Graco Snugride vs. Britax Marathon

[justhat]

We finally got our replacement straps for the Britax Marathon so I'm thinking about using that (or the Roundabout) on our upcoming trips in December instead of my daughter's infant car seat and I'm wondering what would be best. (She still fits in the infant seat weight-wise and the car seat tech said even though she was about an inch too tall she still fit in it fine since her head is far enough away from the top of the seat.)

I'm thinking that since I'll be flying alone to WDW in a few weeks that it might be easier to bring the Britax in one of those carriers and wear it as a backpack, then wear my daughter in the Baby Bjorn, roll the stroller in its carrying bag with wheels, with the diaper bag stuffed in either the stroller or car seat bag. The alternative would be to wear her in the Bjorn, stick the diaper bag in the infant seat in the stroller and wheel all that to the gate, then pack the stroller in its bag to gate check, and carry the infant seat on the plane. I'm bringing a Maclaren Techno stroller, so not one that the infant seat will snap into, so I'd sorta have to hope it will stay in the seat (never tried it) as I roll it to the gate.

What have people found is an easier way to move through the airport? Is one way easier for security checks? I would think having the car seat in a bag and stroller in a bag would be more efficient, but since I've never done it I don't know. My daughter has her own seat on the flight so I will be taking a car seat on the plane for her either way. We ordered a Roundabout today and it should hopefully arrive before our trip, but if not I would either have to take the Marathon or the infant seat.

 

[stacy6552]

I'd ditch the baby seat and bring the big one.

Here's a picture of us going through the airport.....

Carseat in the carseat duffle (must have, worth every penny), slung over neck and sholder (worn diagonally). with two hands on the stroller and baby in the stroller.

Leave stroller, folded at the door to the plane. Don't bother with the bag. You want to be able to open it with one hand at the other end.

 

[justhat]

I thought about not putting the stroller in a bag, since I usually don't with the Graco stroller, but it has gotten so dirty and scratched so it made me want a bag for the Maclaren. It cost so much more than the Graco so I don't want it to get damaged so quickly.

 

[JennsBabySky]

You could also try hanging the Snugride from the handle of the Techno. We recently flew with a Peg Perego P3 and the Britax infant seat. At first, I had the infant seat in the P3, but then my 4 year old daughter wanted to ride the stroller. My DH hung the infant seat from the stroller and it worked great. DD rode the stroller and DS was in the Bjorn. I understand about putting the stroller in the bag to keep it from getting dirty. Maybe keep DD in the stroller (or the Bjorn) while you wheel the stroller with carseat through the airport. At the gate (but before boarding), put stroller in bag. Then when it is boarding time, either have DD in Bjorn and the carseat in one hand and the stroller in the other. Or have DD in carseat in one hand and stroller in the other. Hopefully another passenger or a flight attendent will notice your full hands and take your stroller from you.

Good luck,
Jennifer

 

[disneymom3]

If she still fits in the baby carseat, I would take that. They are easier to get in the plane seat IMO. And then you can carry her in it. I would see if you can put the carseat in the stroller to wheel down to the gate that way. However, I would also start out through security with the baby in the Bjorn. Then your hands will be free to get everything into the xray thing. YOu will have to send the carseat and stroller through the machine too.

If you decide to do the bigger seat, I would stronly suggest you bring the Roundabout and not the marathon. (It sounds like you have both?) That marathon is BIG and would be kind of tough to deal with.

 

[jel0511]

One note here. Since your DD is still less than 1 she still needs to be rear facing in her car seat, even on the plane. Neither of the Britax Seats can be installed rear facing on an airplane, there isn't enough room between the seats for it to fit with the recline. I also believe the seat belt isn't long enough to properly secure it rear facing, but it has been a long time since I've tried to install a Britax seat rear facing. So, with that information, you'll have to bring the infant carseat.

Just buy a bungee cord to secure it to the seat of the stroller so it won't fall off while walking through the airport.

 

[disneymom3]

Y'know, I have wondered about that rearfacing issue for planes. Both of my boys flew when they were much to heavy for their infant seats, but not quite one yo yet. I had to put them in forward facing. What else could you do in that instance?

 

[jel0511]

Originally posted by disneymom3
Y'know, I have wondered about that rearfacing issue for planes. Both of my boys flew when they were much to heavy for their infant seats, but not quite one yo yet. I had to put them in forward facing. What else could you do in that instance?

In reality, nothing. When we first flew with our first child, she was 10 months old in the Britax Roundabout (the Marathon wasn't out yet). I tried to install it rear facing, but it just wouldn't fit between the seats in full recline. I had to install in forward facing, since I didn't have another option.

 

[stacy6552]

At this size, your child is much safer in the bigger seat, facing forwards, than the smaller one facing backwards. Rear facing is very important in cars because of all the stopping and potential for stopping short. You dont really have that on a plane, and your child should have enough head control for landing.

