Best Airlines for Flying with Toddlers – Prepare for Takeoff
You have decided to brave the monumental task of flying with your young kids. Trust me, we’ve been there – it can feel more like a survival challenge than a much anticipated getaway. But what are the best airlines for flying with toddlers? Here we review the four airlines we flew on our trip to the Southern Hemisphere with our two little ones.
Below we will share our insights on United, ANA, AirPaz (Lion Air) and Qantas. We’ll look at if these are airlines with toddler amenities, from ticketing to food to customer service. Hopefully it will provide you some guidance in determining which airline will be right for your family.
Criteria for Evaluating the Best Airlines for Flying with Toddlers
Before we jump into evaluating, let’s chat about what we’re looking for in the best airlines for flying with toddlers so we can identify the strong points and areas that could use a little improvement.
Here are the key points we’re going to use in our evaluation process:
- Booking and check-in process
- Family boarding policies
- Policies on strollers and car seats
- Seating arrangements and comfort
- In-flight entertainment options for children
- Availability of kid-friendly meals
- Customer service and overall family-friendliness
Let’s take off on determining the best airlines for flying with toddlers!
Airline 1: United Airlines
Full disclosure: We fly United most often, so we have more experience with them than the other airlines.
United Airlines Booking and Check-In Process for Families
Booking a flight, especially with an infant, can be quite the adventure. United does a good job of making the booking process easy, both on their website and in their app. There are several options to define your search, clear details clear, and many links provided if you need more information.
You can request a bassinet during booking, but requesting does not guarantee that you’ll get one. United does, however, allow you to call the airline after you book your tickets. If you make the request over the phone early enough, you are more likely to get a bassinet seat (I know American Airlines does not guarantee you a bassinet seat even if you call ahead). You can read more about requesting a bassinet and other tips for flying with small children here.
United also makes it easy to check in before you get to the airport unless you are traveling internationally with a lap child. Every time we have flown United internationally, the adult with the lap child attached to their reservation has not been able to check in via the website or the app, so we’ve had to go check in at the airport counter.
One more nice thing worth mentioning is that the United app automatically provides checked baggage tracking. This turned out to be helpful when one of our flights was canceled and we needed to locate our bags.
United Airlines Family Boarding Policy
United allows families with children aged 2 and under to board early, which is awesome if you tons of stuff. You don’t feel pressure from the line behind you if your toddler is taking a while to navigate their way onto the plane. Flight attendants have the chance to see where you are sitting. You can decide exactly where you want which bags in the overhead bins so they will be easy to access during the flight.
The only snag during one of our boardings was that our lap infant was somehow no longer attached to my ticket, so we had to wait until the issue was resolved. We were almost the last ones on the plane, but thankfully that didn’t derail anything too much.
United Airlines Policies on Strollers and Car Seats
We have never traveled with a stroller, so we have no experience with their practices, but United’s policy is that small, collapsible strollers can go through security and be checked at the gate for free. Large, non-collapsible strollers need to be checked at the counter and do count toward your baggage allowance.
You can, on the other hand, check car seats at the counter for free and they do not count towards your baggage allowance. We have done this many times (and have even used the space in the cover bag to toss some things in to keep our suitcase from being overweight)!
United also allows you to bring FAA approved car seats in the cabin if you have purchased a seat for your child, but we haven’t personally done this, either.
United Airlines Seating Arrangements and Comfort for Families
We don’t have a ton of money, so we are always booking the cheapest fares possible. While economy cabins aren’t exactly designed for comfort, United is not the worst. Their seats are leather (I really don’t like seats with fabric because I don’t think they are cleaned as well) and the head rests have the wings that can fold in. Though the leg room is on par with many other major airlines, I will say that sitting in Economy Plus with the extra leg room does make a noticeable difference.
On most international flights they provide a pillow and blanket. The blankets are pretty nice and warm, but the pillows might as well not even be there. They are extremely thin with almost no padding.
As far as seating arrangements, United does automatically select two seats together so that your child will be seated next to their parent free of charge, even if you book Basic Economy. What they do not do, however, is ensure that the other parent will also be seated with you. On our most recent United flight, our 3-year-old was seated next to me, but my husband was seated a couple rows away and we could not move him any closer. At least he took our lap child, so we had one kid with each parent.
