The earlier you start traveling with a toddler, the easier it becomes. And the more often it happens, it will seem normal overall. The highlights of taking your toddler onboard with you together as a family makes a wonderful experience all together, never missing a moment. No one I reckon is ever too young to fly long haul as there are so many things that cater to all ages.Having long considered traveling to be an important aspect in my life, this time, I opted to share it with my little traveler.
At a tender age of 19 months old, it felt like the right time to fly long haul wherein toddler isn’t entirely dependent on breast milk and homemade food at this stage. It is even more straightforward than normal since you will be looked after excellently by airline staff. Flight attendants too are ever so friendly with children onboard. Plus, your child can choose to watch cartoons all flight-long and get endless complimentary food and entertainment sets/play packs to keep busy. Changing facilities onboard are made extremely comfortable, too (we flew with Qatar Airways, voted World’s Best Airline twice in the last few years).Best of all, being under 2 years of age pay less than half price of an adult traveler so do take advantage of that.
There are however, a few tips I’d like to mention before getting on a long haul flight, most especially when flights aren’t necessarily direct (having one or more stop-overs) or when you travel into two separate time zones, especially two different climates.
(1) Check the best-timed flights. Avoid taking very early or late night flights as this might upset your toddler during his/her sleeping times, most especially when adjusting into a different time zone. Go as direct as possible.
(2) Ring the airline you choose to fly with and get ALL the detailed information. This includes buggy/stroller and car seat policies (normally free of charge but do check), luggage allowance for both check-in and carry-on, kiddie plated meals onboard, seat reservations (most airlines have this option) and changing facilities onboard.
(3) Plan layovers carefully. Get information on the airports where you will be flying from, stopping over and traveling to with regards to children’s facilities such as playrooms, toilets or even showers. To lessen the stress, airport lounge access might be a good option as well for both parent/s and child. You might also want to include extra time on immigration and passport control just in case.
(4) Pack a decent amount of books, toys (anything that shouldn’t disturb the passengers who choose to get a decent amount of sleep throughout the flight), warm clothes, pajamas, toiletries, milk, disposable bottles, extra snacks preferred by your child medication (if required) and a lot of extra nappies and wet wipes in case of any delays. Always overestimate!
(5) If it’s too long a flight, it might be a better idea to break your trip in two separate journeys (makes a good excuse to visit different countries, as well) as opposed to flying for endless solid hours. This might work better for you and especially for your child.
You’d be surprised that a trip catering to a toddler is sometimes better planned and becomes less stressful overall. So where is toddler off to? Read on in the next coming weeks.