US to UK with a 1 year old--Tips and Tricks?
 

I will be flying to UK in 3 weeks with my one year old. We bought him his own seat, and with any luck he may sit in it for at least 10 seconds.

Wondering if anyone out there has advice? Will it be 8 hours of torture for me and the others on the plane? What to do, and what not to do is appreciated. I have always been the one secretly hating anyone that traveled with kids, and now I am one of them.

Also, please don't slam me for posting this, I know it is somewhat out of scope, but I am desperate.

Thanks.

Are you flying at night? When my children were small, we fed them a light dinner at the airport and had them run around as much as possible. When you get on the plane settle him out of the way ... window seat, if possible to avoid jostling. I would get them in their PJs in the rest room and shut off the lights! Mine would sleep for most of the trip.

Good luck.

You may want to try benadryl or something like that but do a test run or two before the flight as some kids have the opposite effect.

I brought gifts, one for every hour at least. Just little things that mine could unwrap and play with (a new book, a mini magnadoodle,crayons and paper, clay, etc.) I also brought a bunch of extra presents just in case they got bored quick.

If ordering the child's meal on the plane, double check with the crew to make sure they do not include candy. On the last long haul flighht they brought my youngest her child's meal and it included 4 full size candy bars!

Make sure you not only bring extra clothes on board for your child (at least 2 changes) but also a change for you and whoever else you are traveling with.

Even with drinking a lot of water and milk on the flight both of mine never pee'd so don't freak if the same happens to you.

HTH
Cristina

We are stationed in the UK with our young son. The first time he made the flight with us from the UK-States, and back again, our son was 5 months old. Then we did it again when he was 1 year old. So I have some experience with your situation....

You say you bought him his own seat on the plane.....but you have not mentioned the car seat he will be sitting in, in the airplane seat you bought for him. You must make sure the car seat is AIRLINE CERTIFIED, or they won't let you bring it on board for use on the plane. There are car seats out there that are car certified, but not airline certified, so make sure you have the correct one to use on the airplane. Believe me, the airlines flying between the States and the UK do check this. We had to order our car seat online from the States, because we were very surprised to learn through our research and by visiting various retail stores, that many UK/European car seats are NOT airline certified, for some odd reason. I know for a fact that people from over here do fly abroad with their children, so I don't understand...

Another option might be to use the car seat-type thingie provided by the airline itself. Don't just assume it will be available - request it ahead of time.

As far as the suggestion to drug your child before you fly.... I know people who do this and swear by it, but I'm against it. I would not dream of giving my child Benadryl or any other drug unless he was actually sick, but it's up to you.

Now, one last thing....

As I said, the second time we flew between the UK and the States with our son, he was 1 year old. I realize all children have different temperaments, but just as an example:

At the time of the flight, our 1 year old had been walking for a couple of months. He was sooooo frustrated that we would not allow him to roam freely all over the plane. Our flight was absolutely packed, not an open seat anywhere, and of course, the stewards and stewardesses were going up and down the aisles with their food/beverage carts. We tried the surprise toys thing too, but that only worked for a while. Basically, our son wanted to run and climb. He was pretty quiet the whole flight, thank goodness, but he did have occasional flashes of temper in his frustration at having to stay in one place for a long period of time. He was also very tired because he had trouble sleeping, too. He slept like a log when we arrived at our destination, though!!!

Hope you and your son have a wonderful trip.

1. Have your son drink something (for the swallowing effect) during take off and landing to minimize pressure and pain in the ears.

2. Favorite books/stories might work well, at least for a short time.

3. If your airline has in seat tv screens, don't hesitate to use it as a babysitter for as long as it works!

4. Is a portable DVD player with a favorite movie or 2 out of the question?

5. Let your child walk up and down the isles (with you, of course)when there's no food/drink service.

6. Oftentimes, other passengers/flight attendants may try to entertain your child. Let them and enjoy the few minutes peace!

7. Bring lots of little people snacks.

8. You know your child's likes/dislikes best. If you do your best to occupy your child, you can ignore the nasty looks you may get if and when your child acts up! Have a great trip!

Thanks everyone. This is immensely helpful. Appreciate the advice.

Yes, I am flying at night. And I am hoping he sleeps, but am not optimistic?although he is a great sleeper he has never been one to snooze in strollers or car seats.

