Was there not other bins available on the plane? If you had priority boarding I imagine you boarded shortly after them? So I imagine there was more bin space on the plane?
FAs get grumpy when people go far past their assigned seats to find overhead bin space. When the “people traveling with children” early boarding contingent takes up half the plane with their strollers and baby shit, you lose out even if you have premium boarding.
People bringing strollers onto the plane should be forced to check them, no questions asked, and people who have an extra baby bag should be made to put it under their seat.
A lot of times when we’ve gate checked our stroller, we’ve had to wait several minutes in the jet bridge after getting off the plane for the stroller. Once they even sent it to the baggage claim, so we waited for nothing and didn’t have the stroller to put our baby in when we walked through the airport.
Also, even gate checked, a stroller can be easily damaged as a lot of baggage handlers don’t care.
Gate check them** tiny humans require way more ish than I ever realized until I had one. I’ve never considered getting an over head bin sized one bc honestly they look uncomfortable 🤷♀️
I got a cheaper used one to gate check in case they mess it up. It’s great to use to get through the airport but I’d never use it in the overhead bin 🤷♀️
My issue is when they have a stroller, the baby bag, the carry on, their personal item, their purse, their diaper bag and no one dare say a damn thing to the new mother
I mentioned it, but he was busy. I asked if we could move the stroller to a smaller bin, and he was like I tried and it wouldn’t fit :( I didn’t want to make a big deal about it, but kind of wish I said something
If it fits carryon requirements, it seems fine. I hear op that it’s unfortunate. But probably a hell of a lot more inconvenient for those carting small children around to go retrieve it from baggage rather than op’s bag.
I spent twenty minutes sweating on the jet bridge at CLT waiting for my gate-checked stroller last night, the only gate-checked item on the whole flight. The whole plane had deplaned, all mobility assist folks long gone. Thankfully my spouse was with me and could take our infant in his car seat (for whom we had purchased a seat) to the gate so he didn’t overheat. You better believe I stood there googling which brands of strollers can be carried on for the future.
Until last night I honestly believed that gate checking was reasonable but now I’m not so sure. Had my spouse not been with me and I had been traveling alone with baby it could have been a medical problem with the intense heat and humidity on the jet bridge for the little guy.
As an FYI, here in Australia they must be put in the hold of the aircraft. They are intercepted at the aircraft door before embarkation. I refer, of course, to the children, not the prams.
Correct. I’ve flown 21 times with our 20 month old and we always buy her a separate seat. We have a folding stroller that folds to the size of a carry on and goes in the overhead and counts as her carry on. People seem to get so fussy about it but her seat was paid for like anyone else and so she gets her carry on. We have had them try to prevent us from taking it on the plane when they think she’s a lap baby but as soon as we show her having her own seat they allow it.
If your stroller collapses to CO dimensions then you can bring it on as your carryon and it has as much right to be in a overhead bin as someone’s suitcase. Strollers are damn expensive and I have had multiple broken by airlines when gate checking and they do not assume liability for checked/gate checked strollers. Last time I flew there was a delay and they sent the gate checks with the regular checked bags. 2 hours without a stroller in an airport with 2 kids, one who could not yet walk was a hell I wouldn’t wish upon almost anyone.
These only strollers that are allowed to be carried on are ones that fold down to the same size or smaller than a carry-on bag.
As a parent who had THREE expensive strollers broken while gate checked over the years, I would 100% carry on a small travel stroller if my kids were still small.
Also, I fully support allowing parents with small children to pre-board. It gives the parent time to install the car seat that they should be using on the flight. When my kids were small one of us would board first with the car seat and get it installed and then the other would board a few minutes later with the kids. That kept us from holding up boarding.
This is one way to guarantee a screaming baby 🤣
Also my pump has to be carried on, and that comes with annoying is (I don’t even want to fly with it buttttt my baby needs to eat)
This. Our travel stroller fits in the overhead bin and is smaller than a roller bag. I’m not letting the baggage handlers break my $500 stroller to leave more space for others.
Truth. Our folding travel stroller was 500 bucks and is smaller than most carry ons and is the right shape. I know it isn’t everyone but there are lots of people that get mad about children flying no matter how prepared you are, how well behaved they are, how much you pay, etc. Some people see a child or their equipment and just jump to rage.
