Traveling with a 6 mo. - car seat?

Forgive what is probably a very ignorant question! I've been attempting to research this and most what of what I find just descends into safety debates without people actually saying what really happens.

How do y'all get from the airport to the hotel and/or port? We always fly and for a number of reasons I really don't want to have to travel with my own car seat. However if that's necessary I will but I just don't recall seeing a bunch of folks bringing car seats on the ship.

Do most people pre-arrange a cab we a car seat furnished? Or arrange a shuttle where one probably isn't required? If you do use your own what in the world do you do with it once on board??

We were originally planning on waiting for her to be older before cruising again but I've been reading a lot about people taking babies and it being relatively smooth since they're immobile and sleeping often etc. We've been fortunate enough to be able to take 3 cruises a year for the last few years so the withdrawal is building already.

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We travel with our two boys, who both require restraints in vehicles. Wee have developed a variety of ways of bringing car seats on airplanes, because it is important to us. You are correct in saying that not everyone travels with their car seats, but some of us do and are more than willing to share our experiences.

I'm assuming you will drive to the airport and your child is in an infant (bucket) seat. Do you plan on bringing a stroller? If you do, and your car seat fits on the stroller, you're set. I not, there are stroller frames that are very small and collapsible that could be used to turn the car seat into a stroller. On board the aircraft, you will need a seat for your child in order to install the car seat. Installation on an aircraft is exactly like a lap seat belt installation in your car. The only catch to this is if your car seat requires a base, some infant seats can be installed without the base, some need the base. If you can tell me what kind of car seat you have I can be more specific :). If your child is a "lap child", then the car seat will need to be gate checked with the stroller. Do consider getting a seat for your baby, as unrestrained children can be thrown around the cabin during turbulence, even when an adult is trying to hold them. Be warned, airlines have been known to break or otherwise render unusable many items, including car seats and strollers. I tend to use the car seat on board and gate check a cheap stroller, but that's me. If you use a vehicle with seatbelts to get to the port, simply reinstall the car seat in that vehicle. If there are no seatbelts, then the vehicle is designed to protect the occupants without the seatbelt, but research in Canada has shown that children under the size of an savage 4 year old could still be injured in these vehicles. (I reference Canadian information because I am a Canadian car seat tech.)

At your destination, your child goes back into the car seat clicked onto the stroller. That gets you right onto the ship, where the car seat goes on the bottom of your closet. It could be used as a baby rocking chair in a pinch too!

IMHO infant seats are probably the easiest to use while travelling. The next seat up, usually called a convertible seat, is much heavier to use, but there are tricks for those seats too ;)

Currently there are no approved child seats for airplanes. Children under must be held in arms and kids over 2 buckled into a seat.That is why 2 yrs and under fly for free ( no seat required) .

This was taken from an airline web page.

Currently there are no approved child seats for airplanes. Children under must be held in arms and kids over 2 buckled into a seat.That is why 2 yrs and under fly for free ( no seat required) .

This was taken from an airline web page.

This information is ridiculous and totally incorrect. There are MANY approved child seats for plane travel!

Children ages two and under travel free for many reasons I'm not getting into, but lack of FAA approved child seats is absolutely not one of them. You may purchase an airplane seat for your under two child on any US carrier, bring on your FAA approved car seat (& to my knowledge any new seat is approved) and buckle your child in. No problem.

If you travel with a child, bring the seat. Traveling with children is a pain, you just have to get used to it, and in later years, you will look back fondly on the days when all you had to worry about was lugging around a child seat. You can arrange for a car service who will provide one, rent a car and a seat, or take a shuttle where car seats can't be used. It is not legal in most parts of the US, and certainly not in Florida, to travel with a child that age who is not in a correct child restraint.

Great question - I'm wondering the same thing myself... More about excursions than anything... I don't really want to cart a car seat on excursions to the beach!

This information is ridiculous and totally incorrect. There are MANY approved child seats for plane travel!

The OP is from Canada and you are talking about US regulations. To my personal knowledge, there are no car seats approved for plane travel in New Zealand and Australia, and this may well be the case in many other countries, including Canada.

