Travel Tips For Flying With A Baby And Toddler

Now that we are a family of 4 with 2 smaller children 3 and under, if we decide to take an airplane, we will be flying with a baby and toddler.

My in-laws live almost 11 hours from us so if we don’t drive the whole way, then we will likely fly.

We have driven this road trip with a baby and toddler before which isn’t completely terrible.

But if I had a preference, I would absolutely choose to fly.

We currently have a 1-year-old and a 3-year-old so if given the choice to choose between an 11-hour trip or an hour-and-a-half flight, I’m choosing the shorter trip.

I know that some people are intimidated by flying with babies and toddlers, but if you make sure you that are prepared, it can be a good experience.

We recently had to fly out to my in-laws and I made sure to take note of what we did this last time with the girls in order to share some of my tips for flying with 2 kids 3 and under.

If you are interested in my travel tips for flying with a 1-year-old baby and a 3-year-old toddler, then just keep reading.

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When Is A Good Time To Fly With Younger Children?

Before I get into my travel tips for flying with a baby and toddler, let’s talk about this.

When is a good time to fly with a baby and toddler?

The answer to this question is that it depends.

It depends on a number of things such as your baby’s temperament, their nap and wake times, and even your own anxiety around flying with smaller children.

As ideal as it would be to have your kiddos sleep the entire flight, it is not always guaranteed.

So you have to know your children and when would be a good time for them.

For a lot of parents, earlier flights in the morning tend to work better for younger children.

And I would have to agree with this tip.

The majority of the times that we have flown with the girls and even when it was just our older daughter, we would fly early in the morning.

They are much calmer during this time of day very calm and they are more likely to fall and stay asleep for the majority of the flight.

We have also taken late flights with them in the evening before and I have noticed that they are much more restless and harder to put to sleep during these times.

I think some of this is a combination of being up all day, overtired, and anxious about getting on the plane.

My 3-year-old loves to fly so when she realizes that we going to the airport to get on an airplane she gets really excited to get to the airport and get on the airplane.

However, having to wait all day to get on the airplane, she starts getting impatient and restless.

She has gotten used to waking up early to get on an airplane so having to wait all day to get on the airplane feels foreign to her.

This is just what I noticed with my girls when it comes to flying so we try to always choose the earlier flights when flying with them.

For some families, flying at night might be better because their children will sleep better during this time.

That is why it is important to know what would work for your family.

Now that we have an idea of when a good time would be for flying with a baby and toddler, let’s get into my travel tips for flying with babies and toddlers.

Travel Tips For Flying With A Baby And Toddler

Get To The Airport Early

My very first tip when flying with a baby and toddler is to get there early.

Between trying to get parked, checking in bags and car seats, and getting through security lines, you need time to do these things.

Especially with younger children.

Everything takes longer to do with children because they are another person that you have to be accountable for.

A good rule of thumb to follow in general when flying is to arrive 2 hours before boarding.

With kids, I suggest arriving 2 and a half to 3 hours before boarding.

We made the mistake once of arriving an hour and a half before boarding and we were really close to missing our flight.

You should always anticipate that security lines may be long or that there may be an error on your boarding pass that needs to be corrected.

So it is better to be early and have time to deal with any issues that arise than to be late and miss your flight.

Take Advantage Of Pre-Check/Pre-Boarding For Families

While on the topic of long security lines, make sure to take advantage of pre-check and pre-boarding for families.

Many airports allow families with younger children and strollers to skip the regular security lines and go through the pre-check line to get through security much quicker.

This was also a mistake that we made once with the girls.

It wasn’t until an airport employee directed us to the pre-check line is when we realized that we didn’t have to wait in the long security line.

The same goes for boarding.

Many airlines do allow preboarding for families with younger children.

In order to find out, check your airline policies or ask an agent once you have arrived at the flight gate.

Use A Baby Carrier/Stroller For Moving Around The Airport

I mentioned above that we use a stroller to move around the airport and I absolutely believe that you should have a stroller when moving around the airport with smaller children.

Some airports are really big and your little one will likely not walk around the whole airport.

I know my 3-year-old starts off walking, but then changes her mind after a while and wants someone to carry her.

Because we know that she will not want to walk the whole time, we bring our double stroller to hold both of the girls.

When my baby girl was younger, I would carry her in a baby carrier.

