rue sainte caro

Living in Paris has meant frequent 10-hour flights to the United States West Coast to visit my family. Through trial and error, I have found ways to increase our chances of having an enjoyable flight. Here are some things that have worked for us and some that haven't.

TLDR

Explain what to expect; kids love a plan and familiarity. We made up stories and read books about plane travel. One of our favorite books is P’tit Loup Part en Voyage, which dives into Little Wolf’s first flight with his mom, dad, and baby brother in tow (in French only). We also watched airplanes take off and land on YouTube Kids.
Start packing a week in advance; use packing cubes and fill them as the week progresses. The night before, you want to prioritize sleep and not late-night packing.
Leave with a clean home; this will give you peace of mind—which is everything when traveling with little ones. It also makes life easier when you return.
If you have a morning flight, ditch the early wake-up call. Book an airport hotel with a pool and order room service the night before. It’s a win-win for everyone.
Get to the airport super early, especially if you can’t reserve a bassinet in advance. Build in time for long talks, tantrums, extra-long bathroom breaks, or to admire the planes and airport trams (my boys paused with awe every time a tram passed or a plane took off or landed).
If a line is long, ask if there’s a separate line for families traveling with small children.
Intuitively, we want to speed through security, but let your kiddos be part of the process…taking off their coats and backpacks, placing them in the bins, etc.
Fly with an airline you know to be kid-friendly; a good airline alleviates the hassle of doing everything yourself or relying on the kindness of strangers. Air France is my favorite airline to fly with kids on our travel route.
Don’t rely on sleep aids. A four or five-hour nap is fantastic, but there are still four or five hours of entertainment after that! Prioritize activities that use your hands. We bring lots of stickers, pipe cleaners, sticky notes, crayons, colored pencils, and paper (which doubles for making origami).
Live and let live. Solo parenting on the airplane is not the place for teaching life lessons or maintaining good habits. The goal is to keep the peace.

Get organized

Organization is my love language, and having all my ducks in a row helps me take what’s thrown my way in stride. You can do all the right things—bring the snacks, the stickers, the iPad, sleep aid medication, etc., and still end up with angry toddlers or a teething baby or being stuck on the tarmac for 40 minutes. You never know what cards you’ll be dealt that day, so your mental health is number one. My kids can lose it, but I don’t have to, too!

Pack early

Packing for a trip brings me immense joy, and I typically start ten days in advance. I'm a fan of packing cubes and gradually filling them with everything we need throughout the week. I aim to finish packing two days before departure. The night before, I always do a final check and throw in last-minute items, like my hair straightener or slippers.

Our luggage situation looks like this:

One checked suitcase: all clothes, shoes, and toiletries we need for the trip + gifts
One small carry-on bag: extra change of clothes for everyone, blankets, and a few diapers (I bring a few days’ worth of diapers & either ship in advance or buy once I arrive)
One baby bag: hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, mini-first aid kit, phone charger, snacks, water bottles, toys, diapers, wipes, and an extra change of clothes for the baby stored in a ziplock bag (this way, I have a sealed bag for clothes in case baby has a blow-out)
One backpack for each toddler: headphones, toy of the moment, stuffed animal, and diaper and underwear
One Babyzen Yoyo stroller & detachable cup holder (I throw the cup holder in the carry-on suitcase before boarding the plane)
One baby carrier (I put this in the overhead bin just before takeoff)

Clean before you go

I always ensure I'm happy with the state of affairs in our flat before taking off. This has nothing to do with happy toddlers on a plane but everything to do with my happiness and state of mind.

Day before departure

When flying to the United States, we always book a room at the Pullman Paris Roissy CDG Airport the night before. Between the early wakeup and car-sick-prone toddlers, morning taxis to the airport weren’t enjoyable.

The day before, we either take a Baby Cabs taxi van, which allows you to reserve multiple car seats, or take the regional train (RER B) to the hotel. Even though it’s less convenient, the boys love the train, and it adds to the adventure. It also avoids car-sick kids.

