Air traveler with a toddler, something I think pretty much gives every parent major anxiety! I did a lot of back and forth before I finally booked our flights back to Cleveland for a visit. I had only flown with Little Mo once, and that was when he was 5 months old (not mobile!) and I was with Mo as well. You can find my tips for flying with baby here. This time around I would be flying with a very active toddler who doesn’t sit still very long and on my own on the way there. Let’s just say I was pretty anxious just thinking about it!

Once I finally talked myself into it and gave myself a pep talk that I would be fine, I started asking other mamas what some of their best tips for flying with a toddler were. When in doubt, always asks other moms! They always have the best advice and obviously have experience with it. Now that our trip has come and gone, I can honestly say I’m so glad I did it! He traveled so well, it gave me so much faith that he will (hopefully) continue to be a good little traveler, and that I am capable of a lot more than I thought. We made a good little traveling team! These are my best tips for air travel with a toddler.

• If you can, book your flight around nap times

Since we had a pretty long flight (in total about 7 hours with a layover), I knew it would be a long day for us both. I picked our departure time right around nap time in hopes that he would fall asleep on at least one of these two flights we had. We left around 1:45 pm and he slept the whole first flight to Denver which was almost two hours. He got a good nap and mama got to relax!

• Bring an item they use during nap time

Since he is still taking his pacifier during naps (it’s his comfort item) I made sure to bring that along. We had the window and middle seats so he was able to lay down on the seat and me and he slept really well.

• Pack lots of snacks and toys

This was probably the number one thing I was told by multiple moms. My carryon bag looked like a concession stand! I brought all kinds of snacks I thought he would like, which kept him busy. I also brought his water cup and filled it up once we got through security. As for toys we got him this tablet and these headphones for the trip and I’m so glad we did! We downloaded a bunch of his favorite shows, movies and some games and it kept him busy pretty much the rest of the flying time. We usually limit screen time, but when it came to traveling my motto was whatever keeps him entertained! We didn’t use many other toys since he was so into the tablet, but some other ideas were the window clings, coloring books and reusable stickers.

• Bring an extra set of clean clothing

You never know what kinds of spills or accidents will happen on a long day of traveling, I found it helpful to have an extra change of clothes for backup in the event we needed them. Also a sweatshirt for if the plane was cold, it also doubles as a good pillow.

• Pack something to suck on for take off and landing

Thankfully we didn’t have any issues with this, but it was one of the the things that other moms brought up. Like I said he was using his pacifier, so that may have helped, but I had another mom say bring a lollipop for them to suck on during take off and landing.

• Wear a nighttime diaper (if not potty trained)

Since Little Mo is still in diapers, I didn’t have to worry too much about potty breaks, but I did see someone mention to use the nighttime diapers for extra protection. They obviously absorb more and give you a little extra time for when you can actually change their diapers. I used them both ways for each flight and we had no problems!

• Give them a pep talk beforehand

We talked about the airplane and flying before we actually made the trip and I think it helped prepare him and get him excited to make the trip. I have to say I was shocked when we were on the runway taking off and he was excited looking out the window, I fully expected him to be scared! He did better than me!?

What are some of your best tips for flying with toddlers? Leave them in the comments!

Xoxo,

Danielle