Need tips for 3 y/o on first plane trip

Are all meds off the table? Not sure on age but dramamine motion sick pills make ya nappy. I'm fairly sure xanax and snort of whiskey are out.. brownies with a Colorado cannabis kicker..na that's probly just as wrong. Check on the dramamine though seriously.

 

We found flying fairly simple with our three kids. All of them have been regular flyers since a very early age. Key we found is to get them tired for when they get on the plan. Shortly after takeoff, ours would fall asleep and not wake until we were getting ready to land. The worse part of flying for most children is the taking off and landing. A bottle, a binkie, gum, or anything else you can come up with for them to be eating early in a flight. This helps the nap time.

Jason from RI

 

We've been flying with the kids now and then since they were about two months old. With the babies there's little one can do except milk or maybe a cooky, so they might cry but indeed most people understand. I fully agree with trying to tire the older ones out at the terminal since they tend to be very excited anyway. Snacks on-board are good but wach the suger content since at least mine get very jumpy on a sugar rush. We actually bought a cheap portable DVD player for the trips and this does take them of my hands for at least 1 or 2 good hours.

 

"she is ham and loves talking to others" ... wonder where she got that from...

 

No big deal. Kids fly all the time...and sometimes they cry. Just talk it up about how much fun it's going to be. A big bag of skittles helps if they get nervous.

I don't even hear kids cry anymore. Probably because I have 5 and I've developed an immunity.

 

It's tough to say as there is not a one size fits all kids solution. You know your daughter better than anyone else.

I'll say this though. I'm the parent of a two year old and a three year old myself and if I was on a flight where another parent(s) had a loud toddler I think I'd mostly be OK with it as long as the the parent(s) showed some level of concern for the other passengers. I'd probably even tell the parent "hey it's no big deal, we've all been there," to make them feel more comfortable. However if the child was over the top, touching other passengers etc etc and the parent did absolutely nothing about it then I'd be a little upset.

As for me I've watched every single Air Crash disaster show on youtube and although I don't fly very often, when I do I just sit there, white knuckled waiting for the plane to crash during the whole flight. I know all about pito tubes and cabin pressurization, loss of lift when nose is pointed up of etc etc from those shows

 

"As for me I've watched every single Air Crash disaster show on youtube and although I don't fly very often, when I do I just sit there, white knuckled waiting for the plane to crash during the whole flight. I know all about pito tubes and cabin pressurization, loss of lift when nose is pointed up of etc etc from those shows" ... all righty then... ...

 

Correct, Anything goes for stuff purchased inside the gate area. the connection issue comes up if you connect through a big airport where you potentially have to leave security to get to a gate in another terminal, such as O'Hare.... and for any international connections.

Usually on domestic connections when you are traveling through to the final destination on the same airline you just end up walking to another gate inside in the same area.

Use a website like seatguru to find good seats for the flight you are on, and dont forget you can change your assignment on the airline website after booking so long as there are open seats in the same price class.

Probably an obvious one, but dont forget to check in online and print boarding passes before driving to the airport. That way you can skip the check in line, just drop bags at the kiosk and head through security.

If you want to board early, and have some extra space for the kids to move around - consider purchasing coach upgrade seats - typically called economy plus, economy comfort, coach plus or something like that. On a short domestic leg the upgrade might be as cheap as 20-50$ a ticket, can be purchased after booking and up to departure; and usually gives you:

• an extra 5 inches or so legroom (doesn't sound like much but believe me its huge, your knees dont hit even with the seat reclined)
• Seats in the front of the coach section
• Boarding in the first group after business
• sometimes free snacks and drink and other perks

When I travel for work I have sprung for this upgrade out of my own pocket for long haul internationals.


I'll be interested to hear how it goes... we are trying to decide when its right to try a plane ride with the twins....

 

Another tip... If you or your kids get airsick or nervous during turbulence... Look for seats as close to or ideally over the wing. The feel of bumps is magnified at the far front and rear.

 

Yup....whether it's a standalone DVD player, a smartphone or an iPad, video will keep them entertained for hours. As for Benadryl, our pediatrician said to stay away from it. Instead of dreading the flight, get her psyched up as it is an adventure. Talk it up in advance, explaining what is going to happen at each step. Always smile no matter what the circumstances because if she sees you frowning, getting ticked etc, she will pick up on it and react accordingly. Mind you, you will have to fake it as air travel is as much fun as root canal without Novocaine, but you get the point.....

 

Sitting over the wing is also the safest place to be in the event of a crash.

 

A pocketfull of little toys that are new to her can also be used to distract her or keep her busy.

Gary

 

Glad it went well for you all. Nothing like having a free baby sitter/entertainer.