5 Tips for Flying with a Toddler

In the last month, we have gone on 3 trips, for a total of 12 flights!  Its been a busy month, and all this travel makes me feel like (somewhat) an expert on flying with a toddler.  Here are some tips!

Take along diaper change kits. 

Each kit includes:

• a small cloth bag to hold all these items (I used some leftover 9x9 squares, sewing 2 together and putting a hem at the top.)
• a diaper (Although we use cloth diapers at home, we use disposables when we travel.)
• a disposable changing pad
• a plastic baggie with about 5 wipes
• a diaper disposal bag

I  took along 5 kits every time we flew.  It made changing Little Guy easier, as I only had to bring one of these little bags with me to the restroom, instead of lugging my backpack and having to dig everything out.  Daddy also liked it, as it made it easy for him to change Little Guy.  Items that we did not use or could reuse were simply put back into the cloth bag.  These were also helpful once we reached our destination, as when we needed to head out we just grabbed a few kits with our other stuff.

Bring baby food pouches for take-off and descent.
Little Guy enjoys sucking on these pouches of food.  I had been told to take lollipops for him to suck, but since we don't do candy with him (yet), he had no idea what to do with the lollipop.  (We tried on our first flight.  We ended up with a pink mess down the front of his shirt, as he wouldn't swallow.  Yuck!)  An added benefit of these is that it helped Little Guy to get some fruits and vegetables on our travel days, as these items were somewhat hard to find airports.

Window clings!  

I found some window clings at the dollar store.  They are easy to take with you as they are flat.  When we were fortunate enough to have a window seat (since Little Guy was under 2 he still flew for free as a lap child), they were a great source of entertainment.


















Don't be afraid to ask.
Speaking of a lap child, on a least one flight each way, we were able to get Little Guy a seat next to us by asking the gate agent if there were available seats.  We discovered that most airlines have an agent at the gate about an hour before take-off, so be sure to be ready to ask!  It was nice for the flights when it worked out!

Take a variety of toys, books, etc.

Little Guy was interested in many things.  He enjoyed looking out the window, watching the people get on and off the plane, and fidgeting (he is only 23 months, after all!).  When we were in flight, we had many things for him.  Some things were:

• Quiet Book
• window clings
• books
• cardboard lacing shapes with shoelaces
• cloth finger puppets
• plastic finger puppets that help their shapes
• zippered pouches
• crayons, small notebooks, and stickers
• magazines (even SkyMall turned out to be quite entertaining)

If you have multiple flights, you can put some things in your carry-on suitcase, and change them out at the airport.  That helps to have some new and novel things for each flight.

What tips do you have for flying with a toddler?