Many Delta planes (and maybe other airlines) have bassinets for their bulkhead seats. Just ask to be moved to a bulkhead seat and then ask the flight attendant to bring out the bassinet after reaching cruising height (usually the same time electronics are allowed). I saw this for the first time on a Korean Air flight this year and then found out they are available on Delta flights as well.

i have a ton of tips for traveling with children and babies and tips from flight attendants: http://www.simplymodernmom.com/category/travel/

including the general traveling with children tips: http://www.simplymodernmom.com/2010/03/children-traveling-tips/

We have flown to California from Tampa with our son who is now 20 mnths an are planning another in a month. I have found videos on the computer, paper & crayons, a magna-doodle, lots of snacks and planning the trip around his nap times a best as possible works well. Also, taking him to a park right before we load into get to the airport to run him down helps too. Safe travels.

Hey, you're going to do great! This has come up before here at Ohdeedoh, I'm always jumping in with a comment! We do a 12-hour flight, followed by a 2-hour flight on another plane, several times a year with our now-toddler. The only critical thing is to get creative with things for your kid to suck during the descent (which is often 30 minutes long, so you need a lot of options) - sippy cup, nursing, pacifier, lollipops, food that requires real chewing/mashing - even if you don't normally use those props, to make sure your little one's ears pop. Many kids do fine, but since it's your first flight you won't know what kind of ears your little one has.

Search Ohdeedoh for 'travel tips' and check out the comments - there is a lot of great inspiration here! A baby carrier is awesome in airports and on board. Be aware little ones get really hot in airplanes, so have a tee shirt underneath and strip down when crankiness happens, it's often a fast fix. Buy a drink involving a straw + cap and give it for a toy when empty. If your child watches any movies, now is the time! Find a flight that avoids their nighttime if you can (unless you can nurse 'em to sleep still!). Bring a fresh shirt for you. I personally never get on a plane without baby Advil and Tylenol, partly because we're going to Europe where you can't buy them, and partly because if the ears are an issue Advil helps a little bit with the pain. If your kid is walking, take an aisle seat. And the water cup dispenser in the bathroom is FUN! As are all the buttons.

There is no magic for making the plane part fun, per se, but most individual moments aren't half bad and the really bad ones (if any) are over once your feet are back on the ground. It might be your turn to have the screaming kid, or it might not, don't worry about it. Everyone gets their turn if they fly with kids, and lives to fly again.

Now, packing for Alaska...there is some advice I'd like to see!

I've flown a few times a year with my kids (the oldest is four) including twice a year across the country. The best tip is to simply take a deep breath and know that no matter what, you will arrive at your final destination and your goal need not be everyone on the plane being your best friend.

First, pack well. Snacks, lots, options. For an 11 month old there may not be tons of choices, but what you can do. New toys that you bring out every half hour: a shaker egg, a little stuffed animal, a shoelace, small tupperwear, a spoon. I mean we bring the little junk our toddler plays with at home. Pack 3 more diapers and 20 more wipes that you can possible imagine you'll need. Bring an extra change of clothes for your baby, including socks and light jacket and a top for yourself. A swaddling blanket has 100 uses when travelling too. Zip lock bags.
Don't forget snacks/lunch for you. Nothing will be easy if you're miserably hungry

I don't think an 11 month old will watch anything, but they may listen. You could try at home putting some music on your phone and if he/she will keep headphones on. Obviously go more towards kid music than Green Day.

Is a friend/spouse travelling with you? Sometimes you can combine efforts and entertain the kid together and sometimes it's best to take turns. One read for 15 minutes and pretend you literally don't even know whose kid that is in the other seat, the other try to make it work, then switch. Hopefully then you're both not totally exhausted. Walk the aisles every hour.

We have had some decent success getting a nap by repeating that nap routine on the plane. Bring out the blanket, give a bottle, "read" a book.

Good luck!

We've traveled from the east coast to the west coast several times a year since our little one was 5 months old. I have just a couple of tips that aren't already on simplymodernmom's lists.

1) If you can afford it, buy your daughter her own seat! You'll appreciate having that extra space for her to play in and sleep on (and not be on your lap the entire time).

2) Bring along new, fun things for distraction. We all think of the flight as the hardest part of traveling, but I think standing in line(s) - ticket counter, security - might be the hardest for little ones. We bring stickers for our now toddler son to distract him while in line. He likes to stick them on us, on our bags, on himself. A sheet of about a dozen stickers equals about 15 minutes of distracted fun! Also, introduce new toys/books/other fun things one at a time. There are lots of things on the plane to 'play' with: plastic cups; magazines; window shade.