BrimhamRocks: I am shocked to hear about the car seat. I imagined that I could just bring the car seat we always use, but now I will make sure it is airline certified. Who knew? This is invaluable information, thank you, thank you for the inside information. You probably prevented a mini-disaster, as I know he will not sit in the regular airline seat.

Cristina?good info on the extra set of clothes for us as well. I would not have thought of that unless you suggested it, although it does make perfect sense. Also glad to know dehydration is common with kids on planes, so I won?t worry.

If anyone else has suggestions, please keep posting. I am sensitive to the fact that kids can be a pain on a long flight, and want to make my son and everyone around him happy. If I could buy drinks for the passengers that end up sitting next to us I would. . . too bad they are free already. . .

Irego: Sorry, I didn't see your post, but thank you as well. Question: will I get strange stares if I sing "The Wheels on the Bus", complete with hand motions, 17 times in a row? Ha ha. Lately, his favorite toys are all loud (Mozart Music Box) and inappropriate for the plane--but will bring Teddy and blankets with hopes of sleep.

Would love to do DVD, but son has not discovered the joys of movies yet, or sitting still.

SRC51102 - the fact that your kid doesn't watch movies yet probably means you're a good parent! And, re: The Wheels on the Bus... just remember that happy noises are always better than screeching noises!

We flew last year from NYC to Nice via Paris and then home from Rome with our then 1 year old. We kept him occupied by buying a few new toys and then breaking them out, en route. We also stashed a few of his favorite toys a few weeks before we left so that we he saw them, they would be "fresh". Boredom is your biggest enemy!

In terms of Benadryl, etc - BE CAREFUL. Some children become hyperactive and its hard to gauge. We tried that with success on the test at home (after consulting with his Dr.) However, en route this past April to the West Coast, it had the opposite effect and kept him awake the whole time.

If possible, try and get the bulk head seats. They have a bit of room in front of them and you might be able to set up a little play area. That kept our little happy for a few hours.

One other suggestion, you can easily buy most of the things you need for him there in terms of diapers, food, etc. We brought enough for a few days but we had no intention of bringing 18 days worth of diapers and food. In fact, I think our son actually liked the French baby food better than the one's from home.

Good luck and trust me, it's not that bad.

We fly to the UK often to visit family. For what it's worth, here is what I have learned:

Don't try to get the bulkhead if you are using a carseat; carseats normally do not fit in bulkhead rows because the armrests do not lift. If you are flying a US carrier you will be allowed to use your FAA certified carseat with no trouble, as long as you have not booked a "forbidden seat." In addition to the exit rows, carseats are also not allowed in the row immediately in front of an exit row. FAA rules require that the seat be placed either in the window position or in the exact center seat of the center section on a widebody. The FA's WILL enforce the rules on seat placement, regardless of what the reservation agent told you. If you have not already, call and tell the airline that you plan to use a carseat; they may have to re-assign your seats.

If you are flying a European carrier, don't be surprised if they do not allow you to take the seat on board. Be sure you have some cover to put over it if it is sent down to the hold. European-made carseats are made to be secured with a lap/shoulder belt, they are not considered safe if secured with a lap-belt only, so they are not certified for aircraft. If you cannot use the carseat, you will be given a seatbelt extension to use during takeoff and landing, when you will be asked to put your baby in your lap and secure him to your seatbelt with the extension. These "belly belts" are banned on US carriers as unsafe, but they are normally required by European carriers if the baby is too big for in-flight bassinets, but under 3 yrs. old. (Pointing out the illogic of that to the FA will not win you any friends; don't bother.)

Carry on 24 hrs worth of food/supplies for your child, to cover the possibility of delays; including 2 full outfits and one for yourself in case he throws up on you! (That should include large ziploc bags.) Don't count on him eating the airline food. Over-the-water flights will have milk available, and the FA's will rinse out bottles or sippies for you, but they won't thoroughly clean them, so bring extras, along with a little bottle of dishwashing liquid, so you can wash them in airports.

Give the child a drink on takeoff and landing, swallowing will help his ears. If he does start making a fuss, do quietly apologize to your fellow passengers, no matter how embarrassed you are; they will appreciate that you care that it is bothering them. Take quiet toys. Books are OK, but try to read them quietly. One of the best air-toys I found at that age was a deck of picture flash-cards, the sort that shows the picture with the word underneath. Babies like looking at these and flipping them, etc. Also great are the little Dorling-Kindersley board books that have lots of photos in them. Cheerios are endlessly entertaining.