 

[KristinU]

Here's what I did whe I traveled alone with DS at 8 months:

Checked our Mac Triumph as luggage (in the Mac carrying bag, which had tons of extra space in it for me to pack all of his clothes, a quilt wrapped around the stroller, and some other misc. junk). Then I carried DS in a Mei Tai type front carrier, a backpack on my back, and the carseat (Graco Comfortsport) over my shoulder. I had read somewhere about using the rear tether as a carrying strap and it works like a charm. I had looked into bags or the backpack straps for the seat, but I couldn't imagine tring to undo it and use the seat once on the plane.

We did run into the quandry of not installing rear-facing on the plane - so he was forward facing, which isn't ideal but better than nothing in my book.

Good Luck!

 

[Neecoal]

My vote is for the snug ride, I just reinstalled my marathon (and I realized something it is heavy/bulky).

 

[metivier]

When you get on the plane with your carseat, ask one of the flight attendants for a seat belt extender. Makes the installation of your car seat MUCH easier. I have not installed a Britax Marathon rear-facing on a plane, but I have installed a Britax Roudabout rear-facing on a plane, using the seat belt extender. And yes, you should install the car seat rear-facing on the plane -- see Rear Facing on Airplanes page

Karen

 

[justhat]

So the Roundabout will fit rearfacing if I ask for a seltbelt extender? I'd really rather bring the Snugride if the Roundabout won't fit. Yesterday we weighed and measured her and she was 18 pounds and ~27.5 inches. So she's fine in the Snugride for her weight, and is over the height by an inch and a half, but the car seat tech said she still fit fine even being over the height limit because her head is more than 1 inch from the top of the seat. The Roundabout would be easier to carry on my back, but if I can't install it on the plane then maybe I should just bring the Snugride and deal with carrying it in the airport. Ugh, and I only have 6 more days to make a decision!

 

[JennsBabySky]

I belong to a couple carseat boards and there are quite a few moms who have installed their carseats rearfacing. Also, most carseat techs favor the Britax seats, so these have been posted about the most. It will probably be impossible to know for sure if your seat will fit rearfacing on the plane. Most likely it will fit (you usually don't have to have the rearfacing seat in FULL recline unless the baby is super young). Since many airlines are flying various aircrafts with different distances between the seats, it would be hard to predict for certain. Worst case if you bring your Roundabout and it absolutely doesn't have enough room to be rearfacing, it should definitely fit forward facing. Obviously this isn't ideal, but at least baby would be belted in for turbulence and emergency situations. I do always buy my baby a carset, because I couldn't live with the consequences, but I *think* I might be okay with the seat forward facing in a pinch. Ultimately, the chances of needing the carseat are slim, but I never want to have to stow my baby underneath the seat in front of me (I'd take a forward facing seat any day).

I'd bring whichever seat is the easiest for you to install. Having a 10 month son and a Snugride, Marathon, and Roundabout, here are my 2 cents worth. I find installing the Marathon or Roundabout rear facing horribly painful. I can install my daughter's forward facing super tightly in seconds flat, but those rear facing installs are super tricky for me. I'm forever fussing with the beltpath and tightening the install, playing with the tether, trying out the pool noodles. I can eventually get it in tightly, but my husband has strong orders to never, ever uninstall my son's carseat. Yuck! I can get the Snugride (and now my Britax Companion infant seat), successfully installed rear facing so much easier. I do usually use the base in my car, so I think you would need to bring some kind of blanket that you could roll and put under the seat in a pinch. I know with my Companion, you are not supposed to use the base when installing in a plane. I'm not sure about the Snugride, I've never used it on a plane. In fact, I personally the only seat I've ever installed rearfacing was the Companion. I'd just take whichever seat is easiest for you to install. I found that I was able to fuss with the tension in the seatbelt, after my son was in the carseat, so I was very happy with the install on the plane. This is because the belt goes over the leg portion of the infant carseat on the Companion when installing in the plane. The belt was right in front of me.

I don't know if I made it any easier for you. I stressed over this before (and decided to purchase the Companion last December when I was 8 months pregnant because we had planned a family vacation to Florida in September and I knew we would be flying -- how weird am I?)

Have a wonderful vacation,
Jennifer

By the way, I'd bring either the Roundabout or the Snugride. I wouldn't bring the Marathon -- it is slightly larger and slightly heavier. Since your baby is nowhere near outgrowing the Roundabout, there is no reason to struggle with a bigger seat unnecessarily.

 

[metivier]

So the Roundabout will fit rearfacing if I ask for a seltbelt extender? I'd really rather bring the Snugride if the Roundabout won't fit.

