Car seat for air travel

[Jenna319]

DH and I are travelling to WDW with our baby girl for the 1st time on Halloween, DD will be 1 year old. This is our first baby and first time travelling with an infant. I keep debating back and forth whether we should bring our own stroller and car seat. I am pretty set on renting a stroller in Orlando and bringing a carrier for the airport. I just can't decide on bringing our own car seat or renting one through the rental car company. I've read many many posts on how awful car seats can be through rental car companies. For those who have travelled with infants: do you recommend bringing your own car seat? And do you have any tips on making it easier to carry all this cargo through the airport???? Are there any good products to purchase to transport your car seat through the airport? Should we get DD her own seat and does anyone know how much infant fares run through Southwest? According to the Southwest website, if your car seat is larger than 16 inches in width, it may not fit. I have the Graco 4ever All-in-one which is really big and bulky. I'd hate to get to the gate and not have my car seat fit in the seat.... is there an affordable good quality car seat that anyone can recommend to buy just for travel?

 

[scrapquitler]

It is defintely safer to buy a seat for you child (if I remember correctly, a ticket, even for an infant, on SW is full price) and have her/him in the car seat on the plane. A baby can easily become a projectile if you are holding her and there is turbulence. And it's not fun to be jammed into an airplane seat and have to hold the baby the whole time, there's not that much room. AND if you are renting a car it is WAY better to have your own seat.

When we traveled with our infant, I carried him in a sling and I used a bungee cord to strap his carseat to the stroller in the airport. It wasn't a big deal.

 

[GatorMama]

We liked using the Go Go Kidz wheels to attach to our carseat.

 

[msmama]

The infant flights on SW are a percentage of the full fare flights so generally it's cheaper to buy them the Wanna Get Away fare (the cheapest one SW offers).

Personally, I would bring my own everything for a child of that age. I'd want something familiar.

6 years ago I used the Cosco Scenera for travel and it worked well. Just make sure you get something that can be installed rear facing as well as forward facing (I know it was installed forward on the plane - though he didn't use it, he sat on my lap - but I can't remember the car).

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Bring your own car seat. If you don't bring your own stroller, are you planning on carrying your 1 year old through the airport? That could get tiring!

It's up to you as to whether or not to buy her her own seat. If you don't, be sure and bring her birth certificate as proof of her age.

 

[ABCastillo]

I've done this a couple of ways. Once we brought a stroller with an infant car seat (graco) and had to gate check both items.

Second time we took just a double stroller and no car seats (we used DME, buses and monorails for ground transportation) and gate checked the stroller.

I loved having the stroller in the airport because I could load all our carry-ons in the basket. But it would be a pain to take an extra car seat that didn't attach to my stroller. That I probably would struggle carrying. However, I have seen someone in the airport bring a convertible car seat. They had it attached to the regular carry-on with stretchy cords and were able to just drag it with ease.

 

[ZeroMyHero]

I would definitely get a separate seat for your DD. It is safer than having her travel as a lap baby and will be more comfortable for both of you. The Cosco Scenera is an inexpensive, lightweight carseat that is good for travel. It is a no-frills type of seat, but it will be easier to carry through an airport than a typical car seat. We always brought our Graco Nautilus with us even though it is heavy and bulky because we didn't travel enough to justify another car seat just for the plane. Ours always fit in the airplane seats without a problem and we've flown AirTran, SW, and AA with it. My DH carried it on his back with a PacBack to make it easier to get around the airport. We always brought an umbrella-type stroller (ours was a Combi Cosmo) with us and gate-checked it before boarding. It was always waiting for us on the jetway after we deplaned so we could put our DD right into it. I did bring my carrier for DD, too, and wore her when we had a flight delay and she was extra cranky. If your DD weighs at least 22 lbs, you could consider renting a CARES airplane safety harness for her off of eBay if you don't want to use a car seat. It is small and lightweight, will fit in your purse, and is the only child safety harness that is FAA-approved for takeoff, in-flight, and landing. Hope this info helps you in your decision. Happy travels!

 

[DopeyDame]

Please strongly consider buying a seat and using a carseat for your daughter on the plane. It is far safer and you will all be more comfortable with the extra space and the familiarity of the carseat. I don't know about your seat in particular, but the vast majority of seats fit. We've taken a Britax Marathon on southwest without a problem.

But don't rely on advice from random strangers on the internet. Instead, rely on the experts who actually study these things in great detail:
The FAA, NTSB, AAP, and pilot and flight attendant unions all recommend it.
http://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-alerts/Documents/SA_015.pdf
http://www.faa.gov/passengers/fly_children/
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/108/5/1218.full

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

.....

