Checking a Car Seat at the Airport?

[WDWLinda]

Hi,
If I check our car seat at the airport, does it have to be in a special bag or anything? How do you normally do this?

Thanks,
Linda

 

[mickeymule]

When we went a couple of years ago, we had our little one use the carseat in her plane seat, it worked well.

 

[Annette_VA]

I don't think it HAS to. May depend on the airline.

I will be putting mine in a bag. I want to protect my seats from spills, tears, missing pieces, etc.

You can get bags from www.babiesrus.com - here are a few:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t.../002-1138663-9604027?v=glance&s=baby&n=542454

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t.../002-1138663-9604027?v=glance&s=baby&n=542454

 

[Jestocost]

We always used a special bag, but I see seats with no bags or protection of any kind coming off of the baggage claim carousel all the time. It's clearly not required, but I'd definitely recommend it. Given the condition of our bag after all of our trips, I can't see how a seat would survive long without protection.

 

[beattyfamily]

I've done both ways. I used to just bring it as is and check it. The sky cap always took care of me and put it in a thick see through plastic bag. I always tip well too so hopefully my luggage will be taken care of and show up to my destination!!

But for our last trip, we bought 2 small booster seats (with no backs) and I bought the carseat bag from Babies R Us to put them in. They fit perfectly. It was $20.

 

[NotUrsula]

The skycaps and the ticketing counter will usually have thick plastic bags for seats if you ask. However, the gate counters do NOT have them. If you are hoping for an empty seat on a flight so that you can use a carseat without buying a seat, know that if the seat ends up gate-checked, they won't be able to bag it for you at the gate.

 

[Disneylvr]

We just got back from WDW and although we brought our own car seat on the plane for dd to use, but another family chose to check theirs and American Airlines provided a thick, clear plastic bag for them.

 

[LMC]

Another suggestion if you want to use the seat on the plane is to strap it to a luggage cart, and pull it around the airport. I have done this with two children before and they sat strapped in their seats while they were pulled around the airport. We could move alot faster too without having to wait for their little legs. Just make sure you keep an eye on your child so he/she does not climb out or have someone else in your group follow behind keeping an eye on your child.

 

[sgtdisney]

We have sometimes just packed the seat in it's original box when we have checked ours. Taped the box up and checked it as baggage. If you do bring your seat on the plane, make sure it is approved to be used on aircraft. Some carseats aren't.

 

[dougsmom98]

We checked our car seat on the return flight of our last trip. We didn't bag it or anything and it was fine.
-Amy

 

[bkrusen]

We also use a special car seat bag from Babies R Us and love it. It does a great job protecting the seat, we put a high back booster and a back less booster in it last trip, and there is extra space for bulky things. We put the tray from the stroller in with the seats so it wouldn't get damaged under the plane you could also put diapers,wipes, blankets and anyother general kids stuff that's to bulky to pack.

 

[JennsBabySky]

To my husband's dismay, I'm planning on gate checking our carseat. (Since he does not want a separate seat for our son -- against my better judgement). I've checked my seat as luggage and they had the thick plastic bag. This was totally fine with me at the time, it came back perfectly clean. However, I've heard of cases where damage is done to the carseat during handling. Especially when it is unloaded and drops off the baggage carousel. This could potentially cause minor cracks in the seat. If you notice any cracking -- no matter how minor -- do NOT use the seat. It could fail horribly in a crash. If you do check the seat as luggage, examine it carefully (the plastic part, so you might need to take off the cover to do it properly). Even if you don't use the carseat on the plane, you can gate check it. This would minimize the handling of the seat and avoid the drop onto the baggage carousel. As an added bonus, if there is an empty seat, you could install it on the plane.

Have a wonderful trip,
Jennifer

 

[momsully]

Just remember is you gate check it there are no plastic bags available at the gate. You would need your own bag to protect the seat.

 

[HappyMommy2]

When we check a carseat/booster we always use the carseat bag we bought at Babies R Us. Once we forgot to bring it with us, and of course that was the time it was POURING down rain in our connecting city and the carseat got absolutely soaked as it was being transferred by the baggage handlers---poor DS had to sit in a wet carseat all the way to the hotel!