Air Travel Tips with 2 Active Boys Under Age 4 - Norfolk,VA

I traveled by air just 2 years ago. You can bring empty sippy cups and then buy water, milk whatever after security to fill them. You can check a stroller at the gate and it doesn't count for your baggage. You can rent carseats. When I did it was $50 to rent a toddler carseat from a car rental agency. Are you renting a car? If not, there are some places that will rent carseats (mostly in major cities). I just checked Walmart and you can buy a no frills convertible car seat for less than $50. Can your 4 yr old just use a booster seat? It might be worth the money for your mom to buy a cheap backless booster for the 4 yr old (they have ones for $18 at Walmart). If you don't want to take a stroller, you can rent them at most zoos, malls, etc. They usually aren't too expensive either. Both of your children could carry a backpack on with some toys and snacks. I wouldn't be worried about the plane ride itself. I would see if you and your husband can split up so both kids could have a window seat. That in itself will keep them entertained for awhile.

I don't have advice on traveling, but I do know of a company that will rent all kinds of child equipment, specifically for travelers. It's called Baby's Away: www.babysaway.com. They have limited locations, but if one is in the area that you are traveling too, it might be a great option. Good luck!

I have traveled with teo active boys 2 and 4 also, I know the fun that you are about to have. First, be sure to bring your sense of humor, you will need it. As for the car seats, the multiple times that I flew with my boys, about 4, we brought our own car seats, preboarded, got them strapped in and were the last people off the plane. We had a double stroller and were able to use it to carry many things, while the boys walked onto and off of the plane. We then checked the stroller at the gate and picked it up upon arrival.
HAve a fun trip, and don't forget your sense of humor!!

You have to check whether your own car seats are approved for use on an aircraft; not all are, because the aircraft seatbelts are not the same as on cars. Your four-year-old should be able to ride in the plane without a seat; your two-year-old may stay put better if he's in a car seat but may not be able to use one. The child harnesses for airline seats are a great idea. Not having car seats in cabs/cars at your destination is not an option so take yours or rent some -- I have heard both good and bad things about renting car seats so can't help there. You can check your car seats as luggage, possibly even at the curb, so you don't have to haul them to a counter. Do online ticketing and get your boarding passes online and you may be able to skip counters completely and take luggage directly to a luggage check-in and be on your way to security without any stop at a ticket counter.

Regarding liquids -- we returned yesterday from a trip. Do not bother to take any drinks or items like containers of Vaseline etc. in hand luggage. You will be forced to throw them out at security. But you can buy water etc. after the security checkpoints. It is OK to take small bottles (pocket-sized) of hand sanitizer gel. Yesterday I witnessed a mom with an infant undergoing a long, long inspection and much frustrated talk with security inspectors because she had a big tub of Vaseline, several half-full baby bottles, etc.. Save money and lots of time and carry no liquids. (It's fine to pack your shampoos, creams, gels etc. in the checked luggage! The issue is what's in your hand luggage.)

I just flew on Southwest with my 5 and 2 year old in January. I checked both car seats at the check-in counter with the rest of the suitcases, they each counted as a bag, and my boys just sat in the seat. Southwest didn't require them to have a car seat, so you might want to call the airline you are flying and see what their policy is. As for a stroller, I brought on all the way to the gate and they check it right before we boarded, and it was waiting for us as soon as we got off the plane. Call the airline and find out their policies, because car seats are a pain to carry all the way on and off planes.

HI,

We have a almost 4 yr. old that has traveled from Hawaii to Italy and back to DC as well as all over Italy. He will currenty be traveling to Germany with us and I would HIGHLY recommend this product called the CARES safety harness. It's the only FAA approved harness for airplane use.

www.kidsflysafe.com

It replaces the need for a large carseat but still keeps them safe from turbulance as well as in their seat. It fits like a carseat harness so they are used to it.
They are expensive at about 75 USD a piece but for us WELL worth it. His most recent trip was from DC to Oregon and no problems. The airline (southwest) had seen it before and was not an issue.

Now having said all that...the carseat thing really isn't a big deal if you get a large cart at the airport. I have done this with just me from Germany to Oregon and had 4 bags,1 giant european stroller and a cart and my son who was just 2 and would NOT sit but HAD to be held. lol There are people to help out....pay a porter at the drop-off point at the airport 5-10 bucks and he will load it up for you and you just wheel it in. That's just another option.

Good luck...we travel alot so I feel your pain. :) Just pack well and be organized. OH...also when booking ask for bulkhead seats so you don't have to worry about a tight fit. :)

Mandy

Maybe your mom knows some one that has kids that might have two sets of car seats- lots of parents seem to have seats for both vehicles.- maybe she can borrow them- or find something on craigslist...

the four year old is almost booter seat size possibly and so if she does purchase seats maybe have he purchase a booster so that it will last for various trips home-and they are a little less expensive.

