DD's first time on plane - general questions

[disneyjr77]

This summer will be DD's first time on a plane and she is super excited. I've flown before, but it was either when i was a child or by myself...so i have some questions.

We're flying SW (2 hr flight), with early bird check in, and she's 10.

1. I know we can take a carry-on and a personal item each, could she use her bookbag as her personal item or would that be considered a carry on?
2. What are some good things she can do while we're in the air? I was thinking coloring books or something along those lines. She also has a neck pillow and blanket, but i know she'll be too excited to sleep
3. She doesn't chew gum. How do i keep her ears from popping?
4. Is there any advice for security or boarding?

I can't think of anything else right now. I'm not sure what we'll need or won't need, so any advice/tips/anything will be greatly appreciated!!

 

[FCDub]

1. The backpack is a personal item. It will need to go under the seat in front, and the carry-on bag can go in the overhead.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

At 10, will coloring books really hold her attention for that long? How about reading books? Maybe some small games or card games you can do together? Or a tablet.

The ear popping doesn't happen to everyone. Get a bottle of water or a chewy candy after security and have her use if her ears bother her.

At security, she will need to take off her shoes and any layers (jacket/sweatshirt). Prep her for that.

 

[Hisgirl]

How fun for her! Can you give her a map that tracks the path of the plane and sort of times it so she will know what state and area she is over as yall fly?

For her ears, buy her a pair of 'Ear Planes' for children. They do a great job of equalizing the air pressure. I have used them when I had a terrible sinus issue and they were great to keep that pain to 0!

Maybe make a special 'I spy' game for her. Sort of Airport/Airplane bingo! Make a chart for her and put in fun things in the squares.
Some examples: A person wearing a disney tee shirt, a crying baby, a pilot in a uniform, a service member wearing their uniform or fatigues, a family with three children, a service dog on a leash, a Starbucks store, a red suitcase etc.

 

[dreiwhit]

Typically the personal item is something like a purse, small backpack, etc, when you bring it on board with carry on-size suitcase. The personal item is what you would store under the seat in front of you.

Coloring books are a good idea. Does she have a tablet? If so, get her some headphones and load the tablet up with movies or cartoons to watch. I typically watch movies on my tablet when I fly.

Can she hold her nose, close her eyes and gently blow with her mouth closed? That will pop her ears. Instead of gum, you could always give her a snack to eat that would require her to chew.

For security, make sure that she doesn't have anything in her pockets. What I do, is to put everything that I carry in my pockets in a zip loc bag in my carry on backpack and then put it back in my pockets when she clears security. I would also explain to her why you are going through security so she understands the process better.

YouTube has quite a lot of take off and landing videos. Have her watch some of them to know what to expect.

 

[bumbershoot]

She doesn't chew gum. How do i keep her ears from popping?

? You *want* her ears to pop if they get that full feeling. But not everyone needs to chew gum to get it to happen. This isn't something I'd worry about with a 10 year old. I'm sure she knows how to get her ears to feel normal.

A 2 hour flight is so short you really don't need to worry about this. Have her bring a book and she'll likely be fine.

At security, she will need to take off her shoes and any layers (jacket/sweatshirt).

At 10 she won't need to take off her shoes at security unless they are doing something weird that day (and I've never been through an airport that's gotten that weird).

 

[KristinU]

At 10 she won't need to take off her shoes at security unless they are doing something weird that day (and I've never been through an airport that's gotten that weird).

Right, shoes off at 13, under 13 they keep them on. But coaching her on taking off a jacket/sweatshirt and putting her things into the bin and being swift and efficient at the security line would be good. It can get frantic in the security areas, so some pre-coaching of what to expect would be helpful.

For ears popping, just swallowing hard usually does the trick for me.

A book or an electronic gadget should do the trick for the length of the flight (or bang out any homework that she needs to get done)

 

[barbliny]

You can also watch tv on your device if the plane has wifi. You can see if your plane is expected to have wifi - most of them do now - by clicking on the flight number. Southwest will usually send an email about 48 hours before your flight alerting you if your plane is equipped with wifi (equipment changes are always possible after booking).

