Traveling with a 18 Month Old

We fly several times a year with our 3 year old son. When we first flew with him, we bought the cover for the car seat, but after the airline destroying 2 bags, and severely scratching 3 of our car seats, we needed a different way. When my husband and I travel together, we gate check the car seat. If I'm traveling alone with my LO, I check it at baggage without a cover (so that the baggage people know that it's a car seat!) They usually put it in a clear bag - fine with me! I kindly let the clerk know that we have had 3 expensive car seats ruined by the airlines, and we really don't want this to happen again. Since this change in practice, we haven't had a scratch on the seat! If your seat doesn't come out on the carousel, check the oversized baggage section, I've had it come out there several times. Good luck, and if you notice any damage, take it right to the complaint window. Be firm!

i flew with my 18 month old son, we bought him a seat and put his car seat in it. he slept most of the way. (it was an overnight flight to europe). my friend made the same trip trip with her same aged son but did not buy him his own seat- boy did she regret that!
also- if you don't want to buy his own seat, i would use the go-go baby. its a wheelie thing you attach to your car seat. in the airport it acts like a stroller and baby can sit in it and be wheeled around as you carry luggage. I brought it to the gate and the attendants checked it underneath- not in the usual cargo area where it can get damaged. once you are off the flight, the attendants bring it to the gate for you and you will have your car seat at your destination.

We checked our carseat with the luggage. The airline put it in a clear plastic bag at the counter. We didn't do anything to it, just handed it over. All went fine. No problem.

Don't bother buying a plane seat for your child unless the flight is really long (but you probably figured that out for yourself).

Good luck . :)

I have checked my car seat a number of times. I googled on line for a car seat travel bag and bought one that had good reviews. It fit my Graco Infant Safe Seat and now my Graco Nautilus 3 in 1.

My sister just bought a back for storing hockey sticks (she lives in Canada :) ) and that workd fin for her.

I would bring my own carseat and check it in with the luggage - carseats are free - no charge. I wouldnt trust the rentals car seat plus you can trust the one she has fits her, etc and you know how to install it. I bought a carseat travel bag from Walmart online. Safe travels!

I don't know about the special bags thing, that would be cool. But if not I think I would just pull off the fabric covering and pack it in my luggage and just put it on when I installed the carseat. That way you won't have to worry about it being grungy. You could just put in on top of all your stuff so you only have to partially unzip you luggage and pull it out. Also just like luggage you may want to put some defining thing on your carseat. Like tie a red string etc so you will be able to realize it is yours right away from a distance. Good luck!! I haven't flown with mine yet but I did take my 16 month old from Houston to Vegas by car and yeah I brought my own pack n play for sleeping in hotels, just never felt comfortable using a crib that so many others had been in and that I didn't personally know was in good repair, so I would probably just take my own carseat on a flight as well. Good luck!

My son is now 12 months and we have travelled 5 roundtrips so far and we have 4 more scheduled before the end of the year. We have done it where we have placed the car seat in the belly of the plane at check in as well as at the gate, had him in his seat on the plane (if they have an extra seat most airlines will let you do that) and been able to have a car seat at our destination. There are really too many options. We have a bag for the car seat and it's very easy to carry to make it not a burden to take to the gate, just in case there are extra seats. We purchased it at a major baby store chain for less than $15. Also, if you are a member of AAA, many car rental agencies will rent you a car seat for free if you are a AAA member. I can tell you my only preference, due to me being worrisome, is checking the car seat at the gate. That way, I know if I have a connection, it will be brought to me at that airport and I don't have to worry about it making it to my destination. I could only imagine how stressful it would be to arrive without the car seat making it.

I know checking bags is expensive as well, but there are some airlines that don't charge for 'baby items'. That would be something to definitely check into as well.

I hope this helps. Traveling can be fun and stressful and I think the stress level is greatly reduced with how much you prepare. Good luck!!

There are special bags you can put your car seat in. I check my car seat with my luggage and haven't had any problems. I have heard stories of them breaking. I think you can take them to the gate and gate check it, and then it is not handled as much as your luggage. Maybe you can check the TSA website or the airline website about where to check. I have a Britax and was worried about it getting damaged at the airport, so I bought a Evenflo for around $70, but got it for less with coupons at Babies R Us. It goes through the same safety standards as the Britax, but I wouldn't be as upset if it got broken and it's easier to replace. We use it when we travel and also as a carseat in my husband's car. It is harder to install than the Britax, and not as user-friendly, but for the few weeks a year we use it when we travel it's worth it.

First things first... you CAN get your child a separate seat, although it sounds like you don't want to. If you can afford it, I would highly recommend it. Sitting with an 18 month old on your lap for a long period of time is NOT fun... the baby will likely not sleep, you won't get to read, etc...

That being said, I have often checked the big Britax Marathon seats b/c my twins (who are now 5) don't need them on the plane, but need them in the car when we get to where we are going. I have travel bags for them with wheels on the bottom. I simply check them with the rest of our luggage. I recommend a travel bag for them just to protect the car seat. They usually do not charge you for checking a car seat. (it's not considered your one free bag, for instance....) Enjoy the trip!

We bring out car seat and have one of these: GoGoBabyz
Its great and sooooooo much better than trying to carry it through the airport. To cover it, I just bought a cheap laundry bag and have our name and phone number on it.
You can buy one a bag with wheels on it for your car seat but my gf has one and hates it.
http://www.amazon.com/Childress-Ultimate-Seat-Travel-Blac...

Good luck!

We checked our car seat on our trip to PR last winter no problem. Didn't bag it or anything, just wrapped/tied up the straps really well. It can be checked for free (unlike luggage for most airlines). Much better than paying for a rented one.

I bought an Eddie Bauer car seat bag for our trip to Florida with my son's car seat. I checked it in - but before we checked in on our way down, we stuck our coats in it. On the way back we did the same - stuffed our coats in it (and some laundry) before we left. It was handy to not have to fly with the coats on either way and have them handy when we needed them!