Long haul (23hr) with 18 month old
Discussion
I know, I know, don't do it. But if you have to what's the craic?
We will probably fly Emirates economy. Bhx to bne. I feel like he will need his own seat but I'm unsure how big their bassinets are. Anyone know? I'd be gutted if paid for a seat for baby and you get on an empty flight!
Any tips or experience appreciated! Thanks
We will probably fly Emirates economy. Bhx to bne. I feel like he will need his own seat but I'm unsure how big their bassinets are. Anyone know? I'd be gutted if paid for a seat for baby and you get on an empty flight!
Any tips or experience appreciated! Thanks
We haven't done 23 hours, but did 10 hours. Unless they have some super sized bassinets your 18 month old won't fit into those, from memory our average sized 9 month old only just fit into one corner to corner. Having them on your lap for the duration is a non starter I would say. So you'll definitely want to get them their own seat.
Does he/she nap well? If yes then that can make all the difference. If not then you'll probably be in for a terrible time.
It depends if what's waiting for you on the other end is worth it. It'll be a reasonably grotty experience I would imagine, certainly the second half of the journey. But if you go into it with the mindset that it will be terrible, anything better is a bonus!
Personally if the child is a good sleeper, I would probably go for it and just know that it's going to be a bit unpleasant.
Does he/she nap well? If yes then that can make all the difference. If not then you'll probably be in for a terrible time.
It depends if what's waiting for you on the other end is worth it. It'll be a reasonably grotty experience I would imagine, certainly the second half of the journey. But if you go into it with the mindset that it will be terrible, anything better is a bonus!
Personally if the child is a good sleeper, I would probably go for it and just know that it's going to be a bit unpleasant.
Find an alternative solution.
Split flights.
Dump child with in-laws / grandparents
Leave child on doorstep of stranger
Feed child sedation tablets
As you can see I got more crazy the longer I thought about it.
Don't go.
If your 18month old is anything like my 15monrh old then good luck.
Split flights.
Dump child with in-laws / grandparents
Leave child on doorstep of stranger
Feed child sedation tablets
As you can see I got more crazy the longer I thought about it.
Don't go.
If your 18month old is anything like my 15monrh old then good luck.
Not much help and I know you’ve touched on it in your post but our friends just visited with a 2 year old on an 11hr flight (or there about) and have just informed all family and friends that they will not be coming back over for a good few years after all the stress of flying with a youngster and will wait for them to grow up before returning.
And if it’s emigrating give away your child and adopt another when you arrive……
And if it’s emigrating give away your child and adopt another when you arrive……
We took our kids SYD-LHR return when one was 2 and a half years and the other was just 6 months. The younger one slept OK in a bassinet, though as others have noted the bassinets aren’t v big.
The older one was helped with some anti-histamines… I would recommend trialling the dose beforehand as too little can sometimes have an opposite effect.
Otherwise, you’ll need lots of things to keep them occupied and plenty of food. But at that age at least if you’ve paid for a seat, you’ll get a bit of extra space to share. If it’s you, partner and child sharing a row of three next to the window will be easy. I did similar a few weeks ago but was sharing with a 12yo and 8yo, which wasn’t quite as comfy…
The older one was helped with some anti-histamines… I would recommend trialling the dose beforehand as too little can sometimes have an opposite effect.
Otherwise, you’ll need lots of things to keep them occupied and plenty of food. But at that age at least if you’ve paid for a seat, you’ll get a bit of extra space to share. If it’s you, partner and child sharing a row of three next to the window will be easy. I did similar a few weeks ago but was sharing with a 12yo and 8yo, which wasn’t quite as comfy…
We flew return Sydney to London with our 14 month old earlier this year.
It's not fun but it is doable, a few points:
- You need lots of entertainment for them
- Bottle / Milk helped a lot during take-off and landing
- Bassinets are typically located at the front of each section so you'll also get extra leg room when you book a Bassinet seat.
- Bassinet seats do sell-out quickly...
- You can get covers for the Bassinets (e.g. CoziGo) which helps to keep the baby asleep when cabin lights are on
- Night time departure was easier as they'll sleep through most of the first flight and some of the second flight due to being tired
- Overall found the airline (Singapore) and other passengers very supportive and encouraging
- Not sure I'd bother with paying for a seat for them as if there is capacity chances are they'll free up spaces near you first (other passengers don't want to be near babies either 😉). Also, they just want to sit on you anyway. Lounge access before departure and at the stop-over would probably be more beneficial in my opinion
- Noise cancelling headphones are a worthy investment
It's not fun but it is doable, a few points:
- You need lots of entertainment for them
- Bottle / Milk helped a lot during take-off and landing
- Bassinets are typically located at the front of each section so you'll also get extra leg room when you book a Bassinet seat.