Gate-check your stroller and make sure that it is properly tagged for gate delivery; you will need it to navigate through the airport. Take off the hood & all accessories and put them in your checked bags; less chance of breakage that way.

BTW, if your child is an applesauce junkie, bring a (plastic) jar with you in your luggage. It isn't a common food in the UK, and may be very hard to find. Also, British Cheerios taste different than the US variety, be warned.

OH, I almost forgot something VERY important. Make sure that you have him in an overnight diaper for the flight, even if he is awake. Sitting in one position for so long often causes regular diapers to leak.

What I remember from my first long trip with a one year old was that he took down and put up the folding table about 200 times. ;-)

I used to freeze a teething ring at that age, in case they need to chew. Put them in clothes that camouflage (every small child should have a dress outfit the color of tomato sauce.) Another stress saver was something called "Diaper Doublers." Don't know if Walgreen's stil carries them - they're a pad that goes inside the disposable diaper. Very convenient and much less bulky than diapers. Get a couple of lift-and-peek books and point-and-name books, and a couple of beanie baby size stuffed dolls. You can play all kinds of games with those! Run around the waiting area with him until the last possible minute. Even if he is breast-fed, have a bottle of dehydrated formula, just in case. Good luck!

I have a two year old and we are expats living in France, ever since my son was 6 months old. We have flown to the states and back several times, so I'd like to add to the advice.

1) Great that the flight is at night and that you bought a seat for your child. I have never had my son's carseat checked, but airlines and employee's vary so much on this. If they give you a hassle at check-in, take it to the gate anyway (tell them you will gate check it), the gate agents may let you on with it. If the gate attendent won't let you on with it, tell them you will gate check it, then, check with the actual flight attendant. If not, you can always gate check it. But, we have a Britax car seat, no one has ever asked or checked.

2) Request a bulkhead seat for your family. If you get at set of seats to one side, you will have enough room to physically sit on the floor and block your child in and he/she can play on the floor before (hopefully) going to bed. Once again, you may have to call several times with this request. Often they won't give you the bulkhead, it is usually reserved for handicapped and bassinett-needing people. Keep calling back until they assign you a bulkhead seat OR go ahead and request the bassinett (a small bassinett that will plug into the bulkhead for your baby to sleep in, your one year old might be too big for it, but maybe not). Don't feel guilty about potentially taking away a handicap seat. They will move your seat all the way up to the day of the flight if a handicap person needs it. If you can't ever get the bulkhead beforehand, request at check-in and then again, if necessary at the gate. This has been our saving grace on overseas flight.

3) Not sure if you need this, but most airlines will provide you with babyfood if you request it. They bring it out with the meals, regular jarred baby food. Most people don't know this. Also, since you bought a seat for your child, he/she is entitled to a regular meal. I've had attendants try to not give my son a meal because he was under 2!

4) My son loves to read and I've found that the small lift-a-flap books work great. I also hide toys a week beforehand, so they all seem new to the baby once we get on the flight.

5) I'm also leery of the benadryl. There is no way to know how the child will react to it in the air. It probably wouldn't cause a problem in most cases, but I would hate for it to make my son sick when we are stuck in a plane over the Atlantic with no way to get reliable medical help if need be.

Good luck with your trip!

Lots of good advice on this thread.

Someone mentioned they have a Britax seat...

We also have a US Britax car seat, which we use on all our flights. I say US, because we first looked at Britax car seats here in the UK. I had heard some great things about that name brand, and thought....ok...Britax...doesn't matter if it's US or UK, should be the same, right? Nope. The UK Britax car seats are not airline certified, but the US ones are. We even called the Britax manufacturer over here in the UK, and they confirmed that for us. Makes no sense to me, but oh well....LOL.

Definitely bring (as a carry-on) at least 24 hours' worth of food, diapers, and at least one extra change of clothes, as suggested. You never know if you might get delayed or stuck somewhere overnight.

One thing I forgot to mention in my earlier post:

We bought some "Who Loves Baby?" soft photo albums by a company called Sassy. We used our computer to print pics of family and friends, and made sure to print them in a size that fit into the sleeves. We just used regular printer paper, not the more expensive photo paper. The important thing was just to have the image. Our son looked at those things constantly, all through the flight, and we would talk about who they were, how much they loved him, etc. His face would light up, especially every time he saw pics of us holding him, or of his grandparents.

