Flying with a baby for the first time, can be stressful. It’s a new thing for the baby. Maybe its a new thing for you. You can’t really prepare the baby in any way, its just going to happen. There are plenty of stories about babies crying the entire flight, making other passengers angry, that alone is stressful. There’s enough to worry about to be honest!
But it can be done. We have been flying with our kids while they were little a few times. One of those trips was a cross atlantic flight of 11 hours – No fuss, no crying – quite enjoyable. It can be done! Flying doesn’t have to be stressful. With these few tips it should be manageable for you to take a flight with your baby.
While these are the tips that have made our trip, do try and take your baby into consideration. You know what they like and dislike, and you know how to best soothe them. These are all the sips that I wish I would have found before going on the first trip though.
Flying with a baby made easy
Relax
I know Ive just mentioned again and again that flying is stressful, and it can be. But honestly – do try and relax and enjoy that you are going somewhere new and exciting. This is what the trip is all about. If you relax, your baby will see that there is nothing to worry about, and that will keep them relaxed and calm.
Have enough time
To help you with the above point of staying relaxed, you need to have enough time. You always need to be at the airport ahead of time, but when flying with the baby do you need to be there even sooner. So many things can come up when you have a baby in the car, or in any kind of transport, and you really want to not deal with the stress of missing your flight. Just take whenever you want to leave, and add an hour.
If nothing new comes up, and check in and security is smoothe – its always fun to just sit in an airport and enjoy the scenery (or the shopping 🙂 )
Bring something to eat.
No matter what age your baby is you need to bring something for them to eat during takeoff and landing. That can be milk on a bottle or if you breast-feed just feed them going up and going down. If your baby is a bit older have some of their favorite snacks on hand.
You want to make sure that your baby is eating a little bit to equalize the pressure going up and going down. While it is prohibited to bring fluids on a flight, you can bring baby food – make sure double check the rules with your airline.
Get an inflatable airplane bed
One of the things that I wished we had, was an extention for the seat so that our little ones could just use it for a bed. Traveling long distance is trying on everyone and especially the kids. If we would have had something like this it would have been easier to create a comfortable space for them to rest. This is on our “must bring” list for our next trip!
Their favorite toy.
Think about bringing their favorite toy so that they have something interesting to look at all during the flight. A favorite toy while flying also helps with the “home” feeling and might help calm them down. If you have introduced a tablet to your baby this can also be a great way of distracting them. I know that there is in flight entertainment, but if you are sharing a seat, or if your baby doesn’t understand a word they are saying it might be a good option to bring your own entertainment.
Request a baby seat.
If it’s an option on the flight that you’re taking consider asking for a baby seat to be placed right in front of you. That will be a comfortable seat for your baby and it’s easy for you to access them all during the flight. Check with your airline if this is an option.
Flying back to Europe from U.S.A. we were lucky enough that they had a seat like this. Not only did it save us from having to sit with a small child in our lap the entire time, but it made it so much easier for our daughter to nap during the flight as well. This is the best way to keep a baby comfortable.
Consider buying an extra seat.
You need to think about how far you’re going and the size of your child and think about this trip as sitting at home on a really tight couch with your baby on your lap the entire time. If you only flying for an hour maybe two you might be able to sit with your child in your lap the entire time but do consider if you need more space you might need to buy an extra seat.
Think about these things and I am sure you will have a wonderful time. What are your best tips for flying with a baby?
Until next time
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