3) Don't take a carry-on and check the stroller. We check all our baggage (yup, swallowing the baggage fees) in order to have our hands free for chasing, corraling, and otherwise containing our toddler, especially in the time leading up to boarding the plane. My husband and I each take a personal bag, but we don't take a wheeled carry-on, for example. If your little one is still happy in the baby carrier, use that instead of hauling the stroller through the airport.

By the way, if you're taking Alaska Airlines and you have a layover in Seattle, SEA-TAC has a fantastic space for kids to run around in! It's free and has little playthings for kids to climb on.

My biggest piece of advice is to get your daughter her own seat if you are able and use her car seat. Everyone will be so much more comfortable.

I also agree with other comments to bring plenty of snacks, more diapers than you think you'll need, a change of clothes (for both of you), and toys. I like to get a new toy or two for my daughter and then give it to her when she's starting to be fussy.

Buy a seat! We travel quite frequently with our two kids and found this age to be a little more challenging that others--too old to sleep/cuddle the entire time and too young to be mesmerized by a movie. Having a seat, whether you use a car seat or CARES (if he/she is big enough) makes it a lot easier because there's somewhere comfortable. A squirmy one year-old in your lap for a long flight is no fun, trust me.

Bring lots of little things, toys, books, etc that if you lose, you don't care about. Check out the dollar store or Target dollar spot for little books, stacking cups, plastic slinky, stickers, etc. Bring lots of snacks too. I prefer small items that can be given one at a time. You would be shocked how long it takes to eat 20 cheerios when given one at a time.

I second the bring more supplies than you would think - extra clothes, diapers, wipes, juice/milk/formula, etc. If there's any delay you'll be very thankful.

We traveled cross-country when my daughter was the same age! On top of the other comments already given, we found that we needed a boarding pass for our baby. You can ask for it at the ticket/check-in counter before going through security. For us, there was a separate security line for families, but no early boarding call for the plane. We also used the stroller in the airport then gate-checked it; the baby carrier was very useful for getting the baby on and off the plane. Good luck and safe travels!

I have traveled a lot, solo, with my son on long flights in the past 5 years. All of my top suggestions have been mentioned here, I think, except to bring your own garbage bag with you (or a few). You don't have to struggle with what to do with all of the detritus that is generated with a little one on a long flight - just tie the bag to hang down off your armrest and pop stuff in there. I hated that feeling of having cups and napkins and everything else tucked in front of me in the seat back, and then struggling to get it all to the attendant when they came through. Also, grocery bags come in handy as a semi waterproof barrier if, say, your kiddo soaks through her clothes as the plane is landing and she needs to be in her car seat/your lap until you've reached the gate. Ask me how I know. ;-)

Also, in addition to baby wipes, the little packets of handi-wipes are great. Tuck them in pockets that you can get to with one hand. You will be amazed at how absolutely filthy everything associated with plane travel looks to you when those little hands start reaching to grab whatever is within reach.

Oh, and post it notes are a great diversion - like stickers but it's ok if they stick them to the seats and other people, bc they peel right off.

Finally, slip on shoes for everyone! They even make the kiddos take their shoes off at security these days.

I have to pipe up about the tip to buy your kid a seat. Seriously?! For international travel, just the taxes on our daughter's 'free' seat were close to $500, and now we have to buy her one it's $1600 or 100,000 miles. I have yet to meet any family, well-off or no, who is willing to drop that kind of cash voluntarily. Just saying.

Hey, flywheel - that is a great tip about the garbage bag, never heard that one and so true! What size, like a kitchen-size one? Or a little grocery one? Or one of those huge black ones?

I second the post-its, also those tiny post-its for marking 'sign here' spots in documents. They come in a dispenser! Although at 11 months, toys are tougher - not quite at the deeply involved level yet. (But so cute and still a ray of sunshine!)

I am pretty much repeating other people but as a pretty frequent flyer with a child I figured I should give out tips.
Get some new toys - just little things but things that they have not seen yet.
Books and lots of them.
Snacks, snacks, and more snacks.
If you are flying alaska airlines they have video players on some flights that you can request online before your flight, but you have to do it before the flight.
Try to avoid naptime.
Extra clothes for you and the baby, maybe a couple of extra outfits.
If you have an iphone download some kid friendly apps.
Stickers - they can put them on you, themselves, the tray table and they are still pretty easy to remove.
Buy the child their own seat, so much more enjoyable.
Breathe and relax, most people on the plane probably had little kids of their own at some point and are usually pretty understanding, and if they aren't, you wont have to see them very long.

Emily @ http://456eleven.vom

We do annual trips to Asia form the west coast so quite familiar with travelling a little one. Many airports like Denver, Salt Lake City have kids play areas. Before you fly check out an airport map and note the areas. It’s a great way for little ones to stretch their muscles and for parents to get a break as well. I agree with above take some new ‘surprise’ toys and lots of snacks. Little ones under 1 tend to sleep, and things go smoother than you might expect. Also try to change diapers in the airport rather than in the TINY airplane changing area (if any). If they have a meltdown relax.... tell yourself that EVERYONE was a baby at some point!

