Britax Car Seat? Car Seat for Air Travel?

We have the Britax marathon and love it. I checked mine when i flew with my son because it was a short flight. But both of my cousins have the same seat and they say they would not buy anything else. One travels across the country all the time and the other goes to Europe a couple times a year with hers. Their advice helped me decide. But I think no matter what Britax you go with you will love it. The thing about the Marathon that is different than the others is it goes up to 65 lbs, which is wonderful. My son is 3 and only 28 lbs so it might last us forever.

My son has always done awesome with flying. He loves the window seat so he can look out, and did even when he was young. we didn't fly to Hawaii, just North Carolina from Cincinnati with lay overs. I choose to not buy a seat for him and have him on my lap. It worked out with every flight that they moved my seat to be next to one that was open so we had two seats. Once we were up I let him sit in his own seat. He was also good about sleeping ANYWHERE, so I held him to sleep and he slept through one flight each way. It was just him and I flying and I have no clue how I would have made it through the airport with a car seat. I just checked it so we had it when we got down there.
His cup to drink (which I don't know if that's allowed anymore or not) and a special bag of his favorite things to entertain him was all we took.

You really need to call the airline that you will fly with and ask which car seats they approve. Every airline has its own standards.

Check on the side of each carseat and make sure they are approved for airplane use. It MUST specify on the side. I brought one that did not specify air travel and they made me hold my daughter for take-off and landing. She could sit in it the rest of the time, just not the important times! Having a carseat on board is a lifesaver. It keeps them contained in something familiar and will help when naptime comes.
As for traveling with a one year old, get there early, be the last to board (send your husband on with everything to get set up) and bring snacks, books, and quiet toys. Have bottle or sippy cup ready for take off, the long descent, and landing. The flight attendents are usually helpful and are willing to give plenty of milk/juice and empty plastic cups which are fun to play with until they squeeze too hard and crack (in which case you take it away and get a new one again!).
Good look with your trip and the challenges of time change with a baby!

Hello!
We took a trip to FL with a 5-month old. We just used his stroller in the airport, with the carseat attached. We flew Southwest Airlines, which allowed us to take the carseat on board without paying an extra ticket, if the flight was not full. But the carseat was just attached to the stroller, which was very handy because of the storage space on the stroller. Then we just carried him on board in the carseat and his fit just fine. It is the Graco SafeSeat model, bigger than the Snugride. The stroller was collapsed and left at the door of the plane. I will warn you, however, that they beat the tar out of the stroller!

It was all fairly simple. It was nice to do it this way, because of all the security measures. He just sat there while we did what we needed to do, a security staff held him while I collapsed his stroller for the x-ray, then we plopped him back in it after it had gone through. Going through security was kind of a mess, but I don't think there's any way to make it less of a circus!
Best of luck!

When we have flown with our little ones we chose to check the carseat and not try to deal with it on the airplane. Of course we didn't have the long flight to Hawaii, ours have been trip to Florida. During take off and landings chose to hold the children....we also use the Baby B'Air with our smallest during the flight to make things a little easier.
I do know that the family I used to nanny for was originally from Washington so they would take the car seat to use on the airplane. Typically what they would do, is have one parent board the plane ahead of all the others so that they could get it belted in, etc. and then the other would board as usual with the child. Most airlines are pretty flexible and cooperative with these type of situations. The other thing that they did to maneuver through the airport was attach it to their luggage using straps...and then they broke down and purchased a travelmate like the ones they have on www.onestepahead.com that your carseat locks onto a luggage type handle to make traveling less of a struggle. If your going to be doing a lot of traveling you may want to look into it. My best advice is to make sure you pack a small bag with a couple of his favorite toys, and snacks. Also since your going to be in flight for a little while you might want to consider throwing in something new and interesting for him to find during the trip. Hope some of this helps.

I read one response that said, in big letters, it is not safe to fly with a carseat in use. That would only be true if you have a child under 1 yr, since you can't use a rear-facing carseat in a plane. But you can use a forward-facing carseat. Actually, it is safest for your baby. In the event there would be a crash, or very rough landing, your baby is safest strapped in the carseat, same as your child is safest in your car in a carseat. I once read the account of a woman who had a toddler who was involved in a plane crash. They told the woman all she could do was hold the child by the ankles. That child was torn from her hands. She survived the crash, her child did not. I can't even imagine. That is reason enough for me to buy a plane ticket for my child!
Have fun in Hawaii!
R.

We have a Marathon and a Roundabout. We fly about once a month with our one-year-old. Typically, we take the Roundabout on the airplane because it is five inches shorter and one inch narrower than the Marathon. We utilize a rolling/backpack carseat travel bag that we purchased for from the Babies R Us store for $29.99. We also purchased the warranty on the carseat travel bag. Thus, each time it rips and/or tears beyond "repair" we are able to replace it for the first 15 months. I am sure that the Marathon would be just fine on the plane, but it is a bit bulkier than the Roundabout to roll/carry through the airport.

