Help with transport of 4 kids in carseats?!?!

[Alesia]

Please, please *don't* check your car seats! Lugagge handlers are notorious for not being gentle with seats, and believe it or not, having a broken seat upon arrival is not the worst case scenario... worse yet would be a seat that does not appear damaged yet is compromised and fails in an accident. When we have families come into carseat checks, "Have you checked this seat on an airplane?" is on my list of question to ask, and if the answer is yes, we consider it crashed and advise the family to replace the seat.

Here's a video -- the pile to the left of the belt is carseats.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzmJr1a-BHU

How old are the kids? I would be happy to propose a plan for you guys but having the kids' ages would help.

How could anyone who sees that ever check a car seat again?

 

[imtheluckyone]

Please, please *don't* check your car seats! Lugagge handlers are notorious for not being gentle with seats, and believe it or not, having a broken seat upon arrival is not the worst case scenario... worse yet would be a seat that does not appear damaged yet is compromised and fails in an accident. When we have families come into carseat checks, "Have you checked this seat on an airplane?" is on my list of question to ask, and if the answer is yes, we consider it crashed and advise the family to replace the seat.

Here's a video -- the pile to the left of the belt is carseats.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzmJr1a-BHU

How old are the kids? I would be happy to propose a plan for you guys but having the kids' ages would help.

Yikes! no checking carseats for me! Kids will be 7, 4, 2, 1 and 6 months at time of travel.

 

[imtheluckyone]

When we traveled with 3 kids and car seats and strollers. We did the following #1 made the kids walk at the airport. Trust me they need to burn energy #2 We used the strollers as the transporter. We put the car seats and luggage on top of the sit and stand stroller. Less hassle breeze threw check in.

My two oldest will definately walk. But still have 3 that need to ride in the strollers. 2 year old has a disability and although he can walk, I think the safest place for him in a busy airport is in a stroller. 1 year old is not wallking yet so I am not sure if he will be (and how well) in the next two months. And of course my baby girl won"t be walking either....

 

[imtheluckyone]

Have you considered renting two cars? It may make transporting easier overall...

This is definately a thought....but paying for gas, parking, tolls, etc on two rentals....do I really save much over just renting a 10-12 passenger van?

 

[Alesia]

This is definately a thought....but paying for gas, parking, tolls, etc on two rentals....do I really save much over just renting a 10-12 passenger van?

Renting 2 cars is definitely a better idea. Even a 10 passenger van isn't likely to have enough room for 8 passengers and their luggage - vans have almost no cargo room.

 

[ccgirl]

My two oldest will definately walk. But still have 3 that need to ride in the strollers. 2 year old has a disability and although he can walk, I think the safest place for him in a busy airport is in a stroller. 1 year old is not wallking yet so I am not sure if he will be (and how well) in the next two months. And of course my baby girl won"t be walking either....

Have you looked at Budget? I was able to get an SUV with them for 10 days in May for $285. Not sure of your rental car budget.

We always gate check the stroller/car seat and have never had a problem. As someone said, the stroller and car seat do not count toward the checked baggage limit.

Also, I want to point out what an earlier poster said that there can only be one lap baby per row as there is only one extra oxygen mask per row. I watched a family with twins get very upset over this on our last trip.

Also, remember the birth certificates for the lap babies. They require this to prove they are under 2.

Have a great trip!

 

[mimomlile]

I agree it is easiest to pile all of the "stuff" in the stroller and make the kids walk (or help push ).
We have never checked car seats for fear of damage. I have gate checked boosters and it worked out great. We have used the clear zipper bags that things like quilts or comforters come in. The ones we used had long white rope handles that could hang on luggage or a stroller.

The last time that we flew, I carried on the booster. It was very low profile and fit under the seat in front on me, along with my large purse.

Some car seats are not rated for aircraft and you may not be able to use them on the plane. I'm not aware if any boosters are.

 

[TwinMommyDec05]

Hello
Heres my advice, take the car seats (they do not count towards your baggage allowance) and although I am a big advocate of having a child in a car seat on the aircraft I would probably just go ahead and check them at the ticket counter. Unless you can find someway to get them to the gate (luggage carts are not allowed to be taken thru the security checkpoints) Do curbside dropoff and have a skycap porter assist you with luggage (so worth the tip!) to the ticket counter. I always take my time going thru the security checkpoint I just tell people to go around me when Im getting stuff organised to go on the "belt".
Also not sure if you are aware but on some aircraft it is not permitted to have two lapchildren in the same row (not enough oxygen masks). The aircraft I fly on are 3 seats either side so only one lapchild per row (of 6 seats) unless there is an empty seat.

