2 car seats on the plane?

purplekyk

New member
Hi ~ I'm new to this whole forum thing, but I've been enjoying reading everyone's posts. I decided to take the plunge and ask a question that I've been desperately researching for weeks now. I'm really stressed out about what to do with our car seats on the airplane. :eek:

My family is flying to New Zealand for Christmas. We have two legs of the trip ahead of us: one to LAX and another to NZ. We have two children, a 10-month old (at time of trip) and a 3 1/2 year old. We have a Britax BV and Graco Nautilus respectively for them, which they both love. We only purchased a seat for our 3-yr-old but not for our 10-month old. What would you recommend in terms of car seats? Should I take both? Or just rent a CARES harness for our 3-yr-old?

We will need the car seats in NZ, so it's just a matter of checking them in, gate-checking them, or lugging one of them along.

Please please - any advice would be greatly appreciated!! thanks!!
 
ADS

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
I would buy the 10 month old a seat, first. That's a LONG trip to hold a mobile baby who doesn't understand that they can't get down and play. Not to mention a LONG trip without any use of your lap or tray, or comfort while you sleep.

Then I would take both seats on board. Install the 10 month old rear facing and the 3.5 year old forward (obviously). I'd put the 10 month old by the window and either the 3.5 year old next to you if it's just the three of you and you're all together, or put the 3.5 year old in the window in front of the 10 month old (no complaints about lack of recline on such a long flight).

I recommend this for a few reasons. One, they strap down EVERYTHING on a plane for safety. The soap in the lav, the coffeepot. And I know surely your baby is worth more than the soap. In addition to your baby being hurt, the people around you (including your older child and yourself) can be injured by a flying baby. Plus it's not so much about dropping out of the sky. A piece of plastic won't do much in a six mile vertical drop. It's about runway emergencies and turbulence, mostly. Third, comfort. That's a LONG flight on seats too big for kids. They'll sleep much much much better in seats they know. Imagine if you got to take along your la-z-boy for the trip. Ahhhhhhh. Plus you won't have a child taking up the three square inches of space you get so you'll be more comfortable. Fourth, it's not safe to check carseats. Have you seen how those guys handle baggage? Graco requires replacement after ANY collision, and some of the tossings or fallings or bumpings in cargo could do as much damage. People have reported many times arriving at their destination and finding a damaged seat. NOT what you want to deal with after 24 hours or so of travel with two tired kids and needing to buy more that'll be illegal to use when you get home.

Have a great trip, but definitely buy the baby a seat and bring your carseats on board. We're going from the west coast to England next May when my baby will be eight months. You better believe her seat is coming on board with us and she's going to have her own seat, no matter what the cost (many will still do discounts for infants in seats internationally, though it may only be 10% or so). I'd much rather pay for a ticket than have her involved in essentially a 150 mph highway collision in nothing but my arms and know that $600 or $1000 or even $2000 would have saved us years of pain and surgery and therapy, or worse.

Wendy
 

InternationalMama

New member
Just a few question to help offer advice:

What are the stats of your kids (weight, height, torso height if you know it)?

Do you already know what car you will be using in New Zealand? Will it have LATCH/Isofix?

What airline will you be flying (make sure to check who is operating the flight if it's a codeshare)?

Okay, I'll be back with ideas!

Oh, ETA: Does your 10 month old have an infant seat that she still fits in?
 
Last edited:

Mummy2Summer

New member
I would buy the 10 month old a seat, first. That's a LONG trip to hold a mobile baby who doesn't understand that they can't get down and play. Not to mention a LONG trip without any use of your lap or tray, or comfort while you sleep.

Then I would take both seats on board. Install the 10 month old rear facing and the 3.5 year old forward (obviously). I'd put the 10 month old by the window and either the 3.5 year old next to you if it's just the three of you and you're all together, or put the 3.5 year old in the window in front of the 10 month old (no complaints about lack of recline on such a long flight).

