Flying long-haul with newborn

[newcomer]

Hello all

I was sure there was already a post about this subject, but I can't find it so I hope you forgive me posting the question again.

I'm due in late April and, for personal reasons, there's a strong possibility that I'll need to fly longhaul with the baby asap afterwards. Ideally, I'll try to wait until our 6-week checkups, but even that might not be possible.

Does anyone have any useful advice for the flight? My husband will have already flown ahead some weeks previously, so I'll be packing, flying and travelling alone - just me, the baby, and a LOT of luggage...

I'm pretty nervous about the trip, so would really, really appreciate any helpful info you can give me.

Some other facts that might help:

- We have a Bugaboo Cameleon - can I bring it to the gate with me? As the baby will still be so small,it would be in the bassinet, not the buggy part (so, before you suggest it, bringing a 'foldy stroller' instead is not really an option).

- I will also be trying to buy a sling but, since I have some travelling to do at either end of the flight, I'd like to also have the Bugaboo with me if possible.

- We don't have a carseat and were not really planning to buy one (as we don't have a car). Before you ask, we're borrowing a carseat to get home from the hospital after the birth.

- So far, I'm hoping for a natural birth (ie, as opposed to a c-section) so the due date is not set in stone.

- If possible, I plan on breastfeeding after the birth.

- I will probably try to book my flight with BA. Anyone any experience re how good/otherwise BA are for people travelling with small babies? I'd be in economy.

- Finally, I have no idea what jabs, etc. babies usually have at 6 weeks old. I don't yet know if I'd be back in the UK in time for any subsequent sets of jabs at, say, 6 or 12 months - does the 'first lot' of jabs help to protect the baby at all?

I really hope someone can help as I've tried looking up this query on the internet, but the responses I found all seemed to assume that I'd be travelling with my husband and that I can afford to buy an additional seat just for the baby and will be happy to bring a whole heap of additional equipment.. Also, the responses are mostly written from the viewpoint of someone heading off on a 2-week holiday. This travel is not for a holiday, and we don't yet know for how long we'll be out of the country.

On a related note, does anyone know how quickly I can get a baby passport? Or if it's possible to get more than 1 copy of the birth certificate?

Many, many thanks in advance for your help.

[Pickle]

Hi Newcomer, I'll try to answer your queries as best I can... the first thing I would say is that flying with a newborn baby is the EASIEST time you'll have when it comes to travelling with children, so try not to worry too much.

Some other facts that might help:

- We have a Bugaboo Cameleon - can I bring it to the gate with me? As the baby will still be so small,it would be in the bassinet, not the buggy part (so, before you suggest it, bringing a 'foldy stroller' instead is not really an option).

... and such a lovely Cameleon it is too ;-) We never took it on any of our trips to NZ, for a couple of reasons - it doesn't fold in one piece, so is a bit of hassle to fold down at the gate, and there's a lot more risk of damage. You can get travel bags for them, but once again this is quite a hassle, especially if you're travelling alone. For our first trip to NZ we got a McLaren Techno XT, which lies completely flat and is fine for a tiny baby. We still use this now for our flights and it's survived unscathed every time. You should be able to take your pram/buggy to the gate, and I have seen people travelling with Bugaboos, so it is possible.

It's a good idea to take a sling as well if you can. A good fall back option if for some reason your buggy isn't available, and can be useful on board if your baby won't settle as you can strap them onto you and walk around. Take a rucksack style bag on board with you, much easier to cope with when you're in the airport etc. while trying to push a buggy. Pack twice as many nappies as you think you'll need ;-)

- If possible, I plan on breastfeeding after the birth.

Ideal. Makes travelling so much easier. I found the trips where I was breastfeeding a lot easier than ones where I was having to worry about bottles.

- I will probably try to book my flight with BA. Anyone any experience re how good/otherwise BA are for people travelling with small babies? I'd be in economy.