Actually NO domestic airlines will allow 2 lap children on the same side of the aisle. Domestic aircraft are only built with 3 seats and 4 oxygen masks per side of the aisle. I have twins - my husband and I always opted for aisle seats so we were still together with one baby on each of our laps. Also, tell the gate agent and see if she can get you in an row with an empty seat. That way you would have 3 seats - you in one, your husband in the other, the two lap kids= 3 seats 4 oxygen masks. Problem solved.
That's what we did anyway.
Oh and I concur with checking the car seats - its free on all US airlines (at least for now). We put ours in a travel bag - yes it costs a few extra bucks to buy the bag but it has padding and doesn't look like a carseat to the careless baggage handlers - less likely to get filthy and abused. Its still free to check - just show the agent that it is a careat when you check in.

 

[ccgirl]

I agree it is easiest to pile all of the "stuff" in the stroller and make the kids walk (or help push ).
We have never checked car seats for fear of damage. I have gate checked boosters and it worked out great. We have used the clear zipper bags that things like quilts or comforters come in. The ones we used had long white rope handles that could hang on luggage or a stroller.

The last time that we flew, I carried on the booster. It was very low profile and fit under the seat in front on me, along with my large purse.

Some car seats are not rated for aircraft and you may not be able to use them on the plane. I'm not aware if any boosters are.

My high back booster is when used with the 5 point harness. It is so light compared to the convertible seats. It is a Costco brand.

 

[imtheluckyone]

no issue with 2 lap kids in the same row. We have a total of 6 "paid for" seats so we will always have both sides of an aisle or multiple rows in the smaller planes.

 

[TDC Nala]

A family with three lap children when flying probably needs to contact the airline, if you want to have three lap children in a 3-seat row the airline will not allow that. It might not even allow 2 lap children in the same row. There was a story awhile back with a family of 2 adults and 4 kids, three of whom were lap children, and they weren't allowed to all sit in the same row -first of all because a lap child cannot be seated with another child, which isn't the case with the OP because they have three adults, but also because there weren't enough oxygen masks for everyone in the row, the 3 seat rows in general have 4 oxygen masks and they had six people sitting in one row. With the plane full they could not be reseated (mostly because they only had 2 adults and 4 kids, three of them lap children) and they had to deplane.

 

[NotUrsula]

This is definately a thought....but paying for gas, parking, tolls, etc on two rentals....do I really save much over just renting a 10-12 passenger van?

Oh, yes, and even more if you Priceline the rentals. Vans are premiums, and they usually cost about 4X what a standard-size car does, and your are often required to take the insurance on them because private insurance sometimes will not cover them. Besides that, with two cars you have more options about splitting your party, and it's a lot easier to send someone out for pizza off-site!

Bring your own carseats; it is really the best option, besides just being cheaper; if you invest in a carseat satchel or two you can usually nest them. (The one time that I rented a carseat for DD I could not for the life of me manage to readjust the harness length, so it was too loose for her.)

Generally speaking, IME a child who is more than 48" tall will not comfortably be able to sit in a coach aircraft seat in a carseat, because the seat pitch won't have room for their lower legs at the angle the carseat causes them to project. For kids that tall, gate-check the seats. Also, be aware that on almost all US carriers, carseats used aboard aircraft must be placed in the window position, and cannot be used in the rows directly in front of or behind the exit row.

PS: OP says that she is lap-carrying only two kids, so as long as the two adults holding the lap kids are sitting in separate rows, then she is clear on the oxygen mask rule. Presumably the third young child is going to be in a carseat on the aircraft, which means that two of the under 2's will be in one row with 2 adults, and the third adult will be holding one baby and riding herd over the two older children, unless she wants to put the oldest child in the middle seat to entertain the carseat rider and let the second adult help with the middle two kids. Her best bet is two rows one in front of the other, which allows for more speaking back and forth than going across the aisle.

 

[arthuruscg]

Renting 2 cars is definitely a better idea. Even a 10 passenger van isn't likely to have enough room for 8 passengers and their luggage - vans have almost no cargo room.

The 10 passenger vans are going to be full sized vans. They will have TONS of cargo room. My parents have a Ford 8 passanger (10 minus 1 seat) and with 5 of us, we took cross country trips in in with a dog and a dog crate.

 

[ccgirl]

Oh, yes, and even more if you Priceline the rentals. Vans are premiums, and they usually cost about 4X what a standard-size car does, and your are often required to take the insurance on them because private insurance sometimes will not cover them. Besides that, with two cars you have more options about splitting your party, and it's a lot easier to send someone out for pizza off-site!

Bring your own carseats; it is really the best option, besides just being cheaper; if you invest in a carseat satchel or two you can usually nest them. (The one time that I rented a carseat for DD I could not for the life of me manage to readjust the harness length, so it was too loose for her.)

