How We’ve Never Checked a Car Seat: Our Secret to Light Travel with Twins
These harnesses saved us from checking car seats as the twins got bigger.
One thing we try to avoid -- despite traveling with two little ones -- is to check bags. It slows down our trip, bags can get lost and it is hard enough managing the twins while also trying to move around big checked luggage.
So when we travel with kids, we do not bring car seats when flying. In fact, we never have. Even when the twins were babies.
How do we do it?
A few ways.
On our trips to the Caribbean or even domestically when renting cars, we would add on the car seats that you can rent from the rental car company. Usually this is anywhere from $5 to $10 per day. Though the prices are inching upwards in recent years. The one challenge with these, is that you will need to install the car seats yourselves, and when using a new car seat you are not familiar with, this can be time consuming -- and sometimes frustrating. Not the most fun way to start a trip.
In the Caribbean, another great option when you know you are only going to stay at the resort is to have a car service provide the car seats. In countries like Jamaica and Mexico, these car services are the same price or less than a taxi at the airport and often provide car seats for no additional charge. Some will not install the seats for liability reasons but many will have them installed when you arrive. You just may have to loosen or tighten depending on how big your child is.
As the twins got older, we invested in easy to use travel harnesses. We used these throughout Europe and on trips domestically. We have used them in airport Uber rides and once in rental cars. These harnesses strap into the seatbelts and are approved by DOT for safety. They pack easily in a carry-on bag as well.
When the kids are over 40 pounds, we have gotten them inflatable booster seats. These are great because they take up a little space and take less than a minute to blow up and install.
Every parent is different, but if you are considering skipping bringing the car seats on the plane, the above are solid options.
