Car seat vs no car seat?

[Tigman_NS]

We are heading to Disney world in may, Our daughter will be 2.5 years old and we have a direct flight from Halifax. Our dilemma- do we bring the car seat for the plane or not? We will not be renting a car or anything, so the only time it will be used is in the plane. Is it really worth dragging it along?

Any tips or experiences would be appreciated!

 

[Ted in Halifax]

I've done both ... with seat and without. What I do now, is only bring the seats when renting a car. Other than that ... they stay at home.

 

[encinc]

From a safety perspective, having your child in the car seat is safer if you run into turbulence. Would I take a seat just for that reason? IDK. Might depend on your kid. I took the seats until my boys were about 4, because before that, they didn't like to sit still. They didn't complain about being strapped into the carseat because they were used to that in the car.

 

[dancin Disney style]

You can only use an airline approved seat. There needs to be a sticker on the seat somewhere that says FAA approved.

If your seat does not have the sticker the crew will take the seat and put it with the cargo below.

 

[casper_jj11]

See if a baby equipment rental agency in your area rents CARES devices. They provide a chest harness for children ages 1 to 4 on airplanes and are small enough to place in your purse. Very convenient and very safe. You could also buy one if you travel often. They cost around $85 plus taxes. If you need the names of places that sell them online in Canada, let me know and I may be able to help. We used to own a baby equipment rental business in Ottawa and we used to sell them but we closed. There is one agency here and several in Toronto that do still sell them though and I believe they're happy to ship them to you.

 

[SaraMc]

We have the cares as well and take that with us, when DS was 2.5 he was still a little small for it and slipped down in the leather seats a bit. this time at 4.5 he was good.
I wouldnt take my car seat, why lug it around if you really dont need it. Depending on who you are flying there are usually lots of things to keep them distracted and sitting.
We usually fly out of buffalo and fly jet blue so the tv seems to keep our kids still as they dont get to watch too much tv.

 

[sjsjbrook]

I just used the CARES kids fly safe, harness this week for the first time. I bought it instead of renting it as I plan to use it on future trips.

It was fabulous, plus it is easy to carry. The child has to be between 22 and 44 pounds and be able to sit.

kidsflysafe is the main website where you can find dealers that sell and rent in your area.

 

[3pletprincesses]

Having taken the plane 4 times with my triplets over the past 3 years, I wouldn't take the car seat if I was you. I only take the car seat if we rent a car. Although my girls do good in car seats in teh car for several hours, they hated it in the plane.