hi ladies as you can see my LO isnt even here yet but i really need some advise on flying with young babies because my family are planning a huge family holiday to france altogether in sept...

im going to be on a 2 hour flight with a 3-4 month baby and just any advise tips would be great, how did you handle feeding (breast and forumla as i havent decided which im doing as of yet)
was it hard to have a carry on that fitted your travel stuff and baby's stuff?
how did your LO behave on the flight ? anything that kept them soothed/happy
what did you dress them in - in france it will be v hot in sept altho it may not be in ireland so not sure what the best thing is to dress them in

i know this is very pre mature but they are booking it now so i feel like i should all this before booking

thanking you ladies

I am going to be flying with my LO in a month, have asked my brothers for lots of tips, who has flown many times with his LO's, and this is what he told me.

First off prepair yourself for all the dirty looks you will be getting.

Pack light for your carry on bag and check your other luggage. The last thing you want to be doing is lugging around a bunch of items and a squirmy baby.

Bring along your infant car seat because you may have an extra seat on the flight and if not they will check at gate and give back to you when get off.

Prepair for the worst with your bottles and food. Rule of thumb bring 2 extra bottles than you think you will need for your flight time.

Try to give your LO bottle during take off and landing. If can't give bottle then have paci on hand.

Try to fly during the time your LO's naps will probably be.

If you have a carrier of some kind bring it. Will get your hands free and easier to get around.

Your LO at that age will probably just be starting to hold and play with things. So bring a couple of new and iteresting items. Can even wrap them a bit and let her tear it apart.

Hand sanitizer, hand sanitizer, hand sanitizer. You can't have enough.

Bring your own water for your LO, airline/airport water is some of the dirtiest around.

And something that we have been doing that will probably come in handy is get your LO used to room temp bottles. This way you won't be stressing over where, when, and how you will warm up a bottle. Our LO has been able to take room temp bottles for about a month now and it is so much easier. Her only warm one she gets now is her bedtime bottle.

Bring lots of diapers. I never go anywhere without a minimum of 5 diapers, but when I fly I plan on packing at least 10 (I use disposables). From personal expierence of having to scoop and lay down toilet paper and reuse dirty diaper has taught me that lesson.

I hope that some of this info helps you.

thanks so much ive copy and pasted this and sent it to oh i hope you dont mind he has a good memory for this sort of thing lol

are you planning on making a days worth of bottles or bringing sterilised bottles and bringing the ready made cartons?
i was planning on making 2-3 bottles and also bringing 3 sterilised bottles and ready made cartons just incase as well as 2 bottles of boiled cooled water.

as for the car seat i read we must check it up regardless they do not let you bring it on board but i can bring my buggy past security right up until we get onto the plane and soon as we get off as they have a separate place for the buggies (yayy hands free lol)

also why dirty looks? from other people in the airport why? sorry if im being stupid and missing something..

My 2 year old has had 3 trips abroad, first was at 7 months so a bit older.

She slept all the way - 3hr flights.

We are going away in May with our now 2 year old and the newborn, who will be almost 6 months then.

Re - feeding - even more reason to breastfeed!!! No faffing about with bottles etc and all the extra luggage with bottles/formula/cartons etc!!!!

......also, maybe I am wrong.......your LO has not been born....dont you need their date of birth/sex/name etc before you book the flights??

i only need them details when checking in i rang and i can just book 2 adults and 1 infant for now and the details can be given up to 4 hours before than

are you planning on making a days worth of bottles or bringing sterilised bottles and bringing the ready made cartons?
i was planning on making 2-3 bottles and also bringing 3 sterilised bottles and ready made cartons just incase as well as 2 bottles of boiled cooled water.

Not sure how long your flight is but mine is going to be about 6 hours total travel time. So I plan on bringing bottles with water already in them with caps, then having the formula already divided up in a container something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Sassy-Powdered...uct/B000067PIZ

That way all have to do is put in shake up then give to her. Simple. She right now is having about 4 8oz bottles every day so I plan on packing 6 bottles just to be on the safe side of things. Neve know when get delay.

as for the car seat i read we must check it up regardless they do not let you bring it on board but i can bring my buggy past security right up until we get onto the plane and soon as we get off as they have a separate place for the buggies (yayy hands free lol)

Didn't know that rule. Here in US are allowed to bring car seat. Stroller will help though quite a bit. Also will provide somewhere to store things during layovers and walking between gates

also why dirty looks? from other people in the airport why? sorry if im being stupid and missing something..

