CARES harness

[CaleCakes]

Has anyone used this CARES harness https://www.amazon.com/Child-Airpla...&qid=1471007754&sr=8-1&keywords=cares+harness flying on Southwest? Do the flight hostesses have a problem with it? We are bringing a cheapo car seat (Evenflo Tribute) for the rental car (thanks to much advice here on DISboards) but don't want to use it on the flight itself (squirmy son won't sit in it if we are right next to him). He will be 17 months at the time of travel and does meet the 22 pound weight minimum. I figured if we got this and he still doesn't want to sit in his own seat strapped in we can just unbuckle it and toss it in our bag.

 

[Kvogie12]

I have one that we have used with both kids (now 7 and 4). It is a lifesaver on the plane and I have never had an issue on any flight including Southwest flights. They are FAA approved and most flight attendants are familiar with them. I recommend them to all my friends travelling with children.

 

[mbgrace]

We have one, and find that it works best when our children are a little older/bigger. The problem with younger/smaller children and the CARES belt is that because there isn't anything to clip between their legs, they can still "submarine" out of their seat & buckle if they want.

 

[Mousemommy1]

We have one but have not used it yet. Our son is 19 months old, but we plan on using it next summer and he will be 2.5 yrs old. We have used his car seat up until this point.

 

[beckysko]

we have used it with our kids and found it great - it is handy to have them sort of strapped in so it's *like* you're in the car, so they don't get the idea that they can just wander around and squirm and fidget.

 

[CaleCakes]

These sound like all positive reviews. I would say it's worth it. Thank you all for your insight.

 

[tee11]

We love the CARES harness- and we are getting ready to use it on Southwest. Have used it several times on JetBlue with our then two year old without any problems (airline or toddler wise!).

One thing that helps against the wiggling out/submarine Wiggle (no leg strap) we found is making sure that the diaper is dry at all times. Mega active two year old sat with the harness on the entire flight like a champ.

 

[prprincess]

These sound like all positive reviews. I would say it's worth it. Thank you all for your insight.

If you don't want to purchase, there is (or used to be, sorry my kids are older now!) someone on Ebay who rents them out. Just do a search on "CARES rental". Much cheaper than buying, unless you travel a ton. Just thought I'd let you know!