But don't rely on advice from random strangers on the internet. Instead, rely on the experts who actually study these things in great detail:
The FAA, NTSB, AAP, and pilot and flight attendant unions all recommend it.
http://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-alerts/Documents/SA_015.pdf
http://www.faa.gov/passengers/fly_children/
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/108/5/1218.full

The OP asked for opinions on what car seat to use, how to transport seats and strollers through the airport, the cost of child fares, etc., not for statistics on the safety of flying with a lap baby.

 

[kboo]

We've been flying for years and many many flights with our now 3yo, We kept her as a lap child until she was 2, and now we use the CARES harness. Brought a infant car seat one trip, when she was 9 months old. If your DD still fits into an infant car seat, you could take the car seat and a snap and go. (Oh and for someone who was recommending a CARES harness for a 1 year old - I don't think they would sit well in a cares harness at that age. They don't have the crotch strap and don't buckle as tightly as a car seat harness.)

That said - we have flown many more flights without a car seat than with, even when she was teeny tiny and fit in the infant car seat. It was just too much to carry. The concern that your child could be a projectile if she doesn't have her own seat is a valid concern, but I will say that in my millions of miles flying (travel a lot for work and fun), I have never encountered turbulence that was so extreme that this would have been an issue.

What we did when DD was that age was we'd put her in a carrier and bring an umbrella stroller. The umbrella stroller basically functioned as a carry on luggage cart which we gate checked (we did use the stroller for its intended purpose when we got to our destination).

Also - we've rented cars with car seats all the time, no issue. We use the big name car rental companies (Hertz, Avis, National, Buidget) and the car seats have ranged from brand new to lightly used, we've never had a problem. The toddler seats they have can all be installed facing front or rear, and we usually have to install the seat ourselves, which is fine. Remember that any car seat the rental company gives you still has to be unexpired and be lawful (ie satisfy what minimum standards there are), so while it may not be THE seat you'd pick, it's perfectly fine.

 

[kellieinwonderland]

I'm glad to see that several others recommended bringing your own car seat and using it on the airplane. It is absolutely safer (and even if lots of people haven't experienced severe turbulence that would cause an issue for a lap baby doesn't mean it never happens). We always buy a seat for our under 2 child because it's safer AND it makes it much easier for me to have him strapped in (mine is so squirmy he would be trying to escape my lap the whole time).

We travel fairly often so we use a cosco scenera solely for traveling (at home he has a chicco nextfit which is wide and heavy and would be a pain to carry around). The scenera only costs like 40 bucks and it's narrow and light. We hook it to our rolling carry-on through the airport, but my sister says she just loosens the straps and carries it on her back like a backpack. On southwest, the cheapest fare would be a wanna get away since infant fares are based on the full price fare. It's extra money, but I think worth it, plus you don't have to worry about the quality on a rental car seat that you don't know the history of (and might be dirty).

 

[Jenna319]

Thank you for all the feedback! I will def be looking into the cosco scenera. It sounds like it wouldn't be too hard to transport and maybe bring an umbrella stroller as well.

 

[HCinKC]

We did lap at 9mos, car seat at about 18 months and on. At a year, in terms of comfort, it probably depends a lot on baby's temperament. In terms of ease, I found lap much easier. Lugging a car seat through an airport is not ideal. In terms of safety, obviously their own plane seat in a car seat is safest. They can be a bear to get in tight thought, so be sure to preboard if you have the option. You will need the time and space. However, I would not do a car seat if I was not renting a car. If I was renting a car, I would absolutely want my own car seat. I just couldn't trust a rental. We are doing lap for the baby this coming trip. The 6yo has to have a seat. We'll take ME to our hotel and stay on site the entire time. No need for a car seat. We are bringing a stroller though. I want to use it in the airport, and I don't feel like spending the money on a rental for the exact stroller I own.

 

[michael's mom]

We have brought car seats with us every time.. We rent cars and want the kids to be in a familiar seat. Our initial reason for not getting one from rental company was DS has a severe food allergy and I didn't trust that it would be cleaned properly. On our last trip, we brought DS's booster (gate checked) and DD's car seat to strap her in. We basically used our stroller (also gate checked) as our carry-all. We put the car seat in the stroller and rested the booster over the sunshade. DH pushed the stroller with one hand and wheeled our carry-on with the other. DS had his backpack and I had my purse (carry-on with travel docs and stuff for the baby).

