Flying with Littles
We hope to add more to this page with time, but let us at least say that it is 100% possible to travel with your baby. We didn't want to halt traveling while being in the pregnancy and young children season of life. Our Hawaii trip was during Emily's first trimester and our Maine and Atlanta trips happened when our baby was eight months old. There are adjustments to be made and more to pack, but it's doable.
If you're flying, strollers and car seats fly free of charge, and kids under two years old fly free if they sit in your lap. Airports now have private nursing rooms for you to feed/change/calm your baby (or if you just need a mental break from the airport hustle). Once you get to your destination, admission to just about anything is free for kids that young so there's little extra cost incurred by bringing them along.
Give your kids the joy of exploring this world's amazing sites and unique cultures and let us help you get there with your sanity fully intact. Below we've compiled and organized information to help you pack and prepare for your trip. We've included the child luggage policies for the top airlines around the world and have mapped out nursing rooms and child play spaces in America's largest airports.
Airline Information
Booking tickets and checking baggage sometimes requires a few extra steps. Our general experience has been this:
Either call ahead or arrive early and add your infant to your ticket (after buying the tickets)
Check your car seat for free. We're big on just taking carry-ons, so it was an adjustment to remember that we needed to get to the airport a little earlier to handle this
We keep the umbrella stroller with us to use in the airport and then gate-check it as we get on the plane. The stroller will be on the jet bridge when you get off the plane.
Always check with your airline for up-to-date information. Below we've included links to booking information and baggage policies for the most popular airlines around the world.
Airport Information
Below is a list of the most popular North American Airports. We've included information regarding baby- and child-friendly spaces such as nursing stations and playgrounds/play rooms.
Sleeping Arrangements and Other Necessary Equipment:
Most hotels offer Pack N Plays for free, but the catch is that they have a finite amount. Marriott lets you include it as a "request" in your reservation, but this hasn't always worked out well for us. I'd definitely call after making the reservation to make sure one will be available. Worst case scenario, you can usually buy a nice Graco one for $55 at Target.
If you're booking an AirBnB or a VRBO, some hosts have baby equipment they provide with the listing. Just be sure to check with the host before you confirm your booking or request it ASAP if you see it mentioned in the listing.
If you're sold on a particular place to stay that does NOT provide baby gear, look into companies that rent out the equipment. We have not used these services as of yet, so we cannot speak from experience. However, below are a few rental companies: