Travelling with twinfants

I'm looking for ideas from those who have travelled with twin babies - I can't figure out the best way to handle all of the necessary gear. We travel to Vermont each summer for a family vacation and this will be our first with the babies - they will be about 6 months old when it's time to travel and we usually fly from Texas through New York and have to change planes. In Vermont, I would prefer to have our double jogging stroller because there is a fair amount of walking and easy hiking at the resort, but it doesn't seem to be the best stroller for the airport. If we put the babies in airplane seats in their car seats, then the snap n go is the only stroller I have that the infant seats fit. Could/should we check the jogging stroller, or use it and carry the car seats between flights? Will the airlines gate check such a large and heavy stroller? Maybe we should buy single strollers to use? We have front carriers also, but again we have the car seats to lug around. We were thinking about getting the babies their own seats because we have two older children and it seemed too cramped to try to get 6 of us in 4 seats and we also worried about checking the car seats in case they got lost or delayed.

How have some of you done this?

 

Here is a good list to get you started:

[Wiki]Traveling_With_Twins[/Wiki]

I'm not sure if there is a weight/height/width requirement on strollers. You might check that out with the airline. We brought a double umbrella and gate checked it.

We did not buy seats for the babies, and just had them sit on our laps(they were 8 months 1 year--sorry, mommy brain!).

We did check the carseats, and they were lost, for 2 days. Good news was that they do have loaner(albeit gross) at the airport.

 

We just flew to Maui with our twins.(they were 6 months). We gate checked the stroller. You can either check or gate check the carseat bases, it's up to you. We bought a seat for each of the babies..it was a 7 hour flight! Well worth the $$. I brought extra formula bottled water to make bottles and blankets. It can get cold on the plane. I also made sure they sucked on either thier bottle or paci on the way up and down. I brought a small container of Karyo syrup to dip their pacis in so they would suck on them good. Not too much Kayro syrup though..it's used for constipation. I just put a dab on and it really got their attention. They like the sweetness. I also bought some new toys that they had not seen before. They had fun playing with them. If you decide to hold both babies, you and dh cannot sit in the same row. There aren't enough oxygen masks. You can always call the airline and ask what their guidelines for the seating with infants are. If you can afford to atleast buy one seat for the babies, It's well worth it. Although if it's a short flight, it may not matter. It wasn't bad. Just bring extra everything, including an extra shirt for you and dh.

 

We traveled with the boys this past New Year. They were 14 months and well out of the carrier. We held them and got very lucky by having almost empty rows on the way there and back. As much as you want to bring the jogger, I think you're arms will be thankful if you bring the snap n go, especially b/c you have a connection and layover. Would you be able to run to a terminal with the seats/jogger/other kids/etc? I second the idea of bringing extra everything! We dressed our boys in layers and brought their special blankets for sleeping.

 

I forgot to mention that we'll be travelling with our two older children, ages 7 and 5, so I think we'll need the seats for the babies to help give the other kiddos some more space. They still get very restless on flights.

Do your car seats fit in your stroller? If not, what did you do with the car seats while making your way through the airport?

How did you bring water on the plane? Are they no longer restricting fluids?

 

QUOTE(houstontwins @ Feb 18 2009, 12:03 PM) [snapback]1194980[/snapback]
How did you bring water on the plane? Are they no longer restricting fluids?


We were able to bring water for the babies in sippies, we just had to declare it at security. But, this was 1.5 years ago, so things may have changed.

 

We were able to bring our bottled water through security. If you cannot, just buy some on your way to the terminal.

 

We flew with the twins over Christmas...they were 3.5 months.
I definately think you should get them their own seats if you have older children you are flying with as well.
As for the stroller/car seat issue. We have the Graco Quattro Tour Duo and our car seats snap in. So we were able to put them in their car seats, snap them in, and use the stroller all the way up to the gate. Then we just picked up the car seats/stroller when we landed....it was much easier than I thought it would be.
As for water...we filled our bottles with water (4oz at the time) and they had us take off all the lids and they did a dip stick test on all of the bottles to make sure it wasnt any type of explosive or anything and we were good to go, so you can fill your bottles with water ahead of time! Good time saver!
Definately bring extra stuff. We put the babies in footies and a jacket. If it was cold we kept their jacket on and also had a blanket...if it was warmer we could take of their jacket.

 

We flew with ours to Boston when they were 6 months. We were staying with family and had a box from Diapers.com shipped with everything we'd need for the week..diapers. formula, wipes, etc...It was awesome! Didn't have to pack any of those things other than the diaper bag of course. We had an extra seat which was a lifesaver! This way DH and I took turns holding one and the other one was in their carseat. So we could take turns being hands-free of a baby, eating, restroom, getting a break. If it's a possibility for you, it's totally worth it in my opinion. You can check your carseats literally right at the gate...same with the stroller...they'll give you tags, and they'll be waiting for you right when you get off the plane. It is manageable and doable. We're flying again in July and I'm not nervous...about the prep at least...though I'll have two near toddlers at this point!

 

I was really worried about flying with my almost 7 month old twins at Christmas and it is not as bad as you think. I took my double pram with us and we also took a connecting flight. Take familiar toys that are easy to pack or can be attached to bags, your bottles made up (check with airline you can take liquids), plus water for them incase they get thirsty oh and dont forget bibs. Mine slept for most of the trip and were distracted at the airport and it was ok. I also recommend pacifiers for both babies for take-off and landing to help with ear pressure. Mine travelled better on the return flight. You´ll be fine! GL

 

Is there a limit to how many things you can gate check? I will be flying alone with my girls in August (they will be almost 7 months then) and I will have at least one carseat (I'm going to buy one extra seat so I can bring a carseat on the plane and only have to hold one baby) and possibly the snap n go. Also, has anyone used a security checkpoint gate pass? I'd like my husband to help me wrangle the babies if possible. TIA!