Toddler Travels

Submitted by ub on

My wife's little sister and her boy are near and dear to us and are traveling for the first time to visit family.

Although flying with the infant on your lap on a flight, not occupying a seat is allowed free of charge, it can become a bit difficult whenever the flight is longer than 12 hours. Travelers should request passenger support specialists who provide on-the-spot assistance.

Select a window seat that allows you a corner spot if you can possibly swing it. ...
Avoid boarding boredom. ... Wait before you board that plane.
Pack for playtime. ... The simplest items can be very effective.
Fill him up. ... Make sure you have plenty of formula and snacks.
Ease his ear pressure. ... Feed the baby while taking off and landing.
Ask for help. ... Find a friendly face on your flight and introduce yourself.

Think outside of the baby bag...The top three are these-

Pack extra supplies...One of our most unpleasant experiences traveling with a baby is long flights that end up taking much longer. While sitting on the runway for hours before taking off, make unscheduled stops, where the airline refuses to release your bags. Needless to say, carry a two-days' supply of everything.

Protect their ears. During descent and takeoff, keep the baby sucking on something to relieve ear pressure -- a bottle, a pacifier, or any other favorite.

Diaper with care. Some people seem so put off by seeing a diaper being changed that it's better to change in the cabin only if you are sitting three across in an aisle-window row and no one we might offend can see us. On longer flights, we try to get in and out of the lavatories as fast as we can. I find that a particular challenge because although they can be reluctant to accept the fold-down plastic shelf in the lavatory as a changing table, he'll discover that if he clings tightly enough to your neck, it functions quite nicely as an infant trampoline.

Now, after you and your toddler recoup jet lag and that time change, enjoy a special time with your parents and let the new grandparents bond with their grandchild while you take a well-deserved break. Toss out all your old ideas about what a vacation should be and embrace the new craziness that is traveling with a baby. Laugh at the fact that you may wind up at the local playground by 6A and in bed for the night at 8P. Consider all the baby-lugging as great vacation exercise. And then savor returning back home. Von Voyage, Deena, and Matty!