I recommend this for a few reasons. One, they strap down EVERYTHING on a plane for safety. The soap in the lav, the coffeepot. And I know surely your baby is worth more than the soap. In addition to your baby being hurt, the people around you (including your older child and yourself) can be injured by a flying baby. Plus it's not so much about dropping out of the sky. A piece of plastic won't do much in a six mile vertical drop. It's about runway emergencies and turbulence, mostly. Third, comfort. That's a LONG flight on seats too big for kids. They'll sleep much much much better in seats they know. Imagine if you got to take along your la-z-boy for the trip. Ahhhhhhh. Plus you won't have a child taking up the three square inches of space you get so you'll be more comfortable. Fourth, it's not safe to check carseats. Have you seen how those guys handle baggage? Graco requires replacement after ANY collision, and some of the tossings or fallings or bumpings in cargo could do as much damage. People have reported many times arriving at their destination and finding a damaged seat. NOT what you want to deal with after 24 hours or so of travel with two tired kids and needing to buy more that'll be illegal to use when you get home.

Have a great trip, but definitely buy the baby a seat and bring your carseats on board. We're going from the west coast to England next May when my baby will be eight months. You better believe her seat is coming on board with us and she's going to have her own seat, no matter what the cost (many will still do discounts for infants in seats internationally, though it may only be 10% or so). I'd much rather pay for a ticket than have her involved in essentially a 150 mph highway collision in nothing but my arms and know that $600 or $1000 or even $2000 would have saved us years of pain and surgery and therapy, or worse.

Wendy

I fly between the US an Australia serveral times a year. When my daughter was younger I always got a bassinett for her.

I flew from SFO to Hawaii in July and it was a NIGHTMARE because my daughter wanted to be on the floor and play.

I am flying to Australia in a few weeks and this time I bought her a seat so I can take her carseat on board.`
 

purplekyk

New member
Thanks so much for your response, Wendy!

ACK. I knew I should have puchased a seat for her back when I did the reservation!! My husband urged me not to when we found out it would be $1000 plus for just her. Now they tell me that it'll cost me upwards to $3000++ to purchase a seat for her, because it's peak season flying to NZ and we would have to re-book for the entire family. So it looks like buying a seat for her is now out of the question.

I did purchase something called a FlyeBaby: www.flyebaby.com. It's FAA approved and can be used during the cruise portions of the flight. At least I can strap her in that. I absolutely regret not buying a seat for her now. I should have consulted this forum when we did the bookings! Should I bring her Britax BV anyway in the hopes that it's not a completely full flight? And gate-check it if there aren't any seats available? I will def be bringing my 3-yr-old's GN though now, for sure!
 

purplekyk

New member
International Mama ~
1) Unfortunately I only the weights of my two kiddos: my 3-yr-old is 33.5 lbs, and my 10-mo-old is almost 19lbs.
2) I don't know the car that we will be using in NZ but I will definitely ask now! (We're staying with my in-laws).
3) And the airlines that we'll be using are: United to LAX, then Air New Zealand to Auckland.

Thanks in advance for your help!!
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
I wouldn't want to gate check a car seat.

More expensive than bringing the one you have, but less expensive than buying a seat, and saving you from having to check a car seat for her, might be to buy the Combi Coccoro; it's very compact and lightweight and I bet you could convince them to let you bring it as one of your carryons and stow it in the overhead bin... (Check the deals forum, I'm about to post a deal there on it. :) )
 

aeormsby

New member
I would also suggest getting a different seat for your 10mo. If you need to check the seat I would get a Scenera or Avenue for her and have your 3yo use either the Blvd or Nautilus on the plane (figure out which one is lighter/easier to get thru the airport). Or the Corocco in the overhead is also a great option.

Ann
 

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
Why do you have to rebook the whole family? I've bought one more ticket later. Yes it was more expensive to buy it then rather than before, but I didn't need all new tickets for everyone.

Air New Zealand allows seats on board up to four years old, and allows for rear facing seats. So you're good on that front. United, of course, allows anything FAA approved.

