flying questions - logistics of stroller/carseat/suitcases

cor825

New member
I have flown quite a lot with my DD (almost 13 months old). Every time, I either take her SafeSeat on the plane, or gate check it with the stroller.

We will be switching to a rear-facing convertible pretty soon, and I'm wondering if I still have to gate check it with the stroller, or if I'm allowed to check it all the way through (when we check in for the flight at the arrivals section). Or is that considered a suitcase?

I'm thinking about getting the TrueFit. I only bought one ticket on the plane, so unless there's an empty seat on the flight (not likely during the holidays), she'll be in my lap. If she becomes a lap child, will they gate check my TrueFit? How do the logistics of that work when I need to bring a stroller too? I just can't imagine trying to gate check the stroller and TrueFit like I did with my safeseat/stroller combo.

I guess my concern about the flight is that I want to bring a TrueFit, stroller and my suitcases, and was wondering if the stroller or TrueFit can be checked all the way through (not at the gate) without them being one of my "free" suitcases (gotta love Southwest).

Can anyone help me out?
 
ADS

Eclipsepearl

New member
Never check a car seat in as luggage. There is too much risk of it being lost and/or broken in transit. While air travel is safe, the risk for your seat is much greater. They could throw it around the tarmac, crush it under a bunch of bags or send it to the wrong city. This happens a lot. Then what do you do at the airport if you need the seat right away?

For a 13 month old, you may do better putting the car seat on a metal luggage cart and checking the stroller, unless you use your stroller ot transport the car seat.

WN is good about gate-checking car seats. This is not guarantee but a much better idea than luggage checking the seat.
 

romanoma

New member
I agree, don't check a car seat unless you bring a box. Some airlines will even guarantee the seat free of any damage if it is in the original box. (I have kept my original boxes for this reason). The last airline I flew on did not count strollers or car seats as "bags" when charging for extra bags, and they allowed you to check it at the check in with original box and it was guaranteed free of any damage. I would check the website of the airline you are flying on.

I have heard that a radian when folded will fit in the overhead storage of a plane. That was my plan the last time I flew with a young child, but ended up there were open seats so she got to use her car seat on the plane instead. i used the radian strapped to my rolling carryon as a "stroller" through the airport. This worked very very well for me.

Good luck!
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
Southwest does not count a stroller or car seat toward your luggage count if it is either checked or gate checked. (One per child.) I still would not check a car seat without use of a sturdy, well-fitting box (the original, if well-fitting and sturdy, is the best choice.) After the things I've seen done to gate-checked items I no longer recommend even gate-checking without protection. Boxes are well-engineered to provide protection for their contents, so they are a good choice when you cannot carry the seat on board. But first choice, of course, is to bring the seat on board. Once the child is 2 you HAVE to buy a seat anyway, so it doesn't cost anything extra to use the seat, and I highly recommend buying a seat for children under 2 whenever possible. (We recently flew Southwest and even our red-eye flight was full, so out of the 3 flights we were on there was not one where we would have been allowed to use the car seat on board for our 18 month old if we had not purchased a ticket for her.)
 

cor825

New member
Thanks so much for that info! Sounds like I'll be able to check the stroller and carseat (in original box....THANKS SO MUCH for that tip!) when I check in. I'll call my airline to double check that those don't count as my suitcases.

Seeing as it's hit or miss getting the car seat on the plane, I'll probably check it when I get to the airport and have it in the box. I forsee troubles if I try to bring the seat on the airplane in hopes that there's an extra seat for it and there ends up not being one. I do not want to risk damaging my carseat!!

You've been so helpful - thank you very much!
 

Eclipsepearl

New member
Well no, taking it to the gate is still a better plan because then it would be gate-checked. The ground agents in the boarding area will let you know if there is a free seat. No, you wont get on board only to find out the bad news then. You wont be let on the plane with the seat if there is not a free place for it.

Also be careful, some airlines stipulate that the original box must be factory sealed. So this means it's meant for someone transporting a new car seat who is not flying with a baby (pregnant, bringing to someone else, etc.)

Find out what WN's policy is. Luckily, they don't charge for bags so take advantage, check the stroller and use the car seat as a stroller to take on board.

http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/infants.html
http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/baggage.html
 

BananaBoat

Well-known member
I just wanted to address your seat choice. While the True Fit is an awesome car seat, it's also very wide & does not fit on all airline seats. While this does not impact your current plans (you'll be checking the seat regardless it sounds), it may be a tough choice as a travel seat as your DD gets older. Just a thought...
 

lilpenguin

New member
another alternative is to use your carry-on suitcase as the 'stroller' for both the carseat and possibly the baby, and check your stroller.

We've flown several times using [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Traveling-Toddler-Seat-Travel-Accessory/dp/B000JHN3AS"]this[/ame] travelling toddler carseat accessory. Its basically a t-shaped strap w/d-rings that allow you to use the tether and latch connectors on the carseat and strap it to the carry-on. Works like a dream. Saving you from an extra 'dolly.' Child can also ride in the seat, but DD prefers being in a carrier.
 

Eclipsepearl

New member
Those actually make me nervous.

I have visions that the handles, which were not meant for that much weight, could break and there would be the parents, with a car seat, kid and bag without handles in the middle of the airport...

Too many have told me that this doesn't happen. I actually hope they're right!

As a former Flight Attendant, I do have to mention that rollerboards as carry-on's are not exactly welcomed by the crew. They're horrible to stow, taking up way too much room. You want the F/A's to be on your side and a rollerboard is not the way to make yourself popular...JMHO!

The luggage cart is basically the same concept, except that it's designed to carry a lot of weight. I put the carry-on bags on it when my dh wasn't riding it...
 

tweetykl

New member
When we had one child, we used to strap the carseat on to the stroller and bby wear. Now that we have two children, we used a luggage cart, the kind you can purchase for $20 and put the carseats on that.
 

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