Please try to remember that not all CC members are from the USA and that US regulations do not apply in other parts of the world.

To the OP:

Bring the car seat and gate-check it for the plane flight. You cannot guarantee that taxis etc will have a car seat for your baby or that, if they have one, it will be tha appropriate type for your child.

Once on the ship, you can stow the car seat away in a cupboard.

My son and daughter-in-law have twice flown all the way from the UK to Australia and New Zealand. They brought the car seats, which are compulsory in the UK, Australia and NZ, but were not allowed to use them on the planes. (There are no car seats approved for use in planes in either Australia or NZ.)

The OP is from Canada and you are talking about US regulations. To my personal knowledge, there are no car seats approved for plane travel in New Zealand and Australia, and this may well be the case in many other countries, including Canada.

 

Please try to remember that not all CC members are from the USA and that US regulations do not apply in other parts of the world.

The OP is from the US. In any case, FAA approved car seats ARE accepted on Canadian airlines.

I flew with DD several times before a year old and she always flew in my lap. It worked very well for us. Once she was mobile I wouldn't have done it though--even though I had the option until 2 (& it is an option...children under 2 are not required to fly in their parents laps in the US). Two of the trips we had a car seat waiting at the other end & one time we got one with the rental car.

We are fortunate that we are within a 3 hour drive to 4 cruise ports so we haven't faced this decision. DD will go on her 1st cruise in May. We will of course use her car seat to get to the port as we will be driving our own car from home. We do not plan to take it on the ship with us. We don't plan to get off the ship in 1 port and only walk around in the other 2 so we don't see a need to take it.

If we were flying to a cruise, most likely I would not take he seat and arrange a car service in advance with a car seat or take a cruise line bus (using the Cares harness on the plane). However, the final decision would be dependent on the ports we were visiting & what we planned to do there (if anything required car travel I'd probably take it).

The OP is from Canada and you are talking about US regulations. To my personal knowledge, there are no car seats approved for plane travel in New Zealand and Australia, and this may well be the case in many other countries, including Canada.

 

Please try to remember that not all CC members are from the USA and that US regulations do not apply in other parts of the world.

Thanks for the reminder about cultural sensitivity. I never knew car seats fell into that category.

You state:

My son and daughter-in-law have twice flown all the way from the UK to Australia and New Zealand. They brought the car seats, which are compulsory in the UK, Australia and NZ, but were not allowed to use them on the planes. (There are no car seats approved for use in planes in either Australia or NZ.)

Of course there are car seats that are allowed to be used on planes in Australia and NZ. Is it a full moon today?

From Qantas webpage:

Research demonstrates that the safety of your child will be enhanced with the use of a child seat. If you do plan to use a car seat you will need to reserve and purchase a separate seat and receive pre-approval for your device at least 24 hours before departure. .

From Air New Zealand webpage:

The age of a child that can be restrained in a car seat is up to 4 years, provided the child does not exceed the weight limit for the restraint system of the car seat.

The car seat must have its own inbuilt restraint system and be of a type approved for use in motor vehicles. Please refer to the chart below. It must also be in good, safe working condition and should not exceed the given dimensions

http://www.airnewzealand.co.nz/infants-car-seats

Sorry, but OP is not from Canada. They state they are from Alabama, thus odds are quite high they will be flying to Florida on a US carrier.

Yes, poster providing incorrect information is Kamloops50, and they do state they are in Canada. They are still wrong stating:

Currently there are no approved child seats for airplanes

From Canada's main air carrier, Air Canada's webpage;

Air Canada is bound by Transport Canada regulations with regards to acceptable child restraint devices (with the exception of the CARES™ child restraint device). Only approved child restraint devices can be used on board Air Canada aircraft.

If you don't want to travel with your carseat, don't. I have never been anywhere in the US that required a child to be in a car seat in a cab, and I don't even know how you'd secure it on a bus. The only time we fly with a car seat is if we will be renting a car (or using a car ourselves).

I personally have had my daughter both in cabs (mostly in NYC) and on airport shuttles without a car seat. Is it the safest? No. But, it is the way it is.

