pointcrazy

We are taking Princess Pointcrazy on her first longhaul to BGI; CW out and F return. Any top tips?

P.S. Will we get nasty looks when we bring our little one into FIRST?

Swiss Tony

We did (take 1 yr old and 3yr old into first) and we didn't (get nasty looks). We kept the kids quietly entertained with favourite toys and new toys and everyone was happy. Chicken nuggets, mash & peas served on the F crockery for my 3yr old son was ^

Howard Long

I can only comment about F but bassinet seats are row 1. You will probably get some nasty looks if you don't make any effort to placate your little one when he/she starts crying. On previous experience you are almost guaranteed your own cabin crew when travelling with a baby in F, with all the brooding that can go on from the female FAs.

Good luck!

Cheers, Howard

KenJohn

How will the seat arrangements work?
Mother and 1 yr old in 1A for bassinet seats and Father and 3 yr old in an EF a few rows down
or
Mother and 1 yr old in 1A for bassinet seats and 3 yr old in 1K and father in 2A/2K?

Logistically a challenge.

kryten22uk

As its a holiday rather than business route, you're quite likely to find other families in J/F too.

mjcewl1284

I'm not a BA flyer, but I've observed enough F/C segments with children to make some points for you.

-Takeoff/Landing is the most painful for babies/children, keep them busy or distract them so they don't cry.
-Children's meals: A MUST. There are a few kids I've seen, their eyes light up instantly when they see food that they can enjoy.
-When you say "we," I can only assume that your wife is going along. It is important to be both involved. I saw one rather disgusting image of a husband/wife couple with their kids crying and the husband rather aloof to the matter while watching a movie in his seat. Both of you must make an honest effort, even though it is long haul.
-(BEFORE I SAY THIS, I DO NOT AGREE WITH THIS PRACTICE 100% BUT HEARD THIS FROM ONE KID'S MOTHER ON A C SEGMENT) A small dose of Benadryl in a child's milk or juice will put them off to sleep for quite a while.
-Hope that your purser or inflight service manager is great with kids. I've seen a purser on NW, excellent with kids, take about 10-20 mins of her time to entertain a 11 month old, giving the mom and dad a little bit of a break. This was genuine as the 11 month old was happy, even though the purser was parading her around almost.
-(Might be a United States thing since I saw this on an NW F segment) Change your baby in the restroom please, not on your seat cushion.

There are some that argue that babies and children don't belong in F/C (Just ask CX ) but being a primary F/C customer, I don't care if there are young ones running around. They are as deserving to be in a class that they (their parents) have paid for.

Good luck.

Tits McGhee

I can tell you this is absolutely not restricted to the United States. This happens on most flights with all nationalities and it is one of my major peeves as crew - and I always put an immediate stop to it.

I've been travelling as a passenger in the past and had a woman try to change a sh*tty nappy on the seat next to me. I stopped her and told her to go to the rest room because that isn't something I want to see.

It disgusted me - the cabin was still being cleared in after dinner AND perhaps more importantly, other people have to sit on that seat. God only knows what might, errrrrrrrm, drop from the nappy or baby as it's changed.

So, when in my official capacity as crew, I politely stop the change from taking place and tell the parent to take the child to the restroom if they wish to change the nappy - even if it's not dirty.

I'm usually given the "there's a queue" response, to which I respond "I'm very sorry, but you'll just have to wait".

Parents can get away with a lot on a plane to help make life easier, but there are some things that are completely inappropriate.

This is certainly one of them .

EDITED TO ADD : This applies for the cot/carseat, too. They are beds/chairs, not changing tables. TAKE THE BABY TO THE BATHROOM, please.

DownUnderFlyer

I just wish all people would be as understanding as mjcewl1284! ^

The crew can make a big difference for everybody in the cabin, too. If they are child friendly, allow the child to roam and treat the child as a human being then this is another step towards a happy baby and a happy baby doesn't scream.

Mirco DUF has done almost 50 flights in her first 16 months and almost all of them in C/F. So for the OP I would say:

- have her favourite toys
- have a portable DVD player for her favourite movies
- Have some food you know she likes (if she is a fuzzy eater)
- Have things with you which she associates with sleeping.

If there is a free seat, try to grab it as the baby will sleep much better than in the bassinet.

Happy flying!

Moz

The cynical Moz would say you paid (or used hard earned miles) for your flight so they have no right to judge.

The more reasonable Moz (and thankfully the one that usually travels with my little one) chooses always to fly CW or F but chooses flight times that will all but guarantee that he sleeps for as long as possible. We spend all day swimming/running/playing until the little guy is so tuckered out that he falls right to sleep on the redeye (usually JFK-LHR). Any nasty looks at the beggining then end up with being loving "isnt he so cute, he's such a good traveller etc" at the end!

In any case, the configuration of CW/F makes it difficult to see the dirty look anyway

catandmouse

I've always felt it depends an awful lot on the parents. My latest experience was in F on a TGV to Paris.
On the outward, I had 2 kids behind me, their parents were separated because of idiosyncrancies of TGV reservations by at least one row from the kids. If I hadn't looked round, I wouldn't have even noticed they were there. Frankly I don't know what they were doing all the time, but they kept themselves occupied and were real angels.
Contrast the return, with 2 small children (not really even a baby anymore), screaming the whole 3 1/2 hours on the return. Everyone in the carriage was suffering - it was obvious. Parents were clearly incapable of managing the situation.

firstclasslad

Babies are one thing...

Mingers, well -they should NOT be allowed to turn left!

Craney

Some people amaze me. Why the hell would you change a nappy on a seat next to a complete stranger??!! There's a changing table in the toilet so people should use it. You wouldn't change a nappy next to someone on a bus or train so what's the difference??!! Some people!!!!

Disco Volante

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8120/4.3.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/125)

There are some good tips in the Ultimate Guide sticky. The bassinets in F are 1A and K. Depending on the age of your baby, you can have either a cot or a Britax travel seat. They will need the seat from somewhere between 6 and 12 months. The Britax seat is a little like a bouncy chair, which they will sleep in quite happily. Both the cot and the seat strap onto a shelf that folds down in front of the seat, so that they face you. IME BA crews in F go out of their way to help with babies - they have been brilliant with us. If the baby cries I would take him into the galley and settle him there he can play peekaboo with WT+

dm827430

err.. have you been on the tube recently? in the past month or so, i have seen at least a couple of mothers whip a dirty nappy off their offspring whilst stuck in a metal tube 200ft below ground level.

HighLife

A (no doubt wealthy) woman u/gded herself on board from CW to F on LHR-NRT the other day with a baby. They got 5 E/F ... and apart from the fact that the aisle carpet alongside the baby's seat ended up being absolutely littered with mashed up crisps and food by the end of the flight, and that I heard faint mewlings occasionally from where I was seated in 1K, it didn't bother me one jot. That's what noise-cancelling headphones and earplugs are for .

To be honest, the very loud and undoubtedly very famous (from the reception he got from people at baggage reclaim at NRT) Japanese actor or comedian behind me in 2K was more of a bother during the flight!

HL