Are you traveling internationally with an infant for the first time soon? We just did it. Our experience below may be useful to you.

My wife and I took our infant son back to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam to visit our extended family. It was special to fly internationally with my son. Was it a lot of work? Yes. Was it completely worth it? Absolutely! Here is how we did it.

Preparation

One of the first big debates that my wife and I had concerned whether we should buy a seat for our son. As he is less than 2 years, he could technically fly with us, on lap, for free. I decided to buy his own seat. It is more expensive, but looking back, it was the right decision. My wife could get some valuable sleep on the planes with our son in his car seat. That’s the thing. Be prepared to spend a bit more than you’d love to, so that your family could have a better experience.

We flew Economy and Economy Plus with United the whole way. If I could book our flights all over again, I’d try to get Premium Plus on the longest leg for everyone. The more legroom in Premium Plus would allow my wife to recline more and give her back some relief whenever she breasfeeds our son. Also, I noticed that our car seat (Keyfit35) fit snugly in some aircrafts and was a bit too big for others. Whenever there was not enough space, I had to tilt the car seat a bit to make sure I could secure it. Not the best practice for safety. Had we sat in Premium Plus, we would not have had that problem.

Furthermore, I tried to make sure we would have a place to sit and some food and drinks during transits. I got the Bank of America Premium Rewards Elite since it would give us access to not only Priority Pass Lounges, but also Restaurants (I believe it’s the only US card that still does it. So Bank of America, hear me out, do not nerf this benefit!). One of the best features of the card is the airline incidental credit. It means that if I use the card to pay for Wifi, lounge access or seat upgrades, after purchasing the fare tickets, I’ll get credits up to $300 every calendar year. So, I decided to buy a Trip Pass to United Lounge in Los Angeles and Denver for the family. Outside of the US, the card gave us access to Chase Sapphire Lounge in Hong Kong (it will be closed permanently in Jan 2026). It takes time to apply for a credit card and actually get the plastic. So plan accordingly.

During our time in Vietnam, we wanted to travel to a country in the region. Thailand was my wife’s favorite destination, so we seriously looked into it. However, we decided to go to Singapore as it was more stroller-friendly. It was the right decision. We had a great time in Singapore and believed we would struggle a lot more with the heat, less shade and crowded pavements in Thailand. Whenever you want to go, with a baby, you have to consider how much friendly it is to strollers.

Both my wife and I have Global Entry. Even though my son is a dependent minor, he still needs his own Global Entry application. I did it on his behalf and chose Enrollment On Arrival. If you are thinking of getting your kids Global Entry, you’ll need conditional approval in advance.

At The Airports & In Flights

Needless to say, it takes more time to move around with an infant, a stroller and a car seat than without. You can’t sprint with a stroller and a car seat. You’ll have to find an elevator to go up or down levels. Hence, plan accordingly. We checked in on the United app, saving some time at Omaha airport. You don’t need to check your stroller and car seat in advance. Doing so will just confuse the agents on the ground.

Airport Security will ask you to fold your stroller and put it and your car seat through the scanner. That means you’ll have to carry your baby. Don’t have too much luggage with you. Otherwise, you’ll spend more time at the security check and people may give you some looks. It’s fine, but if you don’t really need a lot of carry-on, why invite unnecessary pressure?

There is one big advantage of traveling with a baby: you’ll get leniency and priority everywhere. We were eligible for pre-board. The gate agent will call you at the time of family boarding which is only after folks with disabilities, active-duty military and unaccompanied minors. It really helped to get a bit more time to settle in our seats and avoid any unfriendly stare. The downside of pre-boarding is that you will have to board very early. If you plan to spend time in a lounge, be mindful that you may not have long before having to head to your gate.

It’s important to sit together in one row with the baby seat next the window. Don’t pick seats that you think will get you to leave the aircraft faster. Your gate-checked stroller takes time to be delivered to the gate. Hence, it really does not matter if you sit higher in the cabin. Instead, choose a row that makes sense to you. I’d consider one that has an empty seat in front of the baby’s and is near the restroom.

One lesson I learned is to always fill up a bottle of water before boarding. Aircrafts are usually warm until they are in the air. You and your baby may get thirsty, especially after having to install a car seat and settle down. At that time, people are going to their own seats. Flight attendants may not be available to give you some water and you can sit on the tarmac for a while, depending on how busy it is. Hence, make sure you have some water to drink before flight attendants can offer you drinks.

Other Tips

• We had our kid vaccinated for Measles and Hepatitis A before the trip. I know vaccines are controversial nowadays, but if you think they are useful, call a local travel clinic to make arrangements. The only one available in Omaha is only open on Thursday in our case.
• We stayed at an AirBnb so that we could use the host’s washer and dryer. Some hosts can even provide a crib or a high chair.
• Don’t pack a lot. Try to minimize your luggage as much as possible. Remember that you have a stroller, and maybe a car seat with you. Too much luggage will make transportation difficult.
• At Changi Airport in Singapore, it’s easy to get a Grab or a taxi to the city center. You can look up fares online to have a benchmark. The biggest difference between Grab cars and taxies is that you can hold an infant in a taxi, but will need a car seat with Grab.

Overall, it is more expensive and requires more work to travel with an infant, but I’d do it all over again. It was super fun to create memories with our little one and he won’t be an infant forever. We had serious concerns about making such a long trip to Asia from the US with an infant, but we took the plunge. I encourage you to do the same. If you can afford it, travel with your little angel.