We do our long haul flights to NZ with Singapore Airlines, who are excellent with kids and provide brilliant bassinets for babies. No experience of BA long haul, but I'm sure they're fine. Best thing you can do is request a bassinet as it means you'll get bulkhead seats and a lot more space, and even if you don't use the bassinet it's handy for putting baby related stuff in!

- Finally, I have no idea what jabs, etc. babies usually have at 6 weeks old. I don't yet know if I'd be back in the UK in time for any subsequent sets of jabs at, say, 6 or 12 months - does the 'first lot' of jabs help to protect the baby at all?

You would probably be able to get your immunisations done in the country you're going to... worth looking into?

Baby passports are pretty quick, the only holdup would be getting your baby registered and obtaining the birth certificate etc... with our first it took 6 weeks before we got an appointment at Brixton Town Hall, 2nd was 5 weeks old. But once we had that, we used the Post Office check and send service and had passports within a week.

Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions... kids currently attempting to kill each other so better go and pay them some attention!

P x

[newcomer]

This is AWESOME - thanks loads for all the advice and for replying so quickly! It's a bit worrying re the length of time it might take to get the birth certificate as I'll probably need to book the flight before the birth so if the baby didn't have a passport in time, it could be problematic, but I guess I'll just have to work that out when the time comes.

[ryedalema]

Hi newcomer - there have been some posts on similar topics before but I don't believe there's one for as soon a trip as you are planning. We took our 2.5 year old to France by ferry when she was three weeks old - so the passport side is possible (as soon as your baby is registered get yourself to Victoria and get the passport done),

Oh and registering at Southwark is way quicker than registering with Lambeth (and you can do both from a Kings birth if you are having your babe there).

The barrier that I'd see is whether the airline would let you on before your six week check. Of course, how would they necessarily know - unless they look at the age of the child and put 2 and 2 together. But of course it could be adopted etc.

I don't think you need to book a separate seat until your child is 2 years old - we did numerous trips to Aus before she was 2 and paid a sum on top (for the bassinet) but never a full seat price.

I can't help re jabs - our newest daughter is 6 weeks old now and has had no jabs ('cept vit K) yet - so I wouldn't know whether airlines view that negatively either.

Bfing is fine on the plane - if a little intimidating (I sat next to an Aussie college basketball team on one trip - terrific!)

The only other fly in the ointment would be if you don't have a natural birth (sorry to mention this), as, if you end up with a C-section you may very well not be physically able to accomplish what you want to here.

All the very best with this - I'm guessing it's not by choice that you've to do a trip this soon - so my thoughts are with you.

On the plus side I've found that the younger they are - the easier the flight. When they start being able to run around, then the real problems start.

[melbourne groover]

I would recommend some kind of sling, this means you can be hands free when you need to and also get to the toilet if in a desperate situ...;-)

I personally liked the bjorn active as it had great back support and was invaluable for trips when they were a little older but there are a zillion options (and quite a few threads on this also I think).

Take a shawl scarf to cover the pram for sleeping if needed if you are doing stopover also useful on the plane.

If anything a tiny baby is easier as they just sleep and eat and the breastfeeding is so portable. Get a couple of breastfeeding vests then you don't have to expose too much (personally I was v against getting my stomach out, not so bothered about my boobs....). I liked the Boob ones from the shop on Northcross as they look like a normal vest and washed really well but loads of options on this also.

[DaveR]

I flew long-haul (unexpectedly) with my younger child when she was 10 days old

Getting a birth certificate quickly was a challenge - I ended up just pitching up at Lambeth Registry Office and badgering them until they sorted it out. I went straight from there to the passport office, dropped off the form, collected the passport the next day, flew that night.

The good news is, that was the toughest part done. Probably the easiest flight I've done with the kid/s. Baby fed and slept, I fed, slept and watched movies. My wife had flown a couple of days earlier with our then 3 year old and had a much tougher time (allegedly)

[The Nappy Lady]

Hi newcomer,

I'd recommend you phone BA and speak to them directly about this as I'm sure they would be very helpful and will be able to advise on some of it.

