Flying with a 10mo old - what to do?

[mousefanmichelle]

Hi there - we leave in 8 days - we are a rather large party of 17 people!!! My question is this - my neice has a 10 month old and the baby is going to be lap sitter for the flight (their choice, not mine!) anyway - they are going to be renting a car once we arrive - can they gate check their car seat and stroller for the flight - and what does gate check mean specifically? Does it cost to gate check something? We are flying Air Tran, if that helps to know.

This is new to me as I never flew with babies - we always drove when my kids were younger and now that they are older - we fly so I have never had to worry about this!

TIA!!!!
Michelle

 

[HGD24]

We gate checked our stroller when we traveled with our 8.5 month old. You get a tag at the desk at your gate to attach the items - it says "Gate Check" on it. You then bring the items with you up to the door of the plane. You leave them there and someone from the airline puts them under the plane. When you arrive, they should be waiting for you at the door of the plane.

I'm not sure if any airlines are charging for gate checked items. It's best to call their customer service line and ask them directly.

Personally, I wouldn't carry the car seat through the airports - I would check it with my checked baggage. That may cost extra - again, call the airline directly to find out.

 

[djp0630]

Gate checking means you bring it to the gate with you and they take it there. It's really quite easy. If I remember, you tell them when you check in, and then they give you a tag to put on your stroller. They take the stroller, then when you get off the plane, the stroller is there waiting for you! I am flying US Airways and it's free to gate check both a stroller & car seat. Good luck, we will be flying with a 13 month old.

 

[bgirl29]

If your niece does bring the carseat to the gate, if there is an empty seat on the plane they should be able to use the carseat. If not they could gate check it. Also they should ask about gate checking anything as soon as they arrive at the gate. They may need to fill out a small form and will want to do that ahead of time.

Also if they gatecheck the stroller they will need to fold it up before leaving it to be stored under the plane. Some people like to put their folded strollers into bags also.

 

[mousefanmichelle]

Do most people gate check a stroller and a car seat? How much is it to rent a stroller - they are doing only 1 day at MK and 1 day at US.

We rented a stroller at US 5 years ago for our then 4 and 6 year old to share. It was perfect for them but I don't think they would have been perfect for a baby - kwim?

 

[DenialFiend]

strollers are $13 singles, $31 for double from what I remember reading

week discount given for 7 days

 

[princess pooh]

The rental strollers don't look very comfortable for babies. They don't have any padding and they don't recline.

It's always better if you can gate check the stoller and car seat. The one time we checked our car seat with the rest of our luggage, it didn't make it onto the plane .

 

[mousefanmichelle]

The rental strollers don't look very comfortable for babies. They don't have any padding and they don't recline.

It's always better if you can gate check the stoller and car seat. The one time we checked our car seat with the rest of our luggage, it didn't make it onto the plane .

Thanks princess pooh - I appreciate the heads up about checking the seat with the luggage. I guess I will check with Airtran to see about gate checking and if there are any fee's associated (hopefully not )

Also does anyone have any tips on flying with a baby that I could give me niece? Any help is appreciated!!!

 

[HGD24]

Also does anyone have any tips on flying with a baby that I could give me niece? Any help is appreciated!!!

1) Give the baby a bottle or sippy of milk or juice on take off and landing. The sucking motion helps their ears pop which makes it more comfortable for them.

2) Buy a few new toys or books for the trip. Don't show them to the baby until you're in-flight. Or you could hide some favorites for a few weeks and bring those along. The "newness" of the toys and books will keep the LO occupied for a while.

3) Change the baby as close to boarding time as possible to avoid in-flight diaper changes. The changing tables on planes are very small. Of course accidents happen and sure enough, we ended up changing DD on both of our flights.

4) Bring snacks.

 

[mousefanmichelle]

Thanks everyone. I checked with Airtran and we can gate check both the stroller and the car seat for FREE!
That makes me feel so much better to know.

Thanks for some of the other tips too.

Michelle