Flying with a Baby - Strollers

In a previous post (here), I wrote about my family’s enjoyable experience at the Barcelona-El Prat International Airport (BCN) and how kid-friendly they made it. But then….

Our flight itinerary was Barcelona-Paris-Houston (BCN-CDG-IAH) on Air France. As usual, I folded up our umbrella stroller and placed it inside a stroller gate check bag before handing it to an attendant just before boarding the plane. Our flight to Paris was normal but it was chilly in Paris so when the plane landed I went ahead to prepare the stroller while my wife and child waited inside the warm airplane.

I waited and waited and until the whole plane had emptied except for my family and the crew. We were then told that they did not have our stroller in the back. Walking from one end of the airport while carrying your bags to the other is hard, walking from one end of the airport to other while carrying your bags AND a cranky baby that just woke up is a whole other level. We did find a stroller/push cart after we passed the passport checkpoint but by that point we were already near our connecting gate.

Later we learned that it is Air France policy to not release your stroller until you reach your final destination. All other airlines we have traveled with release your stroller whenever you disembark your flight so were surprised by Air France’s policy. We highly recommend you research your airlines’ stroller policies before flying so you do not find yourself in the same predicament.

Arun