The Latest Tips on Family-Friendly Air Travel

Baby cots are among the many amenities airberlin offers parents flying with young children.
Baby cots are among the many amenities airberlin offers parents flying with young children.

Under the heading of “Vacation Values” in MMGY Global’s 2014 Portrait of American Travelers, two out of three respondents agree that “Going on vacation together brings my family and I closer,” a sentiment pretty evenly spread across all age demographics. Likewise, nearly four out of five say,“The memories I get from my vacations make the trip worth it.” Much of the above is dependent, of course, on how well the entire experience goes.

For most vacationers, the trip begins and ends with a flight, and what happens in the air can make a difference. A less-than-joyful experience en route to the destination could carry over into the vacation itself, while a bad one on the return home could be the memory that lingers longest in the family’s collective mind. It is important, therefore, to check the airline’s policies and amenities regarding children, especially on long-haul flights when keeping young ones entertained is most crucial.

“The really long-haul airlines seem to be better known for their family-friendliness,” says Heather Christopher of Classic Travel, Inc., citing Qantas, Air New Zealand and Emirates as examples. Nonetheless, she advises fellow agents and their clients not to take anything for granted.

“What I deal with the most is seats for families — checking them on a weekly basis and reminding my client to check online and again at the airport early,” she says. She illustrates the importance of such diligence by citing a personal experience in which an airline “sat my husband and I separately for our flight home from Paris; with a lap baby, that’s not ideal.”

Nancy Yale, president of Cruise & World Travel, says, “Nonstop flights are really preferred, as it leaves less room for delays and missed connections, as well as lost luggage.” In general, she finds that, “Most flight attendants are really kind to all children flying.”

Even if everything goes smoothly in flight, however, there can be complications after landing. Therefore, Christopher advises clients to “get a Global Entry Card for everyone so you’re not standing in line coming back into the U.S. with one or more children who were just on a 10-plus-hour flight.”

A number of carriers, long-haul ones in particular as noted, do indeed manage expectations quite well. Etihad Airways, for one, has a growing reputation for offering child-friendly journeys.

Two summers ago, the UAE’s flag-carrier introduced a dedicated in-flight child-care assistance program for families, led by the introduction of a Flying Nanny onboard long-haul flights. While nannies are not available for each individual child, they provide a helping hand to families and unaccompanied minors. To qualify as an Etihad Nanny, candidates have to undergo in-depth training from Norland College, concentrating on child psychology and sociology, enabling the Flying Nannies to identify different types of behavior and developmental stages that children go through and how to appreciate the perspective and needs of traveling families.

In addition, the course also covers many different creative ways in which the Flying Nanny can entertain and engage with children. Every Flying Nanny is equipped with a goody bag of games and activities to help keep the kids occupied, easing the pressure on you. They might be making their own hand puppets, trying origami for the first time, or joining other children in a drawing competition. They could even find themselves enjoying face painting, learning a magic trick or having fun with food. Activities are designed so the Nanny can leave the kids on their own to finish their projects.

For older children, the Flying Nanny may hand out quizzes and challenges to keep them busy as well as take them on tours of the galley during quieter moments of the flight.

One of Etihad’s closest partners, airberlin, offers plenty of diversions onboard for its younger guests. These range from a coloring book, puzzle or comic to an airberlin cap, plus entertainment. On international medium- and long-haul flights, guests can watch music videos, popular TV series and cartoons or movies, including such current child-friendly fare as “Dolphin Tale 2” and the animated “The Book of Life.” Of the six audio music channels, Kinderkanal is dedicated to youngsters, while Top Hits should appeal to tweens and teens.

Many airberlin jets are equipped with baby cots for infants up to 12 months of age on flights of 90 minutes duration or longer. Clients should ask the cabin crew if this service is available before their flight takes off; baby cots cannot be reserved in advance. Several other carriers, including Lufthansa and British Airways, also offer baby cots.

For children from toddlers to teens, Lufthansa last year launched a new and improved kids program that caters to the specific tastes of different age groups. From kid-friendly check-in to websites, amenity kits and menus, all aspects have been developed with input from kids ages two to 17.

You can also remind your clients to download Lufthansa’s free “Take-Off” app, which offers a fun-packed journey for little passengers as they follow Lukas and Hannah on a fun virtual journey, starting at check-in, then into the aircraft with a look in the cockpit. Plus, there are plenty of activities and games before finally “landing.”

Lufthansa’s “Family Check-in Areas” at its Frankfurt and Munich hubs are also geared toward families with children up to age 12, providing special counters where young travelers have their own check-in experience. A welcome archway featuring Lufthansa’s adventurous crane mascots, Lu and Cosmo, leads to a runway-styled carpet. Young passengers and their parents arrive at a kid-friendly counter where little travelers climb up a few steps for an up-close view of the check-in procedure. And when the family receives boarding passes, stuffed animals are issued a “Best Friend Boarding Pass.” 

British Airways has a “Feed Kids First” policy, so little ones, who tend to get impatient, will get their meals before their guardians, who can then enjoy their own meals in peace. BA also provides Skyflyer activity packs available on all flights over two hours from London Heathrow and London Gatwick. For children between three and five years old, the pack contains crayons and a “Spread your Wings” coloring book featuring Cuthbert the Cat. For those over six, the pack contains a pen and the ‘Wing It’ book, packed with interesting facts about flying, plus puzzles and sudokus. In-flight entertainment includes fare from the Disney Channel and Cartoon Network.

While domestic travel doesn’t present quite the same challenges as international flights, there are still things to look out for. Christopher, for example, recommends JetBlue and Southwest “because they don’t charge for first checked bag” (although JetBlue may be revising that policy for lower-end fares). JetBlue also gets kudos from Jessica Griscavage of McCabe World Travel because, “I find it very helpful that they make TV available at no additional charge.”

There is one charge that families may wish to consider incurring on any flight, Griscavage says: “It is worth paying the fee to check a bag. There is so much to carry and pack when traveling with children, handling luggage on a plane is just one more hassle.” In addition, “When you arrive at the gate, make sure you get a tag for your stroller and ask if they will be doing any pre-boarding for families,” she says.

Not to overstate the obvious, but, says Yale, “Price point really is most important when families book, as the rate is expensive and when multiplied for family members, that is a big chunk out of the travel budget, [especially] for international travel.”

Etihad’s Flying Nannies undergo in-depth training in child psychology and sociology.
Etihad’s Flying Nannies undergo in-depth training in child psychology and sociology.