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Flying with children is a bit like packing for a very small expedition team: you need snacks, spare clothes, entertainment, and nerves of steel. At the same time, flying is often the moment when family trips truly begin. The first glance out the airplane window. The thrill of takeoff. And after the flight, the feeling of having accomplished something together to explore a new place in the world as a family.
We have traveled with Discover Airlines twice with children, each time very differently: once on a short-haul flight to Crete and once on a long-haul flight directly to the Seychelles as an overnight flight with about 9.5 hours of flight time from Frankfurt. Flying with small children or even babies is always exciting, but it becomes significantly easier if you know what's important.
Luggage with children: Less romantic, but crucial
Anyone who flies with children knows: the topic of luggage is suddenly no longer just a question of outfits. It's about diapers, milk, snacks, changes of clothes, medication, carriers, strollers, maybe car seats or travel cribs. That's why it's helpful to check in advance what regulations the airline has for families.
With Discover Airlines, infants under 24 months have one free checked bag up to 23 kg and 158 cm in circumference (with the exception of the Economy Light fare). For children aged 24 months and older, the free baggage allowance is the same as for adults, depending on the fare and booking. In addition, families can take a child seat, a booster seat, a baby cot, or a pocket buggy as an additional piece of hand luggage into the cabin free of charge; alternatively, per child, a foldable stroller or a child carrier, for example, can be checked in free of charge at check-in. Foldable strollers can also be dropped off at boarding and returned after landing.
For babies and children, liquids in reasonable quantities are also allowed in the cabin, meaning you can also take water, a thermos with hot water, or baby food/squeezable pouches. This will be checked separately at security. You simply have to state that you are flying with a small child.
More information and details on baggage regulations can be found here.
Babies on board: Small details make a big difference
With a baby or very small child, it's often not the grand services but the small things that make the flight easier. Is there water for bottles? Can baby food be warmed up? Is there a changing table? Do you really have to bring everything yourself?
Discover Airlines can warm up bottles or baby food, has changing tables in the restrooms, and baby food is also available on board, although Discover Airlines recommends bringing your baby's favorite food yourself, as availability is limited.
This is exactly what we would always recommend: bring what works. When traveling, it's not the time to test new snacks, new formula, or new routines.
Baby bassinet on long-haul flights: Early planning pays off
Especially on long flights, sleep is of course a major concern. On long-haul flights, Discover Airlines provides baby bassinets free of charge for babies up to 11 kg and a maximum body size of 67 cm. The number is limited, reservations can be made up to 52 hours before departure, and the accompanying person must reserve a seat in the corresponding position.
Our tip: As soon as the flight is booked, immediately take care of seats, baby bassinet, and all family-relevant services. Don't wait until shortly before departure. Especially on popular holiday routes, families are not traveling alone, and limited services are, well, limited.
Food on board: Don't start the flight hungry
Children and hunger are an unfavorable combination when traveling. Therefore, we never plan meals based solely on the in-flight service, but always additionally. A few familiar snacks in your hand luggage are essential. Important are things that don't smear, don't smell strongly, and don't immediately crumble and explode. For us, small pretzels, fruit pieces, chips, squeezable pouches, rice cakes, or my ace in the hole: a lollipop, work well.
On long-haul flights, Discover Airlines offers children's meals that must be ordered in advance. Special meals, including children's meals, can be pre-ordered free of charge up to 24 hours before departure.
Entertainment: Many small ideas are better than one big highlight
On the Crete flight, we realized: short-haul doesn't automatically mean children don't need something to do. On the contrary. Especially when takeoff, service, and landing are tightly scheduled, small, uncomplicated things help: sticker books, magnetic games, small books, headphones, a coloring book, a new mini-toy that is only unpacked on the plane.
Discover Airlines offers children on short and medium-haul flights specially selected series, films, and digital games via the Onboard Cloud. On long-haul flights, there is children's entertainment with films, series, and audio content directly on the seat screen, as well as digital games in the Onboard Cloud.
We also liked the child-friendly extras on board: Discover Airlines offers free toys for children on all flights – depending on their age, for example, coloring books with pens, a card game, stickers, a plush airplane, or a beach ball.
Seats: Proximity creates calm
When flying with children, the seating issue is more than just comfort. It determines whether you can quickly reach the diaper bag, whether a child is occupied at the window, whether a parent is sitting next to the child, and whether sleep can be arranged at all.
With Discover Airlines, children from their second birthday require their own seat; infants under 24 months can travel on the lap of an accompanying person. Children fly with Discover Airlines on all routes at a reduced child fare.
If you want to bring your own child seat on board, you can do so, provided the restraint system is accepted by Discover Airlines. Use is free of charge, but for babies under two years, a CHILD ticket must be booked so that the child seat can be fastened to its own passenger seat. Discover Airlines recommends a window seat for children with a restraint system.
Our tip: Don't treat seats as a late detail. Especially on long-haul flights, it's worth considering early what suits your own family: window seat for little observers, aisle seat for parents, proximity to the toilet, or rather something quieter further away.
We like to sit 2 and 2 behind each other, one parent with each child and the younger one behind the older one. This way, the problem of "kicking the seat" is a little less stressful because there is no stranger sitting in front who might feel bothered by small children's feet in their back.
Our packing list for hand luggage with children
Our hand luggage always includes:
Travel documents, change of clothes for the child and at least one top for the parents; diapers, wet wipes, changing pad, and small garbage bags (if necessary); snacks and a drinking bottle; medication and nasal spray as needed. Nasal spray facilitates pressure equalization because it opens the passage between the ear and nose. Stuffed animal; headphones, charging cable, small activities without many small parts; a thin blanket or a large towel; garbage bags for wet or dirty clothes.
The best tip, however, is: pack so that you don't have to search long in the cramped airplane seat. If a child is tired, a drink spills, or a quick diaper change is needed, it doesn't matter if everything is neatly stowed. What matters is whether you can find it with one hand.
Conclusion: Flying with children remains an adventure – but a manageable one
The perfect family flight is not the flight where nothing happens. The perfect family flight is one where you are prepared enough to handle everything. With tiredness. With hunger. With boredom. With excitement.
Discover Airlines showed us on both trips that family flying is not just about transport. Children's entertainment, children's meals on long-haul flights, baby bassinet options, family-friendly baggage regulations, and small extras on board can make a real difference.
Discover Airlines flies you to many great, family-friendly destinations. You can see which ones here.