Wendy
 

InternationalMama

New member
Hi! I'm back. :)

First, I just wanted to clear something up about the Flye Baby. The Flye Baby is not FAA-approved. It is not in any way a safety device and because of this you can't use it during take off, landing or turbulence. It isn't prohibited during the cruise portion of the flight, but neither is putting your baby on the floor or walking around the cabin with them or pretty much anything else you want to do with them. It hasn't been tested by the FAA in any way. Baby carriers of any stripe are actually prohibited during take off, landing and turbulence because they have been shown to be -more dangerous- than simply holding your baby on your lap. Just wanted you to know since the wording of the Flye Baby website is (I think intentionally) misleading.

Next, I wanted to let you know that Air New Zealand -only- allows rear facing car seats if they do not prevent the passenger in front from reclining. There is no way you could use the Boulevard rear facing and still allow the passenger in front to recline (which puts you kind of between a rock and a hard place since your daughter doesn't weigh enough to use it forward facing). So if you were hoping to use the seat onboard something like the Coccoro would be your best bet for the 10 month old because at least as far as people have reported here it allows some recline for the passenger in front of it. Having traveled with a 10 month old myself I can tell you that rear facing is so much nicer because you can interact with them and they won't lose their toys, etc. Not to mention she doesn't meet the requirements for a forward facing seat.

Like Ketchupqueen said, if you are up for buying a new car seat for your 10 month old for the trip, I think the Coccoro would be a great choice. It's a great lightweight option and they are even going to make a snap n go stroller for it soon! (There are some cheaper options, like the Scenera, but I don't know how much recline they will allow the passenger in front and it lacks a lot of nice convenience features for international travel.) I would pick either over taking the Boulevard, especially because then if it does get damaged you are not out as much $$$. And some people -have- had success about putting the Coccoro in the overhead bin although there is no way to know for sure before you fly that they will let you do that. Definitely go for gate checking for it though if you can't use it/store it on the plane. This will reduce the risk of it getting damaged. Also, if you check it all the way through as checked luggage you won't be able to use it on the long leg to New Zealand even if a seat opens up on that flight.

Although speaking of seats opening up, if you would need to rebook for your whole family in order to get your daughter a seat I'm assuming it's because the flight(s) you are currently on is/are full. So your chances of their being a spare seat available on your flights doesn't seem very high, especially with the time of year that you are flying.

Given that I might look into this option (if it's available and depending on what other people who have more experience with this seat think): You could buy a Safeguard Go for your older daughter and then put your 3yo in your baby's Boulevard on the plane and carry the Safeguard Go on as carry-on luggage. (The problem is that the Safeguard Go is not being made at the moment and I'm not sure when Dorel is going to start selling the new version, before your trip or after.) But this solution would mean that you wouldn't have to check any seats for your kids and would know that they would arrive safe and useable in NZ. The only thing is you would really want to check on whether the cars you will be using have LATCH/isofix because the Safeguard GO is apparently a pain to install with a seatbelt.

If your older daughter still fits in the Coccoro forward facing and you travel a lot and/or you just feel the convenience would be worth it you could even get the Coccoro, the Safeguard Go, and a CARES harness and then if on your shorter domestic flights there were any extra seats available you could put your oldest in the CARES harness and the baby in the Coccoro, then for the longer flight put your oldest in the Coccoro and have baby on your lap. This would be the ultimate in convenience, flexibilty and portability, but as so often happens also cost. But I just thought I'd throw it out there as a possibility. :) A Scenera of Avenue (which ever one your oldest still fits in) would also work for less money than the Coccoro since in this scenario you'd already be committing to not using a seat for your youngest on the Air New Zealand flights.

I would try for one of the last two options if possible to avoid checking any car seats, especially because it seems unlikely at this point that if you bring two you won't have to check one. If you do decide to bring two I would strongly suggest getting the Coccoro because I think it is probably the only seat that will fits your DD that Air New Zealand is likely to let you rear face on the plane if you do get to use it and you have the hope of being able to store it onboard rather than having to check it in the hold. If you do hope to store it onboard try to come up with a bag it fits in that you can pop it in at the gate though.