Can you get tickets that would be easy to change (travel date) if baby arrives late / passport takes longer to get than expected?

Really hope it all works out well for you.

Molly

[candj]

Hello Newcomer,

We flew with our eldest when she was 6 weeks old to Miami and it was most definitely the easiest time with children.

You don't really need to see a doctor before as long as your baby isn't sick. I believe we delayed one set of jabs by a few weeks and it was perfectly fine. I don't believe you need any medical certificates, just the passport!

We also always fly BA and I must say they are excellent with children. As you will tell them you have a newborn they will place you in the bulkhead where the bassinets fit. They also have a car seat that you can use which is brilliant for babies when they are awake. The carseat on the flight slots in the same place as where the bassinet does, so you can use one or the other, or change if you need to. The air hostesses were very helpful when we've flown so hopefully you'll have the same experience. Also, at that age, the white noise of the plane will be great for sleeping (both of you hopefully).

I recommend one thing with the carryon luggage. Pack a smaller bag inside your carryon with the things you will need for baby changing (ie, nappies, changing pad, wipes, change of baby clothes or whatever you use) as it will be easier to bring that into the airplane loos rather than your big carryon.

Some other things you might want to consider bringing are:

-enough nappies for every hour of the trip (including car travel)

-nappy wipes

-disposable changing pads

-plastic bags for poo clothing or other accidents

-dummy if you use them

=bottles and formula if you are not breast feeding (BA will be able to give you boiling water and you can mix it with bottled water to cool if need be)

-a few changes of clothing for your baby AND yourself in case of accidents (my children have all pooed on me during newborn phase on tiny plane loos)

-baby's blanket

-a few baby toys but hopefully they will be asleep.

-I also used to bring a small face towel just to have to wipe my little one's face

-things you would pack for yourself, books, magazines etc.

As everyone mentions the hardest part was getting the passports done quickly but you just present your ticket (eticket is fine) and they should rush the service. Tell them you need it urgently as you are travelling.

I also believe that BA will tag your bugaboo and allow you to bring it to the gate. Just ask that when you land if they could bring it to the plane rather than to the baggage reclaim as it's much easier, they should be able to do that for you. In fact, you should just ask for any assistance as you are travelling by yourself and with a little one.

And finally with regards to ear pressure, don't worry about waking your little one up for landing or take off as their ears will adjust naturally. If they are awake you can breast feed or use a dummy, if they get grizzly, but sometimes babies don't notice the change in pressure.

And finally, finally, order yourself a nice glass of wine when you're all settled!

Good luck to you and your little one, you'll be absolutely fine!

Best,

-C

[lorraineliyanage]

Just a note that BA will try and reserve the bulkhead seats for you but cannot guarantee this, nor can they guarantee a basinette if there are lots of babies flying, it's first come, first served. We learned this the hard way when flying to America with a 10 month old last Summer. On the way out, they had changed the plane so that the seating numbers were all messed up so we couldn't get the bulkhead. On the way back, they had run out of basinettes/cots so I didn't get one either. I did kick up a bit of a fuss, but on the way out, the steward told me "If I didn't like it, I could get off the plane". Hmmm.....

[newcomer]

Thank you everyone! If I knew who you were, I would hug you all (so if a heavily pregnant woman you've never met suddenly embraces you, you'll know why! ...) and the advice is brilliant - I've already started making a list of the things I need to take/do.

[trinity]

You said that you will be travelling with lots of luggage. Is it possible to send most of it on ahead so that you only travel with stuff for you and baby's travelling needs?

[Belle]

yes you can def request assistance and explain your circumstances ie new mum travelling along with wee baby, and they'll help you out - I saw a woman getting loads of help in similar circumstances on a flight to Edinburgh, a member of staff was with her right to the gate and helped her get baby in sling etc.