I found this to be a much easier way to move around the airport with her when she was smaller and not mobile.

But now that she is older and can walk, she goes in the stroller with her older sister while we push them around until we get to our destination.

I will link our double stroller and the baby carrier that I used with my baby girl below.

Utilize Open Gates To Let Children Walk Around/Play

Once you have gotten through airport security and you are actually in the airport, you can finally breathe and take a moment to figure out what you are going to do next while you are waiting to board.

During this time, we will normally grab something to eat and then head over to an open gate area to wait.

If you are not familiar with this concept, some of the seating areas in the airport are open because there are no flights departing at the time.

We utilize these areas to let the girls roam around and get some of that energy out before getting on the plane.

In some airports, they even have indoor playgrounds for kids to play in, but if your airport doesn’t, then head over to an open gate and let your kiddos be free.

Eat/Feed The Kids Before Boarding

Along with waiting at an open gate, another one of the things we normally do before boarding is eating.

We will grab breakfast for everyone and fill up our bellies before boarding so we don’t have to worry about being really hungry while on board.

My baby girl is still nursing at a year old so I will typically nurse her as well before boarding or once we have boarded during takeoff.

I actually prefer to nurse her during takeoff because of how comforting nursing is for her.

She is also more likely to fall asleep after nursing during takeoff.

Change Diaper/Use Bathroom Before Boarding

My older daughter is notorious for having to use the bathroom right when we get on the road and are headed somewhere.

And she is likely to do the same thing when we are flying.

In order to minimize the chance of this happening on the plane, we try to make sure to take her to the bathroom beforehand.

My daughter is potty trained and has been for a year now so the chance of peeing on herself is pretty slim but I don’t want to put her in a position where that can even occur.

While my older daughter is peeing, I will change and put a fresh diaper on my baby girl so that she is mostly dry during the flight.

After we have gotten some food and taken our potty breaks, we will proceed with boarding the plane once it is time.

Buy/Take Snacks On Board

While we are usually getting food within the airport, we will typically grab snacks as well to take on the plane

My daughter normally carries her backpack that she takes as her carry-on on the plane so we will make she has a snack and something to drink in her backpack while on the plane.

The longest flight that we have ever been on was 2 hours so usually, one or two snacks will hold her over until we land.

The same goes for my 1-year-old.

She likes those Gerber cereal puffs so I will pack those in my diaper bag along with some water for her to drink during the flight if she wakes.

Bring Activities/Tablet For Entertainment

While on board, having something to keep your little ones entertained is a must.

My 3-year-old has her Amazon Fire Kids Tablet that will keep her busy either through playing games on there or watching a kids’ show.

But another activity that I will bring for her is these Reusable Water Wow Activity Pads by Melissa & Doug.

These little pads are really cool because once you have filled up the pen, your little ones can draw and scribble with this water pen and it will reveal different things on the pad.

I have to make sure I have filled the pen with water prior to getting on board so that way she can play with it while are flying.

As for my one-year-old, she is not able to just still and watch a screen for a long period so we give her whatever is near for her to play with.

This can be an empty water bottle, our keys, or even a flight brochure.

For the majority of the flight, she sleeps so this only applies when she is awake.

Save Walking The Aisles As A Last Resort

And my last tip for flying with a baby and toddler is to save walking the aisles on the airplane as a last resort.

This is actually a tip I picked up from The Mom Hour.

As much as we all want our little ones to sit still or sleep for the entire flight, it just may not happen.

This is especially the case with younger children.

Once they get older and can manage to sit still for hours at a time, then longer flights will become much easier.

But until then, we need to learn how to navigate through those fussier times when our kiddos are less patient and tired of being still.

If you notice your little one starting to become antsy and irritable and nothing is working to distract them, then it might be time to take a stroll through the aisles.

I note this as a last resort because it may not always be feasible during times of higher turbulence or when flight attendants are serving passengers.

But if you are having a hard time getting your little one to calm down, then take a moment to stand, stretch those legs, and walk your little one down the aisle and back.

Your Turn

Well, those are my travel tips for flying with my 1-year-old baby and 3-year-old toddler. I want to hear from you all now. What are your flying tips with babies and toddlers that you would add to this list? Let me know in the comments and while you are still here, check out my previous post below. Until next time!

• Read More: Outdoor Activities To Do With A 1-Year-Old

Love,

Just Jass