- Bassinet seats do sell-out quickly...
- You can get covers for the Bassinets (e.g. CoziGo) which helps to keep the baby asleep when cabin lights are on
- Night time departure was easier as they'll sleep through most of the first flight and some of the second flight due to being tired
- Overall found the airline (Singapore) and other passengers very supportive and encouraging
- Not sure I'd bother with paying for a seat for them as if there is capacity chances are they'll free up spaces near you first (other passengers don't want to be near babies either 😉). Also, they just want to sit on you anyway. Lounge access before departure and at the stop-over would probably be more beneficial in my opinion
- Noise cancelling headphones are a worthy investment
Tim_D said:
We flew return Sydney to London with our 14 month old earlier this year.
It's not fun but it is doable, a few points:
- You need lots of entertainment for them
- Bottle / Milk helped a lot during take-off and landing
- Bassinets are typically located at the front of each section so you'll also get extra leg room when you book a Bassinet seat.
- Bassinet seats do sell-out quickly...
- You can get covers for the Bassinets (e.g. CoziGo) which helps to keep the baby asleep when cabin lights are on
- Night time departure was easier as they'll sleep through most of the first flight and some of the second flight due to being tired
- Overall found the airline (Singapore) and other passengers very supportive and encouraging
- Not sure I'd bother with paying for a seat for them as if there is capacity chances are they'll free up spaces near you first (other passengers don't want to be near babies either ??). Also, they just want to sit on you anyway. Lounge access before departure and at the stop-over would probably be more beneficial in my opinion
- Noise cancelling headphones are a worthy investment
Would the noise cancelling headphones work for me when the missus and kid are disturbing my sleep!?It's not fun but it is doable, a few points:
- You need lots of entertainment for them
- Bottle / Milk helped a lot during take-off and landing
- Bassinets are typically located at the front of each section so you'll also get extra leg room when you book a Bassinet seat.
- Bassinet seats do sell-out quickly...
- You can get covers for the Bassinets (e.g. CoziGo) which helps to keep the baby asleep when cabin lights are on
- Night time departure was easier as they'll sleep through most of the first flight and some of the second flight due to being tired
- Overall found the airline (Singapore) and other passengers very supportive and encouraging
- Not sure I'd bother with paying for a seat for them as if there is capacity chances are they'll free up spaces near you first (other passengers don't want to be near babies either ??). Also, they just want to sit on you anyway. Lounge access before departure and at the stop-over would probably be more beneficial in my opinion
- Noise cancelling headphones are a worthy investment
Seriously though with regards to extra seat imagine if plane was packed and no spare available. We will be departing close to Xmas, coming back late January so normally a busy period.
PomBstard said:
We took our kids SYD-LHR return when one was 2 and a half years and the other was just 6 months. The younger one slept OK in a bassinet, though as others have noted the bassinets aren’t v big.
The older one was helped with some anti-histamines… I would recommend trialling the dose beforehand as too little can sometimes have an opposite effect.
Otherwise, you’ll need lots of things to keep them occupied and plenty of food. But at that age at least if you’ve paid for a seat, you’ll get a bit of extra space to share. If it’s you, partner and child sharing a row of three next to the window will be easy. I did similar a few weeks ago but was sharing with a 12yo and 8yo, which wasn’t quite as comfy…
Are anti histamine a sleep aid then? Good tipThe older one was helped with some anti-histamines… I would recommend trialling the dose beforehand as too little can sometimes have an opposite effect.
Otherwise, you’ll need lots of things to keep them occupied and plenty of food. But at that age at least if you’ve paid for a seat, you’ll get a bit of extra space to share. If it’s you, partner and child sharing a row of three next to the window will be easy. I did similar a few weeks ago but was sharing with a 12yo and 8yo, which wasn’t quite as comfy…
We regularly flew NZ-Germany with kids from 3 mths old without any drama ( always cattle class) - both for us AND other passengers. Depends on your kids.
Biggest upset was landing halfway one yr in Bangkok. Had to walk a kilometre or so to reach immigration/ security before walking the same back to our original gate to re-board. I had a broken elbow & struggled to carry 2 yr old & my share of luggage ( we weren't allowed to leave anything on the plane) . Everything had to be x-rayed at security, silly bloody person got all excited because 2 yr old's bag contained a sword ( plastic xmas pressy) & a snake ( one of those wooden flexible models.
Our trip, door to door, was about 40 hrs.
edit for comma
Biggest upset was landing halfway one yr in Bangkok. Had to walk a kilometre or so to reach immigration/ security before walking the same back to our original gate to re-board. I had a broken elbow & struggled to carry 2 yr old & my share of luggage ( we weren't allowed to leave anything on the plane) . Everything had to be x-rayed at security, silly bloody person got all excited because 2 yr old's bag contained a sword ( plastic xmas pressy) & a snake ( one of those wooden flexible models.
