Air Travel with Kids During the Pandemic

Let me start by saying that nobody should be travelling right now unless they absolutely must. Now is not the time to take your kids on a trip. However, we have to acknowledge that for various reasons, some of us will need to travel with our kids before this is over. My family has been among those with no choice. We were four months into a nine-month stint living in Madagascar when the WHO declared Covid-19 a pandemic. Shortly thereafter, the U.S. State Department issued a Level 4 Travel Advisory and the U.S. Embassy in Madagascar advised us to leave immediately. About 48 hours later, on March 22^nd, we boarded a flight from Antananarivo to Paris. After a 30-hour layover in Charles de Gaulle, we boarded a second flight from Paris to Los Angeles, where we lived temporarily with my mother to give our house-sitters some time to move out of our house. On May 1, we finished our journey home to Montana by flying from LAX to SLC, then SLC to Butte, Montana. Below, I want to share some important tips that we learned in the midst of a pretty frantic scramble to get back to the States, followed by a much more calm second leg to return to our home in Montana.

1. Do not expect to leave the airport during a layover if you are flying through a country that is locked down and where you are not a resident. We had a 30-hour layover in Paris, but we could not leave the airport. Right now, a long layover is not an opportunity for a quick visit. As we learned in Salt Lake City, some states are also making visitors from other states register if they are staying in the state (as opposed to just passing through). Utah is one such state.
2. Expect service to be limited during the flight. Our long-haul flights were operated by Air France and Delta, and the food service was notably less frequent and robust that usual. Aside from the meals on each flight, there were no other drink or food services, and no alcohol available. They also didn’t pick up trash as often as usual. On our recent short flights (on Delta) from Los Angeles to Montana, we received prepacked bags with water, crackers, cookies, and hand sanitizer. There were no other beverage or food services on either short flight.
3. Expect food options in the airport to be limited, and possibly non-existent. In Paris, we were shocked to discover that we were held overnight in a section of the airport with no food available at all. The vending machines were empty, and nothing was open. Even the CDG Terminal Hotel (Yotel) had disturbingly little to offer— only a very few snack items, like chips and cornflakes. Thankfully, I had packed an overabundance of plane snacks, so we were able to cobble together a “dinner” of cereal, apple sauce, chips, and cookies. If I had known, I would have made a better effort to pack more healthy options! I would advise anyone flying internationally right now to bring along enough food for the whole trip. More recently, when we flew through LAX and SLC, we found more options in both airports, although some things were still closed.
4. Bring masks for everyone over 2 (and wear them). Recommendations about masks have been evolving rapidly, but more and more places are now requiring masks, including some major airlines. Delta requires all passengers to wear masks as of May 4th. American has a similar policy that will take effect on May 11. Check with your airline and know the rules before you head to the airport. You want to be able to swap out masks from time to time, so I suggest bringing one mask per person for every 4-6 hours of travel. According to the CDC, children under two should not wear masks as they can restrict breathing. Realistically, you might find that it is a struggle to keep a mask on a child under four or five years old. Charlotte is willing to keep one on for about 20 minutes at a time, but then she is DONE. Cloth masks are intended to keep you from spreading Covid-19 to others; they do not protect the wearer. So, if your small child cannot or will not keep a mask on, you are not increasing their risk; instead, you are increasing the risk that your child will infect someone else if they are contagious (keep in mind that people who appear completely healthy can be infected and contagious with Covid-19, including your own little cherub). You should follow the rules of social distancing regardless, but if your child cannot wear a mask, be extra vigilant and keep your child as far away from others as possible. The most difficult time to maintain a good distance is during boarding, so if your child will only tolerate a mask for a short period, this is the best time to use it. You should also try to seat children without masks away from the aisle to protect flight crew and other passengers who must pass by you.  The American Academy of Pediatrics has some helpful advice and guidelines about kids and masks.
5. Reschedule your flight if you are even a teeny-tiny bit sick. Usually we don’t have much choice about flying while sick, because airlines are notoriously nasty when it comes to changing reservations. However, the current circumstances have totally changed that. It’s not only free and easy to change your flights right now, in some cases, it may also be required. Since airlines are waiving change fees, there is no reason to fly if you are sick. Especially if you are running a fever or have a cough, do not get on an airplane.
6. If you have a choice, do not travel with your kids. Better yet, don’t travel at all.  Stay home, save lives.