[Pickle]

Agree on requesting assistance - I flew to NZ by myself with my then 10 month old, and was met in NZ by a lovely lady who helped get my luggage, pushed it on a trolley for me, took me through an "express" line at customs and generally made life a LOT easier! I hadn't thought about it before flying, but got chatting to the cabin crew while sitting in their area attempting to give my little boy some food (it was night, so all the lights were off in the cabin and I didn't want to disturb people... these days I don't care!) and they radioed ahead for me :)

[happymummy]

Not sure where you're planning to fly longhaul but Virgin Atlantic are pretty good at looking after people travelling with babies. I work for VAA and I do believe that our cabin crew would really go out of their way to help you. There's also a special assitance line you can call to talk through all your concerns re pushchairs, bassinets etc. As I understand Bassinets are always first come first served, so I would recommend that you arrive early at check in. Again, ask special assitance for advice. If you don't fly with VAA then I'm sure most other airlines have a similar service.

I'm also about to fly to South Africa soon with my four month old just the two of us, so all the responses above have been pretty helpful for me too.

Bx

[phillyboy]

Out of interest where are you planning on flying? we are flying to HK with out 12 week old in 7 weeks or so. Make sure you get on the case re birth certificate. We live in ED and were "lucky" that our newborn was born at home (thats a whole other story) as it meant we could register the brith quicker. After that the passport came relatively quickly.

[candj]

Hi Newcomer,

One more thing I wanted to say was that if you can, try to book a night flight. It's so much easier to try to keep to some sort of a schedule and get your little one to sleep during the night as they would at home (presuming you have a schedule at that young!!).

Again, best of luck!

Sorry if this has been mentioned as I didn't scroll through all the messages!

[nikki73]

hi i flew on my own with my 4 week old and i was really nervous about it but it was a lot easier than i thought it would be. airlines don't allow babies under 14 days old. you'll probably need a bcg jab. you can check with your gp. my ba flight went fine - they were helpful enough. my flight wasn't long haul and i was only allowed to sit next to a window for security reasons. you'll find that passengers will offer to help and if they dont then just ask the crew. i second the tip on separate bags: i found that rummaging through everything whilst holding the baby was the hardest part.

[pebbles]

Everything on here fab advice. I travelled with my youngest at 10 wks with Virgin however I truly believe all major airlines are all much of a muchness.

I know baby slings advise on weight but i think they're a must (i had a baby bjorn, but i know they're all great). He just wouldn't settle in the bassonette but within secs would sleep on me and sling allowed me to have hands free.

Also, i know you don't have much notice between booking flight and actually flying but even if it's a couple of days i think phoning the airline and checking and double checking about the basonette can't do any harm. You never know!!

ASK FOR HELP. If little'un is unsettled but you need the loo pls ask neighbour or stewardess to hold baby - i did and i ended up having about 30 mins break cos they loved snuggling so much!!! I actually got to read a few pages of my book!!

Totally agree - take more than enough nappies, changes for baby and for you.

Mine hadn't had a dummy but i took one on board as he was a fussy breastfeeder and i wanted to make sure he sucked if awake and wouldn't take me - if that makes sense - so i just held dummy in his mouth - i didn't want to take the risk of ears popping.

Remember it gets really cold on flights so take blankets etc

Make sure you wear a top without a zip cos if you're going to use a sling of somesort it'll be awkward if you're wearing a zip - my son slept perfectly however had a zip mark for about a week afterwards!!!

I think that's about it

Good luck and having just returned from a flight with a 4 month old and 2 1/2 old - i promise - new borns are definitely the best to travel with.

Bon voyage

[womanofdulwich]

just to say you can register the birth anywhere in england eg my partner was working in Kingston and he registered it there ( was not as busy as Lambeth).

[DaveR]

you can register birth anywhere, but they will send the details back to the local office for them to issue the certificate. If you need the birth cert. straight away I think you have to go to the local one.

"airlines don't allow babies under 14 days old" - different airlines may have different rules, but I have flown with baby under 14 days

[LordshipLaneMum]

I had a real problem actually booking a flight (singapore Airlines I think)for my unborn baby as we didnt know the sex or name of said child. This was five years ago, but you need to check this with Virgin too.

