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Original poster

Quick question, honest answers please!!!

17 replies

jojosmaman · 05/01/2009 12:36

DP and I are off to Barbados in two weeks with our 23mth old and I just had an awful realisation of what 9hrs with an almost two year old on my knee will actually be like!! So, have discussed maybe buying ds a seat but just checked and its £400 return to do this (although we didnt have to pay for our own flights so to take this in to consideration) would you

a. bite the bullet and hope that we can get three seats together with one being empty or that ds is as good as gold and doesnt fidget (very unlikely)!

b. Pay for the extra seat but £400 is a lot of money!!

Anyone done long haul with an almost two year old on your knee?? Am I mad even thinking about it?

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Rindercella · 05/01/2009 12:50

Hi Jojo, we did 2 weeks in Barbados with our (then) 15 month old in December. We had her on my our lap but luckily we flew Premium, which helped massively. But actually the flight both ways was fine. On the way out we just gave her toys & books she hadn't seen before, walked her up & down the plane and much to our immense pride & relief she did not cry once. It certainly helped being friendly with our fellow passengers as most of them made faces, etc., at DD which kept her entertained too. The flight back was a doddle as it's night time, so by the time we'd taken off, had dinner, etc., DD was ready for sleep (on me). It wasn't the most comfortable night I have ever spent, but it was do-able. My advice to you? Don't get another seat for your DS, but try & get an upgrade for your 2 seats.

Am of you going to Barbados. Where are you staying?

Rindercella · 05/01/2009 12:52

Also I b/f her on take off, which helped with her ears. Tried to when landing in B'dos, but she was far too interested in what the heck that beautiful island & bright blue sea was! Landing at Gatwick she just slept (even though we circled the airport 3 times).

PavlovtheCat · 05/01/2009 12:56

Who are you flying with? BA have a seat (cross between a car seat and a bouncy chair, that does not bounce) which they attach to the bulkhead for those under 2 (lap children). This available for free for children under 24 months, but make sure you reserve bulkhead seats. You need the baby on your lap for take-off, landing and for turbulence, but other than that they can sleep and you have room to be relatively comfortable too.

Virgin Atlantic have a 'sky cot' which is either attached to the bulkhead or sits on the floor like a satchel, depends on what plane you get. Again you need to be in the bulkhead to get this - you should be able to reserve these as priority flyers with a baby under 24 months old.

On long haul flights I only ever had DD on my lap once, and that was in business class where there was not anywhere to put the seat! And there was lots of room for DD to sleep across me on a big fat pillow.

Check with who you are flying with as many airlines cater for babies these days, and you do not have to purchase an additional seat as they do not take up another seat with the provisions.

Nagapie · 05/01/2009 12:56

I am doing a similar thing with my very wiggly 23 month old when I fly to Cape Town in April ...

£400 is a lot for a seat - do you have a portable DVD of his favourite show or some toys to keep him busy and amused ... and I am sure that the airline staff will be on call to help ...

jingsjosie · 05/01/2009 12:57

I did four hours with a very placid almost 2 year old and it was not a pleasant experience. Worth it for the holiday though.
I think I would rather have the £400 to spend on getting over the trauma of the flight.
Take lots of little parcels like colouring books but wrap them in magazine paper to make it more of a thrill to play with them.
Keep snacks to hand.
Just think about arriving!

Original poster
jojosmaman · 05/01/2009 13:35

Thanks for the speedy replies and I will look into maybe getting an upgrade although we are flying with BMI so I'll check what provisions they have already. DP is up for getting the ticket whereas I am not really, it seems too much money and its a night flight on the way back so hopefully he will be sleeping

Rinder- We are staying in a friends villa on a development called Sugar hill in St James I think? I have never been to Barbados (nor the Carribean for that matter!) but am so excited, everyone who has said they have been seems to love it!

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PavlovtheCat · 05/01/2009 14:07

from BMI website for those travelling to USA/Carribean/Saudi - those travelling with children/infants.