The Pullman Roissy is clean and chic, has a great pool, and is, most importantly, located right across the street from the airport. We arrive in the afternoon, check in, swim, order room service, and hit the sheets. This also avoids the stress of unexpected traffic or strikes, which Paris is no stranger to! It makes life easier for my husband and me, and the boys love it.

On this last trip to the States, I traveled without my husband, but he did stay with us at the airport hotel the night before.

At the airport

We arrived at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport three hours in advance. I always aim to arrive three to three and a half hours early. I like to have time to chill, browse the duty-free, and watch the airplanes take off and land with kids or let them run around in a dedicated play area.

My husband walked us to bag check to ease the load with the kids, stroller, carry-on, and large suitcase. Once we had dropped off our main luggage, we said goodbye to Daddy and headed for a passport and security check. As I was traveling with an infant and a toddler, we were directed to shorter lines.

With a few exceptions, we are almost always moved to a line dedicated to staff, family, and people with limited mobility. This is a total game changer, and if you’re not automatically directed to a shorter line, definitely ask.

My two-year-old was a little overwhelmed with the security line on this last flight. My first instinct was to get through it as quickly as possible, but instead, we took our time. I let him take off his own coat and put his backpack and stuffed animals in the bin. The staff were all very kind and patient. I dodged a meltdown, and we left the security line happy campers.

Once through passport check and security, we hang near the restaurants and shops. I always let the boys pick snacks and a toy at the airport. My boys love macaroons, so we popped by Ladurée this last trip, and they had macaroons for breakfast. I am more lenient about what they can eat and when traveling. My goal was also to keep the peace—basically, their wish was my demand within reason.

Before making our way to the gate, we hit up the family restroom so I could change diapers and ensure everyone peed without worrying about losing a toddler. On this last trip, I put Apple AirTags in the boys’ pant pockets, giving me peace of mind.

Our Babyzen Yoyo stroller is on its fourth year of international travel!

On the plane

Families traveling with small children are eligible for pre-boarding, which we always take advantage of. Some families prefer to board last with their kids. I’ve tried that method, but often, you lose out on the overhead bin space next to your seat. When traveling with small kids, especially alone, it’s crucial to have everything within hands reach.

A kid-friendly airline makes all the difference

AirFrance is my favorite airline to fly with kids on our route (Paris-Seattle/San Francisco). I have had nothing but positive experiences with them when traveling with the kids, and here’s why:

You can reserve a bassinet ahead of time, unlike other airlines I’ve flown, where it’s first come, first serve.
The staff has been consistently helpful from the moment they scan your boarding pass. This last time, a staff member helped me carry all our bags and put them in the overhead bin. When flying other airlines, I’ve had to do it myself or rely on the kindness of strangers.
The airplane crew has always made a point to reiterate that they are there for me if I need to use the restroom, walk around, etc.
They have the cutest gifts for kids (see the pictures below). The kids have never received onboard gifts on a long-haul flight from any other airline.
They have a separate menu with food options catered to children. This last flight the kid’s menu had fresh fruit, which was not in the adult version!

Our onboard setup, sleep aids, and entertainment

Flying solo this last time, our setup was the following:

The two and four-year-olds each had their own seat.
The three-month-old was on my lap for takeoff and landing and in the bassinet more or less the rest of the time. I breastfed him or had a pacifier in his mouth for takeoff and landing to avoid ear troubles. He slept almost the entire flight to the States and back to Paris.

On the way to the States, I didn’t have high hopes for the bigger boys sleeping because it was a daytime flight for them. I gave Dramamine to help them fall asleep, and it had zero effect. I’ve heard melatonin is effective, but they advise against it here. Seeking advice from my sister's pediatrician in the States, she recommended Benadryl. On the flight back, I gave the two-year-old and four-year-old healthy doses of Benadryl. They slept almost the entire flight between the 4 pm takeoff and the Benadryl.