Everything from choosing your seat to checking in luggage can ramp up the price of your flight with a low-cost airline. Less well known are the extra costs involved when flying with a baby.
Most airlines charge an ‘infant fee’, which allows you to carry a baby (up to two years of age) on your lap. This usually costs around £20, either as a flat fee or as a percentage of the adult ticket (plus taxes).
Pretty simple, right? But start factoring in luggage – both checked and hold – and it all starts to get a bit more complicated and expensive.
On a trip to Malaga
Take one of the UK’s busiest flight routes as an example – London to Malaga. All of the airlines offering this flight route will allow you to take a pushchair or stroller at no extra cost, regardless of whether you’re checking in luggage or not. This is a good start, but in most cases that’s where the freebies end.
Flying from London to Malaga on 28 August with Monarch costs £65.99 for one adult, plus a £20 infant fee. It’s more expensive to fly with BA, at £99.66 plus a £19.66 infant fee. But the price of the ticket alone isn’t the only thing you need to bear in mind….
Carrying baby bags
It’s pretty much impossible to travel light when you’re travelling with a baby, but did you know that many airlines don’t allow for a baby bag in the cabin? Yep – if you’re flying with easyJet, for example, you’ll need to carry all of your baby’s gear – and your own – in a single bag.
It’s a similar story for Monarch – there’s no allowance for an infant cabin bag and you’ll need to pay a minimum of £24.99 per checked-in bag. The BA flight includes 10kg checked-in luggage for a baby, checked-in luggage for the parent and you can take an extra bag for your baby’s belongings.
Do you look beyond the advertised price when you’re booking a flight? What would you expect to be included if you were flying with a baby?
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