What kind of bag for carseat when checking it with your luggage

[mill4023]

I know I've seen some people put them in clear plastic bags of some sort. Is there something the airline will provide? Or do I need to find a bag or box that it will fit in?
We leave tomorrow night and I'm starting to panic about all these little things.

 

[NotUrsula]

The airline will provide a thick, clear bag if you check it w/ luggage. However, I would advise considering gate-checking it instead. That way it will not get buried under heavy baggage, and you will be absolutely sure that it is on the same plane that you are.

If you don't want to invest in a carseat satchel, ask the skycap or agent at baggage check for the plastic bag; they don't keep them at the gates. I would advise against checking a seat w/o some sort of protective covering; grease is common in cargo compartments, and you run the risk that the straps could tangle in the sorting machinery.

 

[mill4023]

The problem is that we are going to have a stroller and our carry-on bags, plus an infant car seat, plus our 4 year old's booster seat. And we have to change planes once, so it would be a lot of stuff to carry around the airport.

I'm sure I have some boxes in my garage, maybe I can find some that will work.

 

[jlcd]

It might be too late to get one, but we use the Eddie Bauer car seat travel bags from Babies R Us. We check them through with the kids booster seats and haven't had a problem. I have see the plastic airline bags come through a bit beat up and ripped but they will work if you don't have time to get anything else. have a great time!

 

[gw_lit]

The problem is that we are going to have a stroller and our carry-on bags, plus an infant car seat, plus our 4 year old's booster seat. And we have to change planes once, so it would be a lot of stuff to carry around the airport.

I'm sure I have some boxes in my garage, maybe I can find some that will work.

Also, remember you won't be able to use the booster on the plane. I'd get a large duffel bag that will hold both the car seat and the booster and then check that as one item. If you've purchased a seat for the infant you can use the car seat on the plane if it is FAA approved.

 

[hookedondizney]

It might be too late to get one, but we use the Eddie Bauer car seat travel bags from Babies R Us.

I agree! I purchased these at our local babies r us! I am really glad we did-they were easy to carry because there is a strap on it. Also, when we picked up the seat w/ cover on it it was very dirty! It saved that expensive car seat from getting all that "stuff" all over it. It would have been harder to clean a car seat than that bag from eddie bauer! I recommend those car seat bags 100%!
I saw some car seats without anything on them going around the baggage claim thingies and they were very dirty, whether they were like that before-who knows. But, i would highly recommend them to you! Good luck and have a'lodda fun!
Hookedondizney

 

[LuvindisCruiser]

What I'm using for our 2 booster seats is the Plastic bag that
came around my daughters comforter set. It has a zipper and a handle
and the boosters fit perfect.
Do you think this would be OK? I just don't want them to put
heavy luggage on top of them. Should I write booster seats
in big letters? Would that help at all?

 

[NotUrsula]

If you check seats with your luggage, they will be handled by the automated belt system and they land where they land; they are stacked onto the carts as they come off the belts. They will not honor any "fragile" markings or anything like that; if you want that kind of handling you have to ship them as a cargo package, which would mean that you would not have a choice as to which plane that they got on. It's not that they put them on the bottom on purpose, you understand, it's just that they don't have time to rearrange things to make sure they are on top.

If you take the seats to your gate and gate-check them, then they will be placed into the hold of the plane last, after all the checked luggage has been loaded, and they will only be placed on one belt (the ramp from the jetway door down to the tarmac.)

Aside from the issue of the weight of the luggage, I gate-check because I don't like risking that the seats might be mis-routed in the bag room and end up on a different flight. We can't leave the airport without them, after all.