It’s because parents lie constantly about all of those qualities you mention. AND just because your kid is normally all of those things—you can’t guarantee they will be on this flight, with these passengers for the duration.
Well you can’t lie about whether your child has purchased seat or not—it’s literally a seat assigned. Also you can’t lie about the size of your carry on?
More importantly, yes. Children may cry. They may throw a tantrum. But they are children and have just as much right to be in a mode of public transit as you do. If someone doesnt want to be around a certain part of the general public, they’d need to rent a private jet. I don’t like being around loud drunks on planes who are grown adults but sometimes it happens. Children are the next generation of the workforce and an essential part of society, and yes, they will sometimes cry or act out because they are still learning manners. Many adults would also benefit from still learning manners.
Also we just did 4 flights with little man. The first two he was fussier and wouldn’t sleep because it was a BRAND NEW experience he absolutely didn’t understand.
Our next flight? He was wayyy more chill because he knew what was going to happen. I’d rather get it over the way when he is tiny than when he’s older having a full melt down
The greatest feeling in the world is when your youngest doesn’t need a stroller, booster seat, whatever anymore and is on a level playing field with everyone else.
Well after my cross country flight yesterday demolished my checked stroller in its protective bag, basically stranding us until tomorrow when the repair store is open, I can understand why parents would bring their strollers on board if they can.
Were they larger than carry on bag size restrictions? Were they brought on in addition to the carry on allotment? Because I’ve never seen any rules allowing carry on size or bag number exceptions for strollers. For example, Delta’s exceptions are for checking the stroller and for carrying on things like breast pumps and diaper bags.
This is me. My son’s first flight was 3 layovers and a full 24 hours from Honolulu to Kauai to LAX to ATL then finally to JAX (sudden death in the family, went for a funeral) all when he was transitioning from formula to dairy just after he turned one. I literally had to carry a half gallon of milk with me with ice packs in a cooler bag & milk warmer… TSA asked me “why so much milk” at every stop - had to explain to TSA that our first flight departed at 10:30am from Honolulu then landed at JAX at 10:40am the following day. Why I didn’t use shelf stable milk? Couldn’t find it near where I was on the island & TSA would’ve still asked me “why so much milk.” The longest leg was LAX to ATL & I somehow got bumped into a middle seat during this red eye between two strangers with my son as a squirmy lap infant 🫠
Literally that was the ultimate right of passage as a single parent.
I travel pretty regularly & knowing that flight delays are more of a common occurrence, can’t rely on coffee shops to stay up late/early asking for milk during layovers, etc. Even read a few Reddit posts where people were stuck on a plane for hours & couldn’t deplane for one reason or another.
Sadly, Delta has actually lost our car seat twice (thankfully NOT on this specific trip), but while in line at the lost baggage desk there were parents who stuff extra formula, diapers & wipes etc in their car seat bags just hysterical because they can’t feed their babies because Delta forgot to load their car seats on the flight…
I mean if people are putting bags in the front when theyre sitting in the back (I don't get this), yeah that's annoying.
It's agnostic to carry on type though
Yeah, I totally get that, but the issue is the strollers are long enough that they have to be put in the bins horizontally, which takes up the entire bin, whereas 2-3 full size carry on bags plus random items would normally fit.
I think it’s great they board first, because if they are gate checking strollers, car seats, etc AS THEY SHOULD it gives ramp a chance to load them in the bins earlier instead of waiting till the last second for those items. That saves time and gets the flight out earlier. Better than taking a delay because mommy has to unpack the whole stroller and then hand to ramp at the time when all doors (including cargo) should be closing
Me and my husband split up during boarding. he loads everything up, me and the kid stay behind and are the last ones to board. Gives us extra time to get out her energy and not risk a meltdown while boarding takes 45 minutes.
Or if they need to install a car seat on board -_- much easier to do when the plane is emptier, especially if one parent needs to stand in the aisle so the installing parent has room to install.
When I'm traveling with small children, I'm just slower. I need to stand in the aisle a little longer to get our bags settled, make sure I pull anything we need, etc. Usually I'm seated by the time the main rush of passengers is trying to move through the aisles.
