Does anyone have tips for long distance/air travel with twins?

We took a 12-hour flight to Argentina with our 14-month-olds (plus 5 hours to/fro airport and airport waiting time). What I learned:

-night flights are great because the kids might sleep fine on the plane
-planes often have milk for baby bottles
-brings lots of little snacking foods
-dress them simple, e.g. in pull-up pants
-bring amusing toys or scarves, puppets, tiny books
-in the airport, even "off" video games are amusing because they have buttons & knobs

You will survive!  I spent much time being nervous in advance and the trip went pretty well.

If you can buy seats for everyone, do it!  We had seats for all for the international portion. Of the local portion, we bought one extra seat. Here is the potential glitch in that computation (two adults and two babies sharing three seats): because there is only one spare emergency oxygen mask per row on some aircraft, only one lap child can sit in some rows, so we ended up sitting in different rows.  Good luck!

First, request a "greeter" from your airline to help you if you have a lot of stuff (like car seats) to lug through airports. Second, use curbside check in if at all possible. Third, try to keep the kids in their strollers the whole time you are at the airport, checking the stroller at the door of the plane and getting it back as soon as you leave the aircraft. Next, buy some new little toy or game the novelty of which will sustain interest for a few hours. Lastly, remember that germs on airplanes are a given, so just in case bring Tylenol and Motrin on your trip, and know the kids' weights for dosing, in case they pick up some icky virus on board.

We took our year-old twins to India, then on to Singapore; again, same trip a year later (and doing it again this year).  I feared the worst, but it wasn't so bad. They slept in the plane’s bassinet the first time (you can request them, they're at the bulkhead row, for babies under a certain weight—ask!) and I did give them a dose of Benadryl before sleep time. Who knows if this had an impact, but they did sleep for a good portion of each leg. Also, getting a bulkhead row is key, especially the two seater rows, as the roomy floor area became a play space; I sat on the aisle with my leg out touching the bulkhead in front of me, penning them in.  Worked well.  Could also do this with the four-seat row at bulkhead if you have the whole row. We did not buy them their own seats until age 2 (they're almost 3 now), so there was lots of time holding them. Otherwise, we did the standard stuff, brought along some new little toys, let them rip up the in-flight magazines, etc.

Having just accomplished NY to Honolulu, I recommend taking a double stroller as then one adult can manage both twins at once in the airport. We used a double snap ‘n go with car seats and it worked great. Whichever stroller you use, security will ask you to take twins out of it and fold it up to pass through check. A hassle, but hopefully everyone around you is patient.

One tip: get a portable DVD player. My kids love Baby Einstein, Barney and Sesame Street. Also Magna Doodles drawing tablets are great, as are musical books, books with flaps, etc. Make sure the kids have not seen them before. I also think Sit ‘n Strolls are a must!  I traveled to Malaysia with my daughter when she was 15 months and I wouldn't have made it if I didn't have a Sit ‘n Stroll. Get plenty of snacks, too, AND, most importantly, a few changes of clothes - for them and for yourself as well, in case they puke on you.

And don't sit in a row where seat armrests don't lift. More importantly, if you have seats in front of you, you can make a "tent" with the plane's blanket by inserting it behind the headrest of the seat in front and the headrest of your seat to keep children asleep when the cabin lights are on or if a neighbor puts on a reading light, etc.

Bring a change of clothes for yourself on the plane. I can't tell you how many times I've either been pooped on, vomited on, or just plain spilled on.

CONTINUED
1 | 2 | Next