USA, Caribbean, Saudi Arabia

  • Advance seat assignment
  • Priority boarding
  • Kiddies packs suitable for ages 3-7 and 8-12
  • Children under 3 years old will receive a teddy bear onboard
  • Children's meals
  • Bassinets available for infants up to 72cm (10kg) in Premium Economy and Economy cabins
  • Onboard changing facilities and limited supplies of nappies, talc and lotion
  • Onboard baby warming bottle facility
  • Dedicated children and family audio and video selection Over 30 Nintendo games and PC games
PavlovtheCat · 05/01/2009 14:08

(the bassinet is the satchel/seat for your child to be safely placed in when not taking off/landing/experiencing turubulence. The added advantage to this is, as you can advance book your seats, you will have to have bulkhead seats which means much more legroom.

PortAndLemon · 05/01/2009 14:12

Although I expect a 23 month old is likely to be over 72cm and 10kg (DD is and she's only 9 months, although admittedly on the large side).

Rindercella · 05/01/2009 14:12

You should love it! I know Barbados pretty well - I used to go at least once or twice a year, but this was the first time we'd been there in 4 or 5 years. Theres lots of very nice restaurants in & around Holetown. I would say though that there is not an abundance of pavements in Barbados, especially on the west coast, so be careful when walking about. Get yourselves a table at Little Good Harbour for lunch. It is lovely! (but much further up the coast to Holetown)

When you get off the plane the heat will just hit you - bliss Be prepared though for a long wait to get through immigration. It always used to be bad, but this time took nearly 2 hours to get through, which was a nightmare, but we did arrive on a holiday weekend, so that might explain it.

There are quite a few nice things to do for small children too - especially recommend Ocean Park

Have lots of fun & please try not to worry about the flight too much - it is such a short part of your holiday.

Rindercella · 05/01/2009 14:14

We couldn't use a bassinet on Virgin as DD was too big.

Rindercella · 05/01/2009 14:20

Sorry to keep on posting - I just keep on thinking of different things. Because the sterling is so weak againt the US$ (to which the BDS$ is linked), everything is going to seem pretty expensive, so you may well want to keep that £400 handy for spending money when you are out there. When we booked our holiday, the exchange rate was BDS$4 to £1. By the time we went, it had dropped to BDS$3, so quite a big hike.

PavlovtheCat · 05/01/2009 14:32

ah yes, a good point. DD was a tiny ickle baby and we only used the bassinet once when she was 6 months! She had the seat provided by BA last few times. And now alas she has to have her own seat .

Would it be cheaper to upgrade or by a whole seat for DD?

Good luck with it and have a great trip.

Original poster
jojosmaman · 05/01/2009 21:37

Thanks for the info Pavlov I think ds will prob be too big for the basinet so i am now thinking that if I had the option today of purchasing a seat that would mean the flight isn't full and there is a slim chance there may be a spare seat?!! I could run the risk of booking each end on a three'er in the hope that they will allocate the middle seat as a last resort to someone? Will see if we can grab an upgrade at check in [hopeful emoticon]!

Yes Rinder, sounds like the money should be be better put aside, I have heard Barbados isn't cheap at the best of times! Will def try the fish pot for lunch, I have heard v good talk of it and FIL has booked a dinner at the lone star and a night at the cliff (that should take up most of our £400!) for the two nights we have a babysitter so we will def make the most of it. Ds would love ocean park, thanks for the link

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mumoverseas · 06/01/2009 13:12

a word of warning ref all the things that BMI claim to offer for children. we live in Saudi and in the last year have flown BMI around 10 times. On no occasion did my DD ever get the teddy bear they claim to give all children, she never got any amenity/colouring packs etc and on our most recent flight with them (last week) they even mucked up the kids meal which we'd ordered and confirmed twice. They are not very child friendly at all but maybe that is just on the Saudi route. I'd recommend taking some little snacks yourself and colouring stuff.
hope you have a good time

Original poster
jojosmaman · 06/01/2009 21:33

Thanks mumoverseas and I will definately take some extras with me just in case as can't imagine they will be much different on this route!

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Original poster
jojosmaman · 06/01/2009 21:35

Thanks mumoverseas and I will definately take some extras with me just in case as can't imagine they will be much different on this route!

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