If you recently welcomed a newborn child into the world, congratulations! Having a baby is one of the most beautiful things you can experience in this life. There’s nothing like watching your little bundle of joy explore the world around him or her, and learn new things.
If you plan on traveling with your newborn, you may feel overwhelmed at the thought of bringing your baby to the airport and on an airplane. What happens if your little one throws a fit in the middle of the boarding line? Are there things you can do to ease your child’s anxiety as his or her ears start popping upon the plane’s departure? These are all great questions to have and while you ultimately cannot control what happens, there are some things you can do to plan ahead.
Make Sure Your Little One Is Old Enough To Fly
Before you book a ticket to introduce your infant to friends and family in another state, you’ll want to review airline policies. Different airlines have different requirements for traveling with babies and small children. For example, if you’re flying to Nebraska on a United flight, your infant must be at least seven years old to fly on the plane. If you’re boarding an American Airlines flight, infants as young as two days can fly as long as they have a doctor’s note of approval if they are less than seven days old. It also doesn’t hurt to consult your baby’s pediatrician or primary care doctor before you fly.
Create A Checklist And Stick To It
We recommend creating a checklist before packing your carry-on bags. Traveling with older kids can be a bit easier because they can carry their own bag of belongings (things like toys, coloring books, snacks, reading books, and the like). With an infant, however, mom and dad have to do all of the legwork, which can be stressful if you don’t properly prepare.
We’ve created a general checklist of necessities to consider before you head to the airport.
- Baby diapers and wipes. Let’s be honest: accidents happen, and your baby doesn’t care where or when. Make sure you pack plenty of diapers and wipes on your carry-on, so you can tackle a stinky diaper as soon as it strikes.
- A change of clothes (or two) for your baby. If this is your child’s first time on an airplane, there’s no telling how they will react to the elevation adjustment. For this reason alone, we recommend bringing a couple changes of clothes with you in your carry-on bag. In the case that your baby spits up or spills milk on themselves, you’ll be glad you brought them.
- Bottles and baby formula. We recommend planning for your travel time plus another 24 hours should you have a delay or layover. When babies get hungry, they get cranky, so having enough bottles and baby formula on hand is a must. If your baby is old enough to eat solid foods, bring some baby-friendly snacks like Cheerios that your little one can munch on.
- Pacifiers. If you’re little one starts to get noisy mid-flight, give him or her the oral fixation he or she craves by providing him or her with a pacifier. The beautiful thing about pacifiers is they won’t take up much room in your bag!
Choose A Morning Flight
Many new parents agree that their baby tends to grow fussier as the day goes on. With this in mind, it may be wise to choose a morning flight if you have the option. This will lessen the risk of a potential airport meltdown, and it will allow you to put your baby to sleep at their normal napping hours. A few tips for choosing your airplane seat are listed below.
- If you plan on nursing your baby mid-flight, opt for a window seat. This way you won’t have to worry about a beverage cart knocking your elbow as you try to feed your bundle of joy.
- If your primary concern is being able to access the bathroom with your baby, choose an aisle seat.
We hope these tips come in handy as you prepare to travel with your baby. If you’re flying out of the Denver International Airport (DIA) and you’re looking for affordable and convenient parking, park your vehicle with ParkDIA.
