On the plane

Infant meals

Some airlines provide infant meals - mostly on international routes. Quality and appropriateness vary between airlines and even on different legs of the flight.

• TIP - just because you buy an infant ticket doesn’t mean that a meal is ordered automatically. Make sure you order an infant meal when booking your tickets. Double check that your meal has been ordered when checking in and again once you are on the plane (before takeoff!)
• TIP - Infant and childrens’ meals are “special” meals and often the cabin staff will mark the back of a seat with a little sticker to indicate a “special” - so if you see them marking other seats and not yours - ask!

Some airlines also stock tinned baby food. However, the flavours and textures may not be appropriate for your baby. The last thing you want is to have a hungry baby so we suggest that you bring your own food - even if you order an infant meal. We suggest you pack:

• tinned food - enough for the flight plus the first 2 days if staying in a hotel. This saves you needing to rush out to source baby food while jetlagged and in unfamiliar surroundings
• snack food - crackers, rusks, milk arrowroot biscuits etc. Carry these in ziplocked bags for easy accessibility
• formula - enough for the flight plus the first 2 days (see above re tinned food)
• UHT milk if your baby is on cow’s milk - you can buy poppers/tetrapaks/boxes
• juice boxes for babies who drink juice
• fruit for the flight (but remember that you will most likely need to throw out any leftovers at the airport due to quarantine)

Most airlines are fairly considerate and will serve your infant meal separately. If you are travelling with a partner it is easier for one person to eat their meal while the other holds the baby and then swap. If not offered, ask the cabin crew to keep a meal aside for the person holding the baby.

CAUTION - meals heated up in the galley will usually be extremely HOT. Always check the temperature before serving to your baby.

On Zavvy’s first flight (Sydney-Paris via Tokyo) we were lucky enough to have a spare seat on the first leg which made it a lot easier to feed him. I took along disposable bibs and the airline (JAL) provided very cute airplane shaped spoons. He was still eating tinned food and I brought my own supplies.

© 2008 Flying with Baby.