Avelo Infant Policy: Ages, Bags and the Route Map

No bassinets

There are no bassinet positions on this fleet. On the short routes it makes no difference; on the longer sectors it means the realistic options are a lap or an approved car seat in a purchased seat.

Buy the flexibility at booking

• The base fare is restrictive, and with a baby plans change more than they do otherwise.
• Optional flexibility is sold at booking and generally cannot be added later.
• Decide before you pay, particularly if the baby is very young and a cold could change everything.
• Count the baggage honestly — a lap infant has no allowance of its own, and your own is bought separately.

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 and a low base fare, pricing a seat is worth doing properly rather than assuming it is out of reach.

Car seats and strollers

• An approved car seat can be used on board where you have bought a seat, carrying the aircraft-approval label.
• Strollers and car seats are generally carried at no additional charge, checked or gate-checked.
• Gate-check the stroller so it stays with you through the terminal.
• Measure the car seat against the aircraft seat width.
• Use a padded bag for gate-checked items.

Booking a trip around a baby's day

• Fly when your baby normally sleeps where the limited schedule allows.
• Morning flights are usually better for younger babies and least likely to be delayed.
• Nonstop is the point of this airline, which is a real advantage with an infant.
• Check the return runs on your date.
• Avoid the last departure of the day.

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, though small airports are quicker than large ones once you are inside.
• 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.
• Do not rely on buying supplies airside. At these airports there frequently is nothing.
• Check ground transport at the other end, which at small airports is limited.

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 whether there is a changing table — not all narrowbody aircraft have one.
• 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

• Not knowing about the 14-day minimum when travelling with a newborn.
• Checking the fare before the schedule.
• Not buying the flexibility option, then needing to change when the baby is unwell.
• Assuming supplies can be bought airside. At these airports there frequently is nothing.
• Not arranging ground transport at a small airport in advance.
• Not checking the age against the return date.
• Expecting a bassinet. There are none.

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 check the baby's age against the minimum, and tell you which airlines accept younger infants if yours does not qualify.
• We check the schedule frequency first, because with a baby that matters more than the fare.
• We look at nearby airports with daily service, which on this route map is frequently the answer.
• We explain what the flexibility option buys before you pay, since it cannot be added later.
• We check ground transport at the far end, which at small airports needs arranging.
• We answer at any hour, which with a newborn 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.