So, if there’s any lesson here, it’s to call the airline shortly after you book your tickets. That’s your best chance to get a bassinet seat or at least to all sit together. Occasionally, kind employees have granted us a free upgrade to extra legroom seats. All in all, no complaints with seating arrangements.
United Airlines In-flight Entertainment Options for Children
United does a really good job here. To start, they usually come around during boarding and provide kids with a wings pin and some form of entertainment. On our last flight it was a coloring book and some crayons. On the one before it was a slide puzzle. Even if your kids don’t use them, it’s still a nice way of making them feel special.
They also have a good variety of children’s movies, TV shows and games on their entertainment screens. It was nice being able to pull up some of the things we already know the kids enjoy watching.
United Airlines Availability of Kid-Friendly Meals
You can request a kid meal when you book your flight, but they aren’t much different than the adult meals. For example, on our of our flights, the adult dinner entrée was pasta with marinara sauce, chicken and vegetables. The kid dinner entrée was pasta with marinara sauce. All of the sides were exactly the same. For one of the breakfasts, the adult choices were eggs or fruit, and the kid meal was the same fruit. There’s nothing wrong with this, I’m just pointing out that if you don’t remember to request a kid meal, it probably won’t make much difference.
One nice thing about ordering a kid meal, though, is that they bring their meals out before they serve everyone else. Kids getting fed first = a happier plane ride for everyone.
Customer Service and Overall Family-Friendliness
It’s difficult to rate customer service because I think it is so dependent upon the individual staff member. We have had good and bad experiences with United’s customer service.
Good
- We received a bassinet even though we hadn’t booked one in advance
- Flight attendant offered to keep our breast milk in their refrigerator
- They offered us an open row of seats after cabin doors closed so we could spread out with the kids
- On one flight where it turned out their bassinet was missing, they gave us extra miles
Bad
- When our flight was canceled because the pilots timed out, it took over 2 hours to book new flights. We found our new flights on Google after the United customer service representative only offered alternatives getting us to our destination several days later
- They offered no help when we asked for assistance moving through the terminal with lots of stuff and tired children
- One gate agent didn’t seem to know how their bassinet system worked and offered no help in finding the availability of bassinets on the plane
United does allow you to bring extra carry-ons for your baby like a pump bag and diaper bag. Changing tables are in the lavatories of some, but not all of their airplanes. One thing they do not provide, that many other airlines do, is an infant seat belt and information about where to find an infant life preserver or how to use it.
Flying United Airlines, especially with little ones, has its ups and downs, but overall, our experiences have been mostly positive. United is generally one of the best airlines for flying with toddlers with a few minor hiccups to be prepared for.
Overall Rating: 4 out of 5
Airline 2: All Nippon Airways (ANA)
ANA Booking and Check-In Process for Families
ANA’s website is user-friendly and their rates are clear. They even have detailed information about the amenities and services available for families, which was super reassuring. One part of our booking process was a little confusing. The return flight option said there were only 2 seats remaining, but when I selected it anyway, I was able to reserve 3 seats and a lap child. You can request a bassinet while booking, as well.
I noticed that they do have discounted fares for children aged 2-11 on some flights, but not from North America to Japan. Overall, it was a pretty straightforward process, but I did find one more thing that I simply can’t ignore:
A 12-year-old can travel with a lap child… what?!
ANA Family Boarding Policy
Similar to United, ANA has pre-boarding for families with young children, but theirs is for kids aged 3 and under. It’s great that they extend their assistance to more families.
ANA Policies on Strollers and Car Seats
First off, strollers are free to check and aren’t counted against your checked baggage allowance. Big plus. On the flip side, however, bringing a small, collapsible stroller on board will count as your carry-on item and you don’t get another, only a personal item. If you’re going to bring a stroller on the plane, keep this in mind. You can read ANA’s full policy here.
One standout service that I don’t often see is that at some airports, ANA offers strollers to borrow! This little perk can be a lifesaver if you could use a little relief during a long layover. Just make sure to check beforehand if the airport you’re traveling through has strollers available.
Lastly, ANA’s car seat policies are pretty much the same as United. You can bring an approved car seat on board and check it at the counter or the gate for free.
ANA Seating Arrangements and Comfort for Families
Once again in economy, ANA’s seats were in some ways better than United and in some ways worse. For me:
Better
- A little more leg room
- Holes in tray tables for cupholders instead of a little indent (spills less likely)
- Sleep masks provided
Worse
- Fabric seats (I mentioned above how I’m not a fan)
Same
- Head rest flexibility
- Blankets and pillows (pillows might have been slightly better, but not significantly)
- Seating arrangements seemed pretty standard
I will say, we all slept almost the entire 12-hour flight, so the comfort couldn’t have been too bad!