What plane are you flying on? Maybe folks here can help more knowing what aircraft type you are (at least scheduled to be) flying on. If you know your seat location already (last row vs. bulkhead row vs. "regular" row), that is helpful, too.

I do not have extensive experience flying with our Roundabout (only nine trips by plane), but I have never had a problem fitting our Roundabout rear-facing, using the seatbelt extender to save wear-and-tear on my hand in the installation and removel of the seat. I have also flown with our Graco SbugRide rear-facing several times (six times, including two times while also flying with our rear-facing Roundabout! ) and haven't had any more trouble with the Roundabout than I did with the Snugride. Now getting through the airport's security gate with "just me" and my two children and the stroller and all the "gear" -- well THAT was a sight!

Have a great trip!

 

[akrake]

and haven't had any more trouble with the Roundabout than I did with the Snugride. Now getting through the airport's security gate with "just me" and my two children and the stroller and all the "gear" -- well THAT was a sight!

Have a great trip!

That's going to be me!!! but with 3 kids!!!! did you say that the roundabout fit rf? my dd is over a year & over 22lbs...but like rf not ff....if i have to do ff i will....did you have a bag to carry the carseat in? which kind?
amie

 

[akrake]

Carseat in the carseat duffle (must have, worth every penny), slung over neck and sholder (worn diagonally). with two hands on the stroller and baby in the stroller.
.

Stacy6552, which brand bag do you have?
amie

 

[metivier]

That's going to be me!!! but with 3 kids!!!! did you say that the roundabout fit rf? my dd is over a year & over 22lbs...but like rf not ff....if i have to do ff i will....did you have a bag to carry the carseat in? which kind?
amie

All I can say is OY!!!!

Are your 3 all in stroller seats? One thing you might want to think about is using a luggage cart (the personal kind, not the kind that you rent at the airport) and strapping the car seat to the luggage cart with bungee cords, and then have your children sit in the car seats. A friend of mine recommended this to me (and she traveled solo from the US to Mexico with her three -- the twins plus an older sibling) and I tried it and it worked for my two when we traveled in August. Then you don't have to lug car seats as they are sitting in them. Then you can sling the baby and push the "strolling car seats".

I do use a car seat bag -- I have an Eddie Bauer one (that fits the Roundabout) and I have an Ultimate Car Seat/Booster Seat Carrier (by J.L. Childress) that fits the Marathon (as well as the Roundabout). I'll be checking our Marathon as my 3 year-old doesn't use a car seat on the plane. I bought the Eddie Bauer one at Babies R Us (store vs. online) but ordered the Ultimate Car Seat Carrier online. Here's a link to it but this is not where I bought it:

http://store.babycenter.com/product/gear/car_seats/carseat_toys/4446

I REALLY love the Ultimate Car Seat carrier as I can sneak in all sorts of other things into the bag (like my daughter's sleeping bag ) and not have to load it into my luggage.

The toughest part for me was the seurity check in -- doing the "undo" of everyone and getting everything on the belt took a while. But the TSA folks have always been quite helpful to me -- I think they are sympathetic!

Good luck!
Karen

 

[tjmw2727]

Wow - having traveled lots with my girls as the solo adult I know you will have your hands full but it will be ok!! Personally I would take the infant carseat as baby is probably very familiar and comfortable in it and you are most likely a pro at installation. I like your idea about wearing baby through security with your diaper bag and the carseat in the stroller as well as the stroller bag. This seems the easiest to me.

Since baby isn't riding in the carseat bring a small bungee coard and use the stroller like you would a snap in and secure the carseat with the bungee. This way you can just wheel the diaper bag and carseat in the stroller untill you get to the gate and get checked in. Give yourself plenty of time to avoid stress, as you know baby will pick up on it.

Just before boarding pack up the stroller into the bag and put the gate check tag on. You can even put baby in the infant car seat (carrier type I assume?) if you use backpack as a diaper bag. This way you can pack up while baby sits in the carseat, wear the diaper bag and carry baby onto the aircraft and strap her in.

Personally my main concern would be the logistics of checking in and getting through security and to the gate as easily as you can. Then if it take somes time at the gate to pack up you just allow extra time.

Have a wonderfult trip.
TJ

 

[akrake]

Are your 3 all in stroller seats? One thing you might want to think about is using a luggage cart (the personal kind, not the kind that you rent at the airport) and strapping the car seat to the luggage cart with bungee cords, and then have your children sit in the car seats

The toughest part for me was the seurity check in -- doing the "undo" of everyone and getting everything on the belt took a while. But the TSA folks have always been quite helpful to me -- I think they are sympathetic!

Karen,

luckily only one of the kids is in a carseat...the other 2 are 8 & 5....but it'll be hard!!! I'm going to use the stroller, and get a carseat bag...will I have to take it out of the bag for the xray? i HATE security check...necessary evils...

thanks for the link also!
amie