Airplane Travel with a Baby

Lots of diapers. Plan for an unexpected layover or delay.
A baby blanket, which is good for multiple uses.
A diaper-changing pad in case you end up changing your baby on the floor or on a dirty changing table.
Plenty of snacks. Often the only snacks on airplanes are peanuts, which are a major choking hazard for babies. Also, snacks are a great distraction for a bored or antsy child. Even if you’ve ordered a child’s meal, it might show up when your child is asleep or isn’t hungry, or your child may not like the menu. A few ideas for easy-to-tote snacks include:
- Baby food
- Dry cereal
- Pretzels
- Crackers
- Bagels
- Bread or rolls
- Dried fruit
- Lollipops
Drinks. Bring along favorites in a sippy cup, drink-box, or bottle. You may even want to pack these in a soft lunchbox cooler.
Infant pain reliever in case of ear pain or other discomfort. (But don’t try anything new; make sure it’s something your baby has tolerated well already.)
Lots of new toys, or old favorites that have been hidden for a few weeks. Avoid noisy toys that will annoy fellow passengers. Great travel toys include:
- Crayons and a small pad or sticky notes
- Stickers and sticker books (Sticker books have the advantage here; their stickers are reusable if stuck on their specially surfaced pages, whereas a sticker placed on paper is there for good — which is fine, too, but a sticker book prolongs the activity.)
- Building toys like Legos TM or Duplos TM
- Paperback books
- Puppets
- Tiny plastic animals, cars, or dolls
- Playing cards (Go Fish or other games that feature interesting cards)
- Tape or CD player with kid music or books on tape
Bib
Extra pacifiers, or your baby’s lovey, special blanket, or toy
A book, magazine, or activity for you when baby is sleeping or playing, should you be lucky enough for that to occur!
A small medical kit with bandages
Wet wipes for diaper changes and cleaning baby’s hands and face
Empty plastic bags for soiled diapers
If your baby uses a bottle, bring several. It’s usually easier to take along premeasured powdered formula and small bottles of water for mixing.
A complete change of clothes for baby and an extra shirt for you (spitup and spills happen).
Toothbrush and toothpaste for unexpected layovers.
If you're traveling as two adults with two children, divide up the children’s supplies into two separate bags in case your seats are separated on the airplane.
Consider packing toys in a small child’s backpack for any child old enough to carry one.
A small belt-bag (fanny pack) is handy for tickets, ID, and cash. Wear it on the front of your body, not the back.
Test your bag in advance to be sure it’s not too heavy

The night before the trip

Get a good night’s sleep so that you can be more relaxed during your trip.
Pack all of your bags and put them in the car or near the front door so you're not scrambling when it's time to leave.
Review your checklists.

At the airport

Get to the airport early.
Check as many pieces of luggage as possible. Avoid overloading yourself with things to carry.
Keep in mind that most airport rental carts have to be unloaded to go through security, and that your child may have to be taken out of the stroller or backpack when you go through the metal detector.
When you check in, tell the desk attendant that you are traveling with a baby. Let her know if you have a stroller or carseat with you.
Change your baby’s diaper immediately before boarding the airplane.
Avoid breastfeeding or bottle-feeding your baby just before boarding as he may fall asleep and wake up crying as you struggle to carry him and your belongings to the gate. Wait until you are seated and unloaded, then feed him and maybe you’ll be lucky and he’ll take a nap!
Avoid feeding your little one just prior to boarding. Save food and drink for when you're on the airplane, as these carry great entertainment value.
Consider bringing your stroller and checking it at the gate. This way you can carry baby, the carseat, and all your belongings right up to the airplane gangway. Smaller strollers can be brought on as carry-ons, and an attendant will take bigger strollers as gate-checked items. (Find out where to retrieve these.)
If traveling with two adults and multiple children, ask at the desk if one adult can do the early-boarding and set up your carry-on bags and carseat(s). Usually the pre-boarding time is extremely short, and you’ll have to rush to get the carseat secured and carry-on items organized before all the other passengers begin to board. This will also allow your little ones some last-minute exercise before boarding with the second adult.
If you have a connecting flight, go straight to the gate upon landing. Sometimes it takes longer to get gate-to-gate than you expect. Any waiting time is best done closer to your next gate.

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This article is a copyrighted excerpt from Gentle Baby Care by Elizabeth Pantley. (McGraw-Hill, 2003)