Here are some tips to make your next flight with kids a little smoother:
FLY DURING NAP TIME
If you schedule a flight at a time your baby normally rests, more than likely they'll sleep easy--even at 30,000 feet.
RELIEVE EAR PAIN
To ease ear pain during take offs and landings, most doctors recommend giving a baby something to suck on--a bottle or a pacifier--and not bothering to wake up an already sleeping tot. Realize that crying actually unblocks the ears' eustachian tubes and helps alleviate pressure. Check with your pediatrician to make sure your child doesn't have an ear infection.
PACK A POWERHOUSE OF A TOTE BAG
Dr. Van Gilder advises parents to pack a diaper bag as if they were going to a desert island for an entire day. Along with diapers, include wipes, baby powder, Tylenol or another doctor-recommended pain reliever, an extra pacifier, juice, bottles, formula if needed, plastic bags for dirty clothes, two changes of clothing, a baby blanket, a bib, spoons and snack food.
BASSINETS
Many international carriers provide bassinets (sometimes called "carry-cots") at no charge for kids one year old or younger. To use these, however, you must be in a bulkhead seat.
BRING TOYS
Perfect playthings for babies include books, puppets, teething items, toys that make soft noises and suction toys that won't fall off the airline trays. Many tots like to play with and munch on dry cereal, cut-up fruit and bagels.
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF PREBOARDING
This helps you get settled and allows you to find a nearby space for carry-ons.
USE A LIGHTWEIGHT, COMPACT "UMBRELLA" STROLLER
Often these can be stowed in overhead compartments. If not, ask for a "gate-check." This means the stroller is taken from you as you board and given to you as you deplane. Never check your stroller with your luggage. You need a stroller for negotiating airport hallways and as a safe place to put your child when you haul items off the baggage carousel.
GET THE GEAR YOU NEED AT YOUR DESTINATION
This works well for some families who hate schlepping all the necessary equipment. Rae Anderson, a mom from Breckenridge, Colorado, operates Baby's Away, a supply rental firm offering almost everything you need for babies and toddlers: swings, strollers, cribs, walkers, frame backpacks, rocking chairs, toys, videotapes and VCRs, playpens, beds, safety gates and car seats. There are presently 24 outlets located mainly in vacation spots, including Breckenridge, Aspen, Vail and Steamboat Springs, Colorado; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; Sun Valley, Idaho; Park City, Utah; the Monterey Peninsula and North and South Lake Tahoe in California; four islands in Hawaii; Charleston, Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Naples, Fort Myers and Clearwater, Florida; and Edmonton, Banff, Montreal, Toronto and Whistler/Blackcomb, Canada. The company will deliver the equipment to your destination. For more information, call 800-571-0077.For more tips on flying with kids, click on the following links: Plane Advice about Kids, Plane Sense Checklist, Flying with Toddlers, and Flying with School-Age Children.
Jeanne Muchnick is the former editor of BABY MAGAZINE.
Please keep in mind that phone numbers, addresses, and prices are subject to change. Updated June 2005.
