favorite travel carseat?

browneyedgirl1683

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Sep 30, 2018
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112
Hello all.

We are looking to buy a lightweight carseat for travel/flight use. Our every day carseat is a monster weight Britax one that I would not want to bring around. I've seen Cosco Scenera/Next Etc as the popular choice but I also read that they aren't the most comfortable. I'm also thinking of this as an investment, and although we rear-face, we will need it a few years down the line when she will foward-face.

What's worked best for your little? Mine will be 23 months. I'm thinking of the Safety 1st Jive or the deluxe version of the Cosco Scenera seat.
 
One thing to consider is how big your LO is. My youngest was 40 lbs by the time he was 3, so he'd outgrown most of the cheaper, light weight seats lots of people recommend. Also are you an extended rear facer, or a turn at 1-2 person? Do you plan to max out the harness weight or do a booster a 4-5? Lots of considerations..
 
Also how frequently do you travel? Will you need a carseat at the other end of airplane trips?

I'm loathe to spend money on something like a carseat for the plane unless I'm traveling enough times for it to be worthwhile.
 
One thing to consider is how big your LO is. My youngest was 40 lbs by the time he was 3, so he'd outgrown most of the cheaper, light weight seats lots of people recommend. Also are you an extended rear facer, or a turn at 1-2 person? Do you plan to max out the harness weight or do a booster a 4-5? Lots of considerations..
Good point! The Jive has decent weight limits, so this has me leaning that way.
 

If you don’t need an actual car seat for after the airplane, you could just get a cares harness to use on the plane. It is basically just the harness part of a car seat and goes around the seat and child and is airline approved
 
We have the Costco Scenera and it is lightweight, inexpensive, had a fun Mickey print, and came with a clear case to zip it in. I estimate that my daughter should be able to use it until around age 4. It has been our primary seat for her for the past year and a half, but the cup holder is flimsy and keeps falling off, and she spills her drink now, so we are going to move her to her brother's old seat and keep the Costco one in case we take any flights.
 
If you don’t need an actual car seat for after the airplane, you could just get a cares harness to use on the plane. It is basically just the harness part of a car seat and goes around the seat and child and is airline approved
I looked into that, but I want to be prepared in case we end up renting a car, or the like. Is it a complicated thing to install? It looked a bit intimidating.
 
We have the Costco Scenera and it is lightweight, inexpensive, had a fun Mickey print, and came with a clear case to zip it in. I estimate that my daughter should be able to use it until around age 4. It has been our primary seat for her for the past year and a half, but the cup holder is flimsy and keeps falling off, and she spills her drink now, so we are going to move her to her brother's old seat and keep the Costco one in case we take any flights.
That's good to know that you were able to get that much use out of it. I appreciate the feedback.
 
I looked into that, but I want to be prepared in case we end up renting a car, or the like. Is it a complicated thing to install? It looked a bit intimidating.

no it is super easy to install. It literally just loops over the seat and then you open the tray for that seat so the loop goes in the inside part of the tray so the people behind you can still use the tray. Then You just buckle the normal seat belt through two loops and adjust everything. It’s much nicer to bring on airplane when you know you aren’t going to need a car seat later especially when I’m solo with my kid. I bought a used one for like $20 or $30 dollars.
 
I looked into an airplane car seat but ended up just buying a car seat backpack that our Britax Marathon could fit in. There was enough room in the bag to shove in blankets and coats and a backless booster for big sis. We used it a ton and it still is in great shape.

I second the CARES harness as well. We would bring the car seat and gate check it And use the harness on the plane once the girls were old enough.
 
I just used the Cosco Scenera for my recent trip with my somewhat larger 2 year old (33 lbs, 36 in). He was completely comfortable on the plane and during our many car rides to & from the parks. I used a bungee cord to strap it to my carry on for easy airport travel and it worked like a charm. Super lightweight and cheap- I can't speak to long time use though.
 
We used the Cosco Scenera as our travel seat and it was fine. It’s definitely not as comfy as other seats, but my kids always seemed fine in it. I don’t remember about the weight/height limits, but we kept it in my mom’s car when we weren’t traveling. I feel like they each used it until they were about 4 and ready for a high back booster. My kids are on the smaller side, though.
 










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