ANA In-flight Entertainment Options for Children
ANA’s physical entertainment offering was a notebook, which is more appropriate for older rather than young kids. Thankfully, our exhausted munchkins slept most of the flight. I did skim the entertainment options on their TVs though, and they have a dedicated “ANA Kid’s World” section. It didn’t have a lot of familiar American TV shows, but it did have a wide variety of content including both international hits and Japanese animations. There were also kid-friendly games and audio books, so I have no doubt the kids would have found plenty to keep them entertained had they not been sleeping.
ANA Availability of Kid-Friendly Meals
Unfortunately, because we were booked on this airline late in the game, we were not able to request kid-friendly meals. That said, ANA offers both children meals and baby meals. They also have powdered milk on board that you can request for bottles, which took advantage of a few times!
ANA Customer Service and Overall Family-Friendliness
Though we only took two ANA flights, the flight attendants couldn’t have been lovelier or more helpful on either. They were so friendly and accommodating. As I mentioned, they filled our bottles with milk multiple times. The kids received extra snacks every time they came around. They even checked with us to make sure we liked our food, perhaps because we did not receive kid-friendly meals.
Regarding the service practices in general, all of their planes have a lavatory with a changing table, and they have special blankets for their bassinets. Also, as I briefly alluded to above, they offer airport assistance if you have a child under 3. You do need to call and request it at least 3 days in advance. In our experience, ANA is one of the best airlines for flying with toddlers and we would not hesitate to fly with them again.
Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Airline 3: AirPaz (Lion Air)
AirPaz Booking and Check-In Process for Families
The booking process here gets a little confusing, because there is a Lion Air website and an AirPaz website. Both websites have excellent English versions. They are easy to understand and navigate, providing all the information you could want to find.
When it comes to functionality, the AirPaz website worked much better for me. On the Lion Air website, I was not able to get past the search parameters. When I tried to find flights, no options would load. I simply saw a blank page. Airpaz.com, however, worked like a charm. Everything loaded quickly, I was able to change the currency, and details were well laid out.
But then on AirPaz, I couldn’t find any information on traveling with children. There was nothing included in our confirmation email, either. You know where I did find the info? On the Lion Air website! Having to go back and forth between the two was annoying.
One area where I have to give them props though, is that they allow you to check a bag for free AND bring both a carry-on bag and personal item for free! This is uncommon on budget airlines. Also, since our flight was domestic within Indonesia, we were able to check in with our lap infant online. Avoiding the check-in line at the airport was nice.
Lion Air Family Boarding Policy
Lion Air does have pre-boarding for families with young children. I don’t remember them specifying an age when they made the announcement and I didn’t see any specifications on either of their websites.
Lion Air Policies on Strollers and Car Seats
Similar to ANA, strollers are free to check and aren’t counted against your checked baggage allowance. You can also gate check a stroller, but you cannot bring it into the main cabin.
Car seats are the same as the first two airlines. You are able to check it for free at the counter or the gate. You can bring approved car seats on board if you have purchased a seat for your child. See Lion Air terms and conditions for more information.
Lion Air Seating Arrangements and Comfort for Families
Lion Air is a budget airline, so of course the comfort is not exactly stellar, but we’ve definitely been on less comfortable budget airlines. The economy seats are leather and they are decently padded. The headrests are not adjustable and the tray tables don’t have a cupholder, but again, budget airline. For a quick flight it really wasn’t bad.
AirPaz In-flight Entertainment Options for Children
Lion Air did not provide any entertainment for the kids, but we didn’t expect any on a short flight and a budget airline.
AirPaz Availability of Kid-Friendly Meals
There was no meal service on our flight, but they do offer various snacks for purchase that we did not need. In case anyone needs this advice when traveling with young kids: bring plenty of your own snacks!
AirPaz Customer Service and Overall Family-Friendliness
We had no issues with the customer service on AirPaz, and the generous baggage allowances were huge for us because we had a lot of stuff. Another thing I appreciated was that they brought us an infant seat belt and life vest shortly after we sat down.
Though it may not be one of the best airlines for flying with toddlers, AirPaz did exceed expectations for a budget airline.