I agree--buy your little one a seat!!! We have done many flights with our tot (first at 4 1/2 months, last time at 4 /12 years) ranging from 1 hour on JetBlue to 14 hours to Tokyo (3 round trips so far). Get the seat dimensions, check that your carseat is FAA approved, and ask for the seatbelt extenders to get your little one strapped in properly. Odds are, she'll sleep a lot if she is comfy. It's actually getting harder in some ways as our daughter gets older--she has a harder time getting comfy now that she's outgrown carseats. (But it's easier in other ways--typical parenting tradeoff)

I'm a born and bred Alaskan and while I don't have a kid - I have done the long haul flights home very, very often.

If you're flying in Sept then you'll probably be on an Alaskan Airlines flight (most airlines only fly to AK in the summer tourist months). The greta thing about SEATAC to AK flights on Alaskan is that the atmosphere is very relaxed. However, the bulk of people flying at this time of year are Alaskan and so the airline frequently lowers the cabin's temperatures (maybe this saves them money?). So dress in layers and bring a blanket (pillows and blankets are no longer standard on AK Airlines flights). Also, the meals and snacks on that airlines are pay-for but yummy (hot pretzel and turkey sandwich - yes, please!).

Good luck and I hope you enjoy my homestate.

we have had some great flights and some really difficult ones. The best one we had was when our little guy was around your little one's age! We have always had great luck with one of us taking him to the back (where the flight attendants convene) to play on the ground for a few minutes. We chat it up with the flight attendants and they have always been fine with us hanging out there for a few minutes a couple of times during the flight- this really saved us from many meltdowns and gave our little one excitement to get out from the tight seats. Also- lots of standing up time and using my lap as the play area where I would put a toy and have him stand on the ground facing me. We also let him play at our feet- I was uber grossed out by the germ factor but realized it was not worth him having a meltdown over. The above comments and suggestions are great- we did the same as far as new/different toys and loads of snacks. Best of luck to you- no matter how intimidating it may seem- you can do it!!

p_capucine,

I usually just grab a handful of grocery bags. My MIL has a nervous habit of folding them down into little triangles (sort of folded the way envirosax fold up), and I happened to grab a few for one of our trans-atlantic flights home. The pack down to nothing, and are so handy. Lately, I don't have many grocery bags, bc I finally started remembering my cloth grocery bags, so now I just grab a couple of bathroom sized garbage bags from under the sink.

Buy a couple new toys and put them in a makeup bag for your little one. Bust it out when things get hairy. Kids always love new toys.

Oh my goodness, thank you SO MUCH for such a great response!! I am overwhelmed by all the awesome ideas you guys have. I'll be taking note of everything and hopefully our flight will go smoothly! My husband will be traveling with me, so that's a good thing. You all have given me newfound confidence that I can do this. Thanks, again!!

-Elizabeth

You are so lucky that your husband will be traveling with you! That is exactly what my flying suggestion has to do with. You know how, during boarding, they hit that announcement about families with small children and other people needing extra time to board? This is when you send your husband onto the plane. Load him down with EVERYTHING he can carry, including every carry-on bag (if it's physically possible) and the car seat (if you're using it). Let him have the time without pushy passengers to get your space set up -- bags stowed where you can get to them (pack ones that fit under the seat in front of you!) -- while you and Baby take a little stroll around the gate area. After the airline does the first "final boarding call," you get on the plane with the baby. She will benefit from not being all cooped up and strapped down for those extra ten minutes, and it is MUCH easier for your husband to get baby stuff situated without the actual baby on the scene.

Good luck! You'll do great. And no matter what happens -- think of what an interesting story it will be to tell (flying so far with someone so tiny and living to tell the tale) at cocktail parties!

My husbands iPhone or my old iPod video have come in super handy for traveling. Either a favorite tv show (sesame street is cheap) or games can occupy for a long time. They sell headphones made for kids now too that have great volume control.

Probably a repeat, but...

#1 - buy her a separate seat. don't cheap out like I did for my 1-year-old's first flight. ugh.

#2 - TONS of toys and snacks, preferably things that she's never seen before (toys, anyway), and things like lollipops or smarties. If you're using a portable DVD player or laptop to show her movies, practice wearing headphones ahead of time so she'll be used to how they feel. I swore I'd never allow screen time before age 2...and then I started traveling. :)

Have a great trip! You CAN do it!

haha, one of my first flights with my first baby was from alaska to orlando! i've done it again, only with 3 kids under 5 and pregnant :) not always fun, but you'll be fine! all the tips people have posted are great (though i was never able to afford an extra seat...). welcome to alaska!

ps- your user name is leialala- one of my daughter's is named leia :) it stood out to me

My two cents....