I am flying to SLC for two months with three boys under five-alone- we have contacted some friends and are flying carseatless and then borrowing seats there from friends. I am still debating taking one, but not three. Sometimes the local police station has carseats available or knows where to get ahold of them also.

car rental places sometimes rent them also... I don't think you have to use them on the plane at all-We aren't planning on it. I flew with the boys once before when they were 2 years and the other was 3 months. We checked the carseats and I must say it was kind of a pain to do the luggage, carseats, and chase after a 2 year old at the airport- so the lighter you can go the easier. However they do offer curbside checking at some places now- that might be a little easier and carseats do check for free.

depending on the place you are headed- you might be able to find something on craigslist for less also.

good luck

I've had good experiences with renting carseats. We did it for the same reasons your husband stated. We just did not want to have to lug all of the luggage, 2 carseats as well as 2 kids who may or may not run off at a moment's notice.
If you are going to be there for 9 days, it would be cheaper than renting to buy a booster for the 4 year old, but maybe not cheaper to buy a 5pt harness for the 2 yr old. The other thing to consider is, how often would you be visiting your mom? My mom keeps a booster at her house for kids to use when traveling, and it's quite useful. So just weigh the cost differences, keeping in mind that it is heaven to get back from a long flight with 2 children and not have to worry about installing 2 carseats in the parking lot.

My husband and I just flew from Baltimore to Hawaii with a 20-month-old so I feel your pain! We elected to bring our car seat even though you can usually rent one if you rent a car (most car rental places have them). I was concerned b/c you know how rental companies so often fail to have the kind of car you reserved? I figured if they failed to have a car seat that we reserved, we would be stuck at the airport until one of us could go buy a car seat so not an option! Besides, my son sleeps well in the car seat in the car so I was hopeful he'd be most comfortable in that in the plane seat and he did in fact sleep well in it. The problem was when he was awake, the car seat put him in a position to kick the seat in front of him constantly. I felt so bad for the person in front of us and we tried everything to control it to little effect. You could also let your Mom buy a car seat and just put both kids right into the plane seats. You can bring a stroller and car seat right up to the gate and then they tag the stroller and the car seat if you want to check it and they take it from the ramp onto the plane and it's waiting for you on the ramp when you arrive. Also note that TSA allows you to bring juice/milk etc. for little ones above 3 oz. Just have it separated in a clear plastic bag and we had ours still sealed, which I think helped. Any open sippy cups of drink can be a problem--they let us take it in but did some kind of litmus test to make sure it wasn't radioactive! It was a challenge to carry on everything but we got a luggage cart as soon as we arrived at the airport and were able to move everything (me with stroller, rolling suitcase, diaper bag, purse, and huge bagpack and 6 mos pregnant, LOL, and him with huge cart of suitcases). Good luck! Bring lots of snacks, books, and I recommend portable DVD player with kids videos.

As far as I know, your kids must be in carseats on the plane. I may be wrong about that, but that is something you will need to look into.

We just got back from Florida, where we traveled by plane with our 2 and 5 year old. You can bring the car seats free of charge, but I will tell you that it can be quite challenging trying to juggle the luggage and small children. Personally, we brought one car seat (which we checked) and one backless booster seat (which we had in a carry on bag). We didn't have either child in a car seat on the plane and both did just fine. They were so excited to be on the plane that they stayed put in their seats. I guess it would depend on how long your plane ride is and how active your kids are. Both my boys are full of energy, but I explained in advance that once we were on the plane they would need to stay buckled in their seats, just like in the car. Bring coloring/activity books, quiet toys, a portable DVD player, etc.. in a bookbag especially for them. Have them help you pack it. Whether or not you need a stroller depends on what types of activities you'll be doing at your destination. If you don't think you'll be doing a lot of walking or if you'll have family members willing to help out with the kids, I wouldn't bring the strollers.

Me personally i would either bring the seats or rent them if you can. I would def. use carseats on the planes. It keeps them in their seats. Children know what the seat is for and don't normally complain about setting in them so they are easier to entertain in them but when there isn't one you have children who want to get up all the time and move around which makes it hard on you and the other travelers. You would be amazed at how much easier it is. Car seats aren't that hard to travel with for two reasons. One you can strap them to bags on wheels. Another reason is you are offered help or you can ask for help from the air line. Most of the time they will get you to your next plan if you have them because they see the car seats. You're not required to have them but me personally i have traveled with and with out them and i much rather prefer having them. They are worth the extra weight. good luck