May 17, 2014, 3:00 pm
Last edit by: Prospero
Infant and lap child fares and fees on international travel, including award & upgrades
On AA there is no charge for a lap child on domestic flights. In most instances for international travel the cost will be 10% of the adult fare in the cabin of travel (be aware in some instances / on some other airlines, it can be 25% of the cost of an adult ticket). From aa.com:
Are you traveling with an infant?
Passengers are considered infants if aged over 2 days and less than 2 years at the beginning of their journey. To travel with an infant, you must be an adult passenger aged 16 or older. Adults can travel with up to two infants and in these circumstances, can purchase an additional seat at a child fare.
Although infants can travel as early as 2 days after birth, you'll need to provide a medical certificate for infants traveling within 7 days after birth. Please contact Reservations for more information.
On U.S. domestic flights:
Infants not occupying a seat travel for free. If you prefer to book a seat for your infant, a child fare will apply.
You must call AA on the phone to add a lap infant to an existing reservation. The lap infant will NOT appear in the online reservation and receipt.
Travelers with a lap infant may check in online, for domestic flights only, and the boarding pass will be annotated with the words "WITH INFANT" immediately after the traveler's name.
On international flights:
Infants not occupying a seat benefit from a 90% discount on most adult fares
If your infant turns 2 during your trip, we'll provide you with a complimentary seat on the return flight. If the return journey is not on American Airlines, please contact the other airline to check if a seat must be purchased. (Infants and children must provide passports with any required visas; all children not traveling with both parents may be required to have a Letter of Consent signed by both parents.)
You must call AA on the phone to add a lap infant to an existing reservation, and will need to pay the fare at that time. The lab infant and fare WILL appear in the online reservation and receipt.
Travelers with a lap infant may NOT check in online for international flights and must check in at the airport.
NOTE: AA will not generally block a complimentary spare seat to be used by an infant or lap child. If seats are available at the airport, it might be possible to be assigned seating to include an adjacent empty seat if the flight will depart with sufficient empty seats.
Bassinets: These are portable, not bulkhead fastened, floor bassinet boxes. Not all aircraft may offer these, and generally are restricted to bulkhead seats.
See the bassinet thread here."]here.
See more here on aa.com.
For AA policies on required documentation for children, see here.
and
This thread regarding the use - and prohibition, on some aircraft - child safety seats.
For older threads on this topic, see:
N.B.: This thread is restricted to discussion of AA (and AA awards, upgrades) ticketing rules for infants. Please do not use this thread to discuss opinions on safety issues associated with travel with lap children versus infants with their own purchased seats. Those discussions should be carried out in the
Travel with Children forum, where many opinions have been shared and are welcome. Thank you for your cooperation.
Travel with Children forum, where many opinions have been shared and are welcome. Thank you for your cooperation.
Are you traveling with an infant?
Passengers are considered infants if aged over 2 days and less than 2 years at the beginning of their journey. To travel with an infant, you must be an adult passenger aged 16 or older. Adults can travel with up to two infants and in these circumstances, can purchase an additional seat at a child fare.
Although infants can travel as early as 2 days after birth, you'll need to provide a medical certificate for infants traveling within 7 days after birth. Please contact Reservations for more information.
On U.S. domestic flights:
Infants not occupying a seat travel for free. If you prefer to book a seat for your infant, a child fare will apply.
You must call AA on the phone to add a lap infant to an existing reservation. The lap infant will NOT appear in the online reservation and receipt.
Travelers with a lap infant may check in online, for domestic flights only, and the boarding pass will be annotated with the words "WITH INFANT" immediately after the traveler's name.
On international flights:
Infants not occupying a seat benefit from a 90% discount on most adult fares
If your infant turns 2 during your trip, we'll provide you with a complimentary seat on the return flight. If the return journey is not on American Airlines, please contact the other airline to check if a seat must be purchased. (Infants and children must provide passports with any required visas; all children not traveling with both parents may be required to have a Letter of Consent signed by both parents.)
You must call AA on the phone to add a lap infant to an existing reservation, and will need to pay the fare at that time. The lab infant and fare WILL appear in the online reservation and receipt.
Travelers with a lap infant may NOT check in online for international flights and must check in at the airport.
NOTE: AA will not generally block a complimentary spare seat to be used by an infant or lap child. If seats are available at the airport, it might be possible to be assigned seating to include an adjacent empty seat if the flight will depart with sufficient empty seats.
Bassinets: These are portable, not bulkhead fastened, floor bassinet boxes. Not all aircraft may offer these, and generally are restricted to bulkhead seats.
See the bassinet thread here."]here.
See more here on aa.com.
For AA policies on required documentation for children, see here.
and
This thread regarding the use - and prohibition, on some aircraft - child safety seats.