Generally speaking, IME a child who is more than 48" tall will not comfortably be able to sit in a coach aircraft seat in a carseat, because the seat pitch won't have room for their lower legs at the angle the carseat causes them to project. For kids that tall, gate-check the seats. Also, be aware that on almost all US carriers, carseats used aboard aircraft must be placed in the window position, and cannot be used in the rows directly in front of or behind the exit row.PS: OP says that she is lap-carrying only two kids, so as long as the two adults holding the lap kids are sitting in separate rows, then she is clear on the oxygen mask rule. Presumably the third young child is going to be in a carseat on the aircraft, which means that two of the under 2's will be in one row with 2 adults, and the third adult will be holding one baby and riding herd over the two older children, unless she wants to put the oldest child in the middle seat to entertain the carseat rider and let the second adult help with the middle two kids. Her best bet is two rows one in front of the other, which allows for more speaking back and forth than going across the aisle.

Bolded mine. THat's right. I forgot to mention that in my earlier post. At first, I had my DS in the middle seat and the flight attendant came by and told me I would have to switch him to the window so as to not impede anyone's exit.

 

[gigi1313]

another thought... by the time you spend a king's ransom on car rentals, etc, have you considered changing your hotel to on-site disney... then you could take DME, use internal transport, and have no additional costs...

 

[ccgirl]

another thought... by the time you spend a king's ransom on car rentals, etc, have you considered changing your hotel to on-site disney... then you could take DME, use internal transport, and have no additional costs...

They are staying at Bonnet Creek so I'm thinking they are staying in a 2BR timeshare not just a hotel room. I could be wrong though.

 

[imtheluckyone]

They are staying at Bonnet Creek so I'm thinking they are staying in a 2BR timeshare not just a hotel room. I could be wrong though.

I own at Wyndham Bonnet Creek and we are staying in a 4 bedroom presidential suite. This is actually our 1st stay there but the cost comparison to Disney isn't even close! We have stayed at several 2 bedrooms through DVC in the past but much prefer room to spread out with so many kids and save myself several thousand dollars.

 

[gigi1313]

I own at Wyndham Bonnet Creek and we are staying in a 4 bedroom presidential suite. This is actually our 1st stay there but the cost comparison to Disney isn't even close! We have stayed at several 2 bedrooms through DVC in the past but much prefer room to spread out with so many kids and save myself several thousand dollars.

Gotcha!!

 

[CarrieR]

OP, I'm going to PM you tommorrow, if that's ok. If you'd like a hand, I can give you some specific recommendations but it'll require make/model of your current seats and the kids sizes (Somehow I missed their ages in the first post and thought it was two families travelling together!)

In general -- depending on the seats and double stroller, you can often place the carseat in the stroller and bungee it in (putting the bungee through the belt path and attaching it to the stroller frame.) You could also use a luggage cart -- check the stroller and bungee the carseat to the luggage cart, sometimes that's easier, or use a travelling toddler to attach the seat to a carry-on. I would probably take the 2 & 3yo's seats onto the airplane, and carry on a backless booster for the 7yo, which can stow under his/her seat. That leaves you with just the baby and the 1yo as problems... plus of course the rental vehicle, lol. If the baby is still in a bucket, you may be able to stow it overhead and install it baseless in Orlando. Maybe invest in an RSTV... it's essentially a wearable 5-pt harness, the 3yo could use it at your destination, and put the baby in the seat the 3yo uses on the plane? That will also help you fit 3-across the third row of your rental van, since the RSTV is only as wide as the kiddo wearing it.

So, plane/car:
7yo - airplane belt (backless stowed under seat)/backless booster
3yo - convertible seat A/RSTV
2yo - convertible seat B/convertible seat B
1yo - lap/convertible seat A
baby - lap (bucket stowed overhead)/bucket installed baseless.

The RSTV packs flat in luggage and the bucket would probably have to count as a carry-on but with five tickets, you probably have a carry-on to spare. And while the RSTV is expensive, a) it may be less than the price difference to go up to a large van, and b) with the size of your family and ages of your kids, I think you'd get a lot of use out of it for future vacations.

 

[ccgirl]

I own at Wyndham Bonnet Creek and we are staying in a 4 bedroom presidential suite. This is actually our 1st stay there but the cost comparison to Disney isn't even close! We have stayed at several 2 bedrooms through DVC in the past but much prefer room to spread out with so many kids and save myself several thousand dollars.

Jealous! We usually stay off site in a 2BR timeshare. I hear you about spreading out. The cost comparison, as you say, is not even close. We were going to trade in to there this year but decided to do Sea World instead so am staying at HGVC SeaWorld.

If you give me your dates, I'd be happy to try to find a rental vehicle (or two) for you.