Young Families & Cruising: Car Seat Question

[Erica6812]

Hello! My family will be traveling on the 6 night Navigator Thanksgiving cruise out of ft. lauderdale. My kids will be 5 and 3 at the time. We are flying into west palm beach the night before and staying in a hotel, we do not plan on renting a car but taking cabs or riding with family. We return out of west palm as well and fly directly home after cruise. We do NOT want to lug around 2 car seats with everything else we will have, and I'm wondering what the laws are in florida regarding this age and taxis or shuttles? Can we get around not having car seats? Wondering what other people do. Thanks!

[Ambiverol]

We do NOT want to lug around 2 car seats with everything else we will have, and I'm wondering what the laws are in florida regarding this age and taxis or shuttles? Can we get around not having car seats?

 

The laws of physics are the same in FL as elsewhere. Your small children will be at a severe disadvantage if you are involved in an accident without car seats, regardless of what State you are in.

[reallyitsmema]

Hello! My family will be traveling on the 6 night Navigator Thanksgiving cruise out of ft. lauderdale. My kids will be 5 and 3 at the time. We are flying into west palm beach the night before and staying in a hotel, we do not plan on renting a car but taking cabs or riding with family. We return out of west palm as well and fly directly home after cruise. We do NOT want to lug around 2 car seats with everything else we will have, and I'm wondering what the laws are in florida regarding this age and taxis or shuttles? Can we get around not having car seats? Wondering what other people do. Thanks!

 

FL law requires kids to be in car seats, cabs will not take you if you don't have a car seat. You could schedule a car service that could provide car seats.

 

Check out the family forum for more child friendly information.:)

 

Oops, this thread was moved to family forum as I was posting. That was quick!

Edited March 5, 2015 by reallyitsmema

[Woodmnky]

There are child restraints which do not require much extra effort to travel with. The Ride Safer travel vest & the Bubblebum inflatable booster seat are two wonderful options. Riding in a taxi with an unrestrained child is extremely unsafe.

[Bellyflopchamp]

The laws of physics are the same in FL as elsewhere. Your small children will be at a severe disadvantage if you are involved in an accident without car seats, regardless of what State you are in.

 

And yet everyday milliions of children around the country are allowed to go on a school bus everyday without even wearing a seat belt. THe question asked as if FLORIDA laws require children to be in a carseat when traveling in a taxi or shuttle. NOt if the laws of physics applies in Florida. While I understand where you are coming from with it still not being safe, the laws may allow for it as it is public transportation and quite often car seats are not required by STATE laws.

[Erica6812]

There are child restraints which do not require much extra effort to travel with. The Ride Safer travel vest & the Bubblebum inflatable booster seat are two wonderful options. Riding in a taxi with an unrestrained child is extremely unsafe.

 

Thank you for this info!! I did not know these products existed so I think we will do this, or rent a car with seats in it. Thanks!

[Erica6812]

And yet everyday milliions of children around the country are allowed to go on a school bus everyday without even wearing a seat belt. THe question asked as if FLORIDA laws require children to be in a carseat when traveling in a taxi or shuttle. NOt if the laws of physics applies in Florida. While I understand where you are coming from with it still not being safe, the laws may allow for it as it is public transportation and quite often car seats are not required by STATE laws.

 

Thanks for the support :-) I'm about as nervous a mom as you can get...of course my kids safety is a priority, I just didn't know the specific laws in FL for public transport - thats all I was asking... ;-)

[cb at sea]

On buses, no car seats....since there are no seat belts! In cabs and cars, you'll need the seats.

[dsrdsrdsr]

The laws of physics are the same in FL as elsewhere. Your small children will be at a severe disadvantage if you are involved in an accident without car seats, regardless of what State you are in.

 

Your children will be at severe disadvantage if they're in an accident with car seats. Accidents are never good. Try and avoid them.

 

The biggest dangers are when you're going from the hotel to the car, and the car to the port. Children on foot by roads are very vulnerable indeed. (Wearing cycle helmets at all times would greatly increase child safety, but for some reason this simple precaution is never taken by even the most safety-conscious parent.) Get them into the steel shell of the car asap.

 

Remember, both the law of physics and the law of probability apply equally in Florida as they do elsewhere. Don't let one law blind you to the other. When assessing the increased risk of injury caused by accidsents while in a car, don't forget to also assess the increased risk of injury or kidnap caused by the lugging about of two car seats.

 

Alternatively, hire a taxi with car seats. Children have to have car seats in Florida, ergo there are loads of taxis with car seats in Florida.

[phantomtales]

It was not ideal but when we were in a similar situation we brought the car seats in one of the big backpack cases for travel. That was difficult but it worked. From there we rented a car ( got a great rate by shopping around). We left the car seats as well as winter jackets etc in the car for the cruise. Not the easiest or cheapest option but it is what worked for us good luck.

 

Is there any chance the kids will wright into a booster seat by then. Way easier to travel with.

[Sooner-Cruisers]

we bought a different car seat for travel, it was $39 from Walmart. It's as light as can be and we used it in the cab in Cozumel. It's called the cosco Scenera. I believe you can use a booster for your older child. The good news is they have luggage carts they bring to your car, so you don't have to carry them. Good luck. :)

[eledaswerdna]

we bought a different car seat for travel, it was $39 from Walmart. It's as light as can be and we used it in the cab in Cozumel. It's called the cosco Scenera. I believe you can use a booster for your older child. The good news is they have luggage carts they bring to your car, so you don't have to carry them. Good luck. :)

 

Where did you take the cab to in Cozumel? What did you do with the carseat at your destination?

