Carry on Bag for children....guidelines?!?

I wanted to reiterate, since there was some confusion on liquids, you can bring liquids in excess of the 3.4 ounce limit. You need to declare them and they will go through an additional inspection (be ready if you have a juice box, you will need to open it.) Go to TSA for more info:

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/children/index.sht...

Also, shoes need to come off the kids, in addition to the adults.

Have a great trip!

You can bring whatever snacks you want for you or for your children - there are no restrictions on food for the plane. And no need to put them in the clear plastic bags - they go in the machine inside your bags, just like you'd do if you had crackers for yourself. But... you can not bring mushy or liquid food. So no squeezable applesauce or yogurt unless they're in 3 oz or smaller containers and you can fit them in the one quart sized bag per person. And no, sippy cups with water are not allowed. Bring empty sippy cups in your carry on and fill up on the other side of security.

Your carry ons will go through the machine with whatever is inside. Adult shoes and random things go in one of the bins. Your kids will not need to take their shoes off.

The only things that need to be separated into a ziploc bag are liquids and gels. You can bring dry snacks or other food in their original packages. They will check your carry-ons by by running them through the x-ray machine. They may randomly check inside your carry-on bag if they chose.

Other than that, I would check your airline's website. They typically have a FAQ section that would answer these for you.

Best advice I've gotten from a grandmother who flew with grandchildren: Bring a fun activity (coloring book, puzzle, game, etc) for every hour of the plane ride (in case they don't sleep). The dollar store is GREAT for this. Every hour on the hour, break out a new activity to keep your children occupied. It's also a great motivator for cooperative behavior.

You can bring any dry snacks you want, and they don't have to be in ziploc bags. Bring a sippy, but don't put anything in it until you get through security--then either fill it at a drinking fountain or buy a bottled water from the airport convenience store. If you fill it with water they may or may not make you dump it out, or at least hand-check the bag after it has been x-rayed.

Carry on luggage is scanned in the x-ray machine. The only things you need to remove to put in the bins are: toiletries (your 1 quart ziploc bag with a 3 oz limit per bottle) and electronics/keys.

Children under age 12 no longer have to remove their shoes, but you will need to take yours off.

We just traveled with 3 kids under age 5, and it wasn't as stressful as I was anticipating. Basically, we just made sure that we had packed our carry-on's wisely--all liquid in one (we had baby formula) and baby food.

I fly about once a year, and have taken food through security, but not drinks.

I usually stop at Subway before I get to the airport and get one of their $5 footlongs for a cheap meal behind security. I also bring an empty water bottle and fill it from the water fountain after I go through security, also. These just go in my carry-on, and get placed in the bin.

My daughter and her husband are the ones that clued me in to those savings... they frequently bring their own snacks and empty water bottles through security.

These requirements change so frequently, it's best to look online for the airlines you are traveling.

I remember having my water taken away. Everything had to go into the bins, including shoes, belts, anything metal. I've heard that you shouldn't wear an underwire bra so that the metal isn't detected. Shoes should be slip-ons.

Be sure that any drink you bring is within the ounces limited, and is in a ziplock. Even one or two ounces over, no matter the age of the child, gets the drink taken away.

I can't remember about snacks. Fruit will be apprehended.

Arrive earlier than they suggest. The last to arrive at the gate often is left behind. This is after you go through security. People with kids get to sit earlier than others, so there's a bonus reason to arrive early.

Enjoy your trip.

Hi!

We recently traveled with our 3 children (8,6,4) to California (yeah for Disney!!).

-You can take snacks and they do not have to be in a ziplock (like makeup, etc) and you do not have to pull them out of the bag. I had granola bars, fruit snacks and candy treats. I found that it was easiest to have one carry-on that I carried (Dad had his own). It had snacks, book for each, Ipad, Ipod, color book and color crayons (in a ziplock only in case they spilled everywhere). They key is to try to stay organized :) Each child carried their own "lovey" which was placed in the bin through security (my daughter's had batteries (talking doll) and it was fine.)

-You cannot take any drink (or baby food) through security but you could take an empty sippy and fill it up once you get through security. There are lots of places to buy drinks "on the other side"...

-You will need to put your entire carryon in one of those bins (unless it's the larger w/wheels carry-on). It's nice having everything all together since the adults have to take off shoes, belts, and everyone - coats. You can stuff it all in one or five bins if needed. They will scan it and will only look at it if something is suspicious.

-Kids 12 and younger no longer have to take their shoes off (yeah!!). I would suggest to have them take off coats or sweatshirts before it's your turn in line. Put up the bin, have everyone put their stuff inside, have mom or dad go through the detector first, have one child follow at a time and the other parent go through last.

We also chose to carry-on the younger two's booster seats. They fit right at our feet and it was one less thing to check (and pay for). But if your carseat is bigger, you can buy carseat bags and check it. We have done this before and it's a great place to stuff extra blankets, toys, etc.

