Before I went to Seville last week on our first family holiday, I mostly researched how to survive flying with a baby. Nothing about the destination, just tips for getting through the flight. It’s the thing I was most stressed about.
Similarly since I got back, the first thing family, friends and colleagues have asked me is “Oh how was Indi on the plane?!”. Clearly flying with a baby is a big deal.
So now that I’ve made it through the other side and experienced a couple of flights with my 10 month old daughter, I wanted to write a little something about it. My first thought was to write a “Survival guide for flying with a baby” but I feel like that makes me sound like an expert and after just 2 flights I think that’s a bit premature! So instead here’s just a little write up of my experience.
Flying With A Baby
Luggage
When flying with a baby, you’re allowed two extra things you can check in for free – like a pram or a car seat. I didn’t want to take a car seat (I actually booked transfers that came with car seats in them in Spain), but did want to take a pram for the trip (my trusty BugabooBee5). In the past, I’ve seen a lot of people using their pram right up to the gate, but I’ve always thought that looks like such a faff. So instead we checked our pram in at the same time as our suitcase at the check-in desk.
I heard that prams can get dirty or even damaged on the flight, so it is good to get a pram cover to protect it. In an ideal world I would get the Bugaboo Travel Bag as it looks pretty sturdy, but alas I’m low on funds so went for a cheapo Amazon buy (this one here). But actually it did the job fine, and was quite handy being bright red as it was easy to spot on the carousel.
In terms of luggage, I’m normally a hand luggage only girl, but for Indi I made sure I bought baggage allowance so I could check in a suitcase. Which was entirely necessary with how much stuff I had to pack! But it meant that we had quite a lot of hand luggage to carry through the airport – all of my stuff in one bag, all of Josh’s stuff in another bag and a changing bag for Indi. And I had Indi in the baby carrier so it felt like a lot to carry. I think in future I would just check-in more to make the airport experience a bit easier for us.
The Airport
So yes, I had Indi in a baby carrier. My usual one was starting to give me a backache as Indi has gotten bigger, so I borrowed my friend’s Ergobaby for the trip. And it was perfect for the airport. I can’t imagine having to put down a pram and get it through security on top of everything else.
I was actually worried about security but it was totally fine. My bags did have to go to that bit on the other side of the conveyor belt, as the guy had to scan the milk and baby food I had packed for the flight. But it was all good really. I think we were lucky as there wasn’t a long queue or anything.
In Departures, we had lunch before the flight, but actually had trouble finding a restaurant with a highchair. We ended up in Friska – they’ve got a pretty decent Kids menu FYI.
Then we ended up scouting out a little family area they have in Luton Airport. It’s down near gates 1-6 so there’s a bit of a walk down there. But they have CBeebies on the TV and a couple of little games to play. So it was really good for keeping Indi entertained. Plus there’s another Pret there with way less people. Winning.
Boarding The Flight
Everyone told me that families get called up first on flights, and I do remember seeing that in the past. But both flights didn’t have that on our trip to Seville. They were the kind where it’s one queue and it’s a bit of a wait, so I did have to jiggle Indi around a bit to keep her quiet. But I mean it wasn’t the end of the world.
The Flight Itself
As soon as we sat down, Indi was already fidgeting. I mean, it’s hard to keep a 10 month old in one place at the best of times. But I was kind of already stressing as she kept trying to grab the guy next to me and reach up for the tray table.
But it was ok, we both just had to work hard to distract her.
I packed some brand new toys for the trip. A fidget cube that I saw good reviews for and a scrunchy book that had different things for her to do on each page, like lift the flap, buckles, zips, etc. I chose them because I thought they would entertain her for longer, but also because they were in one piece, so if she dropped them it would be easy to pick up.
I also read that if the toys were brand new and they’d never played with them before, it was more likely to keep them entertained.
Well they were a bit hit or miss. She liked them for a little while on the first flight but got bored of them quicker than I had hoped. On the second flight however, she got really into them. So I think maybe it’s just that everything was so new on that first flight that there was no distracting her!
I also downloaded some episodes of Hey Duggee onto my phone (her favourite show) but that only distracted her for 5 minutes so wasn’t very successful. I think there was just too much going on.
Oh I should mention, on take off and landing we either gave Indi a milk feed or made sure her dummy was in. Apparently the sucking motion is good for their ears as they can’t pop them. And I mean she seemed fine so I guess it worked?
The thing about the first flight was that it was scheduled at her morning nap time. But she fought it. She was so tired but obviously didn’t want to sleep. In the end I put her back in the baby carrier, but facing me, and walked up the aisle a bit in order to get her to sleep. She cried for about 5 minutes before she eventually fell asleep. And she was asleep for the last hour of the flight until just before landing. So I mean that’s not too bad. Minimal crying or screaming, she just needed a lot of attention.
On the second flight she was awake the whole time, and although there was no crying or screaming, she did need a lot of attention and distraction again. I never thought a 2 and a half hour flight would be so exhausting!
On that flight she did poop twice (thanks hun) so we also got to experience changing a baby on a plane. And that was actually great. I’ve never noticed the changing table in aeroplane toilets but it’s actually pretty big and sturdy so was super easy.
Next Time…
Now that I’ve experienced flying with a baby, I would definitely make a few changes next time. I would take less hand luggage and bring a few more toys and distractions for the bubs.
I think I would also buy a seat for my daughter. People always go on about kids under 2 flying free and that you should make the most of it. But when you actually experience it, there is not enough room on your lap for a 10 month old, let alone a 2 year old! Also, it wasn’t free, we paid £25 for Indi’s fare on Easyjet. So for an extra £20 I would much rather have 3 seats for our family. We would have extra room for her, but also I wouldn’t be stressing about annoying the person next to me.
The Verdict
Although it was stressful at the time, experiencing these flights made me realise that it’s not that bad. I think the thought of flying with a baby is worse than the reality to be honest. It’s hard work but it’s doable to be able to travel to wonderful places with my family.
And now I know I can do it, I’m on the hunt for our next trip. I’m still not ready for long haul, but more European adventures are definitely on the way…
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