Baby on a Plane! Long-haul Flying with a One-Year-Old

by

Several months ago, we took our baby boy on his first trip overseas. Flying from New Zealand to Singapore / the Philippines and back felt daunting before we did it but we survived with only minimal mental scarring. Thinking of doing a similar trip with your baby? Maybe I can give you some tips.

Note: Our baby celebrated his first birthday on our trip, so he was a very young “one year old”. Even now at 17 months it’d be quite a different experience.

Timing Your Flight

We used to search for the cheapest flights possible, disregarding small details like when they leave and how long the layovers are. When it came to booking flights with our baby, we made sure the layovers were as painless as possible but didn’t really care about when the flights departed.

Our first flight, New Zealand to Singapore via Australia, left first thing in the morning. We had to leave our accommodation at 3am and then it was lots of waiting around until we boarded, and then lots of sitting down once on the plane.

Our little one only slept for around an hour. The rest of the time we had to keep him entertained, which is a draining thing to have to do for 8+ hours on a flight. I can’t imagine doing it on my own! If he was a little older we could have distracted him with some TV or something, but it was just books and toys for us.

On the way home (Philippines to New Zealand) our flight left early evening. A midnight plane change in Singapore wasn’t ideal but our boy managed to get a decent amount of sleep throughout the night. We even managed to get an hour or two sleep for ourselves.

So, day or night? It depends on your child, but it’s definitely more relaxing for parents if the baby sleeps rather than constantly needing attention.

The Sleeping Situation

On most long-haul flights you’ll have the option to use a bassinet. You’ll be seated in a front row, with the bassinet attached right in front of you. There isn’t much room to move in those things and our baby wouldn’t settle there. He slept on us for a good   chunk of the flight — a bit uncomfortable for us but at least he was happy!

Airports

Waiting around at airports was one of the easier aspects of travelling long-haul with a baby. He loved exploring the airports (vending machines and lights were of particular interest) and it was good to be able to move around a bit in-between flights.

We spent a few hours at Singapore Airport and it’s a great place to explore with babies. They give you a free stroller and there’s heaps to see, including an impressive waterfall / indoor garden (The Jewel).

So, Should You Fly Long-haul with Your Baby?

Yes, although I can understand it being the last thing most new parents would want to do. We really enjoyed our trip and it was great seeing our little boy taking his first steps in the world (literally). He started walking properly a few days after we got home!

He loved exploring new places and especially enjoyed riding the trains in Japan. He’s too young to remember this trip but I’m sure it has played a positive part in his development. Hopefully it installed a love of travel in him, as he’ll be doing plenty of it in the years to come. 

Are you considering flying long-haul with your baby? Let me know in the comments below!

The following two tabs change content below.

Jon Algie

A travel blogger from New Zealand who hates talking about himself in the third person and has no imagination when it comes to naming websites.

Leave a comment