I thought I may be crazy for booking a flight to take our 10 month old with us to visit friends, but as always spent time reading on the internet for tips and tricks to make it happen. For our first flight with our daughter, we picked a direct flight from Atlanta to Newark, NJ - which is just under 2 hours. It was the perfect trip to boost our confidence about traveling with a baby!
Things to Pack:
variety of toys and not the same ones they'll play with on the trip (makes them more interesting)! We packed a spinner, teethers, and some soft books.
plenty of burp cloths!
sanitizing (paci) wipes - especially when we were waiting at the airport, EVERYTHING hit the ground multiple times
pouches, snacks, and water bottle
light weight blanket for the plane
tubberware and bags - it was helpful for the flight back to be able to make her some almond butter toast to store for the airport and also to put avocado halves in on the trip.
convertible carseat to stroller. We have the Doona and have loved every second of having it! It made navigating another city very easy since it has an option to clip in without the base for a car.
Things to Plan:
we parked our car so we could take the train to the actual airport instead of a shuttle that would be driving on the road.
our flight leaving Atlanta was on time, but we had a 30 minute delay leaving Newark - I was glad we had extra snacks on hand to feed her on the flight.
check your carseat/stroller as soon as you get to your gate - avoid the rush when everyone is told they have to check a bag, you'll be able to hold on to it until you board.
ask the gate agent what zone or time families will board.
bring a baby carrier for the airport - this SAVED us when our flight was delayed. We spent about 45 minutes just walking through the airport. My husband wore our daughter outward facing while I pushed the stroller holding our bags. She absolutely loved people watching and was super entertained, meanwhile we picked up some extra steps.
look at the airport to find which security line is best for you - at Atlanta, there is a TSA Pre-Check lane designated for wheelchairs and strollers. At Newark, we asked the gate agent and they told us just to go through the Pre-Check lane.
for take off and landing, I was very worried about the cabin pressure changes. For our first flight, we gave her a bottle (about 1 minute after the plane officially took off) and she was asleep while we landed. For the return flight, we gave her some water for take off and landing. She didn't seem bothered by it, but we had pouches on hand if she started getting fussy.
prepare that your flight time will be all about baby! When she napped, my husband and I watched TV on our consoles, but otherwise, we were both fully focused on entertaining her.
Things I would do Different:
earlier flight home - I made both of our flights leave at 1pm and arrive around 3pm. Leaving Atlanta, it worked out well to take our daughter to daycare that morning so we could pack. Our schedule was more predictable. Leaving Newark, it made the morning feel super long and once we were delayed, it meant we walked into our home at 5:30pm. It took Nick and I about a week to fully recover from the chaos of that night with unpacking and her bath time/bed time routine. Next time we fly, I will pay the higher fee to be able to change our flight to have more flexibility!
upgrade your seats or buy an extra. We had the preferred rows so we were at least in the front of the plane, but paying a little extra for more legroom or having the full row would have been worth it. Since this flight was short it didn't matter as much, but next time I will do so (especially because she will be older)!
The last thing I'll share is if you are staying at an Airbnb or hotel, call ahead to ask about traveling with an infant! We had an Airbnb and the host had a crib (so we just had to pack a crib sheet) and high chair. This saved us a lot of hassle to pack larger items.