By the way, Britax is the way to go for a very safe car seat. Both of our seats are solid and do not budge even a millimeter when installed correctly! We purchased both seats off of www.babyage.com when they were having a sale. They do not charge shipping or sales tax on Britax either.

E-mail me if you have any other questions about traveling with a one-year-old! Good luck on the plane!

I have traveled with Britax car seats. We carried 2 through the airport, never to do again! If you just have one though, it will be fine. With my one year old, I have a roundabout. it is the lightest weight Britax. I also have Decatholon for my 4 year old. The roundabout is for sure the easiest to carry around. I really like the car seats. I'm not totally sold that they are soooo much safer than others car seats, but they are a TON easier to deal with, which is worth my money. They are so easy to get in and out of cars (and planes).

Advice for the plane with a one year old: bring lots of stickers and a note pad to stick them in (or on you ;-).., ask for a cup of ice, they enjoy that. Pack a little bag with toys they have never seen before, bring lots of treats. You will definitely want a pacifier or something to suck on with ascending and descending. Good luck! I've never had too bad a problem flying with the kids.

My son is 18 months old and we have taken him on 14 plane trips (family out of town mostly). We have the Britax roundabout and we love it. It is so easy to put in and out of the seat and so comfortable. It is also easy to use in the car. It is very worth the money.

DO NOT NOT USE A CARSEAT IN A PLANE! It is not safe or honestly comfortable for any of you. We can put our carseat on the top of hte open sunshade of our Graco Metrolite with the baby inside and it works great. Definitely find the handicapped family line at secruity and give yourself planety of time. Bring losts of snacks, give Tylenol for earaches, and bring lots of toys, did I mention snacks???? Get there early and see if you can find a play area or just let him move around the gate area.

Marathon and Roundabout had the best ratings when I looked about 9 months ago.

I have both Marathon and Boulevard and I love them both. Babiesrus has a great carseat bag with rollers on it. I suggest you invest in it. I have used it with my carseats and it is so nice to just attach it to another suitcase or just roll it on it own.

I have the britax marathon for my van, and the britax roundabout in my husband's car. The roundabout is smaller so it seems to fit better in a car, in my opinion, but I think the straps are easier to use in the Marathon. Never traveled on a plane with a carseat so I can't give you an opinion on that, but when I was shopping seats I went to Babies R Us to try them out--take your baby with you so you can try them and see which seat you like best, they have a setup there that allows you to play around and see what it's like to install the seat and take you kid in and out. I ordered them from tinyride.com and had a great experience. Good luck!

I've taken our Britax Roundabout on several plane trips. I recommend keeping the car seat with you and checking it at the gate just before boarding (1) this drastically reduces the risk the seat will get lost and (2) if the flight isn't completely full you may be able to take it on board and put your baby in it without having to pay for a ticket.

I've used the Roundabout on board the plane twice now and it fits pretty well into the seat. The only issue is that it only works forward facing and my 14month old daughter's feet can kick the seat in front of her. Flying is sooooo much easier when she's strapped in to her car seat.

We use our Graco Metrolite stroller to get through the airport and lay the car seat on top of the stroller's hood. I would recommend getting a cover for the seat to keep it clean and protected (there's a $19.99 one and a $29.99 at babiesrus).

Check with your airline too as far as how many extra items are allowed for infants, a lot have changed them in the past few months. They may charge you an extra $15-$30.

We have a Britax, Evenflo and Cosco. I love all three of them for different reasons. For flying though, without any hestation, I would recommend the lightest, smallest seat that suits your child's age/weight. It is not easy to negotiate the plane's aisle with baby, diaper bag and carseat. I have flown almost every other month with my children for 3+ years now, and would always take the Evenflo Titan for air travel.

Long short, if you are interested in a Britax, buy that for your primary vehicle and a lightweight seat for your second car & travel needs.

Good luck!

I flew to Oregon with my Britax Marathon. It was big, and we had to put in in facing forward. But well worth the long flight. Did you buy a ticket for the baby? If so, then definitely bring it onborad. If not, they will only let you bring it if there is a empty seat, and since I am sure you will have a few connections, not every flight will guarantee an open seat. If you check it, make sure you buy a travel bag for car seats (Baby's R US or Meijer's) so it won't get banged up under the plane. Good Luck and have fun in Hawaii! It is really beautiful!

Can't give you much advice on the car seat, but we flew to FL with our little one at 6 months. We checked the car seat as a piece of luggage and just held her on our laps. It was much easier than toting a huge seat around the airport! :) You can actually buy bags to put the seat in to keep it safe. We had no problems at all! Good luck and have fun on vacation!

L.,

NONE of our carseats ever fit in the airplane seats and just proved to be a HUGE hassle trying to tote around the airport. If you can get a carseat when you arrive, I'd just leave your current one at home.

As far as travel, bring lots of stuff to keep your little one busy. Take light snacks, small toys, books to read, a small blanket, and anything else you know he likes.

Best wishes,
K.