Because the general public HATES babies on flights. they automatically assume that the baby is going to be screaming the whole time and cause trouble. And in general people don't think that babies should be allowed to fly and have no business being on a plane. So just know that going in and ignore everyone and thier dirty glares. And just worry about yourself and your LO.

my son was 6wks old when we went on honeymoon! we booked when i was pregnant so he was classed as baby no name on booking and his passport photo at 2 days old is hysterical, a fast asleep babe who could belong to anyone and hes got to keep that til he's 5! our flight was 4hrs and i was still breastfeeding so i had him under a blanket on the boob and he basically stayed there asleep the whole time, when we stood up to get up the people behind couldnt believe he hadnt cried once, take off and landing baby really needs to be sucking to stop ears from popping. i changed charlie just before landing from his sleepsuit as it was hot where we went, remember plane is quite cool, staff at airport were great and our pram and carseat were intact and waiting as soon as we got off, 2 hrs isnt a huge flight so you should be ok, good luck x

thanks so much ladies, im starting to feel abit less stressed now baby is not even here yet and i was worried about this.. my oh has barely travelled so i basically would be minding two babies while travelling as he never knows where we are suppose to be what gate etc.. lol
our flight is 2 hours ahcigar1 but we will have to leave the house at like 8 am as we will have to get a 2.5 hour train to the station first,

thanks thats a great idea about changing just before flight.. i suppose if i bring a blanket if it does get cold/too hot i can just wrap up or take it off as well as cool ish clothes

First of all- congratulations! You must be very excited about the approaching arrival of your little baby!

The first flight with your baby is very anxiety-provoking. But it will most likely be much easier than you fear. I've taken my (now) 2-year old on many cross-county flights by myself (California <-> NY) from early on and even took her to Europe (10 hours from California) when she was 1 year old. So I've had a bit of practice. Honestly, when I look back, the baby stage is really easy! It's just us parents that get freaked out. Those days of only taking carry-on luggage are long gone, but handling the baby isn't so bad. A couple months ago, we took another cross-country flight with my 2-year old and (at the time) 3-month old and the baby was great and the toddler was the nightmare! Here are a few things I take with me:

- Baby carrier. Essential for carrying the baby on and off the flight while keeping your hands free. Note that during landing and take-off, the flight attendants will probably require you to have LO in your lap. Ask if they have infant seat-belts (they attach to yours). I know they required them in and out of Europe for my daughter and I.
- Extra diapers and wipes. You never know what is going to happen or how long you might be stuck on that plane.
- Having bottle-fed my first daughter (pumping and combi-feeding) and now exclusively breast-feeding this one, I can tell you that (in my opinion) BF is so much easier for traveling. But this might not be an option for you. So others had good advice on the bottle-feeding strategy.
- Change of clothes for baby.
- A few thin blankets- not for warmth, but for a quick "clean spot" to lay LO down or as possible clean-up towels. Your LO might have reflux or just get a bit motion sick. My first daughter liked to puke at the end of long flights (or on boat rides). Can also use to play peek-a-boo.
- Plastic zip-lock bags. For diapers, dirty clothes, etc.
- Clothing.. think of layers when dressing LO. And bring a cuddly blanket. This one to actually keep him/her warm.
- A few small soft toys. LO isn't going to need much at this point. Maybe something that crinkles or rattles.
- Hand sanitizer.
- As a diaper bag, consider a back-pack. And keep things in lots of little bags inside the bigger bag. So if you just need your diapers and wipes, you can grab that small bag. Or the toys, change of clothes, etc. I totally compartmentalize all the things! Looks a bit ridiculous (a bag of bags), but it's easier to handle in such a cramped space.
- Extra tote bag. If you have one of those bags that fold up into practically nothing, throw that into your carry-on as well. I sometimes use that to corral any stray items when we are in a rush.

I wouldn't be too worried about dirty looks. Honestly, I have rarely gotten them with my daughters and who cares if you do? Most people that got stuck next to me were quite friendly and some even wanted to hold the baby. Since I often travelled alone with my daughter, most people were pretty sympathetic and wanted to help. Not as helpful when my husband is with us. I'll be taking my first solo flight with the two of them next month and that makes me pretty nervous!

Good luck! I'm sure it will go smoothly and you'll have a lovely holiday with your family. Honestly, I'd be thinking more about the holiday itself. Don't agree to any ambitious plans as you don't know how you and the LO will be feeling by that stage.

ty very much def helping my fears of travelling go.. im also traveling with my brother, his gf and their two kids.. im not sure if travelling in a group with be helpful or stressful

but i think as long as i feel organised my self with my lo i think i should be ok,
some great advise ladies im noting it all down for when baby is here