Even now, as his 2nd birthday approaches, we still print out current pics every few months, again just on plain paper, and he loves to look at and talk about the family he's only seen twice in his life.

Check with the airline carrier some have policys that reserve the bulk head seats and provide a mini crib/bed that attaches to the bulkhead wall so you child can lie down and sleep .

Thanks everyone. This is really great advice, and it made me think about a lot of things. I now feel more prepared, and plan to use several of these suggestions. Hopefully others flying with young ones can read this and benefit from your experience.

With luck, my son (and those unfortunate enough to have to sit next to us) will enjoy the flight. I guess the next step after this will be getting him used to the time change...??? Which I hear is not so bad. Luckily we will be there 4 weeks.

Thanks again!

As if I wasn't long-winded enough the first time round...

Re: jet lag. It has been my experience that babies tend to adjust at the rate of about 1 hr. per day. London is 6 hrs. ahead of where we live, so the tykes were back on schedule by the 7th day. Might be just our family, but my cousins find that to be about accurate when visiting us, as well. A good stroller will make all the difference, as jr. can sleep in it until his body catches up with the time change, but the adults can go about as they will.

RE: the Britax seat thing; I wondered that as well. I compared a cousin's Britax with my very similar US model, and there *is* a difference in terms of the way that the belt threads through the shell. Because of that, the UK govt. will not certify them for use with a lap-only belt. (Of course, no car made for the EU market has had lap-only belts for many years now, so I'm sure that there did not seem to be much point in that.) Lots of recent US-marketed autos still have lap-only belts in the center rear position, so US-made seats must be compatible with that. The US FAA publishes standards for using carseats in aircraft; the equivalent UK agency does not, or at least they didn't as of 2001. I know that because I was curious and wrote to them about it. They thought it was a very odd question, and said that they had no authority to try to set standards for a device that was designed for use in an automobile. Here is the website for the UK's Civil Aviation Authority: http://www.caa.co.uk/srg/default.asp?page=1344
If you'll note, they clearly say that it is up to the airline to decide whether or not a particular seat is acceptable. My personal experience with UK-based airlines is that they would let me use an infant seat, but consistently refused to allow my US-made, FAA-certified toddler seat on board. Worse than that, I found that I often had to argue with the UK gate agents of US-based carriers, in order to get the seat allowed onboard on the return flight. However, the rules are in their computer systems, so if you politely persist, they will look it up and concede that you do know what you are talking about.

Flying to the UK with a one-year-old child?? Are you bloody daft?? Leave the snapper at home. But, if you can't, bring a BIG BOTTLE of cough syrup and keep ladeling it down his throat. Like mother's milk.

I think there should be a pool taken up anytime there's a thread about children and traveling to see who can guess when the first "Leave them home" will pop up.
I would not have done too well because I would have expected one much sooner.

Sadly, Joelle, I must have my rose colored glasses on, because I didn't expect one at all.

I guess it takes all kinds to make the world spin around.

SRC51102, I hope your family has a wonderful trip. Perhaps when you get back home, you could post a follow -up and let us know how your little one (and you) dealt with the flights.

There have been some helpful tips...
I guess this answer is off topic but I am going to post since I experienced this working in the airline industry....
1) Do not forget the travel docs for your child! You would not believe how many people ASSUME it is not needed. Oddly enough there are adults that do not realize or think to get a Passport. I had a lady once call in because she was denied boarding. She was furious because they would not take her Drivers License as ID for an international flight...no kidding...
2) Make sure that you all have a seat assignment so that there are hopefully no surprises at the airport.
3) Child seats used on an airplane have to also be FAA certified..so whoever said that was indeed correct..
4) Bring extra little snacks,juice etc..you never know if they will run out of something..especially now with so many cutbacks.
5) Usually the children are better behaved than some of the adult passengers...so I would not worry about that aspect of the trip.
6) Kick back and try and relax so that you are not dragging when you get to your destination.....

If Thin Gorgeous had his mother's milk "ladled" into him, that would explain A LOT.

P.S. Thin Baby, when did you become British? Wow, miraculous, the way you switched your country of origin...is this like having a sex reassignment?

Wow, I didn't expect any more replies! Thanks--more the better...

