ID for a 2yr old on airplane or Disney??

[dreamalittledream]

Has anyone flown with a 2 yr old and needed a birth cretificate or ID? My DD is 2 1/2 (bday in July) and she is tall 37" but we bought her a seat. We have flown 3x before she was 2 and never needed anything b/c she was a lap child. Now will I need proof since she has her own ticket in her name? oh, we are flying USAIR.
I know she gets her own carryon ( We already have the Princess suitcase, LOL)
What about at Disney? since she is under 3 we did not even consider tickets for her, do they need proof? I hate to carry the official BC around all the time!

 

[maciec]

When we traveled with my dd to WDW this past May she was 2yoa and not once were we asked for proof of age for her. Maybe we got lucky. Oh and we flew USAir.

However, I am conviced that this time we will be traveling with a copy of her birth certificate because the last thing I want to happen is for there to be any questions.

I think that to be on the safe side you should travel with a copy of her birth certificate. The last thing that you would want is to get to check in and there be a question about her age, you not be able to prove that she is under 3, and you would have to pay full price for her plane ticket.

Happy Traveling,
Melissa

 

[goofy4tink]

We've never been asked for ID for my dd, but that's probably because we've always had a copy of her birth cert. with us!! Better safe than sorry. Now, if we were to leave home without it, I'm sure we would need it. Just Murphy's Law.

 

[NotUrsula]

Disney will not ask for it at all. The only occasion where I could see needing one for Disney would be if you had a REALLY tiny 4 yo that wanted to go to a kid's club, and you needed to prove that he really was old enough.

The reason that the airlines will ask for ID for small children is not security. It is all about price fraud, to prevent people from getting a free or discounted fare for a child who is not the proper age to be eligible for them. If you paid the same price for your child's ticket as for your own, you will not be asked to produce ID on the child for a domestic flight.

Note that some sort of ID for children *is* required when making an international flight, along w/ proof that both parents have given permission for the child to leave the country.

 

[dreamalittledream]

Ok, so I went and got her BC from the safe deposit and then called USAIR. Their policy is that children under 18 do not need ID.
I'm happy but think it is a little scary in this day and age. I'm taking it anyway just in case and there is a safe in the room so I won't loose it.
I can't wait to go!!

 

[Vavasmon]

My DD has always been very tall for her age. I carried a copy of her birth certificate every time we travelled. Airlines don't require any id for childern that have purchased seats. They may ask the child his/her name. They often check a child's age if they are travelling as "free unser 2" or "1/2 price under X".

In 2001, I learned that the state where we live (VA) offers a children's id through the DMV. The state police can also access the picture if, god forbid, anything should ever happen to her. It looks just like my driver's license but has a yellow top instead of blue. It is easy for one of us (myself or DH) to carry (she was 8 in Dec. and we still do not permit her to carry it). Last month, I used it to prove that she wasn't 10 at a restaurant. She was also very pround to use it when she had to renew her library card. I don't know if other states offer it.

 

[kiddoc]

We went 2 months before my DD was three. I carried her birth certificate "just in case". We were never asked anything! No one even asked how old she was in restaurants or at the gate to the parks.
Again, as above, domestic airlines only require proof of age if you are not paying full price for the child.

 

[ZachnElli]

We never got asked at Disney when dd was 2 1/2. The only trouble you could have is if you eat at a buffet restaurant where under 3 eat free, sometimes they charge you anyway. We had it happen once and they took it off the bill after we asked about it. She doesn't eat much at all even to this day, so they didn't lose alot on us not paying for her.

 

[justhat]

So if the child is flying on a full fare ticket, they don't ask for ID, but if they're under 2 and flying ont he infant fare in a seat then they do need ID? My cousin is flying to visit us for Easter with her daughter who will be 2 on April 29th. She has a seat for her, which is an infant fare, but they didn't mention anything about bringing ID for the child. Does she need to do this or does it not matter since she has a seat and will not be a lap baby? If you don't have ID, do they make you pay full fare, even though the child is under 2?

Also (just wondering about this, but it doesn't apply in this situation), if the child is still 1 on the outbound flight, but turns 2 during the trip and is therefore 2 on the return flight, what is the deal with the fare? Can you still get an infant fare, like in Disney if your child turns 3 during the trip, they're still free the whole stay?