Why You Should Have a Car Seat Cover For Air Travel
A Car Seat Cover Is Crucial!
If you have a child and are traveling, do you travel without a cover for your car seat? This is something I see often at the airport and it makes me cringe. Your car seat needs a cover when you travel, please let me tell you why.
When you check your bag, it doesn’t immediately go to the plane. It has to go down several conveyer belts, many different hands touch it, and it often sits in carts with other bags surrounding it. The carts that are used at the airport are not the cleanest, and not all of them are covered. So, if you don’t have a car seat cover, the seat your precious child sits in will be completely filthy by the time it gets to your destination.
Many luggage carts are do not have a cover which means if your car seat is not covered, they are subjected to the elements.
Car seats are considered the same as luggage and will be delivered to your destination but there will be no special treatment for your child’s seat. But really, if you don’t take special care to cover your child’s seat before you travel, how can you expect the airlines to treat it any differently than a normal bag?
I really hate to see car seats that are uncovered because I know how dirty baggage carts can get. And think about this, your luggage is often on the ground outside before it gets loaded into the plane, which means your car seat can often be upside down on the ground which is the same ground people walk and spit on.
I don’t have any kids but I think everyone’s child is precious and I hate to think of your child sitting in a car seat that has airport filth all over it.
I am a mother of 2 and travel very little by plane/train. However, this particular blog really hit home for me. I can first tell you that to answer your question as to why someone wouldn’t buy one is, if you don’t travel much, you figure why invest in one?
You may figure, of your three suggestions, the first one would be my go to, but the reviews would deter me as many parents wrote how it tore at the first use. Thus, a waste of my money.
I will say however, after reading this it does make me reconsider, especially when I think about the germs that may be past on from one luggage handle to my car seat strap. Which my child will then gnaw on once she finds her way back inside….clueless of what is going in her mouth.
Thanks again for the blog. I look forward to your tips each read. Keep them coming!
Thanks for that! Since I don’t have any kids I didn’t even think to look at the reviews, so see we both learn from each other! One suggestion is that if you don’t want to invest in a car seat cover, you can use a trash bag. It may not sound glamorous but if you don’t travel that often, then I understand not wanting to invest in a car seat cover. If you use a trash bag, you won’t be mad if the bag tears (which surprisingly, they don’t seem to do that often as I’ve seen them on car seats before). Thanks for reading and next time I’ll check reviews!
🙂 Hi from a SITS Girl! I know what you mean!
Thanks for stopping by!
To avoid this problem, we carry them to the gate. Yes, they still get dirty and are mishandled, but I like to think that there are less hands/carts/ etc that it will touch since I have carried it to the plane. We also don’t travel much, but I always feel so bad for my hubby who has to carry them to the gate…
Hey there! Thanks so much for stopping by! True, they will not be touched as much. But it is still put in with all the other luggage in the bin and the bin is really dirty. Maybe put a couple of garbage bags in your purse (the bags don’t take any room at all) and when it’s time to hand them over to the ramp agents you can put them in the bags and then you don’t have to worry at all about them getting dirty. I hope you come back!