We are going on a LONG distance flight journey with 2 layovers(18 hrs or so). LOts of baggage. Our son will be 11 months old then, we are not sure if we will be taking our travel system with us(chicco keyfit 30) or buy a lightweight stroller. He has to be rocked to sleep everytime , so not sure how we will get him to sleep in the flight.He sleeps in the carseat (when we go out for a drive) so I am almost thinking it would be good to take it, but I am also worried about carrying it around.We are flying delta and I have to check with them if carseat will be counted as another luggage for baby.We did buy a seperate seat for him. What do you moms feel? travel system or light weight stroller? I am thinking that even during layovers we can have him in that and he can sleep if he wants to. Not sure how he will sleep in a lightweight stroller as I have never had one.
Also, I would like to know how to get to the airport with baby? Do they have taxis that have carseats or do we have to install ours in the taxi as well? What if we decide not to take the carseat at all.... Please advise moms! TIA!
If the carseat fits into the stroller I think they put it where they put the wheel chairs as a carry on... I just flew to Vegas and the lady in front of M. had her LO in the travel system and they put it in the front when she boarded....
If he has his own seat (and you will be very glad he does!) he MUST be in his carseat with the carseat strapped by the seatbelt IN that aircraft seat. Call the airline now and be certain your car seat does fit their seats -- carseat makers all say they're aircraft-ready but not all carseats truly fit narrow economy-class airline seats, so measure your car seat all over and call the airline.
He must have the carseat on the plane because an airline seat belt is not made for a child this young. It cannot secure him. Turbulence can throw adults to the floor or even the ceiling -- last summer there were incidents of adults badly injured because they were not strapped in during turbulence -- so imagine a small child thrown around. Your arms won't be able to hold him, either, in severe turbulence. Err on the side of caution; he's irreplaceable.
You also will want a carseat at your destination, won't you? Unless you're not going to ever be in any vehicle at any time? I've heard there are taxis with carseats BUT you have to order them long in advance and they may or may not arrive with one and it may or may not be the right seat for your child's size, and it may or may not be an ancient model that's been recalled, and you very likely will pay a lot extra, etc. Can you get a friend to drive you to the airport so you can use his car seat in the friend's car? If not, use your own in the taxi.
For his safety, take the carseat. Yeah, it's a pain, but the alternative is he will not be safe and you won't be "legal" if you have him in any vehicle.
You don't say where you are going, but we travel a lot with our little guy and at that age:
- If he's still using the Key Fit carrier, it can be used with the taxi seatbelt and similarly on the air plane.
- If he has a seat on the plane, he will need to be in his carrier on take-off and landing
- Bring your full-sized stroller if you will be in-and-out of cars and want to have a consistent place for him to rest
- The lightweight strollers don't really have storage space, so you will need to carry everything
- Travel will throw-off his entire schedule, so don't freak out about when he sleeps- he'll sleep when he's tired.
**Depending on when you are traveling, I strongly suggest trying to break the "rock to sleep" cycle. You will thank yourself for it later!**
We recently took a trip that was around 18hrs long with layovers. We flew on Delta also. The carseat isn't counted as extra baggage. There's no charge for it. We checked in two careseats and took a double stroller with us to the plane entrance, where they tagged it and gave it back to us at each arriving destination.( also no charge) We had friends drop us off at the airport, and used our own carseats. So I'm pretty sure you will use your own for the taxi trip. In my opinion, I think you will be much better off with the stroller u have and taking a carseat. Also think that if you bought the baby his own seat, it's law that you have a carseat installed. On a previous trip we took, we didn't take our stroller that had matching carseat, but we took the carseat. That was hard. He didn't sleep well and since we couldn't attach the carseat to the stroller, we had to carry it everywhere. It got very tiring! Well I hope this helps. Call the airline if you have more questions. Have an awesome trip!!!
I'd bring your carseat. We went to Ireland when my daughter was 13 mths, and I was so thankful we brought the carseat. It was a pain to carry, but she knew her carseat and always slept well in it.
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2658824
I would think that you would want to have your car set for driving once you reach your destination plus it's safer for baby to be in his car set on the plane and he will probably sleep better on the plane because it's something he is used to.
We always take our travel system (carseat and stroller) and use the carseat on the plane. Even though you bought a seat, an 11 month baby can not sit in a seat without a carseat during taxi/takeoff/landing so if you don't use the seat you'll have to hold him. You can take your stroller all the way to the plane door and then leave it there and it will be there when you get off. The carseat will not count as baggage if he is using it on the plane and the stroller will not count either. If he's not a good sleeper, the better stroller will probably be easier since it will lay flat. Carseat is also good for on/off the plane because if he is sleeping you don't have to move him.
For taxis, the keyfit 30 is soooo easy to install, you just put the car seat belt over the top and place it under the hooks (by babies legs) then pull it super tight making sure the carseat is level (there's a line on a sticker on the side).
Maybe you could get one of these snap n' go strollers for the trip? That way it is a lighter-weight stroller with storage underneath but can still accomodate your carseat.
http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Trend-Single-Snap-Stroller/dp/...
The only thing you'd want to double check is whether the keyfit will work in this type of stroller. Good luck!
you can check both on the plane. i would take both for your convienance. i wouldnt think taxis are requiered to provide carseats. if you dont take the carseat how will your baby ride in a car? its hard enough to fly with a baby let alone to have to hold them in your arms the whole flight because there isnt a carseat to put him in.
i have flown with my daughter at 8 months and 15 and it was a life saver to have her carseat at 15 months. 8 months the flight wasnt packed and she was able to sit next to M. on the flight (she was flying in lap.)
I would take the travel system and car seat. Our kids would sleep in their car seats on the plane (our son as a toddler konked out as soon as the plane got in the air and slept the next three hours!) but more importantly, it kept them safe. It won't matter how big your stroller is because it will be gate-checked. In fact, a bigger stroller can be used to carry extra items, so that can be a plus.
I have never seen a taxi with a car seat, so you'd want to have one, for sure. Taxis aren't any safer than any other car, so you'll want a car seat.
Get him a seat - you'll thank yourself on a flight taht long. Get a lightweight stroller (just one of those little umbrella strollers) and take your carseat. Check the stroller.
For getting through the airport, get a Go Go Kidz Travelmate. It's AWESOME. Basically, a dolly for the carseat, and you can leave kiddo strapped in when manuevering through the airport.
I would just install the carseat in the taxi afterwards. Takes 2 minutes.
And last, I would just submit to the hand search in the airport. It's a PAIN to have to haul everything up on the conveyors, on top of trying to manage the kiddo. Just haul the whole family through the manual search and let them worry about scannning everything they need to.
I totally agree with Melissa R. If you bought him a seat you have to bring the car seat on the plane. He has to be in the carseat for take off and landing since you bought him a seat. I have traveled many, many times overseas with my Chicco KeyFit travel system. It was very easy. You drop off the stroller at the gate and then get it back right away when you get off the plane. It can be a pain to take through security depending on what airport you go thru. You will have to install the car seat in the taxi just like you would on the plane. Take a look at your manual instructions for the car seat it has great picture on how to install it without the base.
