First airplane flight with a child

Do you want to fly somewhere on a plane with your child, but still have doubts? Or maybe you already have a ticket purchased, but suddenly some questions arose? In this post we will describe how to prepare for the first flight with a baby :)

The first flight with a child can be quite a challenge and stressful, mainly for parents. Even for those who have dozens of flights to their credit, flying with a small passenger can be an interesting experience and a challenge at the same time. We won’t pull the wool over your eyes, the truth is that it’s impossible to predict everything, and even when we are super-prepared, it may be that higher forces will make the flight turn into hysteria, crying or fear. The only thing that can be done is to minimize the risk.

How to survive the first flight with a baby?

Here are some important aspects that will make your first (and every subsequent) flight not a torture and convince you that it is possible to fly with a baby (even an infant).

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Packing and luggage

Before boarding the plane, however, it is important to pack well. Be sure to check carefully with the carrier what kind of luggage you can take. Often for a child there is an additional carry-on baggage (check the dimensions), and even checked baggage (mainly on cruise flights of traditional airlines).

For example, if you have bought three tickets and have three pieces of luggage, consider how best to pack. Are you sure you’ll be comfortable with three large suitcases and a baby in a stroller (and not to be outdone by stairs somewhere)? How about giving up suitcases in favor of backpacks, looking like a camel and straining every time it comes to putting them on and taking them off? Logistics specialists needed right away! We take a mix: some backpacks, some suitcases :)

What to pack when traveling with an infant?

What you pack inside depends largely on where you are going. If it’s a location where you get everything locally, it’s a shame to carry whole packages of diapers when you can easily get them locally.

Nevertheless, it is essential to keep these things in mind:

• documents (!!!) – proof or passport and EHIC card,
• Single or reusable diapers (a supply for several days),
• tetra diapers (smaller and larger, won’t someone list at least 5 uses for tetra?! :P),
• Wet wipes (every parent’s staple),
• changing pads (they can be single or reusable, but we recommend using them anytime and anywhere),
• creams (for the face, for bad weather/sun, for flare-ups),
• clothes,
• towel (especially children with allergies and skin problems – it is better to have a towel, washed in a known powder),
• Bath gel/emulsion (known and proven to avoid sensitization on the trip),
• liquid, antibacterial foam for children (for hands, toys, or tables),
• medications (vitamins, something for diarrhea, probiotics, something for teething, for fever),
• Food, cutlery, bowls, bibs, bottles, possibly. breast pump,
• grooming accessories (scissors, pear, thermometer, washing powder/liquid),
• Toys, pacifiers and teethers (several!),
• Blanket (blankets are never in short supply :) ),
• Sling, carrier (the sling at our place found many uses – even as a blanket),
• Stroller along with a rain film.

In addition, it’s a good idea to bring a set of change clothes (x2) on your hand luggage, because you never know when you’ll hit the need to change them :)

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Baby stroller for the plane?

Generally, you can take a baby stroller on the plane free of charge (we always recommend checking this before flying directly with the airline anyway). As a rule, the stroller is taken on boarding the plane to the baggage hold and given back on exit. We write as a rule, because on several occasions we have seen carts on the tapes with suitcases (!) – we will skip describing in what condition they reach their owners. Nevertheless, the general rule of thumb is that you will receive the cart back on exit :)

We also encountered the practice of securing the carts, before handing them over to the staff. It is known, when someone buys a stroller for a few thousand to chauffeur a trip, he will not allow himself any scratch! So some people are pulling bags, sacks from the nooks and crannies of their travel luggage and packing carts in them before handing them over to the fire.

The second option? Provide yourself with a stroller that you can bring on the plane, that is, one that meets the requirements of hand luggage.

The first stroller that met such requirements is the Babyzen Yoyo, which should be considered by anyone planning to travel with a baby. Although not only, because the stroller also works well as a small, handy stroller for driving around town – it will fit into the smallest trunk :)

Even if the argument of bringing it on board is not enough for you, the fact that it fits easily into the trunk, is easy to carry everywhere, is lightweight, easy to drive, and has very good cushioning, definitely speaks in its favor. It definitely worked well on the trip, where we had a lot of luggage, and everything fit easily into the rental car.

Babyzen Yoyo had been following us for a long time, with the idea of traveling comfortably with Olive. I know that there used to be times when it was difficult to get it (long waiting times in online stores). Fortunately, at the direct distributor there was no such problem. For those interested, link:)

How about a car seat on an airplane?

If you have a purchased seat for your child, you can bring your infant car seat on board. Attention! Each airline has a different approach to this and it is not always possible. Make sure before you fly.

As of now, we know that Wizz Air and SAS allow virtually any seat (or at least one that can be installed rear-facing) to be taken on board. Our Polish PLL LOT lacks information about this, and Ryanair only allows “airline” certified seats (practically such seats are not available) and of certain dimensions.

This is a good solution, especially if your child willingly falls asleep in the car, plus you plan to rent a car locally (in rental companies you pay extra for the seat, and quite a lot). Familiar toys and the hum of engines will make the child feel calmer.

Our concern, however, was whether the car seat would fit (keeping in mind that legroom is rather scarce on low-cost carriers). Fortunately, it fit perfectly! Nevertheless, Olive could not be in a car seat during both landing and takeoff, such procedures (totally understandable).