Here is the info ...
https://www.southwest.com/html/air/products/wifi-access.html?clk=GFOOTER-PRODUCTS-WIFI

 

[LisaCM614]

This summer will be DD's first time on a plane and she is super excited. I've flown before, but it was either when i was a child or by myself...so i have some questions.

We're flying SW (2 hr flight), with early bird check in, and she's 10.

1. I know we can take a carry-on and a personal item each, could she use her bookbag as her personal item or would that be considered a carry on?
2. What are some good things she can do while we're in the air? I was thinking coloring books or something along those lines. She also has a neck pillow and blanket, but i know she'll be too excited to sleep
3. She doesn't chew gum. How do i keep her ears from popping?
4. Is there any advice for security or boarding?

I can't think of anything else right now. I'm not sure what we'll need or won't need, so any advice/tips/anything will be greatly appreciated!!

My kids are goof balls and when they were young I would remind them that going through security is not the time to play games or make jokes. I told them the security people could actually prevent us from getting to Disney so they had to follow the rules. Now I have 3 kids the same age who feed off of each other so it was super important I didn't have three monkeys goofing around in the security line or deciding to be ornery as a group.
Also, prep her for the line up that SWA does before boarding.
Bring along whatever she does in the car for long car rides. For my kids that is electronic devices/tablets. They play games and watch shows. When they were very little I'd give them envelopes to decorate for tips (Mousekeeping/restaurants/bell services)

 

[sam_gordon]

I can't think of anything else right now. I'm not sure what we'll need or won't need, so any advice/tips/anything will be greatly appreciated!!

Prep her on what WILL happen at security (putting items on the belt to get scanned, going through the metal detector, etc) and what MIGHT happen (a partial or full patdown), and why it might happen. Before someone says every pat down is a full pat down now, that was not the case last night going through security in Atlanta. DS and I both had something show wrong on the scanner and they just patted down the suspect area.

Also prep her on what happens/how she should act if you aren't sitting right next to her on the airplane.

As far as how to occupy her... how is she occupied when you take long car trips? It's not very different.

 

[goofy4tink]

This summer will be DD's first time on a plane and she is super excited. I've flown before, but it was either when i was a child or by myself...so i have some questions.

We're flying SW (2 hr flight), with early bird check in, and she's 10.

1. I know we can take a carry-on and a personal item each, could she use her bookbag as her personal item or would that be considered a carry on?
2. What are some good things she can do while we're in the air? I was thinking coloring books or something along those lines. She also has a neck pillow and blanket, but i know she'll be too excited to sleep
3. She doesn't chew gum. How do i keep her ears from popping?
4. Is there any advice for security or boarding?

I can't think of anything else right now. I'm not sure what we'll need or won't need, so any advice/tips/anything will be greatly appreciated!!

1. My dd always took her backpack and it went under the seat. Her larger, wheeled carryon bag went in the overhead bin. It's also easier to have access to the backpack....she can pack it with things she wants to have with her!
2. Books, a coloring book. Not sure about the too old. Dd and I both colored on our flight to MCO last Sept...she was on her way to join the Disney College Program!!! Anything that she would take in the car will be fine.
3. Buy a bottle of water once you get through security.
4. Practice at home. Yes, her shoes can stay on. But jackets have to be removed. Let her take charge of her carry-on bags. Watch her as she packs it...to be sure there are no liquids or anything else that will be a problem at security! Then, let her try her hand....take off her jacket, put her bag up on the 'belt'. Go through the scanner. Again, nothing in her pockets! Then, to the end of the 'belt', take the jacket and bag, and move aside to put the jacket back on! My dd took care of herself from the age of 8.

Let her know how boarding will take place....you'll line up in the slots you are assigned. Then boarding will happen. Get on the plane, and find two seats. Don't stand in the aisle, deciding whether row 8 is better than row 12 and which side of the plane has the best view. Stow the gear in the overhead, take a seat, and stow backpacks under the seat in front of you, at your feet. Make sure it's all the way in! Then, relax.

 

[megveg]

The greatest tip I ever learned for popping ears is to take Sudafed the two days before take off and to drink a full water bottle as lift off is happening.

