Why do airports make travelling with children so hard?

[MidnightPatrol]

I have travelled several times with my now toddler, and every time it has been a nightmare vs just going through the normal check in process.

I seem to be forced to use manual check in each time (for the pram I suppose). This means you have to queue or in ‘special assistance’ rather than use bag drop.

What is better with a toddler than standing in a queue for an hour, waiting while every other passenger that needs assistance is dealt with, late arrivals ushered in front of you etc.

On to ‘family friendly security’ where… again always a huge queue vs the standard queues - both to get your boarding pass checked, and to get your bags searched.

While I am allowed to take my yo-yo pram on board, it is sometimes confiscated and checked in. But… no airport I have been to in the U.K. provides prams in the airport. So you are carrying masses of luggage and a wriggling child while trying to move through the airport.

To accommodate all of the above, you have to be at the airport the full three hours before your flight just to accommodate standing in all these extras queues they’ve created for you. I’ve almost missed flights twice because they’ve managed to take 2-3 hours to get me checked in and through security.

Just…. Why?

The airports actually talk about how family friendly they are, while actively making the experience worse.

I have flown with DC several times a year since they were 3 months old and never had any issues as a lone parent. They are now a teen and it is like a bus for them. I have a colleague who makes every thing an big issue since having a baby, including not going to a family wedding because they did not want to take a toddler on the plane. This is a parenting thing, certain things need a different approach but it really is not hard. Maybe a bit more challenging with a baby/toddler but just a normal part of life as a parent. Every plane I get on has plenty of babies/young children and their parents just plan to get through the airport and keep them happy during the flight.

Maybe you’ve got too much stuff or you’ve just had a bad experience and it’s tainted it for you. I’ve travelled all over with my kids,solo to Australia with 5 month old then 7 month old America twice with 4 kids 2 were toddlers it can be quite full on, but we always got the pram to the gate and just took my time I quite enjoy the airport, the plane not so much tbh.

We've always found airports pretty smooth and fine with toddlers and young children. We use a Yoyo and it's always been able to come on the plane. Queues have been fine. The dcs love the play areas at Heathrow and Gatwick.

I've also never had an issue, I'm a bit confused

My experience at my local airport (one of the main ones in UK) airport is that my disabled child is in a queue with all of the small kids as they funneled into special assistance together. Sometimes it’s fine and sometimes it’s probably not worth it.

It’s incredibly irritating and doesn’t work for either cohort.

I have travelled many times with three kids alone. Youngest they were 1, 3 and 5
My top tip check the buggy in and all other luggage
Hand luggage a rucksack, strap child to front. If child is too big small Wheely case and strap child to back.
Never enter the hell of the family queue throw money and get fast track.
Get to the airport early, after security if child can walk, walk them about until they are tired.

I don't have kids, but I've always thought the airports overseas that have small luggage trollies available after security with a kids seat in are a great idea.

We are on holiday right now and this wasn't our experience coming out. We didn't have to queue for bag drop or to drop our car seats. We were allowed to take our buggy through the airport and leave it at the bottom of the plane steps for them to chuck with the luggage as it's not one that fits in the overhead luggage. We didn't have to go in a separate queue for security. All sounds extremely unusual to me. It was still very stressful and tiring but I can't say it was the airlines fault.

We are yet to have issues, after check in all we have is a pushchair and a ruck sack each, so hands are free of bags, push chair then dropped off at the gate and rucksacks in the overhead. How many items of hand luggage are you buying to make it so difficult?

Agree - we were presented with family security and thought "oooh that's nice!"
It took ages!
Would pay VIP next time

I've had mixed experiences. Some airports they've let us skip queues, there are kids play areas, child friendly food, letting us get on the plane early etc.

At my local airport, they said I could take my buggy to the plane...but expected me to carry my buggy, my baby, and toddler, down the steps from the airport building to the runway, which is impossible. I pointed out this was a health and safety issue ans dangerous for me, my kids, and other passengers and I'd need some help (some airports they've had staff to help carry) and I got a shrug. Thankfully other passengers helped me - one by holding my toddlers hand one by carrying the buggy. If I'd injured myself though the airport / airline would have been completely liable (they should have told me there was no lift or assistance when telling me it was fine to take my buggy to the plane)

I carried them on my hips if really needed, my bag was a rucksack so I had free hands and encouraged walking as much as possible.
They were toddlers thankfully not pre-walkers.
They had rucksacks with a built in rein so I didn't lose them.

