Is it ok for a 4-5 month old baby to travel a long flight?

[WiL and ShAi 0]

l'm planning to travel soon after I give birth to be with the father of my baby. He's from NY, USA by the way and I'm from the Philippines. I'm gonna fly from here to Japan, then from Japan to NY. The whole trip will approximately take 20-22 hours including time in between flights. Do you think I can handle it? This will be my second time to go there but my first to travel with a baby. I don't really know what to expect. I know it's gonna be hard. I would only get economy class ticket and I'll have the baby sit on my lap. Let me know what to expect. Thanks.

P.S.

The baby and I will fly most probably during winter season around December and January cuz my due date is August 26, 2008 and I still have to get our baby a Consular Certificate of Birth Abroad and a US passport.

Shai

[Dr. Obvious 49]

I would look for an airline that offers bassinets. These saved my life when I flew with my 8-9 month old. Also there tends to be a little more wiggle room around the bulkheads anyway.

[Lisax 0]

I would look for an airline that offers bassinets. These saved my life when I flew with my 8-9 month old. Also there tends to be a little more wiggle room around the bulkheads anyway.

I agree, there should be planes with seating areas where they have allocated bassinets where you can put baby, on the many flights I took I saw many parents doing this. Definitely inquire about it with different airlines, I'm sure most do it.

[CBR 0]

Check out Earplanes for children to see if they have baby size. I don't know if they'd do that since it could be a choking hazzard if someone was foolish enough to leave them in the baby's ears unattended, but it could save your baby lots of ear pain during take off & landing. Babies & little kids' ear canals do not handle the pressure change very well and they experience quite a bit of pain and that's usually why they're all crying during take off & landing. My last flight home from FL I had developed a pretty severe upper respiratory infection & my head was all congested. I felt extreme pressure & pain at the exact same time a little one on our flight was screaming her head off. The pressure let up at the same time she quieted down. Coincidence? I think not lol.

Edited May 22, 2008 by CBR

[sara..... 371]

oh where is my mind this morning lol i forgot to add..........when we traveled with moms small kids even new borns we always feed them on take off and landings because the suction they make while feeding helps keep the ears from hurting then as they got older she gave them a piece of gum to chew and until this day i chew gum on take off and landings.......hope this helps u some

sara

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Should be; I've seen mums with babies (as little as 1 week old) travel from Calgary to Pigtown (a 3.5-hour flight).

[GaryC 7]

It should be OK for you and your baby. If your baby is fussy though the rest of the passengers might not.

[Niels Bohr 72]

I remember I rode Thai Airways, a 17 hour flight trip from Bangkok to JFK. The baby (about 3 months old) sat on the mother's lap the entire trip. Sometimes the mother would walk around the cabin carrying the baby and craddling the baby. It's ok.

[GaryC 7]

I remember I rode Thai Airways, a 17 hour flight trip from Bangkok to JFK. The baby (about 3 months old) sat on the mother's lap the entire trip. Sometimes the mother would walk around the cabin carrying the baby and craddling the baby. It's ok.

I have made the trans-pacific flight a total of 18 times now. My worst nightmare is a young child having problems with it's ears screaming for the whole 18 hours. I know it's not the babies fault but it still makes for a very long flight. I got smart and bought an iPod with noise canceling headphones.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

If the child is fussy, there is always the old folk-remedy of (some form of distilled alcohol).

[natty bumppo 297]

It might be also be a good idea to check with the pediatrician before planning the trip or flying …

[mawilson 2,133]

I would look for an airline that offers bassinets. These saved my life when I flew with my 8-9 month old. Also there tends to be a little more wiggle room around the bulkheads anyway.

Yep, bassinet hounds make the best travel companions. You never know when you might need

to sniff out a rabbit or find that cookie under the sofa.

[rclouse 0]

We flew to Morocco with our then 3 month old son with two plane changes (LAX-HOU-CDG-CMN) and he did great. We came back two months later (CMN-CDG-LAX) and the only problem was taking off from Casa (he started crying), after that he was just fine.

I'd say at that age it'll be a lot easier than when they're older. Our son is now nine months old and after being held for a while he wants down so he can crawl off and explore. Next time he flies it won't be so easy.

[sj5 4]

I would look for an airline that offers bassinets. These saved my life when I flew with my 8-9 month old. Also there tends to be a little more wiggle room around the bulkheads anyway.

Yep, bassinet hounds make the best travel companions. You never know when you might need

to sniff out a rabbit or find that cookie under the sofa.

[WiL and ShAi 0]

Thanks everyone... keep posting for more tips.