I hope that helps! And I'm glad you'll consider buying your daughter a seat of her own in the future. I'm a huge advocate for that for the safety and sanity of your baby, your family and all of the passengers on your plane. But hopefully these suggestions will give you some ideas for your options now.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
Given that I might look into this option (if it's available and depending on what other people who have more experience with this seat think): You could buy a Safeguard Go for your older daughter and then put your 3yo in your baby's Boulevard on the plane and carry the Safeguard Go on as carry-on luggage. (The problem is that the Safeguard Go is not being made at the moment and I'm not sure when Dorel is going to start selling the new version, before your trip or after.) But this solution would mean that you wouldn't have to check any seats for your kids and would know that they would arrive safe and useable in NZ. The only thing is you would really want to check on whether the cars you will be using have LATCH/isofix because the Safeguard GO is apparently a pain to install with a seatbelt.

It's not a bad idea. :thumbsup:

A few things:

-Amazon is currently selling the new-model GO (made by Dorel) only in one color I think so far but hey, it's there.
-It's a pain to install with seatbelt but doable with locking clip in most cars-- practice before hand for sure though to make sure you know how to do it if needed.
-Requires a top tether-- but that should not be a problem in NZ.
-LATCH/ISOFIX really do help-- you may be able to get a rental car with ISOFIX in NZ, you can call and ask.
-Even with LATCH there are a few rare cars that it is incompatible with for a LATCH install--- so you'd still be wise to practice seatbelt install with locking clip, just in case.

I have seen gate-checked car seats be dropped/thrown out of the plane onto the tarmac, so, um, I'm very hesitant to check a car seat ever ever again after witnessing that, even gate check.

I think Combi is also coming out with a travel bag for the Coccoro, so maybe if it was in that it would be more likely to be allowed as a carry-on?
 

InternationalMama

New member
LATCH/ISOFIX really do help-- you may be able to get a rental car with ISOFIX in NZ, you can call and ask.

OP said she's staying with her in-laws so she should be able to confirm all the car details ahead of time. :thumbsup:

Also, OP I was thinking: Maybe your in-laws could buy one car seat for one of your girls to use now and on future visits? Then you would only need to bring one car seat and you could put your older DD in it. :)

I think Combi is also coming out with a travel bag for the Coccoro, so maybe if it was in that it would be more likely to be allowed as a carry-on?

I agree. I hope they release these accessories soon!

Hey Ketchup, I know you said your DD is too tall for the Coccoro RF. How tall is she, just out of curiosity?
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
OP said she's staying with her in-laws so she should be able to confirm all the car details ahead of time. :thumbsup:

Missed that! Thanks!
Also, OP I was thinking: Maybe your in-laws could buy one car seat for one of your girls to use now and on future visits? Then you would only need to bring one car seat and you could put your older DD in it. :)
Another good idea to consider-- just make sure someone familiar with the seats confirms that the one they buy is appropriate for her height/weight. :)
Hey Ketchup, I know you said your DD is too tall for the Coccoro RF. How tall is she, just out of curiosity?

I don't know her overall height. She has about a 15 1/2-16 inch torso, though (she's asleep or I'd measure her for ya. ;) ) This is the kid who is pretty much half torso; at birth she was 20.5 inches long with a 10 inch torso!
 

InternationalMama

New member
I don't know her overall height. She has about a 15 1/2-16 inch torso, though (she's asleep or I'd measure her for ya. ;) ) This is the kid who is pretty much half torso; at birth she was 20.5 inches long with a 10 inch torso!

WOW! That's amazing. My kid is really tall, but I think for his height his torso is normal/short. It's probably no more than 13 inches. I really want a Coccoro myself! :)
 
U

Unregistered

Guest
Re: Flyebaby

Hello Group,

My name is Justin Flye, I am the VP of operations for the company. My wife kadie and I are the inventors of the Flyebaby. I just wanted to touch base on InternationalMama's comment about our website being intentionally misleading.

