Car seats in Australia

[myermay]

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[Caron]

Hi Myermay,

I live in Sydney & have 3 children (youngest is 10mths). I rely on cabs as a regular mode of transport as well as buses & trains. I'm lucky to have 4 regular drivers who I can call. Prebooking thru the companies has been extremely frustrating as they don't guarantee they can get you a cab & I have been stranded at the last minute (cabbies are bad for being lazy). However I have found Premier cabs to be good.

There is a train at the airport, fast to city but expensive($12 o/w). At the airport you can ask the taxi council assistant to get you a cab with child seat (both capsule & seats for older children are available. You dont need to pre-book as cabs are plentiful. Look out for the wheelchair cabs - the drivers are excellent & the seat is usually already set-up. Sometimes you pay for the driver to put the seat in (meter turned on).

Also be aware the advice given about having your son on your lap (Perth) IT IS ILLEGAL. Children 4 years & under must be in an approved child restraint in all cars, vans & taxis.

Public transport is good, some buses are wheelchair accessible and you can wheel a pram or stroller onto the bus. Buses that are wheelchair friendly have the letter "a" on the timetables next to the times of the bus, although this is not always reliable. The bus also has a small wheelchair symbol on front window near doorway.

Trains are the same, some stations have lifts/ramps or escalators. Staff are not allowed to assist you carring prams/strollers up & down stairs.

I highly recommend bringing an umbrella stroller with you, I use the Maclaren Vogue. A damned good investment, especially with a hood because it is very hot in summer. You can buy a very cheap maclaren just for travel - safe, strong, reliable & so easy to fold.

Good luck with your travels & I hope you enjoy Australia.

[bloss]

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[cori]

There are so many cabs at the airport you will probably find one with a car seat. We did when we arrived in Sydney with DS who was 1 at the time. The other idea is to 'borrow' the Kiddie seat belts they give you for infants on the plane. Whilst not legal in NSW , they would probably do for Singapore, not as safe as a car seat , but does give added security.

[tweeny]

we lived in Oz for a year and took our car seats on the plane with us.(kids were 3 and a bit). worked really well as they were comfy enough to sleep on the plane and they couldn't get out without our help so didn't tear up and down the cabin. just need to check with the airline. we flew singapore air (highly recommended).you then arrive at the airport with useable car seats. the ozzie fastening system is different - and better - than ours - they have a strap in the centre of the car seat which attaches to the car but we had no problem using the pommy seat belt method.
oz is VERY child friendly - i'm sure you'll have a lovely time!

[Katapilla]

Saw something today in a newspaper about a taxi service (in Perth) planning to introduce a compartment on the roof of all their cars that holds a car seat so that they can just take it out and fix it in the car when required. Think they intended to have them in place by end of june 04. So maybe you can look out for a taxi with a camel hump type thing on the roof!

Also found a good site here:
car restraints

[SueW]

You could try a serviced apartment.

[myermay]

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[bloss]

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[slug]

All the rental places rented out carseats as well. In fact I think if the hire was over a week the seat came free.

Enjoy. We did 5 weeks in Oz with our 20 month old last year. She had a fabulous time.

[slug]

I was told in Perth by a taxi driver that it's legal for you to hold the child in your lap if you're in the back seat for such a short journey.

[toddlerbob]

We keep a spare very light infant seat for going away as I can't be bothered standing around while they try to find the cab with the car seat or try to work out how to fix it into the cab properly. I think it was only about 35 pounds.