Should 1st class babies and children stay in 1st class?

[user30]

Long haul flight, economy on lower deck, business/1st class on upper deck.
From the moment the fasten seat belt signs went off there were between 1 and 7 women (I would guess nannies but I do not know) juggling babies and toddlers in economy as well as badly behaved children aged 3-7 running around and making a huge mess in the bathrooms. I was on the front row and was repeatedly tapped and asked to tuck my legs under my seat to give them more space.

Cabin Crew seemed irritated (at one point 2 children threw handfuls of rice down the stairs onto a Cabin Crews head!) but only said something when a boy started throwing (unused) sanitary towels at economy passengers.

AIBU to think that everyone including children should stay in their own section of the plane? It was a nightmare and I am very tired so may be a bit cranky 😂

Likewise.

Whilst in an ideal world on many airlines the cabin crew would step in to sort this out in some parts of the world doing so could be career ending…..it depends on who is involved.

You should have went up and sat in one of the empty first class chairs.

When the cabin crew challenged you, you tell them when they get control of the economy cabin and it's not like a crèche then you'll return.

@Notsandwiches correct!
@notimagain I always wonder what parents are hoping for when they defend their children's poor behaviour - do they think the child will grow up to be a respectful loving son/daughter? Seems unlikely!

This is a lovely vision, but I think I'd have been rugby tackled on the stairs in reality 😂

I would have been calling the cabin crew repeatedly until the bag behaviour ceased. No matter your wealth you can't disrupt others. Thankfully on all other types of land there isn't space to play, I will definitely avoid those double decker ones

Agree with PP, knew it would be an Arabic airline before you said it was emirates. I used to live in Saudi Arabia and the children on Saudia (their national airline) used to cause absolute chaos. I think it’s just a cultural difference of what is acceptable, they have a different attitude towards children and actually in general I found them much more family friendly. There are also some “elite” VIP passengers who the cabin crew will not challenge.

This is where a sneaky glass of water ‘accidentally’ spilt on a child’s head while running into me can come in very handy!

@mitogoshi they were thin on the ground and incredibly stressed! They were run ragged cleaning the bathrooms and heating milk bottles. At one point 2 very spiffily dressed boys went into the toilet together and literally trash it - soap, wiped everywhere, toilet blocked with paper towels, floor inch deep in water. It was cleaned and they went straight back in! It was horrendous. I felt so sorry for them I didn't want to make it worse by complaining. I will write and complain as pp suggest.

Dubai has served our family very well over the years. Granted it’s not my place culturally - but we usually used it in feb/oct half term for guaranteed sun.

We always stayed somewhere like the Atlantis - and even though it’s a bit of the insta crowd - it was great service, 20 plus quality places to eat under one roof, water park, pools etc. it was perfect when the kids were young.

Service was always great - but usually people from the Philippines or Sri Lanka who are working to send money back home. When the Arabs used to arrive on the Friday - they used to treat the hotel staff like dog poop. It was horrible to see.

If you are in the front row they should not be using that as a short cut. You have paid for that extra room.

Excellent

That's where they keep the angry people
😆

I won't touch Emirates with a barge pole their staff in Dubai are rude and their staff won't challenge certain passengers on flights - also had an experience of terrible parenting letting 1st class passenger children keep lots of people awake (not talking a baby or toddler 7 year old just deciding to sing then scream and shout and stomp their foot).

We now prefer to pay a bit more to a different airline then give anything to Emirates!

YANBU OP

Just trip the kids up, and claim blind it was accidental. The kids will know it was not and hopefully stay away from you.

To be fair i can see where their coming from when I'm flying first class I always go to economy to take a shit so the peasants can smell it we don't want anything spoiling our flight including children while where in the important end of the plane

My goodness, this sounds horrendous. We are flying with Singapore airlines soon, from London to Singapore. Please tell me we get more than one glass of wine! LOL.

Ooh, glad I read this thread - I'll no longer be going Etihad to Sri Lanka... BA less convenient timings, but think it might be worth it!

We were on an internal flight , think Penang to KL where the parents sent three of their very small children to sit on a row on their own behind us whilst they occupied a row towards the front, mum dad and an older child. Dad was asked to come and sit with two of the children by the cabin crew who explained he could just not leave them on their own, the third sat where he had been sat with wife and older child. He was a) very annoyed and b) clueless as to what he should do with these children he had been lumbered with, I may have kept sneaking a look at him through the gap in the seats and he never once acknowledged them.

Agree with the nanny thing though, but to be fair to the parents, why have a dog and bark yourself, they are paying some (usually South East asian) woman to look after them so they don't have to. In Munich last week with a family of mum dad and two young teenage daughters and a toddler - they caught my eye as the mum had a Birkin and the 2 girls had a Chanel bag each. Toddler wasn't at the table with them, she was sat with the nanny on a separate table. It always looks a very uncomfortable situation - totally get having a nanny whilst you work but on holiday? Best one I saw was in Singapore where each child had a nanny.

"stop stamping on my foot or this big man (pointed at DH) will get cross" but the little brat laughed. TBH I have no idea if he understood English

Shouldn't need to understand English as shouldn't have been doing it anyway!

What culture lets kids do this?

Also knew it would be emirates.

have had many similar experiences. Parents want the DC to sit with the them when the going is good but as soon as things get tough the children are sent to their “nanny’s” who never sit up front.

i had a particularly shit flight where a BF mum was in first with her baby and the nanny would have to being the baby to feed and was then sent back to economy. Mum would feed baby but had no interest on settling baby so would literally roll over, put head under pillow whilst baby screamed.

As a society children are treated very badly in the UK I was shocked at the difference.

Many people who fly Emirates are connecting passengers, so I don’t know why people say it’s cultural. There are many bad parents here aswell

Because it is

Anyone who has spent any time on the gulf states knows that’s it 100% cultural.

Are you suggesting that parenting your children and ensuring they do not act like little shits disturbing everyone and trashing the place is treating children badly????