1st time travel w/ baby--help

[gillis95]

We have a 2.5-3hr flight to Dis. He will be 18 months.

- Do I need to/should I bring his car seat to ride in the plane? I know the airline 'suggest' it but doeas not require it. I would think he would sit better in his seat he's used to rather than a giant chair.

- the stroller I've heard you can bring up to the gate and then they will check it...true??

-rent a car or just use the disney transport?

This seems like a ton of stuff to be lugging around the airport?? Any advice on travel and transport will be appreciated. What have the rest of you pro's done?!?!?!

Thanks

 

[jel0511]

If you are buying your 18 month old a seat, then the FAA requires you to bring a car seat on. A car seat is required for anyone under the age of 2 occupying their own seat. Your car seat also must be FAA approved, so read your user manual or look for the sticker on the side. Now, if you aren't buying a seat, I suggest you do. An 18 month old is very squirmy and will be VERY difficult to hold during the flight. As to your stroller, you roll it right up to the plane doors, fold it and leave it there. An airline employee will take it and store it under the plane for you. It will be removed upon arriving at your destination and be left at the plane doors for you to claim, it really is that easy. We usually rent a car, since we already have our car seat and prefer driving ourselves from the airport. We do use Disney Transport mainly when on site, since we find it easier than driving. We'll use the car for the run to the grocery store so we don't have to bring tons of diapers and such, and also for those resort meals we like, since those are difficult to get to with Disney Transport. What we do when bringing a carseat and stroller onto the plane is we have purchased a car seat carrier bag at Babies R Us. It cost around $20, and you can then carry the car seat backpack style through the airport. We also don't carry on any bags on the plane, with the exception of a diaper bag. We'll place the camera in there, and that's it. When you're dealing with a little one who needs to be carried on, a car seat, folding a stroller, etc, it's just too much to deal with IMO.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by jel0511
If you are buying your 18 month old a seat, then the FAA requires you to bring a car seat on. A car seat is required for anyone under the age of 2 occupying their own seat. Your car seat also must be FAA approved, so read your user manual or look for the sticker on the side. Now, if you aren't buying a seat, I suggest you do. An 18 month old is very squirmy and will be VERY difficult to hold during the flight. As to your stroller, you roll it right up to the plane doors, fold it and leave it there. An airline employee will take it and store it under the plane for you. It will be removed upon arriving at your destination and be left at the plane doors for you to claim, it really is that easy. We usually rent a car, since we already have our car seat and prefer driving ourselves from the airport. We do use Disney Transport mainly when on site, since we find it easier than driving. We'll use the car for the run to the grocery store so we don't have to bring tons of diapers and such, and also for those resort meals we like, since those are difficult to get to with Disney Transport. What we do when bringing a carseat and stroller onto the plane is we have purchased a car seat carrier bag at Babies R Us. It cost around $20, and you can then carry the car seat backpack style through the airport. We also don't carry on any bags on the plane, with the exception of a diaper bag. We'll place the camera in there, and that's it. When you're dealing with a little one who needs to be carried on, a car seat, folding a stroller, etc, it's just too much to deal with IMO.

Great advice, but, the car seat is not required, it is simply a strong recommendation.

IE: From SWA.

If you're traveling with an infant or small child, you should know that proper use of an approved child restraint device (CRD) enhances child safety on aircraft. For this reason, Southwest Airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) strongly recommend that infants and small children who weigh under 40 pounds be secured in an appropriate CRD when traveling by air.

I do, however, wish it were required.

 

[SueM in MN]

Originally posted by jel0511
As to your stroller, you roll it right up to the plane doors, fold it and leave it there. An airline employee will take it and store it under the plane for you. It will be removed upon arriving at your destination and be left at the plane doors for you to claim, it really is that easy.

There is a little more to it than that.
It's called "gate checking" and you want to let them know when you are checking in that you are gate checking a stroller. They will give you a gate tag to put on the stroller (either right there when you check in or tell you to pick one up at the gate).
Don't wait until boarding to pick one up and don't just wheel your stroller to the gate without one; get a gate check tag before.
The gate check tag tells the baggage handlers what to do with your stroller. Depending on the airline, it might be returned to the gate at your next stop, or there might be additional options (check boxes on the gate check tag) - like picking it up at baggage claim, at the gate at your final destination or at the gate for a connecting flight.
Fold the stroller up before you leave it at the gate and make sure that things like seat belts, canopies, etc are not loose where they might get caught on anything. The final hint is, remember to pick it up and don't hurry off the plane. Items are brought to the gate fairly quickly, but they will not usually be there right away when the first people get off. We travel with a DD who is disabled and uses a wheelchair. We are usually the last people off the plane and almost every time, we see a stroller waiting for someone who forgot to pick it up.

 

[jiminyfan]

We have been taking our son to WDW and flying since he was 6 months old. Here is our advice and suggestions.

1: Car seat - YES!!! I would never hold my child no matter how small on my lap. I have experienced a major altitude drop and everything went flying around the cabin. I would never take the chance of injurying my child to save a few hundred dollars. HE IS PRICELESS!!! Another reason to take a car seat is Florida law requires it for travel in a car for children that age. Once again SAFETY over anything.

2: Stroller - we check ours with our luggage, one less thing to worry about during the flight and getting through the airport. It always has arrived and never has been damaged. Another idea we use quite a bit is, buying a decent umbrella/folding stroller at Target or Walmart when we arrive at Orlando. We get one with a "roof" to help keep the sun off our son. When we are ready to leave WDW we look for a family who is renting a stroller or one who looks like they need one (lugging a child around in their arms) and GIVE them the stroller to use for the rest of their vacation. We ask them to pass it along to the next family when they leave. It is one less thing to pack up in the car and bring back hme with us and it can help another family save a few dollars as well.

MAJOR TIP: Do kill two birds with one stone buy a Sit-n-Stroll !!! This is the greatest invention for a travelling family it is a FAA approved car seat that converts into a stroller with a pull of a handle. THe wheels fold up under the seat. We used our until our son grew out of it. I love this contraption, I wish they'd make one for larger children.

3: Renting a car vs Disney transportation. We rent a car for the extra freedom, but it is really easy and convient to use Disney transportation. In fact, we usually use the transportation except for at night if we are doing Epcot as we usually eat at the Boardwalk after the park closes and then drive back to the hotel.

If you have any other questions just as you can PM me as well as posting on the boards. We have 10 trips to WDW with our son so far and no real horror stories yet.

Just stay relaxed it is not as bad as it seems. Travel with children is not hard at all. It just take a little more preparation.