Alaska Airlines Infant Policy: No Bassinets, and What Else

What it costs

• No additional fare on domestic flights.
• A small charge on international flights into the United States, reported at a modest fixed amount rather than a percentage.
• A seat of their own is a separate purchase and the only way to use a car seat on board.

Lap or a seat of their own

The safest way for a baby to fly is in an approved child restraint in their own seat — in turbulence an adult's arms are not a restraint. A lap infant is legal and extremely common, but it is the affordable option rather than the safe one.

With no bassinet available anywhere on the network, the practical case is stronger here than on most airlines. On a long sector a baby in a familiar car seat generally sleeps; a baby on a lap generally does not, for five or six hours.

Car seats and strollers

• An approved car seat can be used on board where you have bought a seat, carrying the aircraft-approval label.
• There are restrictions on which seats a child restraint can occupy, so confirm the seat when you call rather than choosing it online.
• Car seats and strollers are checked at no charge.
• Gate-check the stroller so it stays with you through the terminal.
• Use a padded bag for gate-checked items.

Flying to Hawaii or Alaska with a baby

Two of this airline's signature markets involve long sectors to places where supplies are expensive and the journey is tiring.

• Pack for the whole trip, since nappies and formula at a resort or a remote community cost considerably more than at home.
• Allow for the time difference, which with a baby takes longer to settle than for adults.
• Check the frequency on routes to smaller communities, where a cancellation can cost a day.
• Consider arriving a day before anything that matters, rather than on the morning of it.
• Think about the return, which is frequently overnight and harder than the outbound.

Documents for the baby

• Proof of age for a domestic lap infant — a birth certificate, on paper.
• A passport for any international flight, including a newborn. Processing takes weeks.
• Any entry requirement the destination applies to infants.
• A consent letter where only one parent travels on an international trip.

Booking a trip around a baby's day

• Fly when your baby normally sleeps where the schedule allows.
• Nonstop beats a connection almost every time.
• Morning flights are usually better for younger babies and least likely to be delayed.
• Avoid the last departure of the day.
• On a long sector, decide the seat question first — it shapes everything else.

Travelling as two adults, or as one

• Two adults: a window and an aisle on a three-seat row often leaves the middle empty.
• One adult: an aisle seat is worth more than a window.
• Only one lap infant per adult.
• Whoever is not holding the baby carries everything else.
• Agree in advance who does what at security and boarding.

Getting through the airport

• Allow far more time than you would alone.
• Use the family lane at security where one exists.
• You will carry the baby through the detector while the carrier is scanned.
• Keep milk, formula and food accessible.
• Change the baby immediately before boarding.
• Find the changing facilities in advance, particularly at smaller airports.
• Do not rely on buying supplies airside.

The flight itself

• Feed on the way up and the way down. Sucking equalises ear pressure.
• Do not wake a sleeping baby for descent.
• Dress in layers.
• Ask which lavatory has the changing table.
• Board at the time that suits the baby if the bulky items are gate-checked.
• Accept help when it is offered.

What families most often get wrong

• Expecting a bassinet on a long sector. There are none anywhere on this airline.
• Trying to add the lap infant online rather than calling.
• Choosing an exit row, which a lap infant cannot occupy.
• Not checking the age against the return date.
• Packing light for Hawaii, where supplies cost considerably more.
• Not carrying proof of age on paper.
• Booking a long sector without deciding the seat question first.

The first flight, and what actually goes wrong

Parents booking a first flight with a baby almost always worry about the wrong thing. The crying is what everyone fears; it is rarely what causes the problem.

What actually goes wrong is timing. Families arrive with the margin they would allow themselves alone, then find that a nappy change, a feed, a security queue with a pram and a child who will not go in the carrier have eaten an hour. The fix is simple and unglamorous: leave earlier than feels reasonable, and accept that you will sometimes be sitting at the gate with nothing to do. That is the good outcome.

The second thing is supplies. People pack for the flight rather than for the day. A two-hour flight that becomes a six-hour day after a delay needs more feeds, more nappies and more changes of clothes than the schedule suggests — and airside there is frequently nothing to buy, or nothing in the brand your baby will accept.

The third is the other passengers, and here the worry is mostly misplaced. Cabin crew deal with babies constantly and are generally very good with them. Most passengers are more sympathetic than parents expect, particularly if you look like you are coping rather than apologising. Walking the aisle with an unsettled baby is normal and nobody minds.

A short packing list for the cabin bag

• More feeds than the flight needs — assume a delay.
• More nappies than the flight needs, with wipes and a changing mat.
• Two changes of clothes for the baby, and one top for you. Both get used more often than people expect.
• Nappy bags, since not every aircraft lavatory has a bin that takes them.
• A muslin or blanket, which doubles as shade, a feeding cover and something familiar.
• Any medication, including infant paracetamol if your doctor approves it — a baby who becomes unwell in the air is not a situation to improvise.
• A dummy or comforter, and a spare, because the first one will go on the floor.
• The documents in one folder rather than spread between a bag and a phone.

How Fond Travels can help

• We tell you up front there is no bassinet, so the seat decision is made before you pay rather than after.
• We make the call to add the lap infant, since it is not a standard online addition.
• We pick a seat the restrictions allow, including for a child restraint.
• We check the frequency on routes to smaller communities, where a cancellation costs a day.
• We check the baby's age against every flight date.
• We answer at any hour, which with a baby in the house is more useful than it sounds.

To plan a trip with a baby, call +1 (323) 800 6001. A travel expert answers any hour.