I've had the opposite experience to OP, and felt like flying with our baby gave us preferential treatment.

Flown from Heathrow with baby, and then around East Asia from a couple of different airports.
Heathrow had a special 'family' check-in area with no queues. Security allowed us to jump to front of queue. Boarded plane first too. Took pram all the way up to airplane gate. Same experi nice in East Asia, fast track, no waiting around, boarded planes first, took stroller up to plane gate.

I wonder if if depends what airline you fly, some may be better trained to help families?

I'm flying next month on holiday to Europe on a budget airline so maybe it won't be so nice this time round!

Depending on where you live, look at other options that do not involve flying, or different airports.

Family security isn’t to help families, it’s to keep the queues for passengers travelling without children streamlined and moving.

Fast track is definitely worth it.

I had a fantastic experience at Heathrow when I last went with a 6 month old and a 3 year old. They whisked us right through the family lanes, away from queues, no waiting, no screaming children, as simple as could be.

I agree with you about the family security it takes twice as long as most people (including me) had left liquids in their bags! I quite like Tenerife airport where they have a playpen at security so you can put your toddler in there while you faff about.

I think it depends on the airport we have Stansted down to a fine art especially the security queue (go to the right hand side one by oversized not the one straight infront).

I do wish UK airports would adapt some elements that others do to make things more family friendly. Hong Kong is amazing and has kids trolleys so you can pop up to a 3 year old in and pop any bags or coats on so you don't get too hot!

Let me get this straight. You are complaining about being stuck in the queue for people with disabilities? As someone with a disability, I didn't choose to have it - you chose to have children.

I liked te family security as I often travelled alone with two small children. The staff we really good with the children, (probably a bit of checking going on as well as they were asked where they were going, why etc) and at Christmas did very discrete questioning of all the wrapped packages while another person distracted them.

Queue skipping at passport control.. sounds nice but they can't let all the families with toddlers go to the front. And siphoning off adults helps keep the general queue going.

I don’t really understand the problem with prams from your perspective.

You have a buggy that folds up and meets cabin restrictions (babyzen yo-yo). And you’re annoyed that they (sometimes) take it off you and the gate and that you have to queue for an hour to check it in and have no buggy after check in.

Are you just wanting to have a moan?

Travelling with small children can be a pain in the arse. But just use your buggy and, IF it gets put in the hold at boarding, then complain about having to deal with an unconstrained toddler for the arrival portion of things (which is, I agree, a pain the arse).

Sorry, but I never found it to be a pain. I always used a baby carrier and then trunkies to pull along. I remember once carrying a baby and walking backwards through the airport with the eldest two on their trunkies. I arrived in plenty of time and took it slowly. We also found lots of airports had a play area.

I had 2 under two, twice, so there were times when I couldn't travel with 2dc on my own, but once they were all over 2, it was great.

I think if you allow yourself to get stressed, then it will be awful. Or you can choose to make it an adventure and go with it.

I think you have been particularly unlucky OP, but I agree it can be a nightmare! And it's nothing to do with lack of preparation 🙄
I have been forced to use the "family" queue at Gatwick because I had formula with me and it took ages, much longer than the normal queue. The second time I didn't need formula anymore, and when the staff tried to direct me to the family lane I refused. I folded my travel pushchair and put into a bag before going to security with the baby in the sling, so it could be scanned like any other luggage.

I have also had my pushchair taken away by airport staff at check in, in a small airport in France (never in big UK airports), despite paying to get an extra luggage onboard. They were adamant that easyJet didn't allow pushchairs in the plane which is ridiculous. I ended up waiting 2h for my luggage in the UK with my 10mo in the sling, it was a nightmare. Now I always fold the pushchair at check-in too just in case if I leave from a small airport.

Why are you queuing you to check the pram? Just check it when you get to the gate.

Why don't you just take the buggy to the gate and then they take it off you?

I can't say I have experienced any of these problems and I fly fairly frequently with three small DC