transatlantic travel and strollers

[Eilly]

Hi,

Traveling alone with DS transatlantic to Heathrow then changing planes there (also involves change of terminal) for onward flight.

British Airways have been very unhelpful about providing the information I need which is whether I can gate check (take to gate, check, and have on disembarkation at Heathrow) my stroller. Have spoken to four people at BA and haven't managed to get a straight answer from any of them!! Three of them said that I would have to check the stroller as luggage which would mean not having it at Heathrow. This would make the plane change very difficult! The fourth BA agent gave me dimensions of strollers which he thought (was not sure!!) could be gate checked but these dimensions seem odd (30" x 60" x 8")

Has anyone else flown BA transatlantic and, if so, what were your experiences.

Thanks.

[whoppi]

Hi,
I flew BA to Europe via Heathrow with 18mth old last August. Navigating the airport and the customs hall on arrival is a "real pain".
You can gate check the stroller but from memory the stroller arrives at baggage claim at destination not when you get off the plane. In any case the airplane was not docked on arrival so we had to catch a bus to the terminal, navigate several sets of stairs and escalators and then stand in line at customs for over an hour!
We did manage to get a cart in the customs hall.
So even if you do get the stroller when you get off the plane it may not be easy to manage the stairs etc. We had a 7lb volo which we could sling over the shoulder. If you have midweight stroller you might be best to check it with your luggage anyway and use the carts in the terminal (if DS is old enough).
How old is DS, will he sit in sling/carrier/backpack?
Take as little hand luggage as you can get away with (not easy with an infant on an international flight...) a carry-on wheely bag with a strap if you need to sling it over your shoulder helps.
On the way home (via Heathrow) we did have the stroller as we got off the plane. (We flew Lufthansa to Heathrow.)
So be prepared for the worst... sorry... but that way you won't stress out navigating the terminal and clearing customs etc.

Are you taking a car seat on the plane?... that's another thing to think about.

- side note - BA were great to fly with an infant. Attendants were very helpful.

[Lisa_Seattle_2002]

There are quite a few posts on these boards about travelling via Healthrow. Search for "Healthrow" and you'll find 'em. If memory serves, the usual scenario encountered was that gate-checked strollers are NOT available to you when we get off the plane. Consider bringing a sling or other soft carrier. Also, for your car seat - I noticed in a catalogue recently (The Right Start or One Step Ahead - check their sites) a carrier that has backpack straps AND wheels. We have a carrier for our Roundabout from the Right Start that has backpack straps and it is a life-saver when travelling. The new addition of wheel I think would be worth looking into. HTH, Lisa

[egoldber]

If your stroller is small enough (like a Maclaren or Pliko type) you could ask the flight crew when boarding if you could please, please, pretty please, put it in one of the coat closets in the cabin. The last time we flew to Paris (but that was on United), the crew did that for us.

HTH,

[LisaS]

We fly in and out of Heathrow all the time (both transatlantic and within Europe) and unfortunately, as you've seen, BA are not easy to deal with - I can never get a straight answer out of them and I've tried many times. If you speak to 4 people, you'll get 5 different answers - nobody is sure what the story is - very unprofessional frustrating.

That aside, you can ALWAYS check your stroller at the gate, you just can't always get it back at your arrival gate.

As standard practice, non-US airlines and airports (at least European airports) do NOT give strollers when you arrive.

That said, for walking through Heathrow (which is HUGE), there are 2 ways to do it without a stroller - Bjorn/sling/hip carrier or get a nice man with one of the little airport golf cart things to help transport you (this works best if you're travelling alone and have lots of hand luggage and a baby - they're usually sympathetic).

Not to make you nervous about your flight experience with BA, but just to give you a heads up on what has happened in the past and to expect that you may have some difficulty with them. Once ground crew started to give strollers on a flight from London to Spain (just trying to be nice and helpful as they saw there were lots of babies on the flight) and the BA crew yelled at them to take them back - 2 lucky parents (unfortunately we weren't one of them) got them before the rest were snatched away to baggage claim. You might be lucky this time, but again, no definitive answer as is typical of BA.

BA in particular does not give you a stroller when you get off the plane in Heathrow (Had to carry my infant carrier throught the airport till baggage claim (as I couldn't get by Kolcraft car seat carrier until then)

The exception to this rule is IF you fly in Business class - then, they will sometimes let you bring a small (umbrella) stroller on the plane and stick it in a business or first class coat closet but this is not always the case. If you're an Executive Club member of BA and you can check in w/Biz class, they may help you. Or, if you get really lucky and find a nice stewardess who is willing to help you - but those chances are slim - the Brits and BA in particular are sticklers for the rules.

Also, I normally reccommend flying with a Sit-N-Stroll (since we bought one, we only fly American transatlantic) but that isn't CAA approved (seatbelt around the front as opposed to through the back of the seat) so BA may or may not let you fly with it - not worth the chance of bringing it. Also BAs seats are narrower than many US carrier seats so you should check the width of the seat to make sure your car seat (if you plan to bring it) will fit. Even if you're allowed to bring your car seat, BA will not allow your child to sit in it during take-off or landing (ridiculous) - they think it is safer for a baby under to be on the parents lap during take off and landing than strapped into their car seat! Even coffee pots are strapped in during take off and landing....I have had numerous arguments with BA flight attendents about this but to no avail.

That said, since all of these experiences (and we only put up with them b/c they were free flights with miles), I have pretty much written off BA - transatlantically, we just fly American - wheel my sit-n-stroll on and off - never have problems or we once used Virgin who provide a car seat for DD on the plane and will let you bring a small umbrella stroller on board if it will fit (the teeny combi travel savvy that folds less than 10" thick and the volo).