What It's Like Flying with Babies & Toddlers During COVID-19

FLYING WITH A 3-YEAR-OLD AND 7-MONTH-OLD DURING THE PANDEMIC

I am not here to tell you whether or not you should fly or not fly during COVID-19. There are so many factors that go into each person’s decision, such as whether or not cases are rising where you live, whether or not cases are rising at your destination, and whether you have high-risk individuals in your family or inner circle.

This blog post is merely recounting my experience flying with babies and toddlers to help give others planning to fly with little ones an idea of what to expect.

There are also tons of official resources where you can find information about safety when traveling. (CDC, your airline’s website, your destination’s website)

We flew United, and my kids were 3 years old and 7 months old at the time of our flight. I had my parents with me, which was extremely helpful when I needed extra help in enforcing mask-wearing with my 3-year-old. (Sometimes kids will listen to anyone but Mom).

I’ll go through our experience from start to finish and add some lessons learned along the way. Here’s what it’s like flying with babies and toddlers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. That means if you click on a link and make a purchase I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

IS IT SAFE TO TRAVEL WITH KIDS DURING THE PANDEMIC?

The answer? It depends.

Check the CDC Domestic Travel page for current risk level and guidelines, then also check risk levels and guidelines for the state you’re visiting as well as the state you’re coming from.

You can practice the same steps to protect yourself and others while traveling as you do when you’re at home:

wash your hands often
wear a mask
stay 6 feet apart from others
take a COVID test before your trip

As for my personal experience, I felt completely safe throughout the entire airport and plane experience. People were following the guidelines, everything was extra sanitized, and everyone kept their distance.

Besides the masks, I wouldn’t mind if we kept up with some of these cleaning and distancing procedures after the pandemic is over! I don’t love masks, but totally understand why we need to wear them in situations like this.

TIPS FOR FLYING WITH LITTLE KIDS DURING COVID

If you’ve checked the current travel recommendations and feel comfortable taking a trip, you might be worried about taking your young children on the plane since masks are required for everyone ages 2 and up.

In fact, you may have heard horror stories of families getting kicked off flights for not complying with a mask order.

This was my biggest concern before flying, too. Here’s what I did to make it a bit easier for my 3-year-old.

PREPARE YOUR TODDLER FOR FLYING WITH A MASK

For the weeks leading up to our flight, I talked to our 3-year-old often about how everyone has to wear a mask on the airplane and in the airport. I had him repeat it back to me, too, so I knew he was listening.

We go to church every Sunday, and his older siblings wear a mask to church, so I would encourage him to practice wearing one so he would get used to wearing it for longer periods of time.

I talked about it like it was a really fun adventure and a cool thing to do on the plane.

PACK SEVERAL TYPES OF MASKS

Little kids sometimes don’t like being told what to do. They don’t often get a lot of choices in their life, so I find it helps to give them some level of control over the process.

My son helped pick out his masks, so he was excited about the patterns on them.

We packed lots of options for on the plane so he could pick the one that was most comfortable or whichever pattern he liked best that day. (We all know kids change their minds daily…sometimes hourly).

Be sure to include some disposable kids’ masks, too, and check with your airline ahead of time to see if they are not allowing certain types of face coverings.

BRING CLEANING WIPES AND HAND SANITIZER

I think a lot of people do this anyway, but it doesn’t hurt to bring some sanitizing wipes and hand sanitizer with you when you travel with little kids.

They touch everything, then put their hands all over their faces and in their mouths. If you can wipe down your seat, seatbelt, tray, and armrests before you sit down, you might rest a bit easier.

TRAVELING WITH A BABY

I don’t really have any extra tips specifically for traveling with a baby. I was tempted to give up breastfeeding for a while when we were going through a rough patch before the trip, but I was extra motivated because I knew the antibodies in my breastmilk were the best thing for my baby to protect her from sickness.

Other than breastfeeding, I was extra cautious about washing/sanitizing my hands, wiping down surfaces I knew she would touch, and bringing toys from home for her to chew on.

I kept the baby in the stroller and car seat as often as I could, but when she got fussy I would put her in the baby carrier or walk around with her.

It was tough not letting her crawl around since she wanted to practice her new skill!

WHAT THE AIRPORT EXPERIENCE WAS LIKE

Honestly, most things at the airport seemed to be business as usual. Of course, there were social distancing stickers on the ground and more plexiglass at service counters, but otherwise, the procedures were the same.

You’ll wear your mask through the entire airport. The only exception is when you go through TSA, they’ll ask you to pull down your mask to compare with your ID.

I found the airport to be significantly less crowded than usual, so it was easy to find spots away from crowds to eat and drink. Be prepared for many restaurants and stores to be closed, which means there are long lines at the places that are open. Because of this, you’ll want to bring your own snacks and a reusable water bottle.

WHAT IT’S LIKE ON THE PLANE

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

When you’re waiting at the gate, you’ll see hand sanitizing stations everywhere, and signs encouraging you to stay 6 feet apart from other groups.

Each person will receive a sanitizing wipe upon boarding the plane. High-touch areas are disinfected in between flights, and they use hospital-grade HEPA filters onboard the aircraft.

BOARDING

There were no boarding groups. They boarded the plane from back to front to lessen the amount of time people are bunched up close together.

In the past, you would hand your ticket to the agent at the gate, but now passengers will self-scan their own tickets.

SEATING

United did not block off the middle seat. That was ok for us since we had a group of 5 and were able to take up a whole row. (The flights were not very full).

Check your airline’s policy before you book your tickets if having the middle seat open is a priority for you. If they do keep the middle seat open but you’re traveling with kids, don’t worry. You’ll still be able to sit next to them since you’re from the same household.

FOOD AND DRINKS

The flight attendants still came around with the drink cart and dropped off little baggies of snacks and a water bottle to each person. You are allowed to take your mask off to eat or drink with the expectation that you will put it back on immediately after you’re finished.

EXITING THE PLANE

Upon arrival, the flight attendants will ask that you do not stand and crowd in the aisle. They will dismiss passengers in groups of five rows at a time, so try to just relax in your seats until your rows are called.

FLIGHT ATTENDANTS

Please, please be kind to your flight attendants. Their job is so difficult right now. Remember that they are real human beings with real emotions. They probably don’t enjoy enforcing mask rules with toddlers, but that’s their job.

Our flight attendants were incredibly understanding with us and didn’t go out of their way to police our 3-year-old’s mask. My parents and I were also staying on top of it, and making sure he put it back on after eating or drinking.

FLYING WITH KIDS IN THE PANDEMIC IS STRESSFUL, BUT NOT SO BAD

Yes, there’s the added stress of getting toddlers to wear a mask, especially if you have strong-willed children. I really hate to say it, but if you cannot get your little one on board with wearing a mask, you might want to postpone the trip if possible.

Other than that, I was really relieved that everything went smoothly. Flying with kids is tough no matter what, so I was worried that adding the mask element would make it a nightmare. In reality, it was really not so bad.

I hope you found this helpful and that it eased your mind about your future travels a bit! Safe travels!