Katherine, thanks for the input on documents. We have a passport for our little tyke, and also plan to bring copies of his birth certificate. We had our passports stolen in Athens in 1997, and ever since then are very careful to make sure we have passport copies with us, and leave copies in the hands of trustworthy relatives as well. If there is anything else you think we should bring in this area please post. Regarding the seat assignment, we are traveling as a group, and using a travel agency?I haven?t even seen our tickets yet. (We leave in a month.) I didn?t think I could call the airline and request seating?since it is all being handled by a third party. Don?t even have a reservation #..... Also, regarding the car seat, I plan to call British Air and find out if ours is airline certified. However, I worry that one agent may tell me that yes, it is indeed okay to bring with us, and when I get there, someone else will say no. This has happened to me before, once traveling with my wedding dress, and called prior to ask if I could bring it on board, they said yes, no problem, but when I got there, of course no record of the call and was simply told that the people on the phone don?t know what you can bring on the plane. So I want to avoid this again, since we will be 3 hours from home at the airport (and even taking a group bus to get there), and will have no place to put the car seat if they say no. Any insight is appreciated, based on your knowledge of the industry.

Ryn2691?your insight on jet lag was slightly disappointing. I thought perhaps if we just kept him up when we got there he would go to sleep like a little angel and wake with the sun. Obviously I have been dreaming here?but 7 days seems like a lot. At least now my expectations will be more realistic, and will try the sleep in the stroller thing as we do our day trips. On the car seat thing, more validation based on what happened to you that the airlines can change their minds. I am leaning towards leaving it at home now---mainly b/c we don?t really need it for anything but the plane?not renting a car or anything. And my husband is taking a bunch of students over there, so we have buses lined up for our tours?.not sure if it makes sense anymore. (We'll be in Cambridge, walking city too...) Since we will be there a month I have other things that I must bring, stroller, pack and play?.schlepping the car seat may be just another hassle. Can I manage without it?

BrimhamRocks and others, Yes! Yes! I will post on our return and share all the ups and downs. (Hopefully more ups, ha ha.) Thanks to all this information I am expecting a smoother ride.

Regarding the whole leave the kids at home thing?before we had kids we traveled wherever and whenever we wanted?and always said we would have no problem leaving our children at home so we could continue as such. But of course, kids change everything. Anyone who has kids knows why we can?t leave our 1 year old for a month.

OK, since you asked ...

I would skip the pack n' play; hotels will have them to lend you, or in larger cities, you can often rent them from a nursery supply source (or from a hotel; I've done that when staying w/ family.) You can do without also; just make a blanket nest on the floor. Oh, speaking of blankets; if he has a favorite one, bring it.

Bringing the carseat is a toughie. You are right that it will be a hassle to carry if you don't need it for a vehicle, but without one, I could not have trusted myself to sleep on the flight, knowing that a toddler might wander all over the plane while I slept, or be hurt if we hit turbulence. However, now that I know that you're flying BA, there is one other possible option. BA has a limited number of toddler seats that fix to the bulkhead for children under age 3. There are only six mounts available for them per flight, and they MUST be arranged for in advance, obviously. If it were me, I'd contact BA and get the details about how and where they are available, and what the service is called, then give that info to your travel agent, to see if you can get one.

Don't worry about the jet lag thing; kids can sleep anywhere, and usually will. Forgive me for mentioning something so indelicate, but you are likely to have greater trouble with his digestive issues, both from travel stress and the differences in the food.
(Milk is processed differently in the UK, for instance.) That's why we always carried DS's favorite applesauce, it was fruit that we knew he would eat.

Okay, general comment, sorry about all the ? typos in my posts--I am keeping these comments in a word doc to print, and cutting/pasting is not working....

Ryn2691--just called BA. I reserved one of those bassinets. They sound ideal. Also assured we will be in the bulk head row. In the process I learned something rather interesting (and frightening at the same time) which is the infant fare we purchased does NOT guarantee a seat for my son. Basically it gets us nothing, just their way of saying kids do not fly free. I was shocked. We have been working through a coordinator via the university, and she is working with a travel agent, so we have only communicated our needs and she is taking care of everything. I guess she was not told of the difference as well. We will now need to purchase a child fare if we want him to have his own seat, although the agent says we will most likely have an empty seat in the bulk row...but who wants to gamble on that?? Not sure how big the bassinet is, although it is meant for kids up to 23 months, so it must be large enough.

Re: the pack and play, we are renting a flat, and as far as I know they do not provide cribs. I haven't pushed it b/c I was worried that if they did get a crib I would worry that it was not safe, old...usual first time mom thing. Maybe I will buy one there--or mail it before hand.