If you don't want to travel with your carseat, don't. I have never been anywhere in the US that required a child to be in a car seat in a cab, and I don't even know how you'd secure it on a bus. The only time we fly with a car seat is if we will be renting a car (or using a car ourselves).

 

I personally have had my daughter both in cabs (mostly in NYC) and on airport shuttles without a car seat. Is it the safest? No. But, it is the way it is.

Most cities in the US, including all in Florida, require your young child, by law to be in an appropriate child restraint.

Yes, you are not required by law to have your child in a restraint in a NYC cab. But, that does not change the laws of physics. Good luck.

Thanks for the replies so far. I'm the OP and coincidentally I actually am Canadian I do currently reside in Alabama and will be flying US carriers though. So funny (to me anyway) you got me mixed up but still got my citizenship right ;)

Anyway, so far we're up to most folks bringing their carseats. I'm not thrilled about the idea of putting my baby in a cab-provided car seat either though - hell I've been in cabs myself where I didn't want to touch anything!

I'm not really concerned about the ports. We'll either do Bermuda again which would be very baby friendly or Western Caribbean where we've been enough to just be happy walking around certain ports or possibly just staying on the ship. It's the getting to the ship that's tripping me up.

Sure is funny that 15 or 20 minutes of travel time is seeming to be the most complicated part of a weeklong trip!

Marc

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A regular cab does not have car seats. If you don't want to bring your car seat, take the hotel shuttle from the hotel, and find transportation from the hotel to the port on a shuttle that does not have seat belts.

Yes sorry I should've been more clear. I know cabs don't have car seats, hence the whole issue to begin with! I meant pre-arranging with service for a car seat.

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I have no idea how you could have become confused with this thread!

If you don't want to take the seat and don't need it in port, book a hotel with a shuttle from the airport, and book a shuttle to/from the port. Go to the Ports of Call section here, and you'll be able to find threads about this.

The OP is from the US. In any case, FAA approved car seats ARE accepted on Canadian airlines.

Sorry. My mistake!

Thanks for the reminder about cultural sensitivity. I never knew car seats fell into that category.

 

You state:

 

Of course there are car seats that are allowed to be used on planes in Australia and NZ. Is it a full moon today?

 

From Qantas webpage:

 

Research demonstrates that the safety of your child will be enhanced with the use of a child seat. If you do plan to use a car seat you will need to reserve and purchase a separate seat and receive pre-approval for your device at least 24 hours before departure. .

 

From Air New Zealand webpage:

 

The age of a child that can be restrained in a car seat is up to 4 years, provided the child does not exceed the weight limit for the restraint system of the car seat.

 

The car seat must have its own inbuilt restraint system and be of a type approved for use in motor vehicles. Please refer to the chart below. It must also be in good, safe working condition and should not exceed the given dimensions

 

http://www.airnewzealand.co.nz/infants-car-seats

 

Sorry, but OP is not from Canada. They state they are from Alabama, thus odds are quite high they will be flying to Florida on a US carrier.

 

Yes, poster providing incorrect information is Kamloops50, and they do state they are in Canada. They are still wrong stating:

 

 

 

From Canada's main air carrier, Air Canada's webpage;

 

Air Canada is bound by Transport Canada regulations with regards to acceptable child restraint devices (with the exception of the CARES™ child restraint device). Only approved child restraint devices can be used on board Air Canada aircraft.

OK. I'll try again.

I accept that I was incorrect in saying that the OP was from Canada. :o

About the cultural sensitivity: It is a particular soap box of mine. I get so damn tired of so many people here on CC assuming that "we are all Americans here." Yes, someone actually stated that once. Guess you touched a raw nerve!

BTW, you misquoted me. I know car seats are allowed on planes. I said "approved". There is a difference.

While both Qantas and AirNZ allow car seats on flights, there are no car seats officially approved (by regulation) for flights in those countries. Australia is particularly strict about using an APPROVED car seat (one certified as safe for use in Australia). My DIL was not allowed to use her UK-approved car seats in cars in Australia.

