Traveling With a Toddler

Dear YOU + ME*,

We’re attending a family reunion in Los Angeles at the end of October. The trip should be great, but it will require me to fly cross-country with my almost two-year-old daughter by myself (my husband is joining us later). I’ve taken many trips by car with her and a one quick flight when she was itty bitty, but nothing like this. You both have small children and I know you travel quite a bit. Any tips? I’m pretty much dreading the whole travel experience.

Thanks,

J.

Dear J.,

You’ve definitely come to the right place for advice. Claire took her first cross-country plane flight at 10 weeks old and I can’t even count how many flights she has been on since then. Miya’s daughter Emi is just as much of a frequent flyer and we’ve both learned a lot along the way.

Take a deep breath. It will be about a million times better than you expect it to be and the trip will go by incredibly fast because you’ll be so focused on keeping your daughter busy.

Circumstances sometimes call for me to alter the plan, but I’ve found this to be the ideal travel situation:

- Be strategic about the timing of your flight. It’s tempting to fly during naptime in hopes that she’ll sleep for a big chunk of the trip, but I find it’s easier to fly during reliably happy times, like the morning.

- Make sure everything is ready the night before so the stress doesn’t start with your trip to the airport. Don't forget lots of snacks, diapers and wipes, plane appropriate activities (more to come on that topic on Friday), a bag with miscellaneous things like tissues, hand sanitizer, and band aids, and finally, a change of clothes. I skipped the change of clothes for Claire once and regretted it immensely after a green smoothie gulped too quickly came right back up as the plane was boarding--just throw a t-shirt and some leggings in there.

- Check your luggage at the curb, including your daughter’s car seat and stroller (they’re still free even if you don’t check them inside or at the gate).

- Carry only a large purse that will fit under the seat in front of you on the airplane. If you pack it full of smaller bags (think one with food, one with toys, one with diapers and wipes, etc), it’s easy to unpack (at security for instance) and repack as necessary.

- Wear your daughter in your favorite carrier (I use the ergo). She’ll probably want to walk and run around quite a bit as you make your way through the airport, but having some sort of carrier makes the security line quite a bit easier. If you use a stroller, you have to take her out, fold it up without her running away, and get everything settled again afterwards. If she's in a carrier, you just breeze right through (you still have to take her shoes off though).

- Board at the last minute. Yes, families can board first, but why make your daughter sit on the airplane for an extra half hour? She could be running around getting her wiggles out. This works because you’re only bringing one bag that fits underneath the seat in front of you--no need to worry about overhead bin space.

- Make sure your daughter has her own seat. Even though she’s under 2 and could fly in your lap for free, it’s not at all worth it. Instead, use the CARES aviation restraint. Toddler car seats don’t fit easily in airplane seats, but a toddler roaming free is an even worse option. This fantastic FAA certified harness makes airplane seatbelts suitable for your toddler and it doesn’t take up much space in your bag. They’re not common, but they should be.

- Entertain her for six hours as you daydream about when flying used to mean reading trashy magazines, taking a nap, watching a movie, and maybe having a cocktail.

Just teasing with that last one (well, kind of). We have some legitimate suggestions for entertaining your daughter and making sure the in-flight portion of your trip goes smoothly. Look for them on Friday!

xo,

ME*

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