Travel

I agree with Margie that the five hour direct flight will be a long time on the airplane. Book the flights with the layover.

Be prepared with books and toys. Also, if you can choose your seats, try to get the bulkhead. When I fly with my boy (almost three), sitting in the bulkhead allows him to get out of his seat and stand, hop around, and stretch his legs.

My last note is to remain calm. If your son gets a bit crazy or is whining, calm and comfort him as you would at home, and do not let the attitudes, looks, and heavy sighs from other passengers get to you.

Good luck and have fun.

We flew with our 2 year old over the holidays and wish I had known about this harness. I would have used it on board instead of her carseat, which was a pain to lug through the airport and install in the plane seat. You can still take it with you if you will need it and check it. Here is a link for information. I also have seen these for rent on ebay.
http://www.kidsflysafe.com/
Also, lots of washable crayons (the triangle kind) and new coloring books were very helpful too. Snacks, juice, milk, etc. Much more than you think you will need! (I had no trouble getting boxed juice and milk through security screening.)
Have a wonderful trip,
R.

You know your child so you really have to think this through as to which would be best for HIM, not what other moms think would be best for their child. My first born son is very different than my last child, for example. My first born would have needed that time to run around, but my youngest I think would do 100x better just staying put. Not that he can easily sit still for 5 hours, but I think transitioning him in and out of several travel sitautions would be MUCH more stressful than staying in one spot for 5 hours. Once he is strapped in and all cozy, all I'd need to do is keep him busy and fed and he'd be fine. Think about this--- if you pick the split flight and he falls asleep on the first flight, wouldn't it stink for you to have to wake him to get him off the plane for several more transitions--?? And then what if he sleeps through the lay over and wakes again for the second flight? Why take that chance? And why lug all your stuff several times if you have the option not to?

One thing to keep him entertained is buy a brownie tin-- especially great if you can find one with a plastic lid. Then, store toys in it in ziplock bags. You can buy magnets that stick on the back of anything at a craft store. Test the brownie tin to make sure magnets will actually stick to it. Of course if he puts things in his mouth that you have to watch the size of the toys and not make them too small.... But go to the dollar store and check the dollar spot at Target and search the toys dept at Target and WalMart and find new toys for him. Anything you can put magnets on the back of is ideal so the pieces are less likely to get dropped.... Only hand him one baggie of toys at a time. Wait until he is really, really bored with one toy before surprising him with the next one. Bring a mix of new toys and favorites you know he will play with. Think about the things that keep his attention at home. My son loves interactive books, like I Spy board books where he has to find something in the picture, or books with flaps. He can read those over and over again and stay busy for quite a while with those. But you know your son and we don't

I have been traveling with my son (now 2) every since he was born. We travel to Calif which is a 5-6 hour flight. My recommendation would be a direct flight, if possible. I literally have an overnight case which I call my bag of tricks. Just keep pulling them out once they get bored. I'm not a big TV person but on long flights its an absolute. Bring a variety of DVD's. I always bring my own food and lots of different snacks for them to choose. He gets excited to see his favorite treats. Keep the snacks heathy otherwise you'll have an even more active sugar-loaded toddler :) A lot of planes dont have diaper changing stations in their bathrooms and even the ones that do, are much too small for 2 year old. Nighttime diapers are best in case you cant change them. I always get a window and middle seat. Worse case scenario, you can try to change him/her in the window seat. The window seat also allows them to stand and play around, without escaping into the isle. If you can get one of the seats with the extra legroom, it it well worth the extra $40 the airlines charge.
I'm always completely exhausted when I get to my destination but we make it without the embarrassing meltdowns :) Fly times really depend on your child. My son will absolutely never sleep on a plane - so flying during, what would be his nap time is a complete nightmare. If you feel, he will sleep-then try to work it around napping.
Also, once you are at the gate-check with them to see if they have seats open that would give you the entire row. Chances are, they wont but its worth a try. We've only been lucky enough a couple of times - but it makes it so much easier.
Hope this helps. Good Luck

Videos are good. :o)
When mine were little we would give them Benadryl to let them be sleepy during the flight. I went to my pediatrician first though.
Take a bagful of "cartoys", crayons, plain paper, books, handheld toddler games, snacks, water.
Let the child sit by the window to see out.
THe 2.5 hour flights make it a really long day, but you get to get off the plane and have a bite to eat maybe and a break, then get back on another plane.
5 hours in the carseat is crazy long in an airplane.