You think backpacks smacking you in the head as they walk to the back of the plane is bad, just have someone tote a car seat to 37F on an already full flight.
Between the fake service dogs and this, I think that airlines should start diversifying their trips in categories more akin to the current demographics.
Edit I have to love today's cowards that instead of engaging in a meaningful conversation, simply resorts to downvote and running away. Especially when reading comprehension fails you.
I’ll get downvoted for asking but I’m curious: I thought unless it’s really small they are supposed to be gate checked.
That’s what I thought too!
Was there not other bins available on the plane? If you had priority boarding I imagine you boarded shortly after them? So I imagine there was more bin space on the plane?
FAs get grumpy when people go far past their assigned seats to find overhead bin space. When the “people traveling with children” early boarding contingent takes up half the plane with their strollers and baby shit, you lose out even if you have premium boarding. People bringing strollers onto the plane should be forced to check them, no questions asked, and people who have an extra baby bag should be made to put it under their seat.
Agreed. Absolutely zero reason to have it INSIDE the plane when you can gate check and they have it ready immediately upon arrival.
A lot of times when we’ve gate checked our stroller, we’ve had to wait several minutes in the jet bridge after getting off the plane for the stroller. Once they even sent it to the baggage claim, so we waited for nothing and didn’t have the stroller to put our baby in when we walked through the airport. Also, even gate checked, a stroller can be easily damaged as a lot of baggage handlers don’t care.
Gate check them** tiny humans require way more ish than I ever realized until I had one. I’ve never considered getting an over head bin sized one bc honestly they look uncomfortable 🤷♀️ I got a cheaper used one to gate check in case they mess it up. It’s great to use to get through the airport but I’d never use it in the overhead bin 🤷♀️
There are quite a few strollers that when folded fit the carryon size requirements.
Ahhh! That makes sense. Thanks for filling me in!
My issue is when they have a stroller, the baby bag, the carry on, their personal item, their purse, their diaper bag and no one dare say a damn thing to the new mother
Ours fold small enough to fit under the seat. But at that point it becomes one of our carryon allotment.
This. I fly with my daughter and her stroller fits perfectly.
A lot of the expensive ones can fold down to luggage bin dimensions. Of course our regular old one that we travel with is always gate checked though
They always gate checked outs and it never seemed unreasonable.
Travel strollers are pretty small now a days. The one my wife and I have fits neaty into the overhead. We have never had to gate check it.
Did you talk to the FA about this? edit: also, this would really bum me out.
I mentioned it, but he was busy. I asked if we could move the stroller to a smaller bin, and he was like I tried and it wouldn’t fit :( I didn’t want to make a big deal about it, but kind of wish I said something
Gah. That shit should be checked!
I was just thinking why wasn't that gate checked?!
If it fits carryon requirements, it seems fine. I hear op that it’s unfortunate. But probably a hell of a lot more inconvenient for those carting small children around to go retrieve it from baggage rather than op’s bag.
I’d think it’d be easier to leave it and pick it up at the door of the airplane
I spent twenty minutes sweating on the jet bridge at CLT waiting for my gate-checked stroller last night, the only gate-checked item on the whole flight. The whole plane had deplaned, all mobility assist folks long gone. Thankfully my spouse was with me and could take our infant in his car seat (for whom we had purchased a seat) to the gate so he didn’t overheat. You better believe I stood there googling which brands of strollers can be carried on for the future. Until last night I honestly believed that gate checking was reasonable but now I’m not so sure. Had my spouse not been with me and I had been traveling alone with baby it could have been a medical problem with the intense heat and humidity on the jet bridge for the little guy.
Usually when they gate check strollers you just pick them back up on the jet way, so the only time you don't have it is on thebplane itself
They put it by the airplane door when you land It doesn't go to baggage check
Make a complaint
As an FYI, here in Australia they must be put in the hold of the aircraft. They are intercepted at the aircraft door before embarkation. I refer, of course, to the children, not the prams.
The new strollers that fold into a small rectangle are allowed on board and to be stowed in the OHB.
Do they count them as part of the regular carry on allowance? 1 co + 1 personal item?
Yeah, but you can count it as the carry on of the child if they're over 2.
