15 Tips That'll Make Flying with a Baby That Much Easier

I remember the first time we traveled with Wendy, people thought we were crazy. She had just turned 5 weeks old and we were off to Disney World. Mind you, I had a conference at the Mouse’s house that was planned well before she was even conceived so this wasn’t a last minute trip adventure. We even bought extra trip insurance just in case I couldn’t travel or she couldn’t either. But when the time came, she and I were both cleared to fly and travel by our doctor so off on an adventure we went. I was a little stressed out beforehand, I had heard so many horror stories from parents, and had a lot of people calling me crazy or brave. But we pushed forward and decided to pre-plan for our flight and leave the rest to chance or luck or Wendy. I’m happy to tell you, that that first plane trip with her went smoothly, I couldn’t believe that I had stressed about it as much as I did. Even the flight back was a good one. So after that experience, we decided that we would fly again with her when she was 6 months old and again, it went really well. We learned a lot about traveling with a baby under 1 years old. So I want to share 15 tricks or tips that we learned so that your next flight with your little one won’t be a stressful one.

1. Pick your flight time carefully

Wendy and I are both great morning people. We love the mornings. She and I are up at 6 am. She has always been a morning baby so I wanted to make sure that we traveled during her best time of the day. Picking a morning flight has a lot of benefits to it; firstly, I find a lot of people don’t generally fly bright and early in the morning so the airports aren’t as busy and stressful, to begin with. Anything that helps you feel less stressed is best. Secondly, I’ve found airport security and airport workers are so much happier in the morning. Lastly, the airport is quieter, which I personally love and so does Wendy.

2. Opt to have your baby on your lap

I know there’s a lot of debate about this one, but hear me out, having Wendy on my lap made flying with her at such a young age so much easier, especially during take-offs and landings. Plus she seems so much less stressed being in the comfort of my arms in a new environment.

3. Pick an aisle seat or the window seat

Do not ever pick the middle seat. Just don’t do it. I learned my lesson on our first flight, I ended up switching seats with the person beside me. Imagine climbing over a complete stranger in a tight space to get to the bathroom to deal with a poopy diaper while trying to not put your butt in his face…yup…or having your baby fall asleep on your lap and realizing you that the people beside you have occupied both your armrests. Here’s the deal, if you feel uncomfortable breastfeeding your baby in public or want to rest your head against the side, pick the window seat. If you are comfortable nursing baby in public, have the bladder the size of a goldfish or have a kid who hates sitting in a wet diaper, pick the aisle seat. Wendy and I have sat in both the window seat and the aisle seat and I personally prefer the aisle seat. There’s more movement freedom and easier to talk to the flight attendants when you need something.

4. Pack your diaper bag with the right essentials

This can be a tricky one. Our first trip with Wendy we packed WAY TOO MUCH because we wanted to be prepared for anything. That’s changed. We pack what we need so we aren’t stressed out or tired lugging around unnecessary weight. So when it came to Wendy’s diaper bag I made sure to pack enough diapers for our flight and more just in case we didn’t have access to our checked luggage for a while. Basically, when she was 5 weeks old, I packed 15 diapers for a 2-hour flight and 3 hours to get through the airport and to the hotel we were staying at. That may seem like a lot, but my kid loved to pee. When she was 6 months, I brought 7 diapers with us. When it comes to diapers, plan more than you think you need. You’ll also want to pack at least two outfit changes for baby, some snacks, toys, diaper rash cream, baby wipes, pacifier, extra bottle and formula if baby isn’t breastfeeding, and dog poop bags (your fellow passengers will thank you for not stinking up the washroom garbage). If you are looking for a more detailed checklist of what to pack for baby for a trip check on my post on What to Pack for Baby If you head over to that post, you can also download my handy checklist to make packing easy.

5. Pack fun things for your baby to play with and enjoy

An infant won’t care so much for these items but any child over 4 months old will. During her flights at 6 months, Wendy loved playing with her books, stuffed Bambi, and my phone. You’ll want to make sure that you pack items that are new and exciting. A few days before our flight I removed some of her favorite books and small toys from her play collection. This was so I could reintroduce them to her on the plane. It worked like a charm. She was so excited to see them again. She was also really happy smiling at just about every passenger that walked by, small pleasures.

6. Pack a portable changing pad

You’re going to find that not every airline has a change table in the washroom, or if your baby is like mine, she won’t like sitting in a wet diaper for too long. You have to be prepared to change your baby anywhere, sometimes that means on the airport floor, or if you aren’t allowed to leave your seat because the seatbelt light is on and the flight attendant is staring you down, drop that table down and change away… use the changing pad and lots of antibacterial wipes to wipe down that table afterward. Also, those doggie poop bags really come in handy during those desperate times.

