Traveling to Europe with 18-month-old twins - worried about flight, jetlag, etc...

[Anonymous]

We flew Air France to Paris with our 15 month old and were really pleased with the service - they gave us baby food, milk, a cute bib and toy. We had booked the bulkhead but they found an empty seat and moved us there instead so DS had his own seat which was great. They will only let you gate check umbrella strollers - they must be able to store it on board. Anything else, they'll take at the gate and store with the luggage but you'll have to pick it up at baggage claim.

Even for a lap child you have to pay a fee (10% of the regular adult fare).

[Anonymous]

I have family in Europe and flew with my 18 month old (singleton) as lap child--Dulles to Heathrow and then on to a regional airport.

One thing that we did to prep for the time change was to start shifting the clock back before we went. Set your alarm to wake up a half hour earlier each day for a few days, if you can swing it. If your are already waking up at 4 am and going to sleep at 8pm, the time change is not so rough.

Alternately, just keep US hours once you get over there. Sleep late & stay up late. That has the added advantage of letting you participate in evening activities with family without the kids conking out at 7pm.

[Anonymous]

The flight will be horrible but toddlers deal with jetlag pretty well. Just dont let them sleep too much during the day, then the night sleep should fall into place.

Is the flight overnight? I think the decision to buy a seat depends on how much you need them to sleep. If its a morning flight and they will just miss a nap, no seat. If its an overnight flight, you might consider it or else no one may sleep.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We relocated to the US from Europe with our then 20 mo old, and I was so happy we had a seat for him (didnt bring the carseat, fwiw). I didn't have to pay for it but I would. Money well spent.
As for the airline, I hate Air France. Crappy food, crappy service, crappy airport section for transatlantic flights.
Lufthansa is great, but expensive, as well as Air Swiss. I would choose a European airline if prices are comparable, since US carriers are so hung up on safety, they will make you put your child in his or her seat for takeoff and landing unless he is a lap child. I found European carriers more lax for things like that.

The European carriers force you to take a properly restrained child out if their car seat for takeoff and landing and hold them in your lap. Not safe at all.

[Anonymous]

I would splurge on the extra seat. One more means both adults have a bit more flexibility to help each other. Also, one parent may get some rest if a child is sleeping. It's also a spot for a carry one so adults can have legroom (important when already cramped with a lap child)

I would also have a harness for the extra seat so one toddler can be strapped in (and hopefully occupied with something) if both adults are tending to the other child.

Buy a million dollar store stickers and a notebook and let them stick all over it, you, each other

[Anonymous]

OP,

You can't avoid jet lag. Surrender to the loss of structure and timed naps and bedtimes and go for the madness. It will be a challenge with two at that age but ... I also think investing in an extra seat is essential. If they were younger, and smaller, lapping it might make sense.

[Anonymous]

OP, another twin mom urging you to splurge on the extra seat. Flying with twin infants and toddlers is completely different from two adults with a singleton. (We have two singletons and then a set of twins...all kids born at two years or less intervals). We always want on the cheap when that meant trading one lap child back and forth. We tried it once on a 5 hour flight with our twins both as lap children...never again. The extra seat will allow you to travel more easily. It can also change up the "scenery" for the squirmy little guys.

[Anonymous]

I know some people are morally opposed to drugging children, but in this situation I would find baby Benadryl a lifesaver. It's not going to harm them (Benadryl isn't very toxic) and a transatlantic flight with squirmy twins sounds rough.

[Anonymous]

I've never flown with two toddlers, but have with one. The flight there was not so bad; the flights to europe leave late enough that my kids were so tired that they fell asleep after dinner and slep until landing. I didnt, since I was holding a heavy toddler, but they did. Jet lag going there wasnt a problem, but coming home they woke up for the day at 2 or 3 am. That sucked.

[Anonymous]

We travel to the UK every year with two kids so have experienced every age from 1 to 12. Second the recommendation on begging for the bulkhead, and taking the later flight (we always take the 10 pm British Airways, or 10 pm United, flights - there's also a BA flight from BWI at 9:30). It's totally survivable if you just make your peace with the fact that you will sacrifice your sleep to make your kids comfortable. When they were little, we never adjusted their schedule when we were over there, so kids went to sleep at midnight or later and slept until noon or 1 - not the end of the world, unless you have stuff you have to get them out to do in the mornings. On the LONG flight home, I was all about positive reinforcement and used a bag of Cadbury chocolate buttons - oh, look, you're not kicking the seat in front of you! have a chocolate button! I know rewarding with food isn't ideal, but they are tiny chocolate bits (about the size of a chocolate chip) and if I could give them 20 "you are doing great" chocolate moments in an 8 hour flight, we all felt good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We relocated to the US from Europe with our then 20 mo old, and I was so happy we had a seat for him (didnt bring the carseat, fwiw). I didn't have to pay for it but I would. Money well spent.
As for the airline, I hate Air France. Crappy food, crappy service, crappy airport section for transatlantic flights.
Lufthansa is great, but expensive, as well as Air Swiss. I would choose a European airline if prices are comparable, since US carriers are so hung up on safety, they will make you put your child in his or her seat for takeoff and landing unless he is a lap child. I found European carriers more lax for things like that.

The European carriers force you to take a properly restrained child out if their car seat for takeoff and landing and hold them in your lap. Not safe at all.

Wow, I didn't know that. So they are not much better

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We flew Air France to Paris with our 15 month old and were really pleased with the service - they gave us baby food, milk, a cute bib and toy. We had booked the bulkhead but they found an empty seat and moved us there instead so DS had his own seat which was great. They will only let you gate check umbrella strollers - they must be able to store it on board. Anything else, they'll take at the gate and store with the luggage but you'll have to pick it up at baggage claim.

Even for a lap child you have to pay a fee (10% of the regular adult fare).

We flew from Europe (via Paris) and they didn't give anything to our 3 yo.
They also didnt let us gate check our umbrella stroller, so we ended up with no stroller both at the layover airport (which is not too bad) but also at the long line through customs upon arrival, which was difficult with a tired kid who just recovered from a nasty virus.

[Anonymous]

I would just leave them at home. Sounds like way too much work at that age just so they can meet cousins. Maybe in a few years I would do it but not now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would just leave them at home. Sounds like way too much work at that age just so they can meet cousins. Maybe in a few years I would do it but not now.

There is nobody we can leave them with, and I would never want to go without them.

Thanks to everybody for your advice. I am reading this all with great interest. Still contemplating the third seat, but probably not. DH and I are working from different premises on this one - he says he'd do a lot for $1,200, while I would do (or pay) a lot in order not to have a completely sleepless night. And then there is of course the possibility that we'd get lucky and they seat us next to an empty seat - not sure what the odds of that are. We are flying in the middle of the week, off season, so maybe the plane won't be full? Who knows, but I know my husband would be so mad if we bought the extra seat and then it looks like we could have gotten one for free.

[Anonymous]

OP here again. I am wondering if it's possible to put them into a baby carrier while seated, so that they can sleep on our chests and we can sleep better because we don't have to hold them. Has anybody worn a toddler while seated in an airplane seat?