Virgin with baby question: Stroller/Bulkhead question
 

Hi there,
Does anyone know if Virgin is flexible on their stroller policy. I know a number of airlines will allow you to wheel the stroller right up to the plane and then they stow it and let you have it when the plane lands. With Virgin, today on the phone they told me they allow you to check it and you have to claim it at the baggage carousel. On the off chance we're able to go without checking luggage (that's what we're hoping anyway) does anyone know if that's left to the discretion of the gate? Has anyone done that?

Also, we reserved seats in the middle-ish of the plane because the bulkheads don't get assigned until checkin. Has anyone travelling with kids had trouble getting the bulkhead seats? I'm travelling with my parents, too... my dad has extremely long legs and gets up a lot to use the WC, so I'm hoping that they'll allow all of us to move up to the bulkhead, or at least my parents to right behind the bulkhead... so that they can hold her for a bit. I'm hoping to just show up extra early, be very nice and polite, and explain our situation to the gate. What do you think my odds are of getting the whole group (4 adults and 1 baby) on the bulkhead row?

thanks,
Kat

I have no idea on the stroller.

However, if Virgin is like most airlines your bulkhead chances are slim. On most airlines these are reserved for frequent flyers first. So you might get one or two seats, but five is probably doubtful

I'm sorry, I do not have advice; I am just intrigued by your heading.:)

Francophile, wow. Rereading it I can see why it looks funny. So much for trying to be specific... instead I was redundant and a bit provocative. Totally not deliberate... though perhaps that means my verbal skills are improving reading all the posts here. :)

~k

Gee, I thought you were asking a question about religious art!

And here's me thinking Mary had found Fodors.com!

I love the oxymoron!

Hi skatterfly,

>Virgin with baby question: ...<

I haven't heard that for over 2000 years.

On our AF flight yesterday, a woman had a stroller that folded up to about the size of a large umbrella, which she stowed in the overhead luggage compartment.

You might want to look into this.

What a scary heading!

skatterfly: Yes, funny title indeed! Virgin with baby - that is an oxymoron - or the immaculate conception. :-) It was certainly eye-catching!

I think it's a hillarious heading, intentional or not. Now onto the advice: there is a stroller that converts from a stroller to a car seat and to an FAA approved airline seat. If you are buying the baby his/her own seat you might want to consider it. I learned about it on this forum (I don't have a baby so I have never used it but I am always planning how to travel when I DO have kids so that is why I know this!) It's called the Sit and Stroll car seat stroller and you can get it at onesteapahead.com

And I think that airlines really do give preference to families with small children for the bulkhead seats so I think you WILL get them. Good luck!

Virgin with Baby
should be treated very well by all flight attendants!
Seems like every time we have flown Virgin, the mamas and babies have been in those first rows.
Your chances might be good since they board passengers with babies first..after First Class ~ Good luck~

I know absolutely nothing about travelling with babies, but your heading was so clever I had to click on it!! LOL!!

Jokes aside, I am flying with my baby on Virgin Atlantic. I reserved a "baby cot" for him ( a bassinet that attaches to the airplane wall), and they have guaranteed a bulkhead seat, since that is the only place it can be attached. Now I hope they act as promised... We are also flying "premium economy", which may make a difference (thanks to airmiles). The cot is good up to 20lb. and under 1 year. Hope this helps...

BAWC, I decided to upgrade my husband and I to premium and do the baby cot and then saw your post. YIKES! My baby is about 21 pounds, though. Hopefully that will still be OK.

Where did you learn that the skycots only hold up to 21 pounds?

Thanks,
Kat

I saw a baby cot once on Air France. I think if the baby is still light and small it will be ok. It wasn't deep like a real cot. But this was on Air France and this was in 1999 so possibly Virgin uses a different type.

Francophile... thanks for posting. Funny how I never paid attention to the skycots before I became a parent. I supose I've seen them on Airfrance, too.

Part of the reason we wanted to go with Premium was we knew our little one would probably be most happy (and sleep best) nestled in the arms of her mommy or daddy. She hardly sits in her carseat at home for long drives... so we're unsure if she'll sleep in a carseat on the plane. So, larger seats mean a chance of some sleep for all of us.

Hopefully the cot will be useful for us, if for no other reason than to ensure we get the bulkhead.

I did look through Virgin's website and it says that cots are available for children up to a year, yet they sell the infant fare for children up to 2 years. When booking I asked repeatedly if the cot would be OK for us and our 18 month old and was told it would be guaranteed. And of course, they know the age of our baby. So I am just going to hope it works out, and if it doesn't I'm fine with her on me or my husband for the flight.

Oh my... I can't WAIT till the trip!
~kat

In our opinion the airlines are flexible with strollers (if they are small) and will try to put them in the overhead compartments if the plane is not full. On international flights, if you do a gate check (wheeling the stroller to the gate and leaving it right before you board the plane)sometimes you will not get the stroller back until baggage claim. Dulles is this way. Ask if you can carry the stroller on board.

While we've gotten bulkhead seats, I have no idea how they are allocated. Most of the time we have NOT gotten bulkheads. If you do, most airlines have a neat cot for children under a certain weight. We used this for our 7 month old a few years ago, he was about 25 pounds.

I think bulkhead seats are generally reserved for frequent flyer members, but those reservations are subject to cancellation at the gate when a disabled passenger shows. I also think people with infants are put in this category, so you may get a bulkhead seat at the last minute, even without the cot arrangement.

As to strollers, I think they are often treated as gate-check luggage. That is, they put a tag on it when you reach the gate, and you leave it at the end of the jet-way and they put it in the cargo hold. At your destination, you wait at the jet-way and they return your stroller.

I wouldn't worry. On my last Brit Airways flight, a lady came aboard with a collapsable stroller and a full size car seat for her baby. The flight attendants stored both in a small closet in the front.