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Flying with kids


DXB2OZ

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In my experience our hyper 7 year old son had it easier than us on the 747 from Joburg to Sydney. The seats were child sized, he had access to as many movies as he could watch on the in-flight entertainment and when it was time to sleep he could put the armrest up and almost stretch out and use dads lap as a pillow.

 

I think us parents worry too much about our kids sometimes.

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I guess we also had it lucky on our flight with our boys then 3 and 6.  We had the centre row of seats (4 adjoining) with my husband and I each sitting at an end and the boys in the middle.  It was a night flight so the boys settled down shortly after take off (and a bit of a disastrous dinner, error made by Qantas providing only 1 children's meal) watched a movie and fell asleep.  We also lifted the armrest so they were lying stretched out next to each other.  They only woke up about 2 hours before landing in Sydney. They didn't want to eat much on the plane but did enjoy the night packs provided and of course were far from starving.

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  • 1 month later...

Are you allowed to take snacks like this on board?  I thought no food stuffs were allowed when boarding? 

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hi CMH, how do you go about getting the kids meals on Qantas?  Do you pay extra and how is the meal different to the normal adult meal served on board?

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20 minutes ago, BIGSHARK said:

hi CMH, how do you go about getting the kids meals on Qantas?  Do you pay extra and how is the meal different to the normal adult meal served on board?

 

You can log into qantas online and can select your dietary requirements. 

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Definitely take some snacks for your kids. We ordered kids meals but sometimes the food is strange and kids can be hungry anytime so waiting for food is a problem. We took a new packet of provitas, dried fruit, fruit juices, chips, small uht milks, cheese portions etc. all fine to take on the plane. Declared as food when arrived and all was fine. Would have thrown away anything we were told to. 

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@BIGSHARK, as mentioned above you can choose the children's meals when you go online with Qantas (same way you would choose Kosher, vegetarian, etc.)

 

As airline and security regulations change from time to time, always check first.  Some will not allow you to take liquids on board and they will also not allow fruit, veg and meat (no biltong) due to quarantine restrictions.

 

While we had an easy flight, I must mention that our flight was completely full (even business and first) and there was definitely no room to move around and there was a constant flow of people to and from the toilets.  Due to where we were seated, my youngest son and I got our food about an hour before my husband and eldest son (by that time children's meals had run out too, some kind of glitch) who were being served by the flight attendant on the opposite aisle.

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Don't rely on Qantas getting the catering right. Even though we ordered the kids meal, all they had left when it was time to serve us was the chicken meal.

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Advice from a long time flyer... although I am not a vegetarian, I always order a vegetarian meal. That way you get served first... they cannot just give you what is left over... Only once did they not have one for me... I kicked up such a fuss, they went to first class, made a lovely sandwich for me and served that to me with a desert from first class... just wish I could get that again. I do not eat much on the aircraft... so I also ensure that I have a cheese sandwich with me, which I am happy to have if I do not like their choices. I think their coffee and tea sucks, so I have hot chocolate, which is good. I never drink alcohol on the flight, as a precaution in fighting jet leg... which I have never ever suffered from...

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, we completed the epic flights to Brisbane just over 3 weeks ago. We did the Durban Dubai Brisbane route. With a 5 and 2 year old. 27 hours in total, it was long. But the kids and my amazing wife were champions. While the goodbye's at the airport were really difficult, they weren't drawn out and from then on things were good. Our 2yo had a small melt down right near the end but otherwise it was fine. Everyone was understanding and helpful. But it was long. I'm not doing that again any time soon!

 

Just a note, if you're flying Emirates, you need to order kids meals 24 hours before the flight. We didn't but it worked out fine, the food was good.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Is it better to fly direct or stop over at another location(s) overnight to sleep in when one has small children? That's given that JHB to Sydney direct via Qantas is about 12 hours flying time. 

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3 hours ago, WayneAndMel said:

Is it better to fly direct or stop over at another location(s) overnight to sleep in when one has small children? That's given that JHB to Sydney direct via Qantas is about 12 hours flying time. 

It shouldn't take much more than 11 hours in the air https://flightaware.com/live/flight/QFA64

 

I would fly direct with or without kids.

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7 hours ago, WayneAndMel said:

Is it better to fly direct or stop over at another location(s) overnight to sleep in when one has small children? That's given that JHB to Sydney direct via Qantas is about 12 hours flying time. 

 

Another vote for the direct flight. How old are the kids? 

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Fly direct. Most flights from Joburg to Sydney would be evening flights so by the time you board the plane they will be ready for a sleep. I changed my son into his pyjamas before we boarded, he watched the inflight entertainment for 10 mum then he was tired and slept all the way through.

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Thanks all. 

 

@BrendanH , the one will probably be 3 years and the other almost 8 months when we do go. 

 

We just had very mixed results when we flew overseas with our eldest early last year to relatives in the US and UK. One flight he was wonderful. The next he'd be a nightmare.

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We flew with a 3 and 1 year old. They're not going to be angels the whole way but most of the time they were fine. Just dont expect to sleep much yourselves. 

 

I think I prefer a direct flight, just to hurry the whole thing along. 

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  • 5 months later...

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