Infant carseat tips for traveling?
November 15, 2015 12:12 PM Subscribe
My in-laws gifted us with a Disney cruise for Christmas. My daughter will need to use her car seat for hotel shuttles. I've never taken her on public transportation before. Do you have any tips? Do I simply carry the seat base everywhere with me and strap it into taxi and shuttle seats? Is that practical? Or do I not bring the base and simply hold the car seat? I have no idea how other people have approached this. Thanks for your experienced advice!
Response by poster: It's a rear-facing car seat, by the way.
posted by jackypaper at 12:18 PM on November 15, 2015
posted by jackypaper at 12:18 PM on November 15, 2015
The base is just an added bonus.
Most newer cars will have the LATCH system and you'll get better at feeling around for the hooks.
If you're in a shuttle bus you won't have seat belts probably.
posted by k8t at 12:33 PM on November 15, 2015
Most newer cars will have the LATCH system and you'll get better at feeling around for the hooks.
If you're in a shuttle bus you won't have seat belts probably.
posted by k8t at 12:33 PM on November 15, 2015
Yup, rear-facing bucket seats are (comparatively!) much easier to travel with than convertible seats, which don't tend to have easy seat-belt installs.
Others can probably pipe in with better information about how to handle the bucket seat on a plane; we didn't run into that before our son was older. I think you may need to check that the car seat will fit into the plane seat if you're buying a separate seat for the kiddo, or alternatively plan on holding the baby during the flight and gate-checking the seat.
posted by iminurmefi at 12:34 PM on November 15, 2015
Others can probably pipe in with better information about how to handle the bucket seat on a plane; we didn't run into that before our son was older. I think you may need to check that the car seat will fit into the plane seat if you're buying a separate seat for the kiddo, or alternatively plan on holding the baby during the flight and gate-checking the seat.
posted by iminurmefi at 12:34 PM on November 15, 2015
In many places you can get someone to look over your car seat setup for extra assurance that you're doing it right. When my friend's kid's car seat behaved a little differently in my car versus in hers (she also mostly used the base), we ran it by a free inspection service at the local fire station.
posted by deludingmyself at 12:39 PM on November 15, 2015
posted by deludingmyself at 12:39 PM on November 15, 2015
I would also check with the hotel to confirm that the shuttles are the sort with seat belts.
posted by oceano at 12:54 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by oceano at 12:54 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Here,
Are any drivers or vehicles exempt from Ontario's child car seat requirements?
Yes. The following drivers are exempt:
The driver of a taxicab, bus or public vehicle, while transporting a passenger for hire. via
so my (heretical, I am sure, given contemporary views on car seats) suggestion would be to check first to see if this is actually required on anything you'll be travelling on. I have never seen somebody use a car seat on a city bus and I doubt they're common on shuttle buses. There's no point to holding an unsecured car seat. I just put my kid in a sling while on the go; it makes it much easier to get on and off of, and sit down on, buses. Unless there are private cars involved for some of your travel, I'd leave the car seat at home.
posted by kmennie at 1:41 PM on November 15, 2015 [4 favorites]
Are any drivers or vehicles exempt from Ontario's child car seat requirements?
Yes. The following drivers are exempt:
The driver of a taxicab, bus or public vehicle, while transporting a passenger for hire. via
so my (heretical, I am sure, given contemporary views on car seats) suggestion would be to check first to see if this is actually required on anything you'll be travelling on. I have never seen somebody use a car seat on a city bus and I doubt they're common on shuttle buses. There's no point to holding an unsecured car seat. I just put my kid in a sling while on the go; it makes it much easier to get on and off of, and sit down on, buses. Unless there are private cars involved for some of your travel, I'd leave the car seat at home.
posted by kmennie at 1:41 PM on November 15, 2015 [4 favorites]
+1 check the manual; your infant seat may have a super easy seatbelt install option in which case it's as easy as buckling yourself in, pretty much. Don't get too used to it because when you switch to a convertible you'll discover the true pain of car seat travel.
And if the hotel shuttles don't have seatbelts you can just hold her or wear her in an ergo-style carrier. The whole reason they aren't required to have seatbelts is that if they're in an accident the other vehicle doesn't stand a chance. But you'll still want the seat for taxi rides.
posted by town of cats at 1:43 PM on November 15, 2015
And if the hotel shuttles don't have seatbelts you can just hold her or wear her in an ergo-style carrier. The whole reason they aren't required to have seatbelts is that if they're in an accident the other vehicle doesn't stand a chance. But you'll still want the seat for taxi rides.
posted by town of cats at 1:43 PM on November 15, 2015
If the hotel shuttle is more than 5 minutes around the terminal you may want to opt for a cab where you can do LATCH or seat belt.
posted by k8t at 2:16 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by k8t at 2:16 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by iminurmefi at 12:14 PM on November 15, 2015 [7 favorites]