[russianmom]

I use the bubble bum with my kids.

They carry it in their backpacks and then we inflate while picking up the rental car.

Works like a charm

 

http://www.bubblebum.co/us/booster-seat/

[Sooner-Cruisers]

Where did you take the cab to in Cozumel? What did you do with the carseat at your destination?

 

We went to Playa Mia (great for families!)- http://www.cozumelmexicotours.com/playamiadaypass.html

 

We just set it on a nearby table, there were strollers all over, so it wasn't out of place. It started to rain, so I asked the restroom/locker room attendant if I could leave it in there. She didn't mind.

[BlueHerons]

Just wanted to add that South Florida has the worst drivers in the nation.

[akb5k]

Florida requires a carseat for the 3 year old for cabs. Just traveled with my 3 year old (no other adults to help). I took an Evenflo Maestro and used it on the plane, in cabs, and in a rental car in St. Maarten. Only 11 pounds so no big deal to carry in the airport, I put the straps over my arm like a purse. It would work for the 5 year old too although at that age you could probably get away with the Bubblebum.

Edited March 7, 2015 by akb5k

[flhokie]

Florida just put in stricter requirements for car seats. I would check with Florida Highway Patrol for details--we are still one of the most lax in the country from my understanding. Since we live in FL & DD (4 years/40 pounds) is still harnessed I didn't pay a lot of attention to the details (especially since 4 yr/40 pounds were the upper end of requirements mentioned). I do know that DD is not required to be harnessed anymore, but we will until she outgrows it.

 

We just purchased the Bubble Bum and will use it for DD for all travel now. We have not had the opportunity to use it yet, but have read great reviews.

[Dallas girl]

There are child restraints which do not require much extra effort to travel with. The Ride Safer travel vest & the Bubblebum inflatable booster seat are two wonderful options. Riding in a taxi with an unrestrained child is extremely unsafe.

 

I didn't know about these products either. Thank you!

[Trend]

I found out that the bubble bum and the Cosco one at Wal Mart are not aloud in Canada as they do not meet the standards. I just bought the one mentioned above by Evenflo as it was the cheapest sold in Canada and it was reasonably light weight on sale at Toys R Us right now.

[Lerin]

Many cabs and car services will provide car seats if you arrange ahead of time.

We've made calls from baggage claim before to get a cab with a seat and had no issue. Maybe 10 extra minutes wait, but much easier than lugging all those seats around.

[cbsmama]

Last year we used a BubbleBum for our (then) 4-yr-old DD for transport from airport to hotel and hotel to port. It worked out great. At the suggestion of someone in this forum, I sat next to her to monitor her and make sure she wasn't messing around (not that she does that). She still (at 5) rides harnessed at home, and she wasn't used to riding with a seatbelt. Anyway, it worked out fine, and I think it will be even better this year now that she is a little bigger.

 

That is probably a good option for your 5-yr-old, but the BubbleBum is only for ages 4-11. I looked into the Ride Safer vests, but they are REALLY expensive, and more than I would want to spend for occasional vacation use.

 

I'm not sure how big your 3-yr-old is, but I'm assuming under 40 lbs? If so, I would strongly urge you to bring your regular harnessed seat on the plane and have your child sit in it during the flight. It is recommended by the FAA that children under 40lbs sit in approved child seat, and by using it, you avoid any damage caused to your seat by checking it at the ticketing counter or at the gate. Importantly, you will have a seat that you know the history of (ie, not expired, never been in a collision) and that you will know how to install correctly when you are getting in/out of taxi cabs. It will obviously suck to have to store it in your state room, but in the big scheme of things, it won't suck that much.

 

When we flew into FLL for our cruise out of Miami last year, I did look into options that might be on a coach bus so we wouldn't have to worry about child seats, but I couldn't find anything. On the way home, we took the cruiseline transfer on coach bus, so we did not use the booster.

[lastminutemama]

We've traveled quite a bit with our almost 5 year old. I use a britax car seat cart. This way instead of having to carry the seat it becomes a stroller and resting spot in the airport etc. We use the carseat in his plane seat and he usually sleeps a good part of the trip this way.

 

On our last cruise we took the carseat on our shore excursions too. I worry more about accidents when we travel than at home rather than feeling carefree as some say they do.

 

Well be doing the same on out next cruise. Sometimes the walk back to the ship is pretty long too. Pulling him in the carseat was far better than the whining.

[Trend]

How do you install the car seat in a taxi as you can not start with the tether?

[gymbomb]

How do you install the car seat in a taxi as you can not start with the tether?

 

Just install it with the seatbelt. Tethers are wonderful and should always be used when they are present, but they are a relatively recent invention. A car seat installed with just a seatbelt will be much much safer than not using one. Read your car seat's manual -- ours says tethers must be used if they are present, but acknowledges they may not always be an option.

 

Depending on where you are and the specific taxi it may or may not have LATCH. I installed ours with a seatbelt in one taxi and with LATCH in a different one earlier this year. Just make sure you know how to do a seatbelt install before you go.

[notsodesperatehousewife]

Another endorsement for the bubblebum for your older child. We traveled to Europe last summer and in Germany and Austria, children under 5 feet tall were required by law to use a booster. My 12 year old was not happy about this! They are EU approved as well as approved for use in the US. These days you can find them at Walmart or on line at multiple sites, including Amazon.

 

For the younger, I also agree, bring your own car seat and use it on the plane. If you get any pushback from flight attendants who want to count it as carry on luggage, they are wrong. You are entitled by law to bring it on and install it.