 

[Thing 1]

We have a 10 year. Last flight was cross country. Unless she has some anxiety issues, she should be fine with security. A reminder to listen and obey politely should be enough. For the ear pressure, gummy worms are good. Very chewy. For most 10 year olds, a tablet, ear phones and a few newly downloaded apps will keep them happy. A few extra fun snacks are great too. A drink purchased past security is helpful too.

 

[alliecat523]

Agree with all of the above. I would let your daughter pick out what she wanted to bring. She's old enough to decide what will keep her occupied. You can always pick up something like Mad Libs to do together.

 

[jerseyjersey]

I flew with a 7 y/o and a 9 y/o on our last flight (6 hours, so needed more than a few options!), and they enjoyed reading guide books about the place we were going, and doing those inexpensive books with puzzles, mazes, that kind of thing. Ipads were also available as a last resort.

Each of them brought a small-ish backpack as a personal item, which they used to carry the above, as well as their headphones and some snacks. FYI, we've been asked to remove the shoes of under 12s more than once (not at MCO though), but it wasn't a big deal. You may want to have her wear shoes that are easy to take on and off, just in case.

Definitely have water available to alleviate ear pressure. You can buy a bottle after you get through security, or even carry an empty bottle through security and fill it once you've reached the other side.

 

[disneyjr77]

Wow, such great advice Thank you all so much!!

She's goofy and likes to joke around all the time too, so i'll def have to remind her about listening and moving through the line quickly at security. Since it is a short flight, we'll probably stick with downloading a few movies to the ipad and calling it a day. Even at 10, she still loves to color so i'll leave that up to her.

We're flying in August, so i'll keep her outfit to a minimum...shorts w/o pockets, a tank top, and slip on shoes She'll have a little blanket in her bookbag so if she gets cold on the plane she can use that.

Thanks again for all your help!!! We're so excited and can't wait. We were looking at luggage tags yesterday and she was all i want a minion one and a mickey one lol

 

[DaisyJ]

The greatest tip I ever learned for popping ears is to take Sudafed the two days before take off and to drink a full water bottle as lift off is happening.

I am not a fan of plane bathrooms and do everything I possibly can to avoid them. Drinking a full bottle of water at take off would be a no go. LOL Unless Mom wants to get up and show her daughter how to use an airplane bathroom, I wouldn't advise drinking a full bottle of water.

My number one piece of advice is for you (mom) to stay calm. If you are calm and know what you are doing, your daughter will see there is nothing to be worried about.

Download Southwest's app on mobile devices and use it to track the progress of the plane or watch free tv. Remember, you can use mobile devices in airplane mode from the time you get on until the time you get off. Does she have an ipod? Let her pick some new music to put on her ipod for the plane ride.

 

[NotUrsula]

Eh, for a kid the airplane bathroom is usually fascinating, but if she uses one, have her ask the FA to show her how the various switches work; I've seen kids get stuck in them because they can't intuitively figure out the door lock.

If she will be using electronics, have her carry a small portable power bank that can re-charge whatever gadget she has; she'll end up also using it when waiting at the gate, so the battery might run down before the flight ends, especially if you have a delay. Also, headphones are an absolute must. (FWIW, one of my DD10's favorite Kindle apps is a mandala coloring/drawing app.)

For the ears, the trick is SWALLOWING, not chewing. Gum is a common option because it generates saliva that you have to constantly swallow, but small candies will accomplish the same thing without loading up your bladder. (Though drinking liquids on a plane is very much recommended; the cabin air is very dry.) My kids are fond of carrying Starbursts, Mentos, or Lifesavers on flights. It's a good idea to give them their own supply of snacks to keep in their own bag, and if you will be on the plane at mealtime, bringing along a wrapped deli sandwich or a Lunchable is your best bet (no drink in the Lunchable, though; it has to make it through security.) You can bring your own empty water bottle and fill it up with water at an airside fountain or food counter; that will be much cheaper than airside bottled water purchases.

One more thing: if you do not know if she will be prone to airsickness, I suggest you limit consumption of dairy (including cheese items) during and for several hours prior to the flight. Dairy won't MAKE her airsick, but if it's in her stomach at the time, it will make being airsick a much nastier experience.