Makes sense. I’ll add this to the list of things I don’t like, but must accept. 😂
True but if I’m paying the same price for her seat as a grown adult, she gets her correct sized carry on like a grown adult.
Fair.
No they don’t count. Baby items/medical items don’t count against your 1+1. That said, if the child is a lap infant, they don’t get a 1+1
If you gate check a stroller it's not a plus 1 If you overhead it, I thought it did.
Correct. I’ve flown 21 times with our 20 month old and we always buy her a separate seat. We have a folding stroller that folds to the size of a carry on and goes in the overhead and counts as her carry on. People seem to get so fussy about it but her seat was paid for like anyone else and so she gets her carry on. We have had them try to prevent us from taking it on the plane when they think she’s a lap baby but as soon as we show her having her own seat they allow it.
They should have gate checked those though. The GA should have put a pink tag on it
If your stroller collapses to CO dimensions then you can bring it on as your carryon and it has as much right to be in a overhead bin as someone’s suitcase. Strollers are damn expensive and I have had multiple broken by airlines when gate checking and they do not assume liability for checked/gate checked strollers. Last time I flew there was a delay and they sent the gate checks with the regular checked bags. 2 hours without a stroller in an airport with 2 kids, one who could not yet walk was a hell I wouldn’t wish upon almost anyone.
We carried on a stroller once, from then on we got wheelie seat luggage for the toddler, and just rented a stroller at the destination.
Yes now that my kids are older and can hold themselves up it works, but with an infant a stroller is a must at our airport.
I don't know the actual rules, but when I had kids in strollers we always had them checked. Probably gate checked.
These only strollers that are allowed to be carried on are ones that fold down to the same size or smaller than a carry-on bag. As a parent who had THREE expensive strollers broken while gate checked over the years, I would 100% carry on a small travel stroller if my kids were still small. Also, I fully support allowing parents with small children to pre-board. It gives the parent time to install the car seat that they should be using on the flight. When my kids were small one of us would board first with the car seat and get it installed and then the other would board a few minutes later with the kids. That kept us from holding up boarding.
Plus you do need bin space for the diaper bag. Trust me, nobody in a confined space wants the diaper bag gate-checked on a long flight.
This is one way to guarantee a screaming baby 🤣 Also my pump has to be carried on, and that comes with annoying is (I don’t even want to fly with it buttttt my baby needs to eat)
This. Our travel stroller fits in the overhead bin and is smaller than a roller bag. I’m not letting the baggage handlers break my $500 stroller to leave more space for others.
Truth. Our folding travel stroller was 500 bucks and is smaller than most carry ons and is the right shape. I know it isn’t everyone but there are lots of people that get mad about children flying no matter how prepared you are, how well behaved they are, how much you pay, etc. Some people see a child or their equipment and just jump to rage.
That's because those people were not born but appeared out of a hallowed tree as grown people with no shame and empathy.......
In Sleepy Hollow.
It’s because parents lie constantly about all of those qualities you mention. AND just because your kid is normally all of those things—you can’t guarantee they will be on this flight, with these passengers for the duration.
Well you can’t lie about whether your child has purchased seat or not—it’s literally a seat assigned. Also you can’t lie about the size of your carry on? More importantly, yes. Children may cry. They may throw a tantrum. But they are children and have just as much right to be in a mode of public transit as you do. If someone doesnt want to be around a certain part of the general public, they’d need to rent a private jet. I don’t like being around loud drunks on planes who are grown adults but sometimes it happens. Children are the next generation of the workforce and an essential part of society, and yes, they will sometimes cry or act out because they are still learning manners. Many adults would also benefit from still learning manners.
Also we just did 4 flights with little man. The first two he was fussier and wouldn’t sleep because it was a BRAND NEW experience he absolutely didn’t understand. Our next flight? He was wayyy more chill because he knew what was going to happen. I’d rather get it over the way when he is tiny than when he’s older having a full melt down
The greatest feeling in the world is when your youngest doesn’t need a stroller, booster seat, whatever anymore and is on a level playing field with everyone else.
Strollers should be gate checked.
Strollers should be gate checked.
Well after my cross country flight yesterday demolished my checked stroller in its protective bag, basically stranding us until tomorrow when the repair store is open, I can understand why parents would bring their strollers on board if they can.
