Link of the Day: Flying with an Infant

Here's a good and clear explanation of what is allowed (and more importantly, what is not!) when flying with an infant. Part of having a good experience while flying is acquainting yourself and following the rules (whether they make sense or not, unfortunately).

LotD: How to organize your carry-on luggage

I have my own work in progress post on this topic but in the meantime, I stumbled across this neat link on getting organized while traveling with baby and special bonus -- a FREE printable travel check list here.

LOTD: More Disney!

I apologize for the lack of updates lately; a lot of things going on here in Real Life (tm) including trip planning (hooray!) so I haven't been online to write as much lately. I did however come across this article on how to get your money's worth at Disney which has some neat advice for those of you planning a trip in the near future.

LotD

Since I'm planning to stay stateside this year, I've already started plotting out our vacations. Today, I came across this article about 50 states, 50 spots. Well worth checking out as the choices seem to be mainly off the beaten path.

Link of the Day: Take these steps to make your air travel better

CNN has a neat article on how to make your travel experience better. You can read their tips here.

Link of the Day: TSA Pre Check

Here's an amusing take of the new TSA pre-check program. Two CNN reporters pit the pre-check versus the normal security protocol and you can read about their "race" here.

Link of the Day: Where is the best airport in the world?

If you're going to be stranded in an airport, NPR recommends one of these. I have been to a handful of these airports, including Tokyo, Singapore, Berlin, and Amsterdam and the Tokyo and Singapore are by far the most kid-friendly airports I've been to. Both airports have ample and comfortable locations for nursing and changing diapers and play areas for the kids.

Singapore's Changi Airport, in addition to the butterfly garden mentioned in the article, also has an awesome play area in the basement (admission required) as well as other amenities (including foot reflexology, which I recommend whole heartedly but OUCH!). There's also a very nice room for changing diapers with real changing tables and very clean and spacious and with some amenities provided like water and paper towels. You can find out more about this airport here.

Tokyo's airport has "soft" play areas for the kids scattered throughout the terminal as well as nursing stalls with comfy chairs and nice changing areas that are dedicated to changing. None of this absent-minded "Oh let's put a changing table into the handicap toilet stall!" business going on there! I especially appreciated the play areas -- nice areas with soft foam blocks for kids to burn off steam during layovers. You can find out more about Toyko Narita here.

More airline fees, but they say you'll like these (really?)

Came across this article today: Airlines promise return to civility, for a fee. The article covers a variety of new pay-for-service options airlines are offering such as bypassing the baggage carousel or renting iPads or extra legroom (which on most airlines these days is already an additional cost). It appears most of these new services are aimed at the business traveler but the skipping the baggage carousel and having the bags delivered to your final destination seems to be a good option for parents who are already traveling with strollers, car seats, etc.

Link of the Day

I thought this article was great: How to survive plane travel with toddlers.

What I like about it is that the author is completely realistic about what it's like to travel with a toddler and how difficult it is and no two situations are alike. Well put.

Link of the Day: Price of Travel

While doing some research for a friend on her upcoming vacation, I came across this site, Price of Travel. It's chock full of great information about travel and budgeting and tips on how to get the most out of your buck while traveling. Check it out if you're planning a big trip in the near future to get an idea of what it costs to spend time in certain cities and other travel tips.

Link of the Day

It seems like I've been posting a lot of travel-related stories lately but I hope you find the information useful! Here's another story: New trick to get the best seat in coach. Not exactly kid-related but could have some information and product recommendations that you find useful.

One little point I will quibble with -- don't think you actually get noise cancelling headphones in first class, though for the amount of money airlines charge for first class, you certainly should! If you are looking for noise cancelling headphones that work great but don't cost an arm and a leg, check out Able Planet Clear Harmony Active Noise Cancelling headphones. I got these for my husband for a Father's Day gift last year and he loves them. Right now, they are priced at $129 but I've seen them as low as $89.

Link of the Day

Are you thinking of taking a cruise? Here's a story on how often cruise mishaps actually happen.

Have you encountered an incident while at sea? Report it at CruiseJunkie.com.

Need a vacation idea?

Not 100 percent kid-related, but if you were looking for travel ideas, CNN published a list of the 20 most beautiful World Heritage sites. I've only been to a few of the of the sites -- Mont St. Michel (easy trip from Paris!), Venice, and the Acropolis. Clearly there's a whole lot more world out there for baby and me to see!

Mom humiliated on American Airlines flight

American Airlines apparently stopped a woman from using her Medela pump during a flight. I'm posting this story here in the interest of sharing, but keep in mind that some of these experiences reported in the media are not typical. Complete story: Breast pumping mom humiliated on flight.

Car Seats

Car seats are obviously required for car travel but can also used in airplanes if purchasing a seat for an infant (child under age 2; after age 2, child must travel in their own seat). I recommend the following when researching a car seat purchase. Check out Car-Safety.org and also The Car Seat Lady and also NHTSA for tips and recommendations on what seat to buy. The Car Seat Lady has a huge section on using carseats on airplanes here and it's well worth checking out.

Link of the Day

Today's link of the day: Airlines launch child-free zones

Link of the Day

Apologies for the hiatus; I was actually traveling overseas for the last 3 weeks with the little one and of course I have gathered up plenty of information to share here. Still, as we're recovering from severe jet-lag, here's a story on absurd airline fees.

Link of the Day

The NY Times has some neat tips on how to save money on travel in 2013 and they aren't necessarily what you would expect. I especially like the tip on picking up the phone and talking to people. Recently, my husband and I booked a hotel overseas through a national travel website, but then learned we could get a cheaper rate by booking directly through the hotel. The cheaper rate even included breakfast! For other savings, check out For Traveling Savings in 2013, Go Retro.

Traveling tips for an easier flight

This article offers 35 tips for travelers to make taking to the friendly skies a bit more friendly and easy. Only the first few tips apply to traveling with children, but there are some super good and creative ideas, submitted by 'real' travelers. I especially like the 'airline tent' idea. I'm going to have to try that one out next time we fly!

Read  35 Tips for a Successful Flight.