Traveling with children or allowing your older child to travel alone can be scary. Know their rights to make traveling easier and smoother for you.
Traveling with children or sending your older child on a flight alone can be a daunting experience. In this chapter, we’ve compiled all rules and regulations, best practices and tips for traveling with children or sending your child on a flight. We’ll highlight specific rules for infants on domestic and international flights and specific procedures to protect the well-being of youngsters flying by themselves. Here are just a few of the things we’ll cover in this chapter:
- Several airlines are now offering discounted infant fares to allow the use of a child seat
- Child paperwork, letters of consent, and other necessary documentation for traveling with children
- Infant flight packages and seating options, requests for bassinets,
We’ll also share parent experiences traveling with children, and a checklist for parents sending their children on a flight. Here’s a brief look at the checklist:
- Try to make the reservations on a nonstop or direct flight. In some cases this is required.
- Introduce your child to the gate agent and REMIND the agent that your child will need assistance changing planes when appropriate.
- Let the cabin crew know if this is the child’s first flight — they will do their best to reassure the child.
- Do not book your child on the last flight of the evening. In the event of a delay or missed connection, the child will have to spend the night alone in a strange city.
- Tuck in a pocket or in a pouch around the child’s neck all identification information, with the child’s name and
- Give the child some spending money for movie headsets, phone calls, or food in case of a delay. Let them know what is free and what they have to pay for.
- Try to get a window seat
Read the rest of the chapter to be prepared for your child’s flight.