It's really not stressful and a very smooth process. If you have ID cards for the kids that's helpful but I don't think it's required (we took their passports and they did look at them and asked the kids their names (mine are 8, 6, 4).)

Just remember to take your time. There is always someone in a hurry but that is not your fault. Give yourself plenty of time and have fun on your trip!! :0)

The liquid items depend on the age of the child, usually, or medical need. I usually take empty water bottles through security and fill them at a drinking fountain on the way to the gate. As for solid food, no problem. You might want to put them in separate bags for ease on the plane. I like to use pencil boxes (plastic ones), this way the food doesn't get squished. I usually keep the snacks in my carryon and the kids each have a small backpack with books, crayons, pencil, small (preferably inexpensive) toys, and a lovey. We keep an extra eye on the lovey and if I have dollar store toys, not a big deal. Sometimes it's nice to bring a couple of zip bags with a few toys each and then swap out the bags when they are done with one. It gives them variety and keeps them busy for longer. These are usually toys that were purchased for a trip or two and only about $5 worth.

My kids are old enough now (4 and 6) that they help pack their carryon and their suitcases. I make a picture list for the younger one with which clothing and how many to put in. Ex. picture of pants (hand drawn) with a 4 next to it. I usually make sure they have at least 2 extra changes of clothing, just in case.

My kids have flown quite a bit and they do great. We had to take off shoes the last time in Aug., but were told that was changing for kids. Their carryon goes through the xray, too. Along with car seats, strollers, etc. You can gate check car seats and strollers and this helps with getting everything through the airport, plus you know you have it when you get to your next leg, or destination.

Happy travels.

I have traveled a lot with my daughter. You can bring solid foods through security and you don't have to change the packaging. They have never asked me to take it out, but it will need to go through the x-ray machine. You can bring the sippy cup but be sure to empty it and dry it before going through security. You can get bottled water before getting on the plane.
Check your airline (I would suggest calling) for the measurements of a carry on. Most usually allow two, one small suitcase and a backpack, purse or small personal bag. Not two overstuffed small suitcases. I can't tell you how many people I have seen get angry when they have to gate check their bags because they are too big or there is not enough room in the overhead. And it usually holds up taking off.
I would also suggest a gate check bag for your stroller and/or car seats if you are bringing them. They get scratched and really dirty going into baggage claim. I had a large gate check bag for my BOB stroller so it wouldn't get damaged. I found it online at Wal-Mart for about 20 dollars and it was worth it.

I am not sure how old your kids are .. we brought sippy cups of milk for my son. The only thing you are limited on is liquids.. but the sippy cups were fine. and I went when my son was 9 months old.. I brought several bottles with us so we had a small stock to start with when we got to our destination.

You have received great answers so far but I wanted to add that there should be a special line at the checkpoint for families and those with medication liquids. I am preparing for our family to take a trip as well, and I heard about this on the tsa website. Apparently there are 3 lines with designated signs . . . 1-experienced fliers, 2-casual fliers, 3-families and medical liquids (or anyone requiring extra time). As long as you make sure you are in the right line, you should not have any problems.

The only thing that TSA cares about is liquids. I do NOT take on any drinks for my daughter, I take an empty sippy cup and fill it with water on the other side of the security line (or you can buy a juice at the airport store). There are usually several food places where you can even fill it with ice and water from their fountain drink area (they have never cared when I did it). They don't check snacks so you can take pretty much whatever you want in whatever container you want. So it's only liquids, if you don't take any of those through then you should be fine. I check in our large bags, and ONLY take a large backpack on board with us (it's just me and my daughter). You put the bag through the security belt intact. They only open it if you have something they need to check out, but if not you do NOT have to take anything out of the bag. Laptops, shoes, jackets, purse...those things get put in the plastic bin. Hope that helps!

Regarding shoes - the security rules just changed. Children under 12 do not need to remove their shoes. We just flew last week (Seattle-> Chicago O'Hare -> Des Moines, IA and back, and kiddo, age 4, kept his shoes on thru security at all airports. I love it).

You can take liquid snacks for the children, but they might be taken away from you briefly to be given a litmus paper test. A family in front of us had sealed fruit cups (4 oz each) in their snack arsenal and those were taken away. We had a 4-oz Activia yogurt cup (sealed) and we could keep that. Go figure. We also had 6 oz of milk in a sippy and that was tested and given back to us. I simply told the TSA agent: "We have milk in here for my son." And he said, "OK - put it in the bin and then i'll need to take it over there a test it separately, and I'll bring it right back to you". Honestly, I think there is a little bit of subjectively amongst the TSA agents - you might get a stickler, but you might also get a human (who probably has kids).