Totally agree with all tips above. I was on a full flight and was fairly embarrassed (and squashed with not much elbow room either) having to BF I asked staff if I could use their seat, and they let me sit in business class to feed...needless to say the poor baby was full to bursting by the end of the flight!

[alieh]

Hi newcomer! Lots of advice here already, but I'll add a few things.

We booked a ticket for our baby before he was born. The airline didn't seem bothered by it. When you aren't booking a separate seat, I don't think it matters as much.

I don't think there is any rule about waiting until the 6 week jabs. Some airlines seem to say that they won't take them until 2 weeks old, but some don't even seem to mention that much. We flew to Canada with our 8 week old and it was BY FAR the easiest and best trip we have taken with him. He had had no jabs at that point as we were delayed with the 6 week ones.

We took our Bugaboo Frog on that trip and it was fine. I highly recommend, though, that you either buy or borrow one of the car seats (infant bucket style, like the Maxi Cosi) that clip onto the Bugaboo frame and bring this instead of your bassinet attachment. If you can borrow the infant bucket from someone, you are welcome to our adater clips (we already lent our Maxi Cosi bucket to someone else). If you end up with a free seat beside you on the flight (you won't know this until the airport when you check in, but if you ask if there are any empty seats they will normally try to arrange that you have one beside you) they will probably let you bring the infant seat onto the plane so that you can easily transfer bubs from Bugaboo to plane without moving him/her (great if they are sleeping). Then you just fold up the Bugaboo frame and they check it right at the gate/plane door. I don't think I would want to travel with the bassinet, unless you dismantle it and put it in your checked luggage to have upon arrival.

A sling is an absolute must. Since that first trip when we brought the Bugaboo and car seat attachment, I have only travelled with the sling and my baby is now a BIG 14 month old. It is just so, so much easier. For a teeny newborn, I would recommend an easy sling like this type: http://www.littlepossums.co.uk/slings/pouch-slings.htm#coorie. I have a Coorie fleece pouch sling that I'm not using right now, and you would be welcome to borrow it.

I had a big wraparound sling (basically a long piece of fabric) and it was a real pain to try to tie on a crowded plane.

Agree that the registration and the passport will be the hardest part for a very quick turnaround. Your husband can go to register the birth without dragging you and the baby along.

[newcomer]

A few more questions!

It seems as though my husband's work might either pay for or subsidize the cost of the flight, and may even pay for a business class flight for me.

Would it be worth taking them up on this offer or would the wrath of the other business class passengers mean I'd have a miserable trip?

If business class would be worth it, then (a) does anyone know which out of BA, Virgin and Cathay Pacific might be the best for a baby; and (b) do all of them provide bassinets in business class?

I've had a look at all 3 websites but am hoping for some personal experience/advice.

[BellendenBear]

Forget the other passangers, take the offer!

I just flew to Oz and back on my own with our 13 month old (I put a thread on here before Xmas asking for advice). It was way easier than I expected, and I think a new born will be easier still.

I flew with Malaysian and they were great. The advice above about asking for/demanding help is good. I called them several times before the flight with my nervous questions and they were great. You will be let on the plane first so make sure that as soon as you get on you make friends with the cabin crew and make it clear that if there are any spare seats you want them! It is in everybody's interests for you to have an easy time.

The main difference between airlines seems to be the size of the bassinet, but with a new born this won't be an issue. I managed to squeeze my daughter into the bassinet and she slept for up to 8 hours at a time. Friends just flew wih their 8 month old with BA, and he was too big for the bassinet.

It will be fine. Call the airlines if it reassures you.

[nikki73]

Totally agree: forget them!!! Have found that baby is no problem on the plane but more space would have been a blessing. Have flown BA with a newborn on a short flight to France - they were nice. Cathay: fantastic service (and nice food) but I didn't have a child.