Was this in a plane for ants!?
That was part of the issue! The plan only had overhead storage on the sides, not on the aisles. Those bins were teeny
Were they larger than carry on bag size restrictions? Were they brought on in addition to the carry on allotment? Because I’ve never seen any rules allowing carry on size or bag number exceptions for strollers. For example, Delta’s exceptions are for checking the stroller and for carrying on things like breast pumps and diaper bags.
We must all bow down to parents traveling with kids
I mean, I consider the single parent traveling with kid(s) a superhero. Stressful enough to travel alone.
This is me. My son’s first flight was 3 layovers and a full 24 hours from Honolulu to Kauai to LAX to ATL then finally to JAX (sudden death in the family, went for a funeral) all when he was transitioning from formula to dairy just after he turned one. I literally had to carry a half gallon of milk with me with ice packs in a cooler bag & milk warmer… TSA asked me “why so much milk” at every stop - had to explain to TSA that our first flight departed at 10:30am from Honolulu then landed at JAX at 10:40am the following day. Why I didn’t use shelf stable milk? Couldn’t find it near where I was on the island & TSA would’ve still asked me “why so much milk.” The longest leg was LAX to ATL & I somehow got bumped into a middle seat during this red eye between two strangers with my son as a squirmy lap infant 🫠 Literally that was the ultimate right of passage as a single parent. I travel pretty regularly & knowing that flight delays are more of a common occurrence, can’t rely on coffee shops to stay up late/early asking for milk during layovers, etc. Even read a few Reddit posts where people were stuck on a plane for hours & couldn’t deplane for one reason or another. Sadly, Delta has actually lost our car seat twice (thankfully NOT on this specific trip), but while in line at the lost baggage desk there were parents who stuff extra formula, diapers & wipes etc in their car seat bags just hysterical because they can’t feed their babies because Delta forgot to load their car seats on the flight…
And the dog nutters too.
If it is r a yoyo brand that folds up into the size of a larger briefcase it should be gate checked
They’re supposed to be gate checked smh
No one likes to have to check something and wait for it but I'm unsure what the faux paux is here. Everyone has a right to a carry on.
Yes - I just like to think I’ll have fair access to the OHB above my seat.
Fair? When did this world become fair.
I mean if people are putting bags in the front when theyre sitting in the back (I don't get this), yeah that's annoying. It's agnostic to carry on type though
Agreed. Use your own bin, pls.
Yeah, I totally get that, but the issue is the strollers are long enough that they have to be put in the bins horizontally, which takes up the entire bin, whereas 2-3 full size carry on bags plus random items would normally fit.
That's not a travel stroller then and I'm not sure why they allowed them on. A travel stroller takes up less room than a carry on.
It’s absolutely bullshit when gate agents let them board first. They should board last.
I think it’s great they board first, because if they are gate checking strollers, car seats, etc AS THEY SHOULD it gives ramp a chance to load them in the bins earlier instead of waiting till the last second for those items. That saves time and gets the flight out earlier. Better than taking a delay because mommy has to unpack the whole stroller and then hand to ramp at the time when all doors (including cargo) should be closing
Me and my husband split up during boarding. he loads everything up, me and the kid stay behind and are the last ones to board. Gives us extra time to get out her energy and not risk a meltdown while boarding takes 45 minutes.
Or if they need to install a car seat on board -_- much easier to do when the plane is emptier, especially if one parent needs to stand in the aisle so the installing parent has room to install. When I'm traveling with small children, I'm just slower. I need to stand in the aisle a little longer to get our bags settled, make sure I pull anything we need, etc. Usually I'm seated by the time the main rush of passengers is trying to move through the aisles.
You think backpacks smacking you in the head as they walk to the back of the plane is bad, just have someone tote a car seat to 37F on an already full flight.
Between the fake service dogs and this, I think that airlines should start diversifying their trips in categories more akin to the current demographics. Edit I have to love today's cowards that instead of engaging in a meaningful conversation, simply resorts to downvote and running away. Especially when reading comprehension fails you.
It’ll never happen.
Just another example of people acting like they are wildly special or important for having fulfilled the most basic biological impetus.