Flying with a baby

Hey, we have done it many times and I have done it alone once too! The flight was around 2-2.5 hours so a bit shorter but still trying to keep An active little one is hard any length of time 😂😂 I bought fidget spinners the suction ones so when he had to be on my lap (take off and landing) I put those on the window and it kept him entertained. I also bought a bunch of books he liked and other toys to have at hand! And lots of snacks! Apart from when he had to be on my lap I did let him roam around up and down the aisle as it was better than trying to pin him down! Tips for travelling alone, no you don’t need a letter (i didn’t have one and was never asked). Definitely bring a sling, makes boarding and getting off so much simpler as you then have hands free. We have a yoyo and bought it up to the gate with us but then I decided for it to go under the plane rather than with me as it’s one less thing to carry up the stairs and put in the overhead lockers.

I did a 2 hour flight that turned into 4.5 hours on the plane with a walking 11 month old by myself. You don’t stay in the seat would be my first piece of advice! Whenever the seatbelt sign is off you can walk up and down the plane with them. Mine met every single person on the plane I think 😂 Also, other passengers are often kinder than you expect. Lots of people helped entertain him. Entertainment wise I used a felt busy board, spinny toys and anything they can fiddle with a bit. If you have the same surname then there is no issue travelling. Pack more food than you think you need. I didn’t do this and with the delay making the journey twice as long it was an unnecessary stress.

On the other side your buggy is waiting for you at the bottom of the steps (majority of the time) one time they put it through the baggage but but the airport had buggy’s you could use so I think that’s why!

1. Tbh babies usually sleep on planes no matter how active. It’s a big white noise machine and we’ve never had a flight where our girl has stayed awake. Plenty of snacks, something to play with and travel in pjs for comfort. 2. I always do when I fly alone and I have been asked before to present it. Does your child have a different passport/dual citizenship? Do you have a different surname to your husband or child? My girl is a dual national and I’m not so I have been asked about her dad and why I am travelling alone with an Australian baby as a British mum. We are married but until recently I hadn’t changed my passport name so baby and I had different surnames?

@Bianca thanks for the reply 🤗 I find hard to keep her down for even a diaper change so I’m stressing a lot about the trip and definitely wouldn’t want to annoy everyone on board 🥲 I when the spinner things but we are sitted on an isle sit but I guess I could put them in the tray or smth. I’ll be having her on the sling cause I won’t bring a pram with me. I’ll have one cabin bag and two backpacks basically one is her nappy changing bag. I would assume I can ask someone to help me bring my stuff up and down the plane since I’ll have her on me. Do you think it’s better to board first with the priority or last ?

@Marie oh my that would be my worst nightmare haha I don’t have the same username as the baby but I still think it’s stupid to get a consent letter. Idk it’s just doesn’t sound right haha hopefully I won’t need it. I never heard of it before either when I was working as a customer service agent. Thank you for your reply 🤗

Take a letter of consent just in case. I’ve only been asked for baby’s birth certificate as we have different surnames but they’ve always asked about the father and I wouldn’t be surprised if at some point they ask for the letter. You might not need one but if they do ask and you don’t have one it’s a pain!

Ah okay! Yes people are very helpful as said above and I’d like to hope someone would help!! We always board last just so that little man can be free and move around and not stuck in a que of people waiting to take their seats or for the plane to even open the doors! And the gate staff have always been helpful and even they have offered to take stuff down to the plane for me! That’s a shame about the aisle seat! My suction things don’t really work on the seat infront and you can’t have the tray down when take off or landing! Hopefully you’ll be able to stick them somewhere! We love the “that’s not my” books so baby can touch and feel them

@Sarah that would be the ideal scenario tbh haha. The only thing I’m overthinking about sleep is how will I nurse her at the same time as I imagine there’s going to be limited space anyways. She only usually sleeps if she’s on my boob 😅 Oh in that case then I guess I might have to get the letter. Like, her dad is also Greek, she is the only one with a British passport basically but she does have her dad’s surname but I’ve kept mine. She is not even registered in Greece tho yet so she doesn’t have dual citizenship yet I’d say. She has a Greek surname and name tho but I’m guessing the people who check passport won’t investigate where the name comes from if they see we don’t have anything in common in our documents ?! Thanks for your reply 💕

@Michelle thanks for your reply🤗 does it have to be a specific form or smth or he can just write on a piece of paper he consents and sign with his name or smth ? If you know I mean haha

@Stella you can use the baby’s birth certificate to show you’re the mother

@Naimah thank you 🤗

@Stella so I was just asked for it at check in and they just glanced and that was it, then on arrival by ukvi on the way back. It’s pretty standard for UKVI just for child protection. My letter just had dads contact details and that he knows we are flying on this date, also having a copy of the birth cert is helpful in your travel wallet xx

@Sarah thanks ☺️

@Stella I just typed up my own, following templates I found on Google. Contact details of dad, dates we’re travelling etc and just have him sign it. I also carry a photocopy of his passport but that may not be necessary not even sure I why I do lol

@Stella after sending this I remembered my passport has my maiden name on it but my child’s has my double barrelled married name. No one cared but it’s a bit more of an obvious link. It’s annoying but it’s to do with child trafficking prevention. Odds are you’d be fine after a couple of questions anyway but might be worth taking their birth certificate anyway.

You won’t need a letter of consent if you have the same name as your baby it’s if you all have different surnames

We just flew for the first time in July he was 11 months. Honestly he liked to play between my legs on the floor. Our flight was 4 hours. I also had books for him to play with and read. And lots of snacks. He also made friends and was playing peekaboo with a lady across from us.