Privileges for families with children

Before about privileges maybe a few words about responsibilities :) We recommend and encourage you to be earlier than those recommended 2 hours before departure :) You never know, and it turns out that check-ins for families are longer than normal.

Well, that’s right, when passing the inspection we use special crossings for families with children. We always thought it worked efficiently and quickly, and it’s been a long time since we’ve waited so much in an inspection!

Not so long ago, because when I was pregnant, they also sometimes took us to such special passages for families with children. The queues were practically nonexistent. So we were strongly surprised when, at Warsaw’s Chopin Airport, the queue for checking in families with children was longer and slower than all the other…

The queue itself is still nothing ;) While the stroller fit without a problem in the line for baggage screening, the car seat did not, and on top of that, it got lost somewhere in security! Fortunately, he recovered after a few minutes and I don’t even know if they screened him at all.

Importantly, when traveling with a child it is permissible to take additional liquids, they can only ask us to taste them to prove that we are not carrying any poisonous or dangerous substances. They didn’t ask us. Interestingly, in addition to a bottle of water and a drink bottle, we passed inspection with yogurts in our backpacks, which we had completely forgotten about!

Of the important aspects, attention should also be paid to the children’s toys. Well, they should not even resemble weapons or dangerous tools! Seriously! We wouldn’t think of it (not that Olive would want to bring a sword on board), but we were very sad when the boy in front of us, the control took away the plastic rifle :(

Other privileges include priority boarding. There is a separate queue for families with children, but we did not use it, because somehow we always got to our entrance at the last minute ;)

Baby on a plane

This is where we had the most questions and concerns. The basic: how to make both for the child and the parents (maybe also for the fellow passengers) a few hours on the plane go fairly comfortably (we didn’t even dream of luxuries). How to occupy a child with something? Will she cry? If so, what will help the most? What will be the most comfortable position? Which seat on the plane should I choose? And so on…

Which place to choose? Strategic :) It is important that it is close to the toilet and such that you do not have to trouble and involve fellow passengers too much, each time you get up from your seat.

At the entrance to the plane you get a special vest and belts for the child, which attach to the adult’s belts. Importantly, the baby straps allow some freedom of movement, so you can, for example, breastfeed without any problems.

When it comes to the comfort of a baby boar, the important aspect is the parents :) When there are parents, that’s all that matters. By providing proximity we calm the baby, during the flight we can walk with the baby, carry him, rock him, sing, dance, all tricks allowed :) It’s also a good idea to have a blanket or tetra on hand to shield from too much stimulus.

During takeoff and landing, the infant must be on the parent’s lap secured with a special belt. It’s also a good idea to drink the baby so that it regulates its own pressure while swallowing – as I’ve already mentioned, this extra belt allows you to position the baby comfortably, even for breastfeeding.

What is essential to bring on board with you? Diaper supply :) It’s best to have diapers, wet wipes and change clothes for the baby in one toiletry bag, so that if you need to take only the essentials, because unfortunately in the toilets on the plane, space is really limited, and if you unfold the changing table, you can barely turn around.

Of course, you should also take some sort of blanket and toys to make the trip more pleasant for the little one. Preferably the ones he knows and likes. It’s also a good idea to attach them to your clothes so they don’t fall on the dirty floor on the plane, as the options for cleaning the toys here are limited.

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Pierwszy lot samolotem z dzieckiem?

Polecamy naszą książkę!

Przed Tobą lot z dzieckiem samolotem? A może planujesz dalszą podróż z niemowlakiem i nie wiesz czy dasz radę tak daleko lecieć samolotem?

W naszej książce znajdziesz 240 stron pełnych praktycznych porad i wskazówek jak przetrwać lot z dzieckiem lub niemowlakiem bazując na ponad 6 latach naszego doświadczenia!

Rodzinne podróżowanie – Samolotem z dzieckiem >>>

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What about the parents?

Parents should lead by example and stay calm :) The child empathizes and feels when mom is upset. If we are well prepared and positive, this is already a big part of success.

What else can help us get better organized? When packing, it’s a good idea to have all important documents close at hand (for example, in your kidney) so that you can easily remove them at any time (even while holding a baby). However, remember all the time about security and…. pickpockets, so that at the same time easily accessible documents for you are not easily accessible for others ;)

Pay attention to whether your backpacks and bags have plenty of pockets into which you can pack the most necessary things (such as wet wipes), which you can easily find in the depths of a woman’s purse. You can also clip various toys to your backpack, which not only will not be lost, but will be an additional attraction to focus the child’s eyes.

Let’s also remember about our own comfort – comfortable shoes, clothes. Moms feel comfortable :) I also recommend getting a comfortable breastfeeding blouse, in which you can feed without restraint. We recommend the ones here:)

Summary

Behind us is our first flight with a baby and it was one of the more stressful flights for us :) Thanks to this experience, we are richer in knowledge, which we will certainly use on future flights, and thus we hope that you will also benefit.

The conclusion that emerges is actually the most important thing is to stay calm and use common sense. Children are different and each may react differently to a stressful situation, but the role of the parent is to make the trip as pleasant as possible for the child :)

And what was the first flight with an infant or older child like for you? Let us know in the comments :)