France with 7 month old- carry on luggage only

[annatha]

Hi,

We're going to visit DH's parents in France next month with our almost 7 month old DD, and are flying Ryan air. According to their website we each get a carry on case, a small handbag and I get an extra bag for DD. They will carry our pushchair and carseat for free. So we've got plenty of space in our bags, but not being able to check any bags in has got me worrying about what I can and can't pack and their website is quite vague.

DD is formula fed and DMIL has scouted the local supermarket (it's rural France, hours away from anywhere touristy) and they don't stock our formula. I'm worried about changing it so I plan on taking an unopened tub with me. Solids aren't so much of an issue as we plan on calling at the supermarket when we get there to stock up on fruit, veg, yoghurts etc. It's not a long flight so I'm planning on giving her breakfast before we set off, lunch in the airport before we board (probably an unopened ellas kitchen pouch) and tea when we get to PILs house. I usually give her those readymixed cartons of formula when we're out all day so I don't have to mess about with timings and cooling it down, so I'm planning on taking a couple of cartons for the journey there and some for the journey back.

Will they make me open all the food and drink for inspection? Opening the formula powder isn't an issue as it seals, but I don't want to have to open the cartons of readymix formula and food pouches that are for the journey home as they'll spoil, and neither are available to buy when we get there.

Ps, are there any essentials you would recommend for travelling with a baby? Thanks in advance!

Who knew travelling with a tiny person could be so much fuss!

You can check in a suitcase in the hold on Ryanair but they will charge you
for doing so (think its something like £20 each way). I would check in a suitcase too and put all your clothes, the tubs of formula and food pouches (use a Tupperware box for those) required for the return journey into it.

You are allowed to take enough food and milk for the journey for your child and hopefully they will not ask you to taste it/open it all. Its very much dependent on the security officer.

Depending on the airport you will be asked to taste the milk but you can either take extra, time a feed for just after security, or buy a load in the airport Boots. Ring them to check they have it. The powder not being liquid you won't have to taste. Pouches should last a bit longer open.

Be warned that French baby food is weird and mainly chocolate flavour. Spinach and chocolate for example.

You can also order it from boots at the airport and collect it once you've been through security which means you don't have to taste it.

They make you open half of what you take carton wise which is wasteful.

You can put in an order to collect from boots after security for any ready made formula as long as your airport has a boots. They sell food pouches too.

Alternatively you can get boiling water from any of the cafes to make a bottle.

We've done hand luggage only to in laws. We filled ds's change bag to the brim and she got nappies, wipes and food in for us.

Could you post formula to france ahead of your trip to save space? I don't know if it'd work out cheaper than buying a bag to check in though.

In the past, I rang our formula manufacturer's helpline to find out the closest equivalent formula available in Spain. They are often sold under completely different names. If you do this, you may find you can buy the formula in France. They will tell you to take it with you, but I never have.

If they do make you open the ready mixed formula, just put it straight into a sterilised bottle.

We had to taste the water, but I just used to mix the powder en route.

You can get UK formula and baby food delivered to France by Boots International. Delivery is £10. I live in France and have used it to get formula in the little 200ml bottles which you can't get here (only bigger ones), nappies which are much cheaper than in France (50 Pampers are 18 euros in the supermarket) and Ella's kitchen pouches.

I don't see any UK brands of formula in the French supermarket other then Hipp which I've seen a couple of times but it's not that widely available.

My essentials for flying with a baby is to have a change of clothes for yourself as well as the baby in case of sickness, but if you are travelling hand luggage only I'm guessing you will have clothes you can change in to anyway!

Thanks all, you've all been really helpful! I think I'll have a look at a big boots order posted to mil so I'll have unopened pouches and milk for the flight home. We were planning buying nappies etc while there but I might as well order everything in one go to save space in the luggage too.

Can you not just pay for one hold bag?

I'd be paying £40 just to check in a few bottles. If we had less room in our hand luggage then I would, but there's so much space that I can't justify paying that.

Have you checked the hand luggage sizes? Easy Jet are very mean with their sizes and they cases they stipulate seem little more than a shoe box. You have hardly any room in the smallest hand luggage. Does your baby get a hand luggage allowance? Does she have her own seat on the aircraft? I would not even think of going with just hand luggage but obviously I pack too much.

She doesn't get her own seat but she has her own bag. Before dd we managed with just one carry on case and my handbag between us (my carry on case was full of Christmas presents) so we've got plenty of space. Because we're staying at pil's house we only take clothes for a couple of days and something to read, towels, toiletries etc are all there already otherwise I'd never manage on just hand luggage!

Are u sure she gets her own bag? im flying Ryan air and the online robot things told me no bags for infants