Flying with a 6 Month Old Baby

Flying with a 6 month old soon and worried how it will go?  The first time we flew with our baby we were super worried, too.  Now that our 6 month old has been on 7 flights we have gotten the hang of it and are excited to share our updated tips with you!

Most of what we wrote about flying with a 4 month old baby is still relevant for flying with a 6 month old.  However we are adding age-specific tips for 6 month olds in this post to make your trip as easy and stress-free as possible.

If this is your first time flying with your baby, rest-assured that flying with a 6 month old will probably be easier than you think!

 

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Flying with a 6 month old – What to know when purchasing tickets:

1. Lap-held infant charges

Babies under 2 years old generally fly free domestically – that means you can save some money when flying with a 6 month old! However, on international flights, airlines generally charge an infant fare even if the infant is lap-held. The fare is usually 10% of the adult fare, plus possible taxes and fees. Check your airline’s policies before booking.

For example, when we flew to the USA, the infant charge was only $20.  It was charged when we checked in at the airport in Canada.

2. Booking your infant ticket

Even if there is no charge for a lap-held infant, you will still need to book an infant ticket when flying with your 6 month old.  Note that not all booking sites allow you to book an infant ticket online and instead require that you call in.

If you have a connecting flight, ensure you have adequate time between flights, especially when traveling internationally. When you are traveling with a 6 month old, you can’t maneuver through the airport as quickly.  If you are pushing a stroller, then you will have to search for the elevators and wait for them, rather than just being able to take the escalators/stairs.  This definitely adds on extra time.

Also, going through security with a 6 month old takes extra time as they have to examine your stroller/car seat and milk!

3. Adult to baby ratio

Each adult is only allowed one lap-held infant. So, if you are flying with a 6 month old set of twins, you will need to have another adult accompany you! However, some countries allow 2 infants per adult as long as only one is lap-held – check your airline’s policies when booking.

4. Car seats

If you would like your 6 month old to fly in their car seat or have their own seat to themselves you will need to purchase a ticket at the full adult price.

5. Choosing your seats wisely

Infants are not allowed to sit in the emergency exit rows (sorry to those hoping for the extra space!) If you would like some extra space when flying with your 6 month old, consider booking the bulkhead seats. You can lay out a blanket in front of you for your 6 month old to stretch out a bit during the flight. Some airlines even have bassinets that you can use on longer flights.

If you have a fussy baby like us, consider sitting towards the back of the plane. We found this is preferable if you need to get up to bounce your baby to calm them down. This way you can stand at the back of the plane and not crowd the aisle. Also, the sound of the engine can act as white noise to calm your baby. Plus, you will be closer to the bathrooms if you need to change your baby.

6. Aisle or window seat?

If you are breastfeeding, you may prefer the window seat. I found that I had more privacy to feed my 6 month old and she didn’t get as distracted.  She also loved looking out the window.  However, having the aisle seat makes it easier to get up and use the bathroom.

If you are flying with someone else, consider booking the window seat for you and the aisle seat for the other person. That way you may not end up having anyone seated between you. If you do, they will likely happily switch with one of you.  We’ve always found that the flight attendants try to keep the middle seat open for us, anyway, as long as the flight is not sold out.

7. Time of day

Try to book your flights around your baby’s sleep times. Since our 6 month old baby typically wakes up around 9am and is happiest in the morning, we find booking early morning flights works best for us. This way she is more likely to nap most of the flight.

Alternatively, you can book an overnight flight. We chose not to do this as we wanted to be well-rested and trying to sleep while holding a 6 month old doesn’t result in the best rest.

How to pack when flying with your 6 month old:

1. Pack wisely

Try to carry on as little as possible and check the rest. You will already have your hands full flying with your 6 month old!

Remember that in addition to your usual maximum carry on luggage allowance, you are sometimes allowed additional carry on items for your baby – check with your airline to determine which additional items are allowed (diaper bag, stroller, etc). Depending on the airline you may get an additional checked bag for your infant as well.

For example, when we flew West Jet I was allowed an extra diaper bag for baby, but with Alaska Airlines I was not allowed any additional carry on items.

All I carried on was my Matt and Nat diaper bag and it fit everything I needed!  I fit all of baby’s essentials in it, as well as my wallet, our passports and phone charger.  I love that it is fashionable and doesn’t look like a diaper bag.  It has so many compartments in it to keep organized, and it even comes with a changing mat!

2. Pack your baby’s essentials in their carry on bag:

• diapers (pack twice as much as you think you will need in case of delays!)
• wipes
• disinfecting wipes
• old toy
• new toy
• teething toys
• pacifier x 2
• medicine (any prescriptions, Tylenol/Advil, probiotics)
• milk/food
• baby toothbrush (if they have have teeth already!)
• extra baby outfit x 2
• extra parent outfit
• wet-bag/garbage bag (for soiled clothes)
• changing mat
• burp cloth
• swaddle blanket (can double as a breastfeeding cover, if desired)
• wrap carrier
• breast pump (if needed)
• pillow
• nursing tank top (if needed)

Note: Milk and baby food are not subject to the 100ml allowance – you can bring as much as you like when flying with your 6 month old! Gel ice packs are allowed as well.

