What about a stroller?
You should plan on taking a light weight stroller. Traveling without one is risky business. There may be long lines or delays and you don’t want to be stuck at the airport without a place to put your baby down. Ideally, airlines recommend travel with the umbrella stroller, but your infant is too young for that. Instead, you should plan on taking your car seat and a frame stroller (like a Baby Trend, Snap N Go). This method has three benefits. First, it’s best to travel with your own car seat because you are familiar with it and the baby will be exposed to fewer new germs (rental car agencies will rent them to you but they can be pretty gross!). Second, you can gate check these items and keep them with you for most of the time you are in the airport. Third, because you can gate check your car seat, the airline gives you the opportunity to occupy an unsold seat if one is available (you could get a separate seat for the baby without paying for it if the flight isn’t full!).
We wouldn’t recommend taking a large stroller (over 20 lbs) / car seat system. They are more likely to get damaged and can be more expensive when that happens.
What do I need for identification purposes?
For domestic travel, you should travel with a copy of the birth certificate.
However, if the birth certificate has not been issued yet, you just need something from the hospital with the child’s date of birth. As of now, this document is not for verifying citizenship, but for qualifying the child for travel ability.
For international travel, you will need a passport for your baby (yes, even to Canada or Mexico). According to the FAA, minors under the age of 18 must have the same travel documents as adults for international travel.
No matter where you travel, make sure you get your airline's version of a child boarding document. For lap children, you may need a Boarding Verification Document. If you are checking in electronically, verify with the airline that you can get the appropriate documents through the kiosk. You don’t want to get to the gate only to find out that you need an additional boarding pass. Check with the airline before you get to the airport! You may not be able to use curbside check-in or the quick check kiosks.
What should I take on the plane?
Although many airlines, like American Airlines, don’t count your diaper bag against you in the normal carry on allowance, you are better off repacking your diaper bag and any other carry-ons into a single bag... a backpack. It’s great if you have a diaper-bag-backpack but if you don’t, any backpack will do. You want to have your hands free while traveling. **Warning, you may feel a little like a pack donkey if you are traveling with a backpack and a baby strapped to your chest! But it’s the best way to get on the plane. Avoid fussing with a lot of little bags (diaper bag, computer bag, purse, etc).
Consider what your infant usually uses per day (in clothes, diapers, wipes, bibs, formula) then take a 1 day supply of everything in the backpack just in case the luggage gets lost. I also travel with a dozen gallon-size zip top bags. They are great to keep dirty spit-up bibs and accidentally pooped-on clothes from contaminating the rest of the bag (and smelling up the place!).
Soothing Baby During the Flight
Your infant’s ears are still delicate, so the air pressure that builds on takeoff and landing can be uncomfortable. To counteract the pressure, make sure your baby is sucking (nursing or using a bottle) on both take-off and landing.
As for the time in between take-off and landing, well, that’s the fun part. If your baby doesn’t fall asleep from the hum of the engines, you might find yourself straining for new ways to entertain him after the third hour of the itsy bitsy spider. If he’s old enough to be interested in toys, you might want to bring a few along. But don’t give them to him all at once. Rotate them so the first one seems exciting and new after he’s played with the other four!
Final Tips
Don’t travel without a thermometer, infant fever reducer (like Tylenol or Motrin), and doctor's instructions on how much to give your little one if a fever occurs while you’re gone. You don’t want to track down an unfamiliar pharmacy in the middle of the night when you’ve got a screaming baby.
New parents should pack light and plan for more to be available at your destination, advises Dr. Weidman. Bring your patience, a sense of humor, and a very loose, flexible itinerary!
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