Our trip, door to door, was about 40 hrs.
edit for comma
Edited by paua on Wednesday 17th August 08:26
Buy new toys. Wrap them up as presents and drag one out every couple of hours.....
At 18 months it should be enough to give a bit of variety and respite.
See if they're happy to wear headphones... preload tablet with peppa pig or whatever their fave 'show' is.
Book sensible flight time. If you can write 10 hours off to sleep, plus potentially a couple of hour to a nap, an hour or two to playing with food / eating. 2 hours spread over the flight with 'tv' and a couple of hours to playing with new toys, reading books.
That only leaves you with 5 hours.... you know the length of a flight to Turkey or somewhere that us parents dread... and you've already exhausted your ways to pass the time...... Good luck!
At 18 months it should be enough to give a bit of variety and respite.
See if they're happy to wear headphones... preload tablet with peppa pig or whatever their fave 'show' is.
Book sensible flight time. If you can write 10 hours off to sleep, plus potentially a couple of hour to a nap, an hour or two to playing with food / eating. 2 hours spread over the flight with 'tv' and a couple of hours to playing with new toys, reading books.
That only leaves you with 5 hours.... you know the length of a flight to Turkey or somewhere that us parents dread... and you've already exhausted your ways to pass the time...... Good luck!
Calpol gets recommended sometimes for traveling babies but expert level parents use stronger stuff like Phenergan
https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/promethazine/
The fun police says it can’t be used with alcohol, so keep the baby off the booze in the pre match drinks.
https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/promethazine/
The fun police says it can’t be used with alcohol, so keep the baby off the booze in the pre match drinks.
Your kid will either take to flying or they won't. My nephew when he was 18 months apparently did a flight from Perth W.A. to Las Vegas and barely made a peep. Then again my nephew was never a lid kid to begin with.
Then again some kids scream from start to finish.
I'd want to test it on a shorter flight first.
Then again some kids scream from start to finish.
I'd want to test it on a shorter flight first.
El stovey said:
Calpol gets recommended sometimes for traveling babies but expert level parents use stronger stuff like Phenergan
https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/promethazine/
The fun police says it can’t be used with alcohol, so keep the baby off the booze in the pre match drinks.
LoL... Those 18 mo old booze hounds. https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/promethazine/
The fun police says it can’t be used with alcohol, so keep the baby off the booze in the pre match drinks.
El stovey said:
Calpol gets recommended sometimes for traveling babies but expert level parents use stronger stuff like Phenergan
https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/promethazine/
The fun police says it can’t be used with alcohol, so keep the baby off the booze in the pre match drinks.
Yep, Phenergen rocks (or even, on the rocks..??) and was the stuff we used, but in case you missed it before, trial the dose so you know what works for you/child.https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/promethazine/
The fun police says it can’t be used with alcohol, so keep the baby off the booze in the pre match drinks.
Of all the flying we’ve done with our kids, the only time any of them screamed and got the attention of the whole section of the plane was as we came into land at HK in a thunder storm. And that was because everyone else was utterly silent and probably in need of a nappy… In fact I can’t think of a time when a small child has been upset for much of any long haul flight I’ve been on. And many other people on the plane will be parents too, and kinda know what you’re going through - don’t sweat it.
captain_cynic said:
LoL... Those 18 mo old booze hounds.
I expect many of us were given alcohol by our parents mixed in with milk to help us sleep. I grew up on planes doing long flights due to my dad’s job. We used to sit in the middle 4 on the jumbo, as the youngest I lay on the floor and my brother spread out onto my seat. If it was turbulent my dad used to stop me becoming airborne and keep me on the floor with his feet.
Down in the back cabin everyone would be smoking and the aircraft would have its own interior weather system.
I think often the difficult period for kids (assuming you don’t drug them) is the pressure changing in the descent. Aircraft now tend to have more advanced pressurisation schedules and lower cabin altitudes that likely help but that seems to be the bit where young people get the most upset. Having a bottle or whatever (formula/milk etc for the baby, not booze for you) ready for them often helps or if they’re a bit older a lolly or something.
Pre 9/11 parents used to take their kids to the flightdeck like it was some kind of aviation themed creche, although that’s stopped, you can still do laps of the plane or u shaped laps if you can’t use some of the crossover points in the galleys etc.
Cabin crew (not the stewards so much) love babies, if it’s cute take it down to the rear galley and they’ll likely occupy it for a while. Obviously not during meal services etc. use the excuse of getting some formula warmed up or something, don’t just walk in and hand your baby over and run off as that’ll upset your mrs and the crew.
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