You raised another issue I had not considered, the "digestive" problems I can expect. Sounds fun. I am planning to bring tons of his favorite foods along, but not sure what we will do about the milk--I suppose he will eventually get used to it. (or hope anyway)

Careful about that bassinette; if it is the one I'm thinking of, it might well be too small. Here's a review of BA's seating from Babyworld, a British parent's website:

"Thumbs up: Supplies a baby bassinette for infants up to 25 pounds and/or a Britax seat (similar to a car seat) for toddlers up to the age of three. Children's meals available on request. Formula and breast milk can be stored and heated in the kitchen galley. Infant lap seat belts also available on request. Young families given a priority when boarding. For older babies and children, a choice of Hamleys toys is on offer."

When I saw their bassinettes (we were not using one ourselves, but were seated near; no kids that small anymore) it looked to me like a normal child over about 9 months of age would not have been comfortable in it. I would push for the Britax seat; the larger of the two options. From what I understand, it has an adjustable recline, and allows the child to sit up facing the adult; in a bassinette, they can only be secured lying down.

I found another site with an even better discussion of the details:
http://www.hotelfun4kids.com/air-rai...20THE%20FLIGHT

If you wish to rent baby equipment, the British term for that would be "nursery equipment hire". Here is one company that serves greater London: http://www.littlestars.co.uk/default.htm

SRC: you've gotten some great advice! In March, I took my 21 month old to the UK for a week and he had a blast. He's older than your son, so he didn't have problems with the food/milk.

Check out Boots and Tesco for great baby food options, especially organic baby food. My son loved the muesli cereal and the baby yogurt in a jar. Also I stocked up on "nappy sacks" at Boots...they are scented bags for disposing dirty diapers and wipes. Definitely will come in handy when you have to change him in confined spaces (planes, busses). Also Pampers makes disposable changing pads that are not sold in the US...I couldn't find them in Boots, but Mothercare may sell them. Good Luck and enjoy!

I agree that you probably won't want to drag the pack-n-play along. It's bulky, and you'll be dealing with so many things already. If you really feel concerned about having something like that, perhaps you could ask someone on the UK end if you can borrow one? But if you think you can do without a pack-n-play for the time you're here, I think it would make things easier for you, travel-wise.

As far as your reservations, etc. I would definitely ALWAYS get a reservation number, especially if you're dealing with second and third parties (i.e. university coordinator and travel agent). No-one can cover your tushie like YOU, so always CYA when it comes to important things like that.

And while we're on the subject of travel agencies....if the travel agency was made aware of the fact that you wanted your baby to have his own seat, then they should have known to book that for you. I'm sorry you're having to worry about that. Do make sure, if you buy a child fare so your son can have his own seat, that you get a full refund on the infant fare you paid for.

RE: documents for your son.....you've already mentioned the passport and copy of his birth certificate. You might also want to bring copies of his shot records with you, just in case. The UK child immunization schedule is different than that of the US, so if your son needs medical care, it would help the docs to know what shots he has and has not had.

And yep, as far as the jet lag thing.....I concur with the other posters. Your son will be ok, if slightly off-kilter. I bet he'll do better than you will, LOL!

Two more things to remember to pack...thermometer and medical claims paperwork. UK thermometers are in Celsius and you need to convert to find out child's temperature. If your child does get sick and you have to call for a doctor, you can have the doctor fill out the medical claims paperwork, make copies, attach your receipt and drop it all in the mail to your insurance carrier in the US. My son had a 104 fever and it cost £100 for the doctor to come to the hotel. I had him fill out the paperwork and got reimbursed by my insurance carrier.

Everyone...well, by getting such great advice here, a mini-disaster has erupted. (But at least it is a month out, instead of day of departure)

Everyone is right, need to CYA here...the go between at the university is not working out. Got off the phone with BA again, and, if we choose to purchase the child fare (which they can't do, b/c we are a group), we will have a cancellation fee of $100. Mind you, we were already charged a cancellation fee of $100 for the adult fare that was initally purchased (which we won't pay)--so that is not happening again. But unfortunately, the person at the university will not let us deal directly with the travel agent, which is becoming very frustrating to say the least. We have never worked with a travel agent or travelled as a group before, so the lack of control is beginning to make us bonkers...