We were super happy we packed all these things as we once missed our connecting flight!  So those extra diapers and milk came in handy!

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Wondering what toys to pack?  Check out The Best Travel Toys for Babies

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3. Pack everything else in your checked luggage:

• • extra diapers
  • extra wipes
  • clothes to last the trip
  • bottle cleaning supplies (drying rack, bottle brushes and dish soap)
  • diaper cream
  • white noise machine
  • backseat mirror

Checking into the airport with your 6 month old:

1. Make sure you have all of your baby’s necessary documents

Your 6 month old will need a passport if you are traveling internationally. Otherwise you can use their birth certificate (you do not need to have a photo ID).

Important note: If your baby has a Canadian passport DO NOT sign it for them.  This makes it invalid!  When we were checking in for our flight in the USA, the desk agent instructed me to sign our baby’s passport in order to make it valid.  However this is not the case for Canadians!  Make sure you check your country’s infant passport signature policy.

If you are traveling without the other parent make sure to bring a notarized letter of consent confirming you are allowed to do so.

2. Gate check your stroller and car seat

When you check in, let them know if you are planning to gate check your stroller and car seat. They will give you a tag to put on your stroller and car seat, and tear off the claim tickets for you to hold onto.

We definitely recommend gate checking your stroller and car seat to minimize damage to them! The less time spent on the conveyor belt going through the airport, the less the likelihood of rough-handling and damage. I’ve heard from a lot of parents that their stroller was damaged when they checked it in so we didn’t want to risk it.

Also, if  you have a connecting flight, it’s nice to have your stroller/car seat available to use in between flights.  And in case you miss your connection, like we did!

Going through airport security with your 6 month old:

1. Wear your baby in a carrier

I recommend using a wrap carrier as it is lightweight and folds up small. My favorite is my Baby K’tan wrap as I can easily throw it in my diaper bag when not in use. It is super easy to put on and quickly get baby in and out since there is no tying involved! Perfect for traveling!!

Our 6 month old is still pretty tiny and still loves the wrap carrier.  However if you have a bigger baby and would like more support, you could go for a more structured carrier like the Ergo or Lillebaby.

They allowed me to walk through the scanner while wearing baby but warned me they would have to physically pat us both down afterwards. The stroller and car seat were examined separately and swabbed.

2. Separate your milk to be inspected

Once we got to security I put my diaper bag in the bin, separated out my bag of milk and informed security about it. They place it in a special scanner and swab the outside of the containers.

Note: Allow extra time for security screening! Some airports have designated family security lanes. It can take more time since everyone is having their milk, food and strollers inspected carefully.

I brought 2 bottles full of milk, plus extra milk in storage bags, all placed inside an insulated bag. I also brought my manual breast pump and milk collector.

If your 6 month old is eating purees, you can bring these through as well. They will just need to be inspected along with the milk.

Note: Some airports have fancy new scanners that don’t require you to take your milk out of your bags!  This was the case in the Phoenix airport.

3. Use your stroller to carry your bags

After going through security, I kept our 6 month old in the wrap and used the stroller to carry our bags. My baby stayed more calm this way and helped get her sleepy for the flight.

Boarding the plane with your baby:

1. Get your items ready to check at the gate

Ensure your gate check tags are on your stroller and car seat.

We chose to buy a special bag to protect our car seat. It worked really well and we definitely recommend it! The bag has an easy drawstring closure, a carry handle and a spot to write your name on it. When not in use, it folds up nice and small. It’s inexpensive on Amazon!

Our stroller comes with its own carry case and it’s so perfect for traveling. It folds up nice and small and is approved to fit in airplane cabin storage! We definitely felt more at ease having our stroller on board with us rather than checking it.

2. Listen for family boarding time

Most airlines allow families to board the plane before general boarding starts. It usually occurs after priority boarding. However you can ask the gate agent ahead of time when they will call family boarding to ensure you don’t miss it.

We chose to take advantage of the early boarding to ensure there was enough cabin space for our bags and stroller by our seats. Not being rushed allowed us to stay calm and thus keep baby calm as well.

Usually a flight attendant will come around and go over the take off and landing procedures for you and your baby.

Flying with your 6 month old:

1. Keep your baby sucking during takeoff and landing

To ensure baby doesn’t have trouble with ear pain, make sure they are sucking during takeoff and landing to help pop their ears and alleviate pressure. Our baby happily sucked on her pacifier during takeoff and landing.  Her favorite kind is the Avent Soothie brand.

People will recommend that you feed baby on takeoff and landing but some flight attendants tell you not to. They instruct you to place baby in the burp position while taking off and landing. I’m sure once the plane is already taking off no one would stop you from feeding your baby, though. However we found that the pacifier worked just fine and she didn’t have any issues with her ears!