Overall Rating: 3 out of 5
Airline 4: Qantas
Qantas Booking and Check-In Process for Families
The booking process with Qantas is generally smooth and user-friendly. The website and mobile app provide clear information and options for adding children to the booking. The option to add a lap child is easily accessible, as is requesting a bassinet. One thing to note, though, is that requesting a bassinet ahead online will cost a fee if you’re flying economy.
We were once again unable to check in online. Check-in at the airport was slow but smooth, possibly because it was the first flight out that morning.
Qantas Family Boarding Policy
Similar to Lion Air, Qantas has pre-boarding for families with young children and did not specify an age. We were able to board early and take our time settling in.
Qantas Policies on Strollers and Car Seats
The Qantas policy allows you to check a specific number of “child items” like a car seat, stroller or cot depending on your route. Small, collapsible strollers are allowed in the overhead bins, but they are counted towards your carry-on allowance. You can carry food and diapers on for free.
They do allow car seats if you have purchased a seat for your child, but the car seat must be pre-approved at least 7 days prior to your trip.
Qantas Seating Arrangements and Comfort for Families
The economy seats on our Qantas flights were comparable to United’s economy seats. They have leather adjustable headrests, but the seats are fabric. Overall, about what you’d expect. They weren’t great, they weren’t horrible.
The same can be said for seating arrangements. We had no trouble sitting all together on either flight.
Qantas In-flight Entertainment Options for Children
Qantas wins the award for best physical entertainment. They gave our kids a little magna-doodle and not only did they play with them on the planes, but they continued to play with them on our trip and even now at home. The TV screens have a dedicated Kids’ Zone with a variety of animated shows and interactive games. We barely used them though because Jameson got sick.
Qantas Availability of Kid-Friendly Meals
There was no meal service on our flight, but they offer various snacks for purchase. Again, we didn’t need them because we had our own snacks.
Qantas Customer Service and Overall Family-Friendliness
Qantas does provide the infant seat belt, life preserver and a briefing on emergency procedures with an infant, but overall, their customer service leaves something to be desired. I have had multiple issues with their call service in the past. Wait times to speak to an actual person were extremely long. When they finally connected me to someone, their staff were not particularly helpful. And this was over several weeks of booking multiple flights, so it was not a one-call situation.
On our last flight from Sydney to San Francisco, the flight attendants were not particularly friendly or helpful unless there was an issue. My impression over the years is that Qantas has such a strong presence in the Australian market that they don’t really have to care about customer service. I would not consider them to be one of the best airlines for flying with toddlers.
We did, however, have one exception. One lady on the Qantas staff at Melbourne Airport was the absolute best. She spent hours with us when our 3-year-old got sick. She helped us get through customs and immigration, pushed a trolley of our stuff through the airport, called hotels for us when we had to spend the night, checked us in at the airline counter the next morning and vouched for our son to her supervisor so that we were able to fly again.
For all the less-than-ideal customer service experiences I have had with Qantas, this one woman made up for a lot of them in just a few hours. She was so sweet and helpful that I emailed Qantas to acknowledge her outstanding service. I hope she gets a raise, because she deserves it.
Overall Rating: 3 out of 5
Coming In for a Landing – Best Airlines for Flying with Toddlers
Flying with young children can feel like an overwhelming task, but the airline you choose can make a world of difference in your overall experience. Each airline we reviewed had its strengths and weaknesses. In the end, the best airlines for flying with toddlers will depend on your family’s specific needs and priorities.
United Airlines offers convenience and entertainment for kids but falls short in some areas of customer service. ANA shines with its attention to family comfort and helpful service, making it a top contender for long-haul flights. AirPaz (Lion Air) provides budget-friendly options with solid policies for families, though it lacks in-flight entertainment for children. Lastly, Qantas delivers on entertainment and essential amenities but struggles with consistent customer service across the board.
Ultimately, the best airline for your family will depend on what matters most to you—whether it’s seamless booking, helpful customer service, or having your kids entertained for hours. By weighing these factors, you’ll be better prepared for your next family adventure in the skies.
Have you had particularly good or bad experiences with a specific airline? We’d love to hear your thoughts on family-friendly airlines in the comments. In the meantime, safe travels!
Want to know what papers to bring for your kids on your upcoming air travel trip? Check out our guide to the documents you need for successful airport check-in.