The flight with the layover will be better so he can get out of the plane.
We took all kinds of toys for my kids on the plane but the only thing they used was the portable DVD player! Also, take a stroller to the Airport, they'll let you take it all the way up to the plane!
Also try and pick your seats if possible. My last flight was just me and my 1 yr old daughter, so she just sat on my lap, but there was a couple with a toddler and the whole plane had to rearrange seats because their seats weren't together and the man sitting by the parents wouldn't give up his aisle seat for the toddler...

I would personally rather take the direct flight. First, if your child falls asleep, you don't want to wake them up...and I have carried napping child in her car seat through the airport so that she wouldn't wake up, not something I would advise or want to do again. Secondly, it's bad enough if your first flight makes you late for your connecting flight if it's just adults...who wants to deal with that when they have their child with them! I also recommend getting your child their own seat, I can't remember what the age cut-off for that is, but the one time I did it, I was miserable the whole flight. I used her car seat until she was old enough to not undo her own seat belt.
I have never tried to get boxed juice passed security, I always take a dry sippy cup through and buy some juice or water past security. But if they'll let you take boxed juice, that would probably be cheaper.
I always take a DVD player with some favorite discs, coloring book with crayons, sticker book, and a couple cheap dollar toys. When my daughter was two, I would just put away some of her favorites and pull them out on the plane. I have also wrapped some like gifts, but be careful because it can get messy.
Good luck and have a safe flight!

My advice would be to do the two flights...while overall travel time will be longer, you'll have time in between to let your child run through the terminal & get some energy out! Sitting in a cramped airplane seat with a toddler for more than 2.5 hrs is going to drive you nuts. If you can, try to plan flight times to coincide with nap/bedtime. If you can get your child to sleep on the plane, so much the better! Otherwise, have a variety of things to occupy him: coloring books, aquadoodle, books, videos, an I Spy bag (I like these the best, because the picture is printed so he doesn't have to read to find things: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=41433223 ) Another thing you can do is to wrap each toy...that will get him excited, AND take time to unwrap. I haven't done it, but I know people who have. Above all, treat it like an adventure & be excited about it to your child & he will enjoy the adventure! GL!

We travel to visit family in Spain every other year with two small children. They both began traveling at age one and now the oldest is five and has been three times. Every time we go, someone compliments them on their behavior. Mind you, they are both very active boys. ALWAYS take a DVD player... worth its weight in gold! =) Secondly, coloring books, sticker books, and other small toys that you can surprise them with helps. I like to pick up some inexpensive items just for the trip that gets them excited. Very important, only bring out one thing at a time and pack it in a backpack, or similar that has only items for your child. Lastly, SNACKS! Keep plenty of them handy and wet wipes. Hope all this helps. Have fun!

I am a 19-year-veteran of American Airlines. I have traveled the world and so has my 2 year old son. I broke him in to flying at 2.5 weeks old. He has been all over the US, has been to Europe and the Middle East. I recommend bringing the child's car seat above ALL else. My son's car seat converts to a stroller. It is called a Sit n Stroll and I would never have been able to travel to all those places with him, without it. I also bring a small DVD player and DVDs, coloring book, reading books, small puzzles or a small package of playdough. The best thing to do is put the toys in a rolling bag he can pull himself. Additionally, get him one new toy he hasn't played with or hide a few things a couple of weeks before hand. I also bring snacks he likes to eat, like sliced apples, a banana, yogurt, juice boxes, pretzels, chips...They generally don't have much food for kids at the airport or on board the aircraft. Limit yourself to your purse, your carry-on and his entertainment bag. Otherwise, your trip through the security check-point will be a nightmare! Good Luck!