Ryn2691-I don't think I can use the Britax seat unless I actually purchase a seat, which I apparently have not. Is this correct? The agent did not offer this option. But thanks for the link, going to look at the bassinet discussion. From what the agent told me, the ones that are for the 6-23 month olds is new and upgraded...but not sure exactly when. "New" could mean anything.

Thanks again everyone. Honestly, without this post our journey over the pond would have been a disaster. And yes I plead ignorance, this is my first child! I posted on some baby sites but no one could offer good advice.

ErinS--did your insurance carrier give you copies of the paperwork that you needed before you left? I hadn't thought of this either. And of course you have to expect your child will be sick at some point during 4 weeks. We have bought additional abroad coverage--evacuation insurance and whatnot, but did not think to get paperwork...thanks for the insights.

This might sound way out there, but have you considered getting him a little CD or cassette type player with headphones - that way he could listen to either music or stories without wearing you out or disturbing other passngers? My boys swore by both when the were younger.

Sorry, I'm afraid I can't tell you which fare you would need to pay to qualify for using the larger child seat; we always travel off-season and buy discounted fares, so I have always paid the discounted adult rate for my little ones; it was always less expensive than the child fare.

For the most part, when they were that little, we used US-based carriers on the over-the-water leg, because of the carseat issue, and also the carry-on weight allowances, which are difficult if you are having to carry food and entertainment for a baby, as well as your own valuables. My experiences with babies and BA are limited to intra-European flights, which don't offer those seats. (We need to bring our own carseats anyway, because we do a lot of driving around to various relatives' homes.)

My guess is that all this hassle is because the University coordinator got a group fare, and so any change you make has to fit those parameters. In any case, it is lucky that you discovered these issues now, rather than when you arrived at the airport!

You should be able to download the insurance paperwork off your carrier's website; most of them have the forms available there for when people want to use non-network physicians. One other thing about medicines: if you or your child take anything OTC on a regular basis, make sure that you know what the chemical name of the drug is. Otherwise, you will be confused when you go to buy it. For ex., what in the US is known as Tylenol is called Paracetamol in the UK; but in either place, the active ingredient is still acetaminophen. (Same for drug allergy info; know the chemical name.)

I don't want to throw a negative light on anything, especially since it sounds like things aren't going as planned!! (ouch, sorry to hear that)

But RE: overseas medical claims....

We have Federal Blue Cross/Blue Shield. Our base doesn't have a medical facility, so we have to use the British docs, unless we want to travel several hours to a much larger base for treatment by US doctors. More often than not, the British doctors have asked for payment in full up front, and we have to file the medical claims forms afterward, to get a reimbursement. Federal Blue Cross/Blue Shield provides us with "Overseas Medical Claims" forms. Hopefully your insurance carrier has similar paperwork you can carry with you. It's way easier to fill out the paperwork right then and there while you have all the info in front of you, instead of trying to fill it out after you get back to the States, and have forgotten something.

Now, that said.....I hope we're not scaring you or making things sound way more complicated than they really are! Please don't be too awfully nervous. You may forget a thing or two but I'm positive you will enjoy your trip. It's cool that you get to stay here for a whole month!! So much to see and do.

SRC51102...
Sounds like the Travel Agent is dealing with the Group Travel department at BA...Here is their number...1-800-654-6150
Monday-Friday 9am-7pm EST
With that said you may not be able to purchase a discounted ticket on a group rate. So you may have to either purchase an extra seat on the group rate..as if she is an adult or you might need to call regular reservations and see if there is a lower published fare cheaper than the group rate. You might even check on BA's website as well..check the same exact flights etc..
If you had advised that you wanted a confirmed seat for your infant and that was not done then the TA is liable for eating the change fees etc..
I would get this issue resolved because as flight time gets closer it might get more expensive....
Good luck.

Flew UK to US last year with 1 yr old in lap. Main thing is don't worry. Baby will like 6-8hrs of your attention, & will eventually sleep. What someone else mentionned made me laugh: 200 times opening & closing the folding seatback tray? More like 500! New toy every few hrs will help. It can't be that bad, as we're taking an even longer flight this year: London to San Francisco. Good Luck & enjoy our Country.

Liverpool26, I was so glad to read that you made the trip successfully with a "lap baby"! Many people have told us we are crazy to try this with our soon-to-be 10-month old on a flight to the UK next month. Our little guy truly is small for his size, and he has been an excellent passenger on many cross-country flights in the US, so we're hoping that not paying for his own seat won't be terrible for us or our fellow passengers.