And no, I believe the full moon was last week. :D

Yes sorry I should've been more clear. I know cabs don't have car seats, hence the whole issue to begin with! I meant pre-arranging with service for a car seat.

 

 

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He he he, I just assumed you were from Waterloo, ON :) My bad, should have looked at the title bar!

There are car services with car seats, the problem lies in whether they can provide a seat appropriate for your child. The same goes for car seats provided by rental car companies. Usually, you are responsible for installing the seat in the car, which is usually where people have problems. I am a Canadian CRST, have installed literally hundreds of seats at clinics over the past 4 years and I wouldn't get a seat from a car service or rental company. I've been promised seats and they were never provided (fortunately I had brought my own), seen people given broken/expired/inappropriate seats at car rental companies...and I've seen new seats being taken out of a box and given to someone to use. Personally I don't want to deal with wrong/expired/dirty/recalled seats, so I bring my own. I chalk it up to being part of travelling with children. This January was our first trip with just a booster...it's been a long time coming lol!

As for people commenting on the differences in car seats between countries, each country has their own regulations. Even though Britax sells a Marathon in the US and Canada, a Canadian resident can't use a US seat in Canada and vice versa. There is usually an exemption (30 days or so) for people travelling in the country or for people who have just moved, so tourists don't have to buy new seats while they are visiting and people moving to the country have a grace period to get new seats. For the record, US seats have to have FAA approval for airline use, Canadian seats just need their CMVSS 213.X sticker. So any Canadian approved car seat meets the requirements for use on aircraft, although this is a recent change in the legislation. I had to explain that once to a US Air agent :)

We travel with our own carseats. For our cruise in October, we will have 2 convertibles and a booster. PITA, yes. But we don't compromise on safety.

When using a seat you do not know the history of, you are trusting that everyone else who has ever used the seat did so correctly. You have no idea if has been in a fender bender or accident. You have no idea if the rental company submerged the straps in water (car seat straps should never be submerged), put chemicals on them, or otherwise mistreated it. How do you know if the kid four kids ago didn't puke or have a diaper blowout in it?

You have no idea if the seat that shows up will be appropriate for you rear-facing infant. And, do you want to sit at the curb reinstalling the seat rear-facing and adjusting the strap height?

I would just bring your bucket and stroller. Buckets are easy to install, and since it is yours, the chances of it being used safely and correctly are much higher.

The OP is from Canada and you are talking about US regulations. To my personal knowledge, there are no car seats approved for plane travel in New Zealand and Australia, and this may well be the case in many other countries, including Canada.

 

Please try to remember that not all CC members are from the USA and that US regulations do not apply in other parts of the world.

There are seats approved for air travel in Canada. Per the Canadian government: http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/civilaviation/standards/commerce-cabinsafety-tips-faq2-208.htm

I wish people would figure out the facts before blathering on about something they are completely ignorant on.

When we were traveling with our 6 month old, we brought a cosco carseat. <$40 from walmart, RF (but convertible, so it grew with him) and light. It was easy to carry -- it actually is sold in a nice plastic bag with handle. Even if we didn't use it on the plane, we checked it with our baggage. (Child safety equipment travels free).

We used it everywhere that had seatbelts. Even hotel shuttles. It takes 5 minutes to install via the belt and is SO MUCH SAFER than holding a child in my arms in a moving vehicle. I could never never live with myself if my child was ripped from my arms in a moving vehicle due to some idiot driver hitting us. Once on board, it went in the closet and didn't come back out till we went home.

. The next seat up' date=' usually called a convertible seat, is much heavier to use, but there are tricks for those seats too ;)[/quote']

 

Please share.

I just saw today a post on here somewhere about 2 different kinds of seats that are much more compact. After 3 kids and plenty of friends/neighbors/relatives, i had never heard of either one but both looked good enough that you may want to at least explore the options. http://carseatblog.com/10427/bubble-bum-review-booster-seat-or-flotation-device/. "Bubble Bum" or this one... http://safetrafficsystem.com/ver4/. "RideSafer"

Good luck.

Sorry...my bad. Just went back and saw OP has a 6 mo old. Oops...those suggestions won't really work for that age. My apologies.