Travelling with baby...

NickyK

Registered User
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Hi,


Myself, my partner and my nine month old are travelling to Lanzarote on Thurs. Any advice relating to the trip or the airline would be much appreciated.

Thanks,

Nicky
 
What time of the day do you intend to fly? Lanzarote is long flight for an adult nevermind an baby. I have brought my kids to Lanzarote when they were similar age to yours. Bring whatever entertains/distracts the baby (DVD player, dolly whatever) and prepare for the worst case scenario.

Very early flight or very late flights always suited my kids.

Could be different for you.
 
Myself, my partner and my nine month old are travelling to Lanzarote on Thurs. Any advice relating to the trip or the airline would be much appreciated.

Might be a bit late now, but you should try an book a basionette. These are cots which attach to the bulk heads in front of the galley/heads etc. It also means you get extra leg room to.
 
We travelled to Australia and New Zealand on a 8 week back packing/camper van trip when our baby was 7 months old and we had no problems. The airline staff are very helpful and you wil lalways be first on the plane. Your trip is simple in cmparsion to ours as we had stopovers in Frankfurt and Singapore so we had to plan ahead in terms of feeds, time differences etc. Dont bring too much crap onto the plane. Bring your buggy to the departures if you can as the airport buggys are crap. Just bring the bare essentials with you on the plane and maybe your childs favourite toy but as he is only 9 months old I am sure he will find plenty of entertainment smiling at everyone. If you are stressed he will sense it so the best thing is to just relax.

Best of luck. We re already looking forward to our next 4 week trip to Argentina next year with our 2 year old and no.2, which will be 7 months old when we travel.
 
Give yourself more time to traverse check-in & security. It's a lot harder and much more stressful to rush with all the baggage a child needs.

When you get on the plane and see where you are seated, ask if it's possible to get the person sitting in your row of three to move (they usually don't mind!) or ask the cabin crew if you can be moved to a row of three seats if one is available - the third seat is great and gives you extra stowage as well as some more privacy.

If you need to, make a list of the things that you need to have in the child's carry-on bag - nothing worse that realising that something you absolutely must have to hand is in the hold bag. Teddy or whatever is an absolute essential so wash & dry it if it's covered in milk/cereal and is a bit whiffy.

If youngster is on solids, bring something for him/her to eat, but remember that all airlines will do is give you a cup of hot water (to mix cereal or milk) and they cannot microwave a cold meal for you - bring a lot of tissues and wipes for spills/sick.

I would always change the child before getting on the plane - my son absolutely hates being changed in the restrictive plane bathroom and screams like he's being killed.

Don't be too fussed about dressing them before you get on an early morning flight - pyjamas are more comfortable and one parent can dress the child in the bathroom at the arrivals hall while the other goes for the bags.

Similarly if its a later in the evening flight, put them into clothes in which they could be put to bed - makes it easier if they have collapsed by the time you arrive home or in your accommodation.

Tell the child (yes, even a nine month old) what is going on and make sure to smile a lot, point at planes and say 'wow' etc. It will help set the tone for the trip and indicate to the child that flying is fun.

Good luck and I hope you really enjoy it!
 
You are most likely to have trouble when the plane starts its descent, about 30 minutes from your destination, when the air pressure starts to rise and cause pain in your baby's inner ear.

So make sure you have a bottle to hand - baby's sucking on the bottle will help equalise the air pressure inside the inner ear and prevent pain.
 
I've going to Fuerteventura with a 4 year old and 14 week old twins in a couple of weeks. Some good tips here.

Is it true that my wife and I will not be allowed sit in the same row with a baby each due to lack of oxygen masks?
 
Just food for thought.

Spoke to someone i know who spent a week in cornwall and shipped the mothers over to look after the baby and 2 year old.

He surfed twice a day and they ate out every night.

baby holidays are a less relaxing holiday but if you can get the mothers in on it its worth thinking about
 
Just food for thought.

Spoke to someone i know who spent a week in cornwall and shipped the mothers over to look after the baby and 2 year old.

He surfed twice a day and they ate out every night.

baby holidays are a less relaxing holiday but if you can get the mothers in on it its worth thinking about

True, but for us, one's deceased, the other's recovering from a massive heart attack, so not a realistic option.

Getting away for a while from the normal grind, decent weather, seeing the 4 yo having a blast, and getting to eat out in the evenings will be a welcome break, even if it's not like the holidays we used to have.
 
NickyK how did you get on with your flight to Lanzarote with the baby? I am also travelling there soon with a 5 month old so if anyone has any further advice it would be appreciated. Are you allowed to being your buggy to the plane in Dublin airport or is it taken off you at check-in? Also, I presume they will heat up a bottle for me on the plane? Does anyone know if that facility is available?
 
Hi,
They let you keep buggy until you board at the gate - which is great, but one word of advice don't travel with an expensive buggy - we had 2 broken, same problem each time ( fracture of the metal wheel support, I think this was due to low temp. in the cargo area and then rough handling as it was thrown / taken out at arrival ). Both incidents happened on trans. atlantic flights so maybe the cargo temp. won't be such an issue on a European flight.
Also remember to bring Calpol sachets - they're not subject to fluid restrictions on board and very handy if your little treasure suddenly appears unwell or is screaming so much that you are feeling a tad headachy yourself :rolleyes:. Been there.
 
Hi NickyK

We have travelled all over the world with our daughter. I could tell you a lot about different airports, the joys of delays etc. The key in my opinion is organisation. Pack hand luggage well (like Santa you need to make lists and check them twice!!). Have two rucksacks or bags you can wear leaving you free to push buggy and suitcases. Have a pouch or pocket where you can keep tickets easily accessible (it's hard to juggle a baby tickets bag etc when you are in a queue!). Some other tips:

- As a previous poster said don’t bring v expensive buggy. Do buy a bungee cord and keep in the bottom of the buggy (they are very cheap). Secure the buggy with this when you leave it at gate/steps to ensure it doesn’t open in transit and get damaged. Buy cheap rain cover/UV cover and leave in bottom of buggy also
- In hand luggage have small waterproof bag for soiled clothes etc. Have another with nappies & wipes so that you don’t have to negotiate the small changing areas in toilet with full hand luggage bag (I am a great user of bags within bags!). Bring spare light change of clothes for baby and spare t-shirts for you in case of a drastic spill/sick
- Bring a small first aid kit with calpol sachets (as mentioned previously and one of the best inventions ever), strip thermometer, dioralyrte
- Depending on where your baby is at with food bring a good bit in hand luggage in case of delays. If you are flying from Dublin the new boots is a good place to get extra provisions but other airports are not great at catering for babies.
- When packing in check on luggage mix up the bags – that way if one goes missing you will all have a change of clothes in the one that arrives!

In Dublin they will let you go straight through security to top of queue (credit where credit is due they are one of the only airports I’ve even been in that do this).

There are some great website offering other tips - one good one is called delicious baby (you will find it easily using google)


Have a great holiday!!


 
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