Good Airline to Fly on with an Infant

Avoid Northwest. They don't have pre-boarding for families, so you're stuck trying to install a carseat as people board. It's just awful.

I just got home with my first flight with my 6 month old by myself! It went great! I flew American Airlines. The stroller can be pushed all the way to the gate and they'll check it as you board. No discounts on baggage. But American lets you take anything for the baby, except clothes free, example is car seats, pack in plays, high chairs etc. Southwest airline I heard good things about and there baggage is free, I would look into it. On the plane bring toys he/she can play with teether toys are great at this age, blanket, extra outfit, ziploc bag (in case of poopy diaper), disinfectant wipes (they touch everything so wipe down the trays and arm rests) and tylenol. Its not that bad, trust me!

You don't have to pay to check the stroller and car seat and you can actually take them to the gate and check them before you enter the plane. I have flown USAir, American and Southwest with my daughter and had good experiences on each. I found that booking two aisle seats made it a lot easier to deal with my daughter, than trying to deal with her in a middle seat and an aisle or window. You can also bring an extra bag as carry on. I found the biggest bag I could find and used it as my diaper bag along with my purse and a piece of carry on luggage. If you are taking your car seat, I would get one of those car seat bags and since they check for free, I would try to put the babies clothes in the bag as well. There are no discounted rates for extra bags for a child, but Southwest does not charge for the first 2 bags. Just a note about Southwest, I flew with them when my daughter was 4 months old and at that age they still required proof of age. I was able to use the discharge forms from the hospital, so they are not super strict on the document, but they do require something. USAir and American did not require any proof of age forms because they could clearly tell by looking at her that she wasn't 2 years old.

I no longer have an infant but we travelled many times with our now 15 yr old daughter from the time she was 6 mths to present.

We fly 2 airlines the most and LOVE them. American Airlines is great, easy for us. Another is Southwest...LOVE them.

Good luck.

In my experience, that is a great age to travel! I personally like Southwest since there are no baggage fees. As far as the carseat and stroller, you can either check them at the gate (no charge for that, jsut make sure to get a claim ticket from the desk prior to boarding) or you can check the carseat. Most airlines do not charge for car seats, even if they charge for other bags. One good thing to ask when you get to the gate is if it is a full flight. If not, many airlines will switch you seats or allow you to have an extra seat for the baby, which is always nice. Definetly feed or use a pacifier on take off and landing so they are sucking on something so their ears pop. I would recommend taking any type of lovely that your child likes, as well as a few toys or things to keep them intersted. Most of all, just relax and have a good time. Good luck!

Southwest airlines is WONDERFUL. I just went to California to visit my family and it was just my 2 year old and I, and I have decided that I will not fly any other airline if I have the choice!

The stroller is a freebie carryon, so is a diaperbag. The baby is required to sit in the carseat if you've purchased him/ or her a seat. If you haven't, then you can check the carseat if you wish. Southwest will allow you to check a total of 2 bags per person. So for example, if you have purchased a total of 2 tickets because you will have baby on your lap, your husband will be able to check two bags and so will you. If you buy three tickets you will be able to check six bags! Of course, not everyone has enough money to buy a ticket for their little one that can sit on their lap for free, so I understand opting out of that. BUT remember that the car seat IS cumbersome, and if all the seats are filled, it will be a pain to have the carseat on your lap. When I was going to California, there was a couple behind us that had a baby in a carseat and they didn't purchase her a seat, but they got lucky because the plane was not full and they had a seat to buckle her into, so that was cool for them. Anyway, I think I addressed all you asked, but just send me an e-mail if I didn't! A little planning ahead will go a LONG WAY on the plane :)

Strollers and carseats are free to check (and you can check them at the gate). And the diaper bag doesn't count towards your carry on luggage. Although I would suggest limiting your carryon's just to make it easier on you getting on/off the plane. Take only what's needed. If you bottle feed, you can take milk on the plane. Just tell them at security that you have it. They may use a test strip on it, but may not (they've only done that to me once). I worried the first time I flew with my son, but when he was an infant, it was much easier than when he was a toddler!! He slept through the flights when he was a baby!

As for what airline, I don't really know. I've flown on several airlines with my older son. I liked American, except for the baggage fees. I really like Southwest, except for the layovers. Frontier was good too. Every time I've flown with my older son they were very accomodating and nice.

My son's been flying since he was 3 months old. I personally prefer fly Southwest. I can print out my boarding pass the day before and that way have always been able to board in the first group. If you forget, you can still board after the 'A' group boards, so it's not bad. You can choose where ever you want to sit. The staff have always been super nice too (as on all airlines as I recall) AA has done away with family boarding in most airports. I think you get 2 free checked bags per passenger. I don't beleive the car seat or the stroller counts on SW or most of the other airlines -- especially if you check them at the gate. You also get an additional carry on -- purse, diaper bag and carry on. AA can be a real pain I found since they sometimes consider a coat to be a carry on -- it just depends on the crew I found.

You should be fine with baggage -- take the stroller and carseat with you to the gate. In the off chance there's an empty seat, you can put the carseat in the seat next to you and buckle your baby in. Otherwise, if you want a seat, you have to buy it. I believe SWA does offer an infant rate, but I'm not 100% sure since my guy always flew on my lap. I had a sling and would wear him through out the fight so he was pretty secure. I'd nurse him on take off (btw you are absolutely allowed to do this), and he'd fall right asleep. It's great if you can time your fligths to their naptimes.

Really, flying at this age is the easiest. There's a lot of stuff to lug around, but the stroller works for that. Also, having a sling really helps to free up your arms too. Good luck! I'm sure you'll have a great time!

We have travelled extensively with our daughter ( 3 1/2 years) since she was born, both here in the U.S. and internationally and have not yet found that one airline seems to be particularly child-friendly. There are kind, understanding flight attendants and fellow passengers--and not so nice ones.

My best advice is to come prepared: bring all the food, diapers & entertainment necessary on the plane. Get there well in advance so that you can do early boarding. Try to keep your child quiet and ignore evil looks when you have done all that you can do and your baby still cries.

Usually airlines don't charge for stroller and carseat--but that has changed recently from airline to airline. There's a book called 'flying with kids' that has some basic, good advice and you might find it helpful.