We're flying on Lufthansa from Chicago-Munich, and then Munich-Manchester. Like SRC1102, we're taking an overnight flight, plan to heed much of the advice here, and generally have as positive an attitude as we can. Thanks for sharing all the excellent tips. I'm calling Lufthansa right now to see about confirming our seats are in the bulkhead row. (I requested this when I made the reservations, but the tickets do now show actual seat assignments.) If we can get a bassinet, I'll take it!

We were very glad we bought our 1 year old his own seat, when we flew UK-US and back. However, I do know people who say they had no problems flying with their baby in their lap for the whole 9 hours (or longer, depending on the destination).

Either way, enjoy your trip.

As will be obvious I'm not a parent but have a couple things to add that hopefully are helpful:

It takes *me* a full week to get over jetlag. Some people it's easy some difficult. I would guess kids are just as individual in this regard.

I think bulkhead seating is the best because no one is directly in front of you. Please don't forget that tray table slamming up and down 200-500 times per flight is the back of the seat of another passenger trying to sleep.

Yes I'd rather hear "the wheels on the bus" sung endlessly ... nothing is worse than a kid in distress with parent ignoring them.

Please take food! I have been shocked numerous times (and offered to share my snacks) with parent/kid who were on a flight and hadn't brought on a single thing along to eat or drink of their own.

Since others have reported good success with BA and getting bulkhead seats/bassinets, I thought I would let you know that Lufthansa is being as accommodating as a parent could hope! They just reserved bulkhead seats and a "bassinet that should fit a 10 month old quite comfortably." With that reservation in place, I will plan to bring extra everything, buy some new "presents," learn additional verses of "Wheels on the Bus," be considerate of those sitting around us, plan for the worst but hope for the best, and try to keep a smile on my face the entire trip. Thanks again for the excellent tips from other parents.

Just wanted to post and say thanks again...this advice was so helpful, and I used many, many of these tips and tricks. All told, the flight was not nearly as bad as I expected. On the way there, he slept about half of the time. Travel at night is much easier. Also, the BA bassinets were super...more like a little bouncy seat that attaches to a tray right in front of you in the bulk head row. There were only 4 available on our flight, so we were glad we booked early. Although as luck would have it we had the only baby on the plane. Oh and of course since we had group txts/travel they couldn't find our reserved bassinet, but it worked out anyway. The BA flight attendants were impressive...so helpful I am still in awe. They even asked a passenger to move so that we could have a row to ourselves for extra room. Not easy to get someone to give up a bulk head seat, but then again, it is probably better than sitting next to a baby for 8 hours! Also, the attendants were always ready to provide milk, juice...really anything we needed. I can't praise BA enough on this point. We had plenty of food and toys thanks to all the advice here, and probably only needed half of what we brought. But best to be prepared!

The way home was tougher because we traveled during the day. We also had another baby right next to us in a bassinet. They are very close together. So anytime the other baby cried ours would wake up, and vice versa. The other baby was also really fussy, on his second flight--he had already traveled from India to London, had a one hour break, and was traveling from London to Chicago for another 8 hours. The mom didn't help matters either--she had no food, diapers, or toys (this is how I learned BA has diapers if you need them) and gave her 8 month old Kit Kats and Coke to keep him wide awake for most of the flight (and crying). So the flight home was not the greatest, but no one really noticed our baby because the one next to him stole the show. I felt bad for him though--tough day!

One other comment, the crib we had in our flat was way too small. We ended up wishing we brought a pack and play, or bought one there, it was just way too small and narrow for a 1 year old. He kept hitting his head at night when he rolled over and would wake up a lot. We ended up making a bumper of sorts with extra blankets which helped.

Regarding strollers for travel, make sure you get a small one. We took our big one, which we wanted for long excursions and whatnot, but should have checked it and had a small one for travel and short trips. Major pain not to have the stroller when you got off the plane, which can't be gate checked like in the US. They will put small ones on the plane for you so you have it. It was a pretty big pain to carry our 28 lb baby with bags etc. through customs both there and back.

Also, for those of you out there with kids, I was amazed at how easy and quickly he got used to the time change. Less than 24 hours. He did better than us--- both going over and coming back. It was easy.

So thanks again for all the tips. Hope this post will help others in the future.