You don't need to put all the snacks in a quart sized bag (though you might want to for your own sanity!) The children's carry-ons will be x-rayed just like every other item.

.

Yes, you are allowed two carry on bags per person - they snacks inside can be packed however you want to pack them (individual baggies work well, because you don't have a lot of space, and you can just pull them out easily). You can also bring toys and things to keep the child busy. Sounds like you have not flown before - I know you didn't ask, but some of my favorites include crayola wonder water colors (just ask for a cup with a little water in it on the airplane), stickers, window clings (don't know how young your child is), books, etc. You can also get a big pill box (jumbo) and fill each compartment with a different snack - just for fun...As for a sippy cup - it can be filled with milk or water to go through security, they will just ask you to open it and may do a test (which is nothing more waving a small piece of filter paper over the cup - not IN the cup). You can also avoid this and take an empty cup through security, and purchase a bottle of milk or water after you have gone through security - you can bring any liquid on the plane if it is purchased PAST security or if it clears security.

I want to reiterate that sippy cups with milk are fine. They will take them aside and test them, though. (Don't put them in ziploc baggies but do pull them out, put them in the bin, and let tsa know about them.)

For water, bring empty sippy cups and fill them on the other side. If it's not liquid, tsa doesn't care (so no need to pull it out). If it's liquid or mushy food, just put it in the ziploc with the other liquids.

All carry-ons, jackets, strollers (if it'll fit), carseats, etc., will go through xray. Just prep you kiddos and it will be fine.

If you're prepared, security is not that difficult, even if there is no family line.

When we flew in July, we were allowed pre-packaged snacks (like Gerber fruit bars) but NO water. In fact, I drank DD's sippy cup water in line at Heathrow and filled it on the other side. When we returned from the UK, we were allowed to bring in our UK cheerios. A lot depends on who you deal with. I was treated like diaper cream was a deadly weapon (only if you are butt yeast...). Everything goes in the bin. Be prepared to spend more time getting things checked. Give yourself time to have things rechecked. I was allowed DD's baby ibuprofen but it had to be tested. I put her meds in a ziplock and put it in the front pocket of my carry on.

I left DD in her stroller til she had to get out and then checked the stroller at the gate. Check the airline regs on this. It varies airline to airline.

DO NOT count on a special family line. Dulles did not have one and made me feel stupid when I asked. I hate Dulles.

If they serve meals on the flight, ask for children's meals in advance. They are kid-friendly and come out first, generally.

Watch the weight. We overpacked (DH's suggestion) and had to rip stuff out of our backpacks to put in DD's carry on that we weren't using to make weight. They will weigh them.

I traveled with my daughter starting at 9 months and have gone many times in the past 5 years
No sippy cups with water. I would probably just not take anything liquid thru security, although, a small amount of formula/breast milk is fine(you can ready TSA website on that). I wouldn't take yogurt either.
All edible hard snacks are fine, they will just go thru the xray with your other things. You do not need to pull these out.
The only thing we have ever had an issue with was small cans of playdough. I checked the TSA website and playdough is not listed as a no-no, however, I guess it looks like plastic explosives and will cause you a delay thru security if you don't tell them. I found out the hard way. Now I don't take it. But if you do, just put it in a plastic bag and show it them. It has to be in sealed plastic tubs and cannot be homemade. They still might take it away.
I would suggest to wear easy to remove clothing(jackets, shoes, etc) as they will all have to go thru xray.
It is pretty easy. The less you take is better, but make sure you have stuff to keep kiddos entertained. Buy crayons at the $$ store so if you lose them, you don't care. I don't know how old your kiddos are but one of my daughters favorite past times is beading on the plane. I buy pony beads and shoe laces(or pipe cleaners) at the dollar store, put it all in a plastic bag. It works great and little hands can manipulate it quite easy.
Have a great trip.

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/children/index.shtm

Bring dry snacks in any size ziplock or plastic container you like. An empty sippy cup is okay. Buy the water after you get thru security.

If your child has a paid seat, then your child is allowed a carry on. You paid for your seat, so you are allowed a carry on as well. Yes, EVERYTHING goes in the bins - your bag, your purse, your shoes, everything. Stroller doesn't fit in the bin, so obviously can't go in a bin, but WILL go up on the scanner.

How old are your little ones? I found that packing a balloon (deflated) in your carryon, then blowing it up while you wait an hour or two for your plane - gives the kids something to do and gets a lot of their energy out before boarding. And I recommend packing a dvd player with a favorite movie and a new movie - to keep them quiet and entertained while on flight.

I have traveled three times by air and expect soon to do more,when ever i have a question of concern the best bet ever is to call the airline your flying with a week in advance so you can be sure to have all that packed and out of the way ahead of time I do not travel with children as mine are grown now but had bought things to take home but was not sure they would allow but found out it was a go and all was happy. Best of travel to you and the family.