18 month old on a plane

[spugzbunny]

I'm flying with my daughter for the first time in the summer and I'm struggling to think about the practicalities. She'll be 18 months old, small for her age and probably still breastfed. I may be either in a separate flight to my husband or not sat near him as he's going with work so flights are booked separately.

Do I book her her own seat?
Do I take a car seat if we hire a car or can you rent them?
If I don't book her a seat and do take the car seat, where do I put it?
What do I do with the buggy? It'll be an umbrella style stroller.

Anything else I need to consider?

It's a short haul flight to Copenhagen.

At that age she would normally be on your lap for the flight. Buggy gets counted as checked in baggage but normally get to keep it until you're at the gate. If you take the car seat without them having their own seat then it can be put in the hold too

Assuming she fits in one of those infant baby carrier car seats I would book a seat and strap her into the car seat which will be strapped into the plane seat. Having them on your lap is exhausting unless it’s just a short flight. You should be able to take the buggy to the gate and then fold it and they’ll put it in the hold for you.

You won't need to book her a seat unless you're unhappy with her sitting on your lap. If this is her first time flying it would probably be best for you to let her sit on your lap.

If you're not booking her a seat for herself then you can put the car seat in as hold luggage. Depending on the airline, they usually let you take up to two items you generally need for an under two (travel cot, car seat etc etc) for no extra cost.

The pushchair you'll have till the plane door. They tag it when you check your other luggage in and then take it off you and put it in the hold. Some airlines bring it to the door when you land, some don't (probably best to check with your airline about this)

If your husband is flying separately, I presume that means you're travelling on your own? I did it at Christmas with DD who was 14 months at the time. If you have the chance to have your husband with you, take it! Flying with a toddler (even short haul) on your own with all their stuff is bloody hard. Good luck!

Hi OP!
I'm sure if it's the same for all airlines but I think as she's 18 months you don't have to book her a separate seat, she can sit on your lap. But if you want more space you could book a separate seat.

I always bring our car seat as I've heard the ones you can hire usually aren't great, it can also be quite expensive. I have an iSafe bag to put it in. It goes in the oversized luggage. I also quite often shove a pack in nappies in there too, only once been asked to show that there was a carseat inside!

I always bring the buggy to the gate and drop it right before you get on the plane. You usually have to get a tag for it at check in. Some people put them in a bag but I don't bother. The only thing that can be annoying is sometimes there isn't a lift/ tunnel down to the tarmac/ plane, so you have be able to carry everything, or ask for help. But it sounds like your DH will be with you so probably ok.

They are supposed to leave the buggy at the bottom of the stairs for when you get off the plane, but that doesn't always happen. Occasionally we've had to carry DD and collect the buggy at baggage reclaim.

The only other thing I would advise is pretty obvious, plenty of snacks, toys. At that age we made sure we had some TV on the iPad she'd watch. I'd change the nappy before you get on the plane as the loos tend to be tiny and a bit awkward for baby changing. Oh and when you go through security let them know if you have a water cup/ bottle for her as even if they're empty they sometimes pull you aside to check your bag.

Enjoy your trip!

Take a change of clothes for you as well as her in case she is a bad flyer.

@RoseReally I've just had a look at those bags and they look great! I'll definitely get one of those as I can also use it for storage when she grows out of it.

You don’t have to book her a seat but depending on the fare it’s so great for her to have her own in an infant car seat. So it’s £20 each way just to have her on your lap. If the fare not loads more it’s so nice to have your hands free and the extra leg room of her seat for bag etc. You’ll have to hold her on take off and landing. If don’t book a seat you can check 2 pieces of baby equipment. So car seat and buggy which you can take to gate.

If you end up on your own a sling or reins depending on how good a walker she is would be a great idea. And try to pack as light as possible.

Please check with airline before planning to strap her in her own seat in car seat. Only some seats allowed. For short haul though I wouldn’t bother, she’ll be fine on your lap, especially if she’s breastfeeding.

Only specific seats are allowed on board so if you are booking her a seat you may need a different seat due to seat size restrictions. We've never taken a car seat with us

The car seat issue had been solved as we will be getting public transport everywhere so no need for that!

We’ve just flown from London to Copenhagen today with our 13 month old!

Was only in the air for an hour and twenty minutes.

Took a phone//kindle full of tv programs, lots of snacks and dummies and she was absolutely fine.

BA couldn’t have been more helpful. We dropped the buggy off just before we boarded the plane and once we arrived at Copenhagen it was waiting for us at baggage collection. We got the metro into the town centre which was super easy!