7. Forget the purse or side bag, use a backpack as your carry on

I can’t stress this one enough. It was amazing to have my hands free and to evenly distribute the weight of a carry-on. We wore Wendy through the airport and with a backpack, I actually found I had an extra hand to drink my Starbucks coffee! Common mammas, we all know that morning java is super important for our wellbeing. It was also a lot easier to pack a backpack compared to a side bag or my purse. Interestingly enough, the backpack I used was also a diaper bag. It’s the Skip Hop Forma Travel Carry All Diaper Backpack with Insulated Bag. It has survived so many adventures and it was just the right size as my carryon. Another backpack I would recommend is the Skip Hop Chelsea Downtown Chic Diaper Backpack This is the diaper bag I will be getting for future trips. It’s both practical and stylish. There are so many organizational pockets that I can’t help but get giddy about it!

hands free recommended diaper bags — The Skip Hop Forma Travel Carry All Diaper Backpack with Insulated Bag & the Skip Hop Chelsea Downtown Chic Diaper Backpack

8. Pack an extra outfit for baby AND YOU. Maybe even two outfits

Okay, babies make messes, sometimes it’s a small mess but other times it’s a BIG mess. You have to be prepared for a change or two. I was lucky that Wendy has never been much of a puker. She would spit up a little bit after a feeding but nothing that would make me gag. BUT I have been on a flight where a baby completely projectile vomited on his mother, the back of the seat, and the person sitting next to them…I felt so bad for them. Pretty much everyone around her and her baby helped wipe it up, the flight attendants sprang into action but that poor mama was drenched in puke. So pack a change of clothing, I would even go so far as packing an extra bra and panties, just in case.

9. Dress in layers, especially if you are nursing

Dressing in layers is almost an essential if you plan on breastfeeding baby anywhere. It just makes it easier for you and baby. I’m also pretty sure that I can’t be the only person who finds that the temperatures at airports and on planes are a little wonky. Hot Cold Hot Cold Warm….dressing yourself in layers and even dressing baby in layers will help everyone stay comfortable. For example, my first flight with Wendy she was 5 weeks, and it was October in Canada…so it was chilly but I knew that when we landed in Orlando it would be very warm. So I dressed her in onesies, pjs with feet, and a warm winter suit. She looked cozy and like a little-stuffed doll, but it worked.

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10. Dress with comfort and ease in mind, plus easy slip on and off shoes especially for travel within the USA

Keep those layers comfortable, no need to bring out fancy dresses or heels. You want to make sure you are 100% comfortable. Another thing to keep in mind, are your shoes. Whenever I’ve flown out of Canada, I’ve never had to remove my shoes, however, flying in the USA was totally different. Make it easier for yourself and wear shoes that you can easier slip in and out of it for security checks. I love my TOMS. They are comfortable and easy to slip on and off while wearing Wendy.

11. Wear baby through the airport and through security

If you are traveling to somewhere like Disney, I highly recommend leaving the stroller at home and renting one instead, it’ll save you the headache of pushing a stroller through the airport, and worrying about it getting damaged when you check it. If not, try to travel with a light stroller. But if you are going through the airport, I recommend wearing baby instead. I loved wearing Wendy when she was younger. I swear by my Ergobaby Carrier and my Baby K’tan Baby Carrier Wearing her left my hands open to carry my coffee or being able to get our passports, and documents. Did you also know that you can wear your baby through security? Yup, they’ll make you walk through the metal detector and not that body scan machine. So that’s something to keep in mind.

12. Wait to feed baby until you are on the plane

You want to make sure that baby will take a bottle or the breast while on the plane. It will be an awesome way to distract baby and help make your flight easier.

13. Nurse or feed baby during take-off and during landing

I cannot stress this one enough. As adults, we can chew gum, swallow, yawn, whatever it takes for your ears to “pop” babies haven’t figured that out yet, even kids have issues with that. So what you want to do is have your baby nurse or feed during important times on the fight like take-off and landing. I have found that the landing is usually much more difficult for little ears compared to taking off. So don’t delay too much. Start feeding your baby when the plane starts moving and continue until you’re in the air. If your baby is done before, let him or her suck on a pacifier or comfort feed. When it comes to landing, try to give your little one a pacifier when the plane starts its initial descent. Then offer a bottle or start nursing. This has been what works with Wendy every time.

14. Bring snacks for you and baby

You may find that some airlines no longer offer snacks on shorter flights or sometimes you’ll find that that little bag of pretzels just isn’t enough…not to mention will be useless for your baby. So always bring some snacks with you. I usually pack granola bars for myself, and an extra bottle or two plus food packs for Wendy. She loves applesauce and sweet potato pie ones. Other great snacks for babies who are at that teething age would be teething biscuits. These biscuits are also great time killers but don’t forget those baby wipes because they make quite the mess.

15. Pack your patience and a sense of humor

Sometimes no matter how much you’ve planned things will go wonky. Maybe your little one spits up, maybe the plane is held up on the runway, going through security takes longer than expected because someone packed their entire life in their carryon, whatever it is, face it was patience and a smile. It’s another moment you’re spending with your little one who will grow up way too quickly in the years to come. So no matter how difficult the moment may seem, you will get through it. And if your little one cries and screams on the plane and you are worried about the rest of the passengers or you can feel all eyes on you, know that you will probably never see these people again in your life and that there are other mamas and papas on that flight who have nothing but love for you because they know what you’re going through.