Plane travel with kids can carry a lot of mental weight, and when you’re doing it solo, a lot of physical weight too! Here are some tips to make it a little more manageable, even with car seats involved!! PS – definitely check out my other post about Plane Travel with a Toddler!
Getting to the Airport
Usually when I’m travelling solo with both the kids, I don’t have a ride to the airport either, so I need to book an Uber and strap car seats in and out of the car to and from the airport. So it goes without saying, being able to do this quickly and efficiently is key! Practice your car seats ahead of time, and think about which kid(s) to strap in first when getting in the car and then which kid to get out first at the airport.
At the Airport
Check or Carry-On
I try to fly carry-on when I’m solo with kids as much as possible. It may sound contradictory, since there is more stuff and less adults to carry it, but it also means less waiting – the kids aren’t having to stand in line to check bags and pick them up – since there’s already plenty of waiting throughout the rest of the experience. Plus, you don’t need to worry about lost or damaged luggage. When it comes to carseats, usually the warranty is void if you’ve checked your carseats. I do make use of the gate check option – upon arriving at your gate, check-in with the desk and ask for gate check tags – allowed for all car seats and strollers – they will be dropped off right before boarding the plane, and you will pick them up at the same spot, so they don’t go down the carousel. A clear downfall of not checking is there is more to carry through the airport, and you cannot pack as many liquids, so consider if you can get what you need upon arrival, like sunscreen, and if the rest can be in portion sizes allowed for flight. There are supposed to be more liquid exceptions for babies, but I’ve experienced and heard that it depends who you get through security, so minimal is easier, if you’re able to do so.
Bags
When it comes to carseats, having carseat backpacks and/or carseat rollers to transport them throughout the airport is so great. We’ve ordered through the carseat companies themselves, but I’ve seen some people make their own straps, or there are various car seat travel bags, car seat travel belts, and car seat rollers/carts you can find! [I’ve heard great things about the Britax Car Seat Travel Cart from my Canadian crew]
If you’re in the States, the WayB and the Doona are very travel-friendly car seats, as they are super lightweight, and compact. Plus, the Doona becomes a stroller. Both of these are not legal in Canada (or outside of the States), but if you’re travelling solo with kids in the States and need some lightweight options, those are there!
No matter where you’re travelling to or from, the JetKids Luggage has been huge for use as our toddler’s luggage, because they can pull it themselves, and when they’re wiped, they can ride on it. Meaning I can push a baby in the stroller while rolling our luggage with one hand, use my other hand to pull a toddler on their luggage, and then wear my car seat and a backpack on my front and back. Or, wear a baby, and push some luggage in the stroller… It’s sweaty, but we get it done!!
Time
This may seem obvious, but give yourself lots of extra time. Giving us lots of time, means that when my toddler wants to pull her own luggage at her pace, I can let her, and be calm while doing it. Giving us lots of time, means when my baby needs to switch to be warn instead of pushed and I have to reconfigure my whole system, I can and still be calm about it. It means when we need to take a bathroom break, and it’s a whole family and luggage endeavour, we can, and you guessed it, we can still be calm about it! By the way, the family washroom is so helpful – and we all do a bathroom break before and after the flight to try minimize bathroom breaks needed on the plane, because when I’m solo with a toddler and a baby, those plane washrooms feel a little extra squishy!!
In Canada, most security has family lines. In the States, I haven’t found that as much, but the Spot Saver has been key for us in the Seattle airport – you can book a time to go through security, and as long as you are there 15 minutes before or after your allotted time, you are in a much shorter line – which means less keeping the kids entertained in a line jam.
On the Airplane
Check out my other post about Plane Travel with a Toddler, because I have countless ideas on there, but some other things to mention:
- Activities – Start with less and pull out one thing at a time (books, colouring, post-it notes, puzzles, stick on window toys, music with headphones – we love our Yoto Mini for listening to music and books without a screen!)
- Takeoff & Landing – YumEarth Organic Lollipops for takeoff and landing for toddlers/older kids (I find this may help C’s ears, but it also is a very entertaining thing for take off and landing when we likely have everything stored away, and she can just enjoy, look around, and/or we talk/read a book), breastfeeding/soother for younger ones, and/or water bottle and snacks to help their ears
- Minimizing the Effects of Travel – FlightFud is great for in flight to help adults (and kids) with hydration, circulation, immunity and support against radiation (discount code LAURENEB) – it’s just a small powder pack, so we add it to our water and away we go!
- Other Toys to Mention – Melissa & Doug is always great for travel arts and crafts! It’s always fun to get a new colouring book or water colouring that the kids have never seen before, to keep their interest for longer on a travel day. Any magnetic or suction toys have been fun for our little ones too!
Keep your expectations realistic! Stay calm, so the kids feel that energy. Take help where it’s offered! And have fun!! Embrace the chaos.
Feel free to listen to our Kids Who Explore Podcast on this topic. [Episode 81: Travelling with Kids]