How to safely get a pram overseas

[dmitri]

Hi team,

myself, wife and 4 month are travelling Syd-Hkg on QF J, then Hkg-Dus on CX J in January, what are your experiences with a pram in the luggage, does Qf/Cx provide bags/ packing for protection or should I get something made to suit to prevent any damage. All info is much appreciated.

thanks, Dmitri

 

[LadyC]

Depends on what type you have. We use a maclaren techno. Collapsible and can be gate checked. They cover in a plastic bag and I believe they get loaded last. We have taken 3 overseas trips so far with no damage so far. The main issue we have is confirming where to collect it at the end!

 

[dmitri]

we have a joolz, the seat is removable and the frame collapses to a fairly small size

 

[LadyC]

If you can gate check it, it is a lot easier. No worries about carrying the little one through immigration and around the terminals.
The pram looks high end from what I can see online. I'm not sure you will be able to gate check that one. That looks a lot sturdier abs heavier than our travel pram. Have you considered buying a cheap one for travel? Second hand maybe?

 

[2tall4Y]

Hi Dmitri

I did something very similar (SYD - HKG QF J and HKG - HEL in AY J, and back again) when my daughter was ~6 months old. We ended by buying an 'umbrella' style, fold-up pram for $80-odd dollars (I think the brand is 'First Years') as we were worried about our 'primary' pram surviving the trip. I note though that your child is 4 months and depending on his/her size, such prams might not be suitable - I guess you could try one out at a 'baby store'.

We got given a large, sturdy, pram-size plastic bags at check-in at both SYD and HKG, and eventually gate checked the pram. On subsequent trips, we found that with two adults and one child it was just easier to carry my daughter, and have since always just got rid of the pram at check-in. As suggested by LadyC, there's a bit a of variation in where you'll collect your pram again - at HKG, we found that the ground staff delivered oversized items to a collection spot adjacent to where our other bags came out, at SYD we needed to fetch the pram my a separate oversize collection while at other airports (TXL for example) the pram just came out with the other bags.

Good luck!

 

[andye]

Prams are useful to have when overseas as children often fall asleep at odd times. We've always managed with a cheapo collapsible that wouldn't be too expensive if damaged/lost. (4 children with near-annual euro trips). They are also easier than carrying children if you end up hurrying late to the gate

 

[Edge]

I recommend the Babyzen Yoyo. It's small enough and light enough to be able to be carried onto the plane and stored in the overhead locker. Not cheap but very handy for travelling and we even use it these days any time we're putting the pram in the car.

 

[Natalie_B]

We use a Mclaren Quest for travel. We also bought the wheel travel bag. We check it in, it's never weighed, so any excess luggage goes in with the pram. SYD international has strollers you can use to the gate, we use either the baby carrier or the Qantas stroller.

Ive seen other prams placed in the big clear bags, the same ones that car seats are placed in.

The travel bag we have has survived many OS and domestic trips. One of the best purchases ever.

 

[dmitri]

Sounds good Natalie. we found a solution in the end, we are taking our larger joolz pram with both seats and buying the below travel bag. It's fully padded and has wheels which is great. It's a bit bigger than we wanted but we can fit other items in it as well, it will be a 3rd incognito suitcase.

Bugaboo Comfort Transport Bag - Pram Accessories - Prams, Strollers, Travel | Baby Bunting