Our Rozzie, 2.5 years old, flying in CARES.
I recently had the opportunity to write a very detailed review of CARES, the FAA-approved flight safety harness that replaces car seats for air travel with toddlers and young children. CARES is the acronym for Child Aviation Restraint System, and it can be used by children who are at least 1 year old and weigh 22 lbs., up to 4 years and 44 lbs. Weighing just 1 lb. and traveling in a small stuff sack of its own, its clear to see that CARES has definite advantages over lugging any toddler car seat through the airport. I used CARES for each of my daughters during our most recent flight to Phoenix, and you can read all about our experience, observations, and see many photos of CARES in use in my review here.
Louise Stoll, a grandmother of nine and the inventor of CARES, recently told me how she hadn’t originally intended for her invention to be sold directly to the public. Rather, she thought it was something airlines might provide to young passengers onboard their aircraft the same way they provide seatbelt extenders to those passengers needing them. When I had first seen CARES, and still when I used it firsthand last week, I was thinking the same thing. It also reminded me of the “belly belts” European and Asian airlines have provided us with when flying with a lap child (not permitted in the U.S.), which are also made of the same industrial-strength webbing as the airplane seatbelts themselves, and airplane seatbelt extensions—and CARES.
More than 24,000 CARES have sold already, and in addition to its FAA-approval in the United States CARES has also been certified by Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Singapore, and its certification is pending in many more countries. Considering the present economic situation in the U.S., and how lucky we have to feel on some level that our airlines are still taking flight at all (we were charged $15 per checked suitcase in baggage fees this time around, and even mineral water was a $2 fee onboard), it doesn’t seem likely that CARES will be provided by domestic airlines anytime in the near future. Still, there are three ways you can get a CARES to use when flying with your child:
1. Rent CARES – Wherever you live in the U.S. or Canada, you can also rent CARES by mail from Sweet Pea Baby Rentals if you’d like to try it out. If you are flying into Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX), you can event rent it for free with their current special (see details). In Canada, you can also rent CARES by mail from Wee Travel.
2. Buy CARES - You can purchase CARES directly from Louise Stoll's family-run business: Kids fly Safe or at Amazon.com .
3. Win CARES - You can also enter to win CARES (plus a signed copy of Travels with Baby ) in the Passports with Purpose fundraiser I’m participating in this month that benefits Heifer International. Click here for details.
For more info:
See Shelly's complete review of cares. You'll also find more suggestions for safe alternatives to car seats for travel here, and loads of advice and practical tips on travel with car seats in Shelly's book Travels with Baby: The Ultimate Guide for Planning Trips with Babies, Toddlers, and Preschool-Age Children
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. About National "Travels with Baby" Examiner Shelly Rivoli: Shelly Rivoli has changed diapers on four continents and is the author of the award-winning family travel guidebook Travels with Baby: The Ultimate Guide for Planning Trips with Babies Toddlers, and Preschool-Age Children. Find her online at www.travelswithbaby.com - twitter - facebook - www.travelswithbaby.blogspot.com.
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