying to hold E for several hours in a narrow plane seat while she attempts to be everywhere at once. -
I try to check as much as I can and have as few items as possible walking through the airport. So in your case I would have an umbrella stroller, and small baby carrier. Use the stroller to carry your stuff. I usually do a backpack for myself and the littlest, a tiny backpack for each older kid with their change of clothes and toys/devices, and a food bag. Bring way more food than you think you need.
No screen time until we board, but once we do it's a free for all for the older ones.
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I actually don’t bring much food anymore, my LOs are 5 and almost 8. We usually manage to eat a meal or snack in the airport before taking off and that seems to be fine. Even on long haul flights I don’t bring food because there’s always a meal or snack service. The one caveat is gummy candy for the descent. My older LO has had problems with pressure in his ears when we start to descend and the gummy candy helps him (I don’t let them have gum).
@Baby Boy Mom: agree about checking as much as possible. After, everyone has their own bag or backpack to carry on with activities.
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DS is 5.5 and we’ve flown lots together. Check everything you can and have a minimal amount to carry.
With a baby if they are in a stroller they will send you through the nexus line. If you baby wear you can go through security wearing baby. You can bring as much liquids as you need for under 2.
Don’t bring too many activities. DS rarely plays with anything. There is enough to occupy him or he just wants his headphones to watch tv.
I find people are generally helpful and understanding when you travel with kids. Hope you have a fun trip!
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Are you bringing the bucket seat and convertible seats with you? I would check them ALL in. I know people have concerns about it being damaged, but it is so much easier to check the seats than carrying it through the airport. We once had to race through the airport with a suitcase, two car seats and a stroller and it was the worst experience ever!
I'm guessing you'll also be bringing a stroller? If you're bringing an umbrella stroller, i wouldn't carry the bucket seat as well to the gate. I would baby wear instead (if you are comfortable with it).
Make sure to have headphones for your kids. Are you flying WestJet or Air Canada? WestJet no longer has screens and entertainment is through their app. Make sure you download the app beforehand! Air Canada has screens, but not Rouge. For your two older kids, i'd bring some books, and a notebook/pencil crayons or a brand new activity book. Something new always gets the kids excited! They are old enough to have a small bag with those items - i would also put in a change of clothes in a ziplock bag as well as some snacks.
For your 8 month old, definitely have snacks or something for her to chew on during takeoff/descent! You're also allowed to bring water for formula - i'd check the limits beforehand.
Get there much earlier as well. There have always been issues on international flights when our kids were lap babies - you want enough time to straighten things out. It also takes much longer tagging and bagging car seats.
Have a great time!!
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Thank you all for your responses. I had no idea about how to travel with car seats, strollers, etc,
The only other question I really have is do they really need to have their own luggage? I mean I can see us trying to juggle their luggage on top of ours. Plus the cost of checking all those bags. I believe WestJet charges for every baggage checked (minus car seats and strollers).
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@Lindsay05: we just pack our daughters clothes and stuff in our bags. No need to pack them a seperate bag. We actually use a big bag from home goods to seperate my daughters clothes
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@Lindsay05: if you can fit there stuff in another bag (either yours or combine kids) I would say go for it. My husband and I and now E typically can fit our stuff in 1 big checked bag plus a personal bag for each of us. So briefcase, big purse, diaper bag for E filled with toys and clothes and diapers, and then 1 checked bag.
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I don't know how long you're gone for, but we do one suitcase for the kids' stuff and another suitcase for our stuff. If you are only taking one suitcase, i would just separate everyone's things into plastic bags (so fancy, i know) and stuff them into the suitcase.
The carry on will have just one outfit for each person just in case.
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I bring a bag of medication on the plane with me. I have Excedrin for my husband and I, Advil with a dosing cup for my son, his cough medicine (I give him delsym when needed) and whatever else I can think of, including the nose frida! I put it in a clear bag so I can always see where it is.
I also do a satellite bag system, when my son was in diapers, I packed everything I needed for a few changes in a clear bag. It had a pack of wipes, diapers, a burp cloth and a small garbage bag in it so that I could take it from my main bag and go right in the seatback pocket in front of me. I still have a bag, it no longer has diapers, but it still has wipes, a burp cloth, a garbage bag and a few pieces of folded paper towel. Accidents happen and I never want to be dependent on the flight attendants.
Lastly, I wear a small crossbody bag the entire flight. It has all our passports and travel docs in it. This way, I am never separated from our valuables in case our bags get moved or we get reseated.
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I wear cargo pants for the flight - the deep pockets are perfect for holding a diaper and travel wipes so your hands are free to manage the baby when changing on the plane. I also keep a pack of hand wipes in there - planes are so germ-y.
Dress them in layers because planes can get cold. Agree about cross body bag/purse with important papers, wallet, etc. For carryon
items, organize with large ziploc bags (snacks in 1 bag, drawing supplies in another).If you can, order diapers, wipes, baby pouches on amazon and have them shipped to your destination, and save room in your luggage.
We travel with our kids 3-4x a year and packing cubes were life changing for me. Each person has their own set of (different colored) packing cubes and it makes packing a breeze. It also makes it easy to sort thru clothes during the trip (I just pull out the cubes and deposit them into the appropriate room/dresser/wherever). I put everyday clothes in large bags, pajamas or undergarments in medium or small bags. Truly life changing when packing clothes for 4 people in one large suitcase.
When we traveled with baby/toddler, I rented baby gear at the destination. Large cities will have this online service. I’ve rented cribs and high chairs, but they also offer strollers and other items. It’s costly for 1-2 weeks but has been so worth it - baby and parents got better sleep.
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For the older kids, I would get a cheap/ really light backpack for each to use as their carryon item. Inside place their spare outfit (tightly packed in a ziploc) and any books, drawing pads, child headphones, etc. My kids (similar age to yours) like helping out by carrying their own items in their “travel backpacks.”
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If you still have the boxes for any of your car seats, you can check the car seat in the box. I have stuffed the box with things like winter coats and extra diapers before, both to provide extra padding for the car seat and to get a little free packing space.
Don't pull out the entertainment for your kiddos too early. The airport and the plane offer lots of built-in entertainment, especially as this is their first time. You can probably occupy them for quite a while looking out the window, exploring the contents of the seat-back pocket, etc.
Dried fruit makes a great ear-popping tool, if you are trying to avoid gum or candy. I bring dried mango as my daughter really has to gnaw on it.
Make sure everyone stays hydrated. Water bottles all around!
Speak to the staff at the gate to make sure that you know what you have to do to gate-check your stroller. I have seen many people turned back from boarding because their gate-check items weren't properly tagged.
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This isn't what you asked but I live in Phoenix so feel free to message me if you have questions specifically about location. I highly recommend the children's museum for all ages!!! The World Wildlife Zoo is much better than the Phoenix Zoo. Uptown Jungle is really fun for the kids and I think there are 2 locations. The science center is good. Castles and Coasters is a lot of fun and has plenty that your older kids could do. Driving around the Roosevelt Lake area is gorgeous and Papago Park is a nice, easy desert "hike" more like a walk.
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Agree hands down about the packing cubes suggestion above.
If you have Netflix, it lets you download and save videos to your phone which is perfect for airplane rides with no Internet.
Buy this or something similar, everything stays charged and you don't need to worry about outlets as much.
No screen time until we board, but once we do it's a free for all for the older ones.
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