Traveling to Europe

We are planning a trip to Spain and France with a almost five year old and a sixteen month old. We will have a rental car for two weeks and then a few days in Barcelona without a car. Our options are to bring car seats from home or rent them.

My four year old is still in a car seat, but I think he could handle a booster. I was thinking of buying a BubbleBum seat. Renting a booster would cost $100, which is nuts.

The 16 month old will not be able to use a car seat on the plane, so if we bring one, it would have to be checked. I guess we would have to buy some kind of bag for it, and I understand that the seat would be at risk of being damaged. We could bring one of the ones we already have, which would either be an old Britax Boulevard CS or a Diono Radian, or we could buy an inexpensive, lightweight one, like a Cosco.

From what I understand, it's technically not legal to use an American car seat in Europe, since there are different standards. But from what I hear, it's extremely unlikely that we would be cited for it, so I'm not concerned about it.

However, I am concerned about any capability issues with a European car. I really don't know much about car seat installation because I've had my husband deal with it. From what I've read, they use the same LATCH system but it's called ISOFIX there. I think we need to bring locking clips in case we end up using the seatbelt. I read something that had me concerned that American car seats are actually not safe forward facing in European cars because there is no tether and they are designed to be used with a tether. Does anyone know about that? Of course, I would prefer for my toddler to rear-face; however, we are very tall and are going to be in a very compact car. We should be prepared for the possibility that the seat will not fit rear-facing. I believe it is the norm for toddlers to forward-face there.

The biggest downside to renting a seat for our toddler is that it would cost about $140. It would also limit our options for getting to the airport safely. (Babies are not required to use car seats in taxis in a city, but I would have a hard time doing that.) There is also no guarantee that they will have the seat available. We would have to figure out how to install it after a very long trip. On the upside, we wouldn't have to lug another item around, when we already of two little kids and all our luggage. And we wouldn't have to worry about compatibility and obeying local laws.

What do you think our best option is?

The almost 5 year old can ride in the car seat on the plane (as long as the airline allows car seats).
I would bring the bubble bum if your older child is over 40 pounds- we just used one for my almost 5 year old and he did great.
I'd bring the Britax car seat with lock-offs. You can do whatever install you'd like in the rental car, but seat belt installs will be better for taxis and the seat belts in Europe don't lock.

Why can't the 16 month old be in a carseat on the plane?

What are the height and weight stats of both or your children?

My older son will be around 49 pounds (22 kg) and 45" (114 cm). The toddler will be around 30 pounds (13.5 kg) and 35" (87 cm), maybe bigger. I probably should have mentioned that, since they are quite a bit larger than average!

We are going to have three seats for the four of us on the plane, so we won't have room for the seat.

I second the idea of bringing the Britax and having your 4 year old ride in it on the plane. Then your 16 month old can use it in the rental car.

I'd probably look at the Yumi folding booster over the bubblebum. Especially since your 4 year old isn't used to a booster. Some younger kids struggle with the bubblebum because it isn't as stable. I think having the support and headwings of a HBB may be helpful to a young booster ride. It should fit in the overhead bin of the plane. Otherwise I'd get a HBB that converts to a LBB I'd pack the back in my luggage and bring the bottom on the plane. It would fit in the overheard bin or under the seat in front of you.

Sorry for not following up on the responses sooner.

We will not have the space on the plane to use a car seat. The two options are to check a car seat from home on the plane, or to spend $140 to rent one when we get there. Which of these options seems better?

I would check a seat of my own instead of renting.

The Marathon can be used on the plane. It's not too big (I had 2 Marathons the last time I flew home from Germany with my kids). Use it for the 4 year old in flight, and for the little one on the ground. I put mine on a 2-wheeled luggage cart, piled the carry-ons on top, and still had one hand free. My then-5 year old was even able to pull his through the airport himself, though that wouldn't have worked as well if we'd been rushed. (Alternatively, you can put a kid in the seat and wheel it with a kid in it; although, with such a long flight, that may not be appealing.)

Get a high backed booster with removable for the 4 year old to use when you land. Bring the base as a carry-on (gate check it if they absolutely insist, but stick it in the overhead bin if you can). Pack the back in your regular luggage. Worst case, the bag with the back gets lost or damaged, and you still have the base, but your 4 year old will be more comfortable and less likely to move out of position in a high backed booster than a backless.

That's what I would do.

ETA: When you install the Marathon, flip the plane's seatbelt 180 degrees (1/2 turn) so that the latch doesn't press against the inside of the Marathon. Otherwise, it's almost impossible to unbuckle when you land. Recline the plane seat, buckle in the Marathon with the buckle flipped, then unrecline the plane seat. It's faster & easier than a car install, even.

We definitely will not be using a car seat on the plane. Our plan is to put the armrests up and squeeze the four of us together in the three seats. A car seat would take up too much of our very limited seat room.

Does anyone know about the compatibility issues I brought up in my original post? I think it's not safe to use an American car seat in a European car with Isofix/Latch, but I'm not an expert.

LaLeidi said:

We definitely will not be using a car seat on the plane. Our plan is to put the armrests up and squeeze the four of us together in the three seats. A car seat would take up too much of our very limited seat room.

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This is neither comfortable nor allowed. There are 3 seat belts; everyone more than 2 years old is required to use one of those seat belts during certain times, and encouraged to use them as much as possible. A lap child has to be a lap child. Also, those arm rests don't actually go all the way back. They'll be digging into someone's head/back.

Does anyone know about the compatibility issues I brought up in my original post? I think it's not safe to use an American car seat in a European car with Isofix/Latch, but I'm not an expert.

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ISOFIX and LATCH are essentially the same thing, with the exception that ISOFIX may not include a top tether. For rear facing, it's fine to use.