Posted by
Nicher
14 yrs ago
We will be travelling with our soon to be 23 months old to Paris in July. Since she is not 2 years old yet we didn't buy her a seat on the flight. Can anyone tell me if there's a better way than to hold her all 10+ hours on the midnight flight? I'm sure that way both of us won't be able to catch much sleep at all. The bassinet provided by the flight sure won't work for her, and I assume there won't be two empty seats in a roll to let her lie flat. Would there be anything like an inflatable travel cot or sthg that I can take on board to place her down when she is asleep? Advice needed please!!
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My advice would be to buy a seat for her if there is one available.
Otherwise the best might be a nest of blankets on the floor by your feet. Note that in that case she wouldn't be strapped in and sudden turbulence could cause injury.
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Z
14 yrs ago
Both of my kids were content to lay flat against me with their legs around my hips and their heads on my shoulder once they settled down. They'd sleep, I'd sleep. It can be hard on the lower back, though, so if you have any problems in that area rig some sort of support from the pillow/blanket provided.
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Thanks all for the advice! It's probably too late to buy her a seat now so guess I'll have to bear with it. Argh it's going to be such an experience!!
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on many planes the armrest between seats folds up. we laid our daughter across both our legs, with a rolled up blanket as a bolster so she didn't roll off of our knees...this was on a 12 hr flight to vancouver...worked well...you could build up the height diff. in your spouses legs with pillows/blankets as well...
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Unless the flight is really full, see if you can get 1 extra seat blocked off next to you. We've had that before which is awesome. We sat in a section with 4 seats (middle of a 747) and got all 4 seats for 2 adults and one baby after they blocked off the seats next to us. It won't happen all the time and on some of the busier routes it doesn't have a chance of happening but it's worth asking!
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Thanks! I do hope the flight is not full and I can block empty seats nearby, coz apart from the 23 months old, I have a 4.5 year old too who will likely need to occupy my husband's legs when he falls asleep! I wish the flight won't turn out to be a nightmare -_-
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I hate to sound all "mushy" but try to keep a positive attitude and you'll be fine. And remember it doesn't last forever! :)
Also, it isn't too late to have an "accident" and force your husband to go by himself while you take a later flight. ;)
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For God's sake, Axptguy, my husband is not you! Asking him to take care of two kids alone on a flight? Guess that's even more of a nightmare to me!!
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He is me. I wouldn't do it alone. I'd end up stabbing myself in the eye with the shaft of the plastic fork they serve the horrible meal with. ;)
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I read it a fight with 23 mth old .. oops ... just request the aisle and window of a 3 seat row and ask the stewardess to block off the middle seat if possible. On less full flights they will do so. But not if you are in the first row (bassinet row). I'd trade 3 seats for the row with less leg room and bassinet.
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If I am buying a seat for her, it's for better comfort for myself and my kid. Definitely not for the sake of anyone sitting around us! At 23 months she is still entitled to fly free of charge. Thanks for advice anyway Madtown.
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Well first of all I just question why it would bother anyone else at all if I carry my kid on my lap since our family is likely going to occupy the whole row. And you said if I am lucky to get an extra seat for free I should be paying for it. Do you get asked to pay if your flight happens to be quite empty and that you can occupy extra seats next to you? I don't think so.
In fact, at this age, even if there is a seat for her where she can sit by herself, she is still going to walk up and down the aisle a lot of time, so yes she is going to disturb other people no matter what. And I feel sorry for them.
As a matter of fact, our flight tickets (my husband, my older kid and myself) were all redeemed using mileage. We will be flying with a different airline on each separate segment. I did look into the option of buying an extra seat for my 23 mth old but it's gonna cost us like 20K so we have ruled out this option. I'm just trying to ask for advice on how to improve our comfort, and all the above postings have been very helpful.
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To be fair Nicher, in your original note it does not make clear you will take up an entire row. Also madtown did not say if you got a spare seat beside you, that you should pay for it. Taken at face value, if I had to sit beside an adult with a 23 mth old in their lap, it would certainly disturb my flight. I can see myself getting kicked (accidentally of course), liquid spilt on, crying, etc.
Since you have a bassinet that means your row has the wider legroom already. So if the kid doesn't want to sleep in the bassinet (make it fun, bring along their favourite pillow or stuffed animal) then you can pull up both armrests, lay one kid on your lap and the other kid on hubby's lap with their legs in the middle seat. Not real comfortable for you but then again it was your choice not to buy the extra seat.
I've brought two kids with me alone on several 17 hr flights, and if i can do it, so can anyone. Make it fun, make it an adventure and everyone arrives in 1 piece with nerves intact.
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