long flight with 20 month old?

fusionbride

has anyone done this?  we are planning a vacation in the next few months, and are interested in going to Europe or some place far away, but I'm petrified of a 10 or 12 hour flight with a toddler.  Who has done it?  was it terrible but worth it?   Do you have suggestions of things to consider in deciding whether to go?  How did LO  handle the time change once you got to your destination?

fusionbride

Thanks @LalaMama81

Any information on the flight specifically?  the 11 hour flight is my main concern...  How did your 22 and 23 monthers (and you for that matter) handle it?  Did you get them their own seat?

We're looking into Spain and/or Portugal or Italy...

spruce1978

We took our daughter from Canada to Bali when she was 12 months. 20+ hrs flying total. We did a layover in Hong Kong both ways to break things up for all of us. We bought her a seat, totally worth the money. I can't imagine having to have her sit with either me or my husband the entire time. It was nice for her to have her own space, plus she slept well in her carseat.

I think it would probably be a bit easier at 20 months as the attention span is better. We downloaded a bunch of toddler apps on an old iPod for her, but that would only occupy her for a little while. We took lots of walks up and down the aisle, talked to the passengers that loved kids, and took lots of snacks.

Pack extra clothes for all of you. Take more diapers than you think you will need. And don't stress too much. Even if the flight is terrible you'll never see those people again. They'll get over it.

hilsy85

We flew to Israel (10 and 12 hour flight) when LO was 16 months old. It was rough, not gonna lie. He barely slept on both flights, and when he did, it was usually on me, while nursing. I would recommend bringing LOTS of snacks, new books, small toys that you can wrap so he can un wrap them on the flight, and an ipad or something for screen time if you're allowing it (if you are planning on letting your LO watch something, I would recommend introducing it beforehand so he is excited about it). We did get him his own seat and brought his carseat, which was really helpful. 

The time change was actually not bad--he had trouble going to sleep for the first few nights (didn't fall asleep until 10pm) but then slept in, so it was actually totally fine. It's about 8 hours ahead there from us.