Flying with an Infant

Planning a trip with a baby? Check out these tips for Flying with an Infant so you can be prepared.

We just took our first trip as a family of three and we have quite a few more coming up in the future. With weddings, family vacations, football games and holidays we have a very busy year. Plus we had a baby(!), so the combo of all of that has made 2016 turn into quite the year. I know I’m brand new to this traveling with an infant thing, but it went pretty smoothly so I thought I would share a few things that worked for us in hopes it will help one of you!

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1. Feed during take off– I did a lot of research on this and mainly heard to feed during take off to help their little ears not pop. I fed K during take off on both flights and she did great and thankfully did not spit up everywhere.
2. Get a window seat– Especially if your planning to nurse, a window seat seemed the most private to me and since my husband was with me he was in the middle seat so it was a little less awkward in that cramped space.
3. Ask if the flight is full– On both of our flights we asked if the flight was full. On the way up there it was not and we were able to get a full row to ourselves. That was really nice to have an extra seat to spread out in. Unfortunately on the way back that wasn’t an option.
4. Gate check– Gate check your car seat and stroller. That offers less chance for those items to be damaged and most likely you’ll want your stroller walking through the airport.
5. Baby wear– This was really helpful when we were boarding and de-planing. I used my Tula so I was able to have my hands free for my boarding pass and bags.
6. Arrive earlier– Flying with an infant isn’t an easy task. Everything will take a bit longer so arrive a bit earlier and allow for extra time to get through security.
7. Board Early– I know some people with toddlers may say to not board early because that’s longer for them to sit still but I appreciated being able to board early with an infant and get settled in before everyone else got on board.
8. Pack well– I could probably do another post on what we carried on for her bag but make sure you have layers and a blanket because you never know how the temperature will be in the plane or airport. Also bring ziploc bags for any blowouts or major spit ups to keep dirty clothes sealed up.

This is what worked for us on our first flight with an infant. We will have more coming up with the holidays so I’d love to hear your tips! What has worked well for you? Or has not worked well?

Here are a few of our favorite items for flying with an infant