2. Sanitize your area

If your 6 month old is anything like ours, they love putting everything in their mouth! We brought disinfecting wipes to wipe down the tray tables and armrests, as well as all purpose wipes for any toys that will inevitably drop and get dirty.

We also used this pacifier clip to keep it from falling and getting lost. If your 6 month old has started teething like ours, this one is great as they can also chew on the beaded strap.  Our baby actually seems more interested in chewing the strap these days rather than sucking on the pacifier!

3. Diaper changes

For some reason, our 6 month old always seems to poop just before boarding the plane or upon takeoff! The lavatories do have change tables, but not all of them. When the flight attendants go over takeoff procedures with you they will usually inform you where the change tables are located, but just ask if not.  They are usually only in the lavatories in the back of the plane.

Since airplane bathrooms are cramped enough as is, don’t bother taking your whole diaper bag with you. Just take a diaper, wipes and changing mat.

4. Keep baby entertained!

If you are lucky like we were on our first flight, baby will sleep on the plane! But if they are wide awake, keep them constantly entertained so they don’t get bored and fussy.

We started off by pointing out all the new things on the plane – looking out the window, looking through photos in the on board magazines, smiling at nearby passengers, etc.  She was actually really entertained with all the pictures in the magazines.

Then we gave baby some familiar toys to play with. Her current favorites at 6 months old are anything that she can chew on and/or makes noise!  Right now her most favorite is her Meiya and Alvin bunny!  It is cuddly and she loves to gnaw on its rubber ears.

She also loves this soft Disney baby book. The front page is made of crinkle paper which she loves!  And it has a hard plastic teething edge which she loves to chew on, and a squeak ball on the back page.

She also likes chewing on her baby toothbrush 🙂 She has two teeth already so it is perfect for getting her used to brushing her teeth!

Once she got bored, we introduced a new toy. We gave her Sophie the giraffe – its popular for a reason!  It is easy for her to hold, has all kinds of interesting shapes to chew on and it squeaks!

Our go to toy when she gets fussy is this rainmaker toy.  She gets super fascinated with it and snaps out of a meltdown!  It’s also not super loud and annoying so it is perfect for the airplane.

Once she was showing signs of being sleepy again, we gave her a pacifier and she fell asleep. I propped her up using my neck pillow on the armrest or just put her back in the wrap. To be honest, though, having your 6 month old baby sleep on you in an airplane seat will not be comfy.

Upon arrival:

1. Don’t forget your gate checked items

Your gate checked items will be waiting for you when you exit the plane, not on the luggage carousel, so make sure you wait for them!

If you have a connecting flight, you will need to re-check the items at the next gate, unless you indicated beforehand that you wanted to check the items to your final destination. We chose not to check them to our final destination so that we could still use the stroller and car seat in the airport during our layover.

2. Look for family bathrooms

Most airports have designated family bathrooms. We found these very useful as they are more spacious and both Ryan and I could freshen up our 6 month old and ourselves.

We made sure to change her diaper again, freshen her up and change her into new clothes before heading off to our next destination.

If you are nursing, have a look for designated nursing rooms/pods if you would like some privacy.  I was able to find them at the airports in Seattle, Vancouver and Phoenix.

Useful items for flying with a 6 month old:

These were all the items we brought with us on our flight that we found useful!

• Babyzen Yoyo Stroller (compact and lightweight)
• Nuna Pipa Carseat (lightweight, attaches to the Yoyo stroller and can be used without the base)
• Baby K’Tan wrap carrier (lightweight and no tying involved)
• J.L. Childress Gate Check Travel Bag (protects car seat)
• Matt & Nat Diaper Bag
• Disney Princess Soft Book
• Rainmaker toy
• Meiya and Alvin The Bunny Snuggly
• Sophie The Giraffe
• Skip Hop Elephant Chime and Teether Stroller Toy (keeps baby totally entertained in the stroller!)
• Baby Banana Infant Training Toothbrush
• Avent Soothie Pacifiers
• Pacifier Clip (we love this one because it is great for teething babies)
• Boon Trip Travel Drying Rack
• Lysol Disinfecting wipes
• Dapple All Purpose Travel Size Wipes
• Skip Hop Portable Changing Mat
• Skip Hop Stroll & Go Portable Baby Sleep Soother (we use this white noise machine during bedtime routine at home so brought it to keep the consistency)
• Babyganics Foaming Dish and Bottle Soap
• Avent Milk Storage bags (sturdy, non-leak bags for bringing extra milk)
• Skip Hop Insulated Milk Bag
• Lansinoh Manual Breast Pump (quiet, lightweight, can use anywhere)
• Avent Single Electric Comfort Breast Pump (compact and can run on batteries)
• Skip Hop Style Driven Backseat Mirror (helpful if you are renting a car at your destination)

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We hope this guide has been helpful in preparing you for flying with your 6 month old! Good luck and have fun!! And if you have any tips to add, please do share in the comments below 🙂

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