On_Cloud_9

Hi all,

I will be travelling with my 7 month old infant and i was wondering how easy is it to fly will i have to hold her on my lap on the plane ? Where will she sleep ? Also will i have to bring her carseat onto the plane if so would i have to pay for a seat for that ? Or can it go thru onto the converabelt with the stroller ? Everything is all new to me how do i go about feeding and changing ? Do you know how much i would need to pay in taxes. When we arrive at our destination will be having a taxi from the airport what rules and regulations do they have ? Obsviously i would need to let the taxi company know that i will have a baby with me so could i just strap the carseat into the car ? Would i have to bring the base aswell ? Going to be an awful lot of things to bring . Can the taxi provide a car seat if i dont take one ?

Sorry for all the questions

obscure2k

Welcome to FT, On_Cloud_9

There is a forum specifically designed for folks who have questions about traveling with children. I am going to move your question over to that Forum.
Good luck.
Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator

Jaimito Cartero

Are you flying domestic or international? From what city to what city? Any layovers? What airline? Did you pay for a seat for your child? Without answers to these questions, it will be hard to give anything other than general answers to you.

On_Cloud_9

I will explain a bit more i will be travelling international from San Francisco to Heathrow not sure what airline yet as havent booked my trip yet, but we will be travelling in April, we are thinking of traveling with virgin atlantic or british airways. It will be a direct flight to Heathrow.

I appreciate any advice thx

Jaimito Cartero

Well you will pay 10% of an adult fare for a lap child, minimum. Some airlines may even charge you 10% of a full price adult fare, which can sometimes be almost as much as an adult ticket.

Heathrow also seems to have more weather related problems, such as the recent fog in for days, where many flights got canceled. Gatwick seems to be less affected. I'd probably post a specific airline question in that forum.

You can use www.farecompare.com to find general pricing info. It's real important to try and find out the total cost, including your child, as prices do vary widely. You do *not* just want to book a ticket for you and show up at the airport.

You can only use the car seat if you've purchased a seat for your daughter. It must also be approved for airline travel. You can generally gate check your car seat. Many airlines have special seat belts for lap children. I don't know if Virgin or BA has them.

Looking at some general dates in early April it looks like $900-$1000 is the price for BA or VA. The taxes and surcharges can be stiff, so make sure you price everything in (including the 10% child fee, or the extra seat) before you purchase. Mid to late April the price goes up even more.

Swiss Tony

In the UK you will have to have a car seat if you're going to take a taxi. Note that we dont have LATCH here, but I guess at 7 months it'll be a convertible baby-carrier type anyway so the normal 3 point seatbelt will suffice.

It seems as if black cab drivers are happy to let you just hold a child in the back - i've done this in central London - but certainly wouldn't want to do this on the motorway into London from the airport.

loudgonzo

We feed our 4 month old formula mixed with water. Will it be an issue passing 1 or 2 bottles of water for him. Or will we need to purchase the water after security?

erik123

BA is an excellent airline for small kids. They will ahve Birtax infant seats available for a 7 month old - which is a type of car seat attached to the wall. You will not need to buy your infant a seat on BA. I would do a searhc on this forum as well as the BA forum. When you book your tickets make sure you request a bassinet - BA is very good at making sure you'll be provided with one - though there's never a 100% guarantee. If you are flying in a non-holiday period (when fewer families fly) it won't be a problem.

baglady

You'll need to purchase the water after security, unfortunately. If you are in any way able, purchase a seat for your child. It will make the trip so much better for you and the baby.

loudgonzo

Thanks for the heads up and info, unfortunately economics are the ruling factor when deciding whether to purchase an extra seat . Fortunately, it will be a rather short flight^ . DFW-MIA-FPO, so about 2 1/2 hours, and then a short 1 hour hop.

erik123

If you put water in the bottle it won't usually be a problem - I've gone thru multiple times with water in a carry-on.

jonesing

We have gone through with those small "Infant Water" bottles, the 4oz size. My wife has also gone through with a full-sized bottle of apple juice (which they were going to keep) and some smaller 4oz bottles too. When the TSO saw the baby, the super let her take it through.l Only once was the water questioned but since it had a picture of a baby on the front.... BTW Infant water is purified bottled water with flouride added. Dasani etc doesn't have flouride.

xinerevelle

If you bring a carseat and stroller, you can usually just gatecheck them so that you can access them during layovers (so you can use the stroller to get from gate to gate). If there is room on the flight they MAY let you use the carseat for the baby without paying extra. Otherwise, it goes in the hold and the baby goes on your lap.

As for carseats, Consumer Reports magazine just released (Feb 2007 issue) ratings for infant carseats. Use one of the TWO (only two!!) that passed the crash tests. I have the Graco SnugRide and you don't need to use the base -- you can use it as is with only a seatbelt... which is convenient for taxis at your destination.

There are many, many threads on FT about where to change your baby's diaper. Trust me, don't ask the question again or else you'll end up in a warzone. Just go to the lav and change the baby unless something extreme keeps you from doing so. Some lavs have a baby changing table, so ask the FA which one on your aircraft does and use that one.

Good luck! I'm making my first journey at the end of Feb. with a 3 month old, so I can empathize...

zansu

Consumer Reports is a good reference if you're buying a toaster or lawn mower. It is NOT a good resource for information on car seats and strollers.

xinerevelle

Thanks for your opinion... I have mine, you have your's.

Even though the report was eventually disproved, it's only the second time that they've had to retract something ever. Even though the carseats ended up being ok at 38 mph, they still WERE NOT ok at 70 mph. Given that when we do travel with our baby in tow, it's frequently on highways at 70 mph, that's still a little disconcerting, especially since the seatbelts for adults stay buckled at that speed, plus there are airbags to protect them.

While I value other people's opinion highly and use reviews on consumer sites like epinions.com and other shopping sites when I make my purchasing decisions, it's very rare that I'm putting my purchases through the wear and tear the CR does when compiling their data.