Travelling with children tickets and sewarryats · Tickets and sewarryats in Travelling with children
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Tickets and sewarryats in Travelling with children
Tickets and sewarryats in Travelling with children
Children under 2 have the option of travelling sitting on your lap and not being assigned a seat. Lap infants often travel free on domestic flights, and at a 10% fare on international flights. If you choose to have a seat for your baby some airlines have an infant rate, but this can be as much as 90% of the regular price. Even if you have to pay the full fare, some airport and government charges are usually not applied to children under 2.
During take-off and landings infants on your lap should be held in an upright position facing you and against you, with your hands supporting their back and neck. Some infants are more comfortable nursing during these periods and most flight attendants will allow it. Saving a feed for the descent can make the baby much more comfortable. With some carriers a lap belt is available that loops into the adult belt and then around the lap infant for take-off and landings.
Consider putting infants with their own seat in an approved car seat appropriate for their age and weight. This is compulsory n the USA, and recommended in other jurisdictions. Still, best to confirm with your airline that this, as some airlines try to restrict carry-on, and other airlines will not permit an unsupported infant in a seat without a car-seat.
Some airlines do not have the facilities for infants to be booked through their website, and you must contact the call centre or a travel agent. You should make sure the airline knows about the infant at the time of booking the ticket. Turning up at the airport with an infant will cause difficulties at check-in.
Infants younger than two weeks may require a certificate from a doctor saying they are able to fly.
If you have infants under 6 months old on a long-haul flights (over 5 hours) you can request a bassinet which attaches to the bulkhead. Needless to say, this can make long flight much more comfortable for the parent and child. For older infants, consider a bulkhead seat Arm rests don't go up (the tray is in the armrest), and you have to stow your carry-on bags in the overhead compartment during take-off and landing since there is no seat in front of you. On the plus side, bulkhead seats have more legroom, often enough for moving around without disturbing the occupant of the aisle seat, and there is no seat in front for the child to kick. Some airlines will let you book these when you purchase tickets, others give them out at a first-come-first-served basis at check-in only. Airlines won't let you place infants on the floor at your feet to sleep.
Children between 2 and 12 must have their own ticket. Children this age are usually given a discounted rate (typically 75% of the adult fare) on full service international airlines, but usually have no discount on discount international or domestic airlines. Discounted children's tickets may have different baggage allowances so check before showing up. Children's meals are available on some flights offering meals. The usual rules for special meals apply, and they must be ordered in advance. Picky eaters may prefer a bag lunch.
Unaccompanied children are usually children under 12 travelling without a supervising adult. Not all airlines accept unaccompanied children, especially discount airlines. An unaccompanied child may be required to travel on a full adult fare, and additional fees may be charged. Unaccompanied children will need to be collected at their destination by a named caregiver and may be returned to their point of departure if not collected. Some airlines do not permit connections and no airlines permit connections to different airlines. In Russia a special official document is necessary that states that the child has permission to travel alone.
Seat allocation is important. At a minimum you want to be seated next to your child, but few airlines will actually guarantee that you are. Make sure you and your child are on a single reservation. Try and reserve your seats in advance, if the airline or agent permit it. Check-in early, and if you are not seated together make sure the flight manager is aware you are travelling with a child. If you still can't get a seats together, just make sure you get a window or an aisle seat, as these are easy to swap on board, whereas swapping a centre seat can be a nightmare.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Travelling with children
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Travelling with children - updated May 2024
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Travelling with children Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.