Tips for Flying with Kids

Have you flown lately?

We had not flown as a family in years.  Pre-Covid.  Pre Leo.  Years!!  Kevin has flown for some work related travel and we had built up TONS of flight miles thanks to so many things being cancelled since 2020.  So given all of that, it was a no brainer that we should try to fly this Summer when we headed to the beach.

I do not love to fly.  It feels stressful.  All of the unknowns.  All of the changing rules.  But when you can swap a 20+ hour car ride/two hard days of driving for a 7ish hour trip (2.5 hours to get to the airport, 2 hour flight and 30 minute rental car ride) it all feels worth the extra effort to fly.  

We love to fly Southwest.  Their customer service and positive experience is hard to beat.  We also are at a stage of life with little ones that nonstop flights are the only way we're flying.  We're still traveling with a pack n play, stroller and lost luggage feels like too much of a risk with all the things young kids need.  All the stars aligned - great weather, great flight times, nonstop flight from Indianapolis to Ft Myers FL and we were ready to go.

I could not find much information online about currently flying with kids so I'm here to fill that gap with lots of details and what to expect if you are flying with your family this Summer.

Tips for Flying with Kids:

1. Birth certificates were glanced at for all 3 kids, but did not feel required on Southwest.  We also had to scramble last minute to find Leo's birth certificate.  I knew we'd gotten it, but finding it after moving was a little tricky.  Plan ahead.

2. Kids under 12 do not have to remove their shoes to go through security.  Some TSA people will fast track a big family and let you go in the express lane.  We do not have pre-check clearance for anyone because we do not fly regularly.

3. Strollers have to be folded up and go through the x-ray machine.

4. Indy airport asked for all electronics to be separated from our carry ons.  Ft Myers wanted everything left inside of our carry ons.

5. A pack of wipes set off extra security measures for my carry on.  So allow for extra time if you're traveling with diapers and wipes and children :).

6. Each of us packed a carry on backpack - empty water bottle or sippy cup, bag of snacks, fun things to play with and favorite must have items that we didn't want to be separated from.

7. We boarded after the A groups in the family boarding section.  Both flights ended up with family boarding being way before our assigned boarding time.  It was important for us to sit together so we boarded as soon as we were allowed to and had no problems.

8. We enjoyed the snack service on the plane and no one needed to use the airplane restrooms.  We tried hard to eat whatever the kids wanted to snack on, not drink too much and just use the airport restrooms.

9. We checked our stroller at the gate.  They give you a special tag so that you can keep your stroller until right before you board the plane.  Then they have it waiting for you all set up in the jet way when you land.

10. Let the older kids pack their own items for entertainment with a few fun surprises.  Then pack the toddler/baby items you know they love - favorite cars, board book, phone toy, etc.

11. We checked booster seats and a car seat with our checked luggage.  We decided to bring our extra boosters from Kevin's car so that we were not having to remove their installed car seats from the van when we got to the airport.  That was a genius idea from Kevin that saved us a good chunk of time.  We just grabbed their boosters in the car seat bag and the big kids hopped right out of the van.  We only had to uninstall Leo's seat to travel with.  Easy peasy!  So if you have an extra set of car seats and room to pack them, go this route.

12. Bring a generous amount of things like diapers and wipes or anything you absolutely cannot live without if anything goes haywire with your travel.  I think I did 10 diapers and a brand new pack of wipes to give me peace of mind.  Everyone else had extra snacks in case there weren't any dinner options open when we landed or favorite stuffed animals that were a must have for sleep.

Let me know if you have any other questions!  I'd love to help you prep for your travel!

A few more tips/photos :)

1. Give yourself plenty of time - let the kids watch planes come and go.  This was very interesting to Leo who loves all forms of transportation.  He kept yelling WOW!!

2. Never say never.

I bought a backpack harness for Leo.  He loved it.  I filled his dinosaur backpack with cars and books.  We used it probably half of the time.  It kept him totally safe.  Prevented him from getting stepped on in a busy place and it gave it lots of freedom to run before sitting on our 2 hour flight.  10/10 recommend.  We tried it on at home and he loved wearing his own backpack.  *Link at the bottom of this post.

3. Explore the airport.

4. Everyone carries their own carry on.

The kids loved using their school backpacks for carry ons.

5. Change up your seats.  These two sat together on the flight there.  Then we rotated on the way home so everyone got a turn sitting by mom/dad/Leo, aisles and windows.  I did not rotate Leo.  He stayed contained in the middle seat.  I also did not unbuckle him much.  He didn't even ask on the first flight.  He sat perfectly.  The 2nd flight had a weather delay, it was harder for him to sit so he got up and moved around.

6. Do your best to set your crew up for success - we landed in a different time zone, had to wait for our rental car and then drive to our condo.  Food options were slim so our big snack bags (one per kid) really came in handy while we waited.

7. Tablets - the big kids brought their tablets and used them a little on the flights.  They didn't have wifi so it was just one of many things to keep them entertained.

8. Enjoy the ride!

Smile at the people around you.  Let your kids chat with your neighbors and enjoy all the new sights and sounds.  The big kids hadn't flown in years so it was fun to see them ready for a new adventure.

I'll link a few Amazon must haves that we really enjoyed on this trip.  The trip was easier/better because of each of these things.  Thanks for using my affiliate links and supporting my blog :)