1. Be prepared for a diaper change and dress baby and you appropriately. Bring an extra shirt for you in case it gets messy. Make sure its in easy reach.

2. If your traveling with another, try to have one person go in first and you get on last with the baby.

3. If still breast or bottle feeding, try and feed baby during take off or landing to help with their ears. A binkie works too.

4. Bring a sling if you have one. My baby wanted to be right next to mama or daddy and can help save your arms. Also makes it feel safer if your walking baby up and down the plane if it gets rocky.

5. Try giving your baby a massage. For long flights helps calm my daughter down.

Hope this helps.

BTW, if your traveling with a car seat, you might want to try a device that attaches to your car seat and turns it into a stroller. (Sorry can't remember the name!) You can get it at babysrus. Its a life saver for me, especially when I travel alone with the little one. That way, you can check your stroller and just deal with the car seat while in the airport. It's about $70 or so.

Also, if you are going to take a DVD player, you need to get headphones. I sometimes travel with a portable DVD player and I have been told that I can't play it for my 2 year old without them (Southwest, Alaska Airlines, JetBlue, United).

We lived in Anchorage for 3 years, when we moved there our only baby was 10 months, when we left we had 2 little ones, 4 years and 16 months. We flew many long haul flights (at least they seemed long haul at 6 + hrs with 1-2 little ones) from AK to MSP. I can promise you that the more planning you use, the more options you have, the saner will be. Plan, plan, plan and all will be well. If baby decides to be a baby, which is a baby's right, then know you won't be the first to be on that flight with a little one who decides long flights aren't fun. I would rec'd, esp with an 11month old, to bring touchy feely books, toys that if thrown cannot hurt the person in front of you, 4 cans of those Gerber Puffs would be amazing. We would feed our little ones those, even tho' in real life they never had them, for the entire flight. The best part of those puffs is that they have zero calories which means baby/toddler can't get full, but doesn't know it ;-) Think new stuff also, don't break the bank... you can even just put some soft toys away now and then when the flight arrives they will be good as new. Stacks of soft toys will help! Soft books and board books are also helpful.
If you are still breastfeeding then by all means do that, if baby obliges, during take off and landing as it helps with pressure changes.
Also we were always against early media at that age but honestly, on a flight like that or longer all bets are off... I would crack out some baby einstein, it won't ruin the little one but might just distract them in a moment of need. The baby einstein videos might be an issue in real life, but real life isn't 30,000 feet... at that point you just want to keep it going until landing. The best part? When you land, your baby gets to experience Alaska! What kid doesn't want to look back, years later, and see a picture of themselves in Alaska? Ours are priceless and while the flight is long it is not forever (tho' at times it will seem that way), it will end, and the result will be a great vacation. BTW, if you are in Anchorage check out Moose's Tooth Pizza = great pizza, amazing beer and very baby friendly.
Bon Voyage!

We just got back from a trip with my 11-month-old. Four flights, the longest being 9 hours. Honestly, the flights aren't super fun. It was better before she started to crawl around. Best advice:
- Get the baby her own seat and bring the carseat aboard. Yes, it's expensive, but for flights over two hours, it's a lifesaver.
- More diapers, food, clothes, wipes, ziplocs etc. than you think you could need, and food and a change of shirt for you.
- You might want to get the already liquid formula for the trip. We didn't use this ourselves, but sounds like a good idea. I'm pretty sure they have to let that through security, and although it's more expensive, it's also easier to use.
- Bring a baby carrier on the plane (the stroller is great for airports, so I'd bring that as well. A cheap stroller bag will make sure it doesn't get mangled at gate-check).
- Don't be afraid to use everything in your arsenal. Usually, we only let our daughter have one or two teething cookies a day. On the plane, we gave her as many as she wanted.
- We found that our daughter liked the in-flight movies. Moving pictures would keep her attention for a little while.
- Safety pins and swaddling blankets allow you to make a tent or privacy cover. Good for breastfeeding and/or limiting the light/activity the baby sees.
On the plus side, we've found that babies don't suffer from jetlag (and ours had no problem with takeoff/landing either)... Have fun!

One thing I haven't seen is this piece of advice:

- Before the flight begins, stand up and address everyone immediately around you. Explain that you have a young child and that this is her first time flying. You will try and do everything possible to make sure she is not disruptive and that you just want to make sure that they're comfortable as well. Then you offer to pay for their headphones AND hand out earplugs as well.

It works every time, no matter how noisy a kid is - people feel mollified and are more likely to be compassionate when they "Get something out of it"