Our Britax Marathon seat fit perfectly fine in the seat and that's a big car seat as well.

As for purchasing a seat on the plane, I can only share my experience. We chose to lap-seat DS on his first flight (13 mos). He was a very calm, super easy baby. That flight was the worst of my life. There's not much space for extra movement and he kept wanting to go between DH, me and my mom. He would grab onto the seats in front of us trying to move (despite every effort to prevent it) and I was super stressed the whole time.

Our next flight, he was almost 3 and we had to buy a seat for him, strapped his car seat in and it was such a nice, relaxing flight (as much as a flight could be).

If your party is large enough and you can have one person from your party sit in front of the baby I would recommend it. Once the seat is strapped in, the baby's feet are that much closer to the seat in front of you. They practically can't help but kick the seat in front. Thankfully DH was in front of DD on our last flight

 

[HCinKC]

As for purchasing a seat on the plane, I can only share my experience. We chose to lap-seat DS on his first flight (13 mos). He was a very calm, super easy baby. That flight was the worst of my life. There's not much space for extra movement and he kept wanting to go between DH, me and my mom. He would grab onto the seats in front of us trying to move (despite every effort to prevent it) and I was super stressed the whole time.

Excellent point about a mobile kiddo. I bet it is hard to lap with them once they know how to walk. That is all they want to do...everywhere. Too young to keep still easily with a video or something.

Also wanted to add, if your little has a hard time with the air pressure during take off and landing, nursing or sipping a drink (whatever your kiddo drinks at that point) can really help! Basically, you want to keep them swallowing. We haven't flown with #2 yet, but #1 never cried if he was doing this. I still keep #1's water bottle ready in case.

 

[AlexisMaxMommy]

We didn't use a car seat. We used the CARES harness which is FAA approved. It basically turns the airline seat into a car seat because you have the strap across the chest, over both shoulders, and across the lap. I didn't want to try and drag a car seat through the airport, and if you are taking the Magical Express to your resort, the car seat isn't needed on those big buses.

 

[Jenna319]

We didn't use a car seat. We used the CARES harness which is FAA approved. It basically turns the airline seat into a car seat because you have the strap across the chest, over both shoulders, and across the lap. I didn't want to try and drag a car seat through the airport, and if you are taking the Magical Express to your resort, the car seat isn't needed on those big buses.

Is the CARES harness something you could use with a 1-year old though?

 

[kellieinwonderland]

Maybe...minimum weight for CARES is 22 lbs. it's a good option if you won't need a car seat for the trip. We used CARES when my son was 20 months and we were using Disney transportation, including the Magical Express, since we didn't want to bring the car seat just for the plane. If you are renting a car though, I would do a car seat.

 

[abinormal]

The CARES harness doesn't have a crotch strap, nor does it tighten the lap belt down any further than it already goes, which is unlikely enough to fit an infant. I wouldn't recommend it for a baby.

I second the recommendation for a Scenera. Bare bones but it will get the job done.

 

[Lupeix]

I flew a lot with DS since he was about 9 months. The best way to carry all the baby stuff through the airport is to bring your own stroller and gate check it. If you still use a carrier bring it too, I don't think they are substitutes of each other. When he was little I will put him on the carrier as I folded the stroller for gate check.
You still need to schlap around the diaper bag, extra clothes, baby food, toys etc. When going to Disney it is better to have your own stroller, one that your baby is already used to nap in. I have brought my seat and rented car seats from car rental companies. FYI, for the most part car rental companies give you Cosco Sceneras, in a bag, they have always been clean in my experience.

Regarding bringing your car seat in the airplane, it was fine for us while we were using the infant seat facing backwards, but once we switched to a forward facing one DS refused to sit in it. If your flight is long, you are still using the infant seat and your flight overlaps naptime, I will get a seat for your baby, otherwise save the money and have your baby as a lap child. I know it is technically safer to have a seat, but it really isn't if your kid is not actually sitting in it for most of the flight.
The last time we went to WDW DS was 2, we brought our own britax umbrella stroller (which reclines fully) with an extra sun canopy and rented the car seat from Alamo. DS napped on the stroller every day, not sure if he would have been fine with a rented stroller. Lately we have baggage checked our Diono Radian car seat when we travel (he is old enough to use the CARES), it folds in half and has its own travel bag, we never had problems with it. DS will be 4 on our next trip. He does not need a stroller in the airport or for napping, so we are renting a city mini from apple stroller (it's $5 a day) and bringing our car seat.