By plane, flying with kids, flying with children, sticky fingers travel

Flying is the best choice for covering large distances but sometimes flying with children can seem like an endurance test with waiting times, endless queues, long walks and tired little people. Yes it can be stressful and confined but we would advise you to try not to get too concerned about other passengers if you have some particularly stressful moments.

We have written a number of guides to flying with your children and also guides on travelling by age and hopefully they will help make the journey as enjoyable as possible.

We have separately provided you with a checklist for your hand luggage and also with suggestions for things to bring to keep your children entertained when travelling.

Our top suggestions to make Irish Airports more Family Friendly

(11 Nov 2008)
Air travel can be fraught with stress for all of us but parents travelling with children need all the help they can get. The DAA is investing €2 billion in new and improved facilities. Here are some family-friendly suggestions for improvements.

Top tips for choosing your family travel airline

(16 Oct 2008)
Airline policies for families differ greatly and in some cases may be quite different on the ground where the gate staff has discretion. Many airlines will call themselves family friendly however their policies may not be consistent with this.

Infant and child airfare reductions

(15 Oct 2008)
Families receive very little attention from airlines when it comes to reduced fares for children and differences in policy and anomalies mean these are hard to charter. Here goes our best shot at it for you.

Airport Travel Tax

(14 Oct 2008)
The general rate applying will be €10 per passenger with a lower rate of €2 for shorter air journeys (those under 300 kms) and it will apply from the 30th of March 2009.

Top tips for booking your flight and reserving your seats

(30 Sep 2008)
Before you travel it's a good idea to find out whether your airline has a check-in option online. This cuts out hassle and waiting in line and you can usually join a fast-track queue to handover your checked luggage and your bags.

Persons with Reduced Mobility

(29 Sep 2008)
From 26th July 2008 managing bodies of airports, such as the DAA, have legal responsibility for the provision of assistance services to persons with reduced mobility when travelling by air.

Baggage Allowances

(28 Sep 2008)
Watch your baggage allowances which apply only to those who have bought a seat. Infants under two will not have a baggage allowance unless you are paying for a seat for them and this can be one of the most difficult things to negotiate as infants and toddlers tend to have the most equipment.

Packing tips

(27 Sep 2008)
We have prepared some checklists and top tips here below for your family packing depending on the age of your family and the type of family holiday you are going on and hope you will find them helpful.

Hand luggage - baby

(26 Sep 2008)
Take a good solid bag to carry all of the things you will need if you have a baby or a toddler. Here are our top tips for what you should bring and have a look at our hand luggage guide for all kids as well.

Hand luggage - all kids

(25 Sep 2008)
One of the biggest challenges of travelling with children is deciding what to bring and how to bring it. Travelling with just some cotton and cashmere may be a globetrotting mantra but it is simply not practical when travelling with your children.

Airport facilities and security when travelling with kids

(24 Sep 2008)
Due to requirements by airlines for two or three hour check-ins you can often spend more time in an airport than you do on the plane. After check in or if you are in transit having things like play areas can make a big difference.

Navigating airports with a buggy/stroller

(24 Sep 2008)
With increasingly tighter airline regulations and no luggage allowance at all for infants less than two years of age, this service allows you to order ahead of time, saves you the hassle of shopping and carrying it to check-in and also keeps track of it!

Meet and Greet at the airport

(24 Sep 2008)
We all know the hassle of getting on and off the plane and all that goes with that but so far little is said about actually the significant hassles of getting into getting and and from your home and into and out of the terminal buildings. There is now a new service to help stressed parents called Swiftpark. We have tried it and we love it!

Boarding the plane and settling in

(23 Sep 2008)
Airlines differ greatly in the services they provide for families and the amenities for children.

Take-off, the flight, landing and baggage collection

(17 Sep 2008)
Small babies are more sensitive to air pressure and as the plane climbs and descends may be likely to cry. Swallowing can have a calming effect and so you should feed young children a bottle during takeoff and landing and give older children sucking sweets to help with this.

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