My question to InternationalMama is which part of the verbage on the website do you find misleading? We have no intentions of misleading any of our customers. We want our customers 100% satisfied and feel comfortable reccomending Flyebaby to friends and family without any reservations. If anyone has any feedback either negative or positive we would love to hear from you. Again I stress, please if anyone finds any information misleading on our website please inform us and we will be more than happy to review the issue and make the necessary changes. If anyone has any questions at any time please contact us directly.

My direct e-mail is:

justin@flyebaby.com

I look forward to hearing from everyone.

Thank you,

Justin Flye
 

purplekyk

New member
Why do you have to rebook the whole family? I've bought one more ticket later. Yes it was more expensive to buy it then rather than before, but I didn't need all new tickets for everyone.

I should call Air New Zealand and clarify. Back in September when I realized that I should have bought my dd her own seat, they were telling me that I had to rebook the entire family because apparently there were not enough seats on one of the legs of our trip for the times that we were originally slated to fly. So we would have had to change the times of all our flights to accommodate adding her seat. Plus the customer service rep advised me not to buy her a seat - but in hindsight, I should have went with my instincts and just bought her a seat. I will be calling again and seeing if I can...

Air New Zealand allows seats on board up to four years old, and allows for rear facing seats. So you're good on that front. United, of course, allows anything FAA approved.

Wendy

Great to know! Thanks, Wendy! :)
 

purplekyk

New member
Why do you have to rebook the whole family? I've bought one more ticket later. Yes it was more expensive to buy it then rather than before, but I didn't need all new tickets for everyone.

I should call Air New Zealand and clarify. Back in September when I realized that I should have bought my dd her own seat, they were telling me that I had to rebook the entire family because apparently there were not enough seats on one of the legs of our trip for the times that we were originally slated to fly. So we would have had to change the times of all our flights to accommodate adding her seat. Plus the customer service rep advised me not to buy her a seat - but in hindsight, I should have went with my instincts and just bought her a seat. I will be calling again and seeing if I can...

Air New Zealand allows seats on board up to four years old, and allows for rear facing seats. So you're good on that front. United, of course, allows anything FAA approved.

Wendy


I should call Air New Zealand and clarify. Back in September when I realized that I should have bought my dd her own seat, they were telling me that I had to rebook the entire family because apparently there were not enough seats on one of the legs of our trip for the times that we were originally slated to fly. So we would have had to change the times of all our flights to accommodate adding her seat. Plus the customer service rep advised me not to buy her a seat - but in hindsight, I should have went with my instincts and just bought her a seat. I will be calling again and seeing if I can...

And great to know about Air NZ letting my dd fly rr! Thanks, Wendy! :)
 

purplekyk

New member
Wow. I have so much to consider, don't I? Haha. I have been looking at the Combi Coccoro (majorly cute, btw! Thanks ketchupqueen for the heads-up on the deal), as well as the Safeguard Go. I think I'm leaning towards the Coccoro right now. We can always use it in my husband's Maxima (we only use our Pilot when we drive around the kids).

Just to clarify, my DS is the one who is 3 years old, and my DD is the one who's 10 mos old. I really need to measure her torso and height to see which seat she will best fit into.

I will be calling Air NZ to see how much it all is to add a seat for her, if they can. Although I doubt it now since we're flying in less than two months and it's peak season to fly to NZ. In the end, I will probably be bringing my DS's GN and a Coccoro for my DD. Any suggestions on how to lug it all around the airport? We have a 4-hour layover in LAX.

Thanks so much for all your help!!
 

mommycat

Well-known member
Here's what I did with my seats to lug them around, etc etc.
http://car-seat.org/showthread.php?p=1030348

Here are some other ideas on airport lugging that I have "collected":
http://www.car-seat.org/showpost.php?p=862979&postcount=3

Does your DS not fit in the BV anymore? I am wondering why you are choosing the GN over the BV as one of your seats to take along.

Also, would it be possible for them to add tickets for your DD on only some legs of the flight? So if say one was booked up but the other 3 were available, that would give you *something*.
 

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