For older threads on this topic, see:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/amer...-upgrades.html 2010-2015
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...paid-fare.html (2008)
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...it-my-lap.html (2006)
dstan
AA Forum Co-Moderator
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...paid-fare.html (2008)
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...it-my-lap.html (2006)
dstan
AA Forum Co-Moderator
Guide: Infant / lap child fares & fees for AA travel, including award & upgrades
Jul 15, 2019, 11:43 am
#272
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Boston
Programs: AA Plat Exec
Posts: 447
Infant fees calculations for a reward ticket
Hello - I am using AA miles for 2 upcoming international trips (USA > Europe > USA). My infant is less than 2yo and will travel on our laps. Due to limited availability, the first trip is business to go there and coach on the way back. For the 2nd one, it is coach only.
I just ticketed the 2nd trip (140,000 miles for 2 adults and $176 in fees), and they quoted me $600+ for the infant fees. The AA Exec Plat rep mentioned that it is 10% of the ticket, and the full fare Y ticket is $6k hence the $600+ in fees. That seemed odd, and they checked against with the ticketing desk and came back saying it was $75.
So long story short: how can I figure out what the infant fare would be, so I can book award tickets accordingly by factoring in the infant fee cost when selecting which flights to go for.
Thank you!
I just ticketed the 2nd trip (140,000 miles for 2 adults and $176 in fees), and they quoted me $600+ for the infant fees. The AA Exec Plat rep mentioned that it is 10% of the ticket, and the full fare Y ticket is $6k hence the $600+ in fees. That seemed odd, and they checked against with the ticketing desk and came back saying it was $75.
So long story short: how can I figure out what the infant fare would be, so I can book award tickets accordingly by factoring in the infant fee cost when selecting which flights to go for.
Thank you!
Jul 15, 2019, 12:47 pm
#273
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 44,597
if you are travelling on AA, it will be 10% of the available adult fare for the journey - for a business class journey it is likely to be quite pricey
If this is for travel on a carrier other than AA, it will be 10% of lowest fare that AA can sell - which may well be a lot more than the lowest fare. if the airline has no fares that AA is allowed to sell, then will not be able to issue anything
If this is for travel on a carrier other than AA, it will be 10% of lowest fare that AA can sell - which may well be a lot more than the lowest fare. if the airline has no fares that AA is allowed to sell, then will not be able to issue anything
Jul 22, 2019, 3:51 pm
#275
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: DCA, EGE, IAD
Programs: MR LTT, BA Gold, AA LTP, UA Silver
Posts: 6,077
Jul 22, 2019, 3:54 pm
#276
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: DCA
Programs: UA US CO AA DL FL
Posts: 50,262
You will need to call. If you are offered a callback, you might try that. The infant fare will be 10% of the base fare you paid + the taxes. Thus, if the adult fare is $3,000 + $250 in taxes, the infant ticket would be $550 ($300+$250).
Jul 22, 2019, 9:17 pm
#279
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 44,597
it will be 10% oof the business class fare that will need to be paid. If the accompanying parent upgrades, then the infant also needs to be upgraded , os fare difference will need to be paid for business class
Aug 19, 2019, 8:36 am
#280
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 47
Hi all, I don't know if this changed, but AA just charged me 10% of today's base fare for a flight and not 10% of the base fare I paid (ticket originally booked in March). I don't recall this happening before, but it's possible that the base fares didn't much move in those cases.
Aug 19, 2019, 11:08 am
#281
Join Date: May 2014
Location: DFW
Posts: 96
As a point of reference....I paid just shy of $2,000 per adult for round trip USA-->Europe-->USA. Going is business and coming back is premium economy. Infant fare was $221. So total cost was approx 11% of adult ticket. The infant true fare on receipt seemed higher than 10% of adult true fare but taxes and fees were less. I am uncertain how carrier imposed fees are handled.
Sep 15, 2019, 11:23 am
#283
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Here and there
Programs: AA EXP
Posts: 1,551
Sep 16, 2019, 7:25 pm
#284
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Louisville
Programs: AA Exp, Marriott Ambassador, Hilton Diamond, AC Prestige 25k
Posts: 1
AA Ticket on BA Flight
Dealing with this infant ticket business for the first time. Looking to book a flight on BA from MLA-LHR-JFK in business. I can use AA miles or BA Avios. As I understand it, the BA infant lap ticket would be 10% of the Avios. Problem is that there seems to be only one miles seat left and it can't be booked online with BA and I've been trying to get through to their phone agents for four days without even being able to get put on hold (I'm guessing this is related to their pilot strike issues). So question is has anyone had any luck booking a BA flight with AA miles and then getting BA to issue the infant ticket as the operating airline using Avios?
Sep 23, 2019, 9:34 am
#285
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: Germany, Bavaria
Programs: AY+ Plat, SAS Gold (butt in seat)
Posts: 350
Hi all, I don't know if this changed, but AA just charged me 10% of today's base fare for a flight and not 10% of the base fare I paid (ticket originally booked in March). I don't recall this happening before, but it's possible that the base fares didn't much move in those cases.
I am quite afraid, they would not charge our base fare, would they?
Caro