My family will be traveling to Mexico this winter and there will be 2 toddlers going that are still in car seats. Renting a car is out of the budget, but to get into town is 2 miles from the resort and if we were to use a car seat we would than have to carry it with us the entire time we were in town! Has anyone elce had this problem and how did you handle it? My sister and I have been told to just hold the kids on our laps, but its not sitting well with either of us. Any ideas would be great!!!
The sell a carseat/stroller it's a carseat that has wheels that fold underneath.
Otherwise I too would just hold your children
** edit
Are you talking about using the carseats on the plane or in a taxi/bus in Mexico?
A bus won't have seatbelts and to fit two kids with carseats with parents in a taxi maybe difficult.
MN LAW is a chid doesn't have to be in a childsafety seat in the following conditions
bus
taxi
plane
train
limo
police car
ambulance
I have always used a carseat when I can but there are many times it's impossible and I've skipped it. Not every piece of public transportation has seatbelts. Look at our Pubic School Buses
We had the same situation in Mexico. It's dangerous, but you really have no alternative but to have the kids in your lap. Or drag the car seats around. Mexico is pretty lax on the car seat laws. Most of the taxis will be passenger vans, so you won't be in a small car (more than likely). And 2 miles is a pretty short distance.
Personally, I would NEVER put my children in a moving car without being in a car seat. So many accidents occur within a few miles of your home. There is another post on here regarding car seat safety. I too took the car seat class and you would never not put your child in a car seat if you saw the videos we saw.
One accident can change your lives forever. Your child may not surive an accident nor may they ever walk, talk, etc. again due to an accident.
It's the law here for a reason. I think it would be recklass to not use a car seat. If the reason is you don't want to carry it then I would make other arrangements as far as which hotel or area you are staying in. My only sibling was killed in a car accident in 1990 and not a day goes by that I don't think of him. The accident should never have happened because the driver was driving carelessly. I really wouldn't want you to have to live the rest of your life knowing a car seat might have saved your child or your niece/nephew.
Just my two cents.
I would probably just hold them on my lap. You could opt for a Bus rather than cab rides. Buses don't have seatbelts, but if a bus and a car collided, the bus would probably aquire less damage than a car would. 2 miles isn't too far. If the totts won't sit on laps, strap them in with the shoulder strap under the armpit. Think about what WE did as children...heck, I used to ride on the dashboard of our van in the sun and sleep. The odds of an accident then is slim to none. But, this is what I'd probably do. p.s. Tell your Hubby "Thanks", and thank you too for your sacrafice. :)
This is the Sit 'n STroll the previous poster mentioned http://babyproducts.about.com/od/travel/gr/sitnstroll.htm
I've seen people use them all the time while traveling, they seem great!
This is another option. I've seen people use them on the airplane, and also once when we rented a car. Its very small and portable..... seems like a good option for you, since obviously your son is little, you need to five point harness him! http://www.dreamtimebaby.com/pocarsebr.html
First of all, thanks to you and your husband for your sacrifices- there is no one as brave and honorable as a soldier and his family.
Next, I don't think I would risk it even though the chances are very slim that an accident will happen in the two-mile jaunt. But, things that are unlikely do happen frequently enough to not take any chances. We hear all the time on the news or wherever how a mom just thought a two-block ride would be ok w/o a carseat and ended up losing her baby in a freak accident. I would bring the carseats along and deal with the huge inconvenience; just consider the alternative if something were to happen.
Again thanks to your husband for his service and good luck! Have fun in the Mexican sun :)
We have two sit and strolls that we use exclusively for travel. They are AWESOME for that purpose. Our sons have logged many thousands of miles by now in them; except for an occasional sticky wheel on one, they work wonderfully and USUALLY fit into the airplane seat as well. The other great thing about them is that you don't have to lug an extra stroller, as they do pretty well on all but the rockiest terrain; we recently took them on a short hiking trail in Alaska and they came through fine.
Sometimes you can find a sit n stroll on ebay relatively inexpensively; otherwise you might check consignment stores. I know, I know, you're not SUPPOSED TO use a "used" car seat, but in this case, I think it's better than not using one at all, esp. in Mexico; if you've ever experienced driving/riding in a car/bus/taxi in Mexico you know what I mean. Many roads and many cars in Mexico are not in the greatest shape, to say the least, and even 2 miles can be a long way, w/plenty of opportunity for accidents.
Happy traveling!!
Is it in your budget to buy one of those car seat attachments that has wheels? Then you could wheel your carseat around like a suitcase. I've mainly seen them used for flying but it would be an option!
Is the airline making you have a carseat on the plane? We put our kids in carseats on the plane until they were in boosters, then we brought the booster with us. And yes, carrying carseats is a big pain! The last time we went to England, we found a used "Sit and Stroll" which a convertable car seat/stroller. The nice thing about it is that even if the kid is not sitting in it, you can use it for carrying "stuff". Check Craig's list. We went to Once Upon a Child, but it was a fluke that they had one. It is definitely cheaper than renting a car!
Have fun in Mexico.
Here are some links to some vests that you can get that will work for the plane and the car. Look over them and see what would work best for you. They have some for vehicles that have to be mounted or teathered that won't work but the first link is one that just has the lap belt looped through it so it might work the best for you. Definitely better than lap sitting and can fit right in your bag when you are done with it or leave it on if the child doesn't care. The second link is a little more expensive but it depends on what you are looking for. We go to Mexico, and I'm always freaked out by the way the cab drivers drive. We always bring a friend to babysit so the kids don't have to leave the resort when we go into town, which isn't very much.
http://www.ezonpro.com/products/schoolBus/kidCam.shtml
Hope this helps,
Jennifer
I would assume that most people in Mexico do not use car seats. I am also assuming you would be taking like a resort van into town or a taxi and either would be driven by a driver experiences with the local traffic (as bad as it may be) and foreign travelers. If it was a resort person saying to hold your child, I would believe that. If it was a travel agent here, get a second opinion.
It's in our future to go to NYC, and I had been wondering on car seats and taxis. But if you wouldn't use one there, why would you use one in a similar situation? Yes car seats are important and when we drive around town she's always in one. However there are situations where it is VERY impractical. I don't use one when I take the light rail, the bus, and I would not in an airplane since they are not made for that.
Also think - your grandparents definitely did not use them on your parents, and did your own parents use them until you were 4?
I am a MOMS Club member. One of the other moms has this car seat that also doubles as a stroller. They have used it on their travels - even airplanes. They really like it. It's a car seat that has wheels and then a thing that pulls up for pulling to use as stroller. It can fold up and is compact yet pulls out all the necessities. It's really cool. She said it was expensive. Unfortunately, I am not sure where she bought it. I do remember that it was purchased at a special kids store or special ordered.
Can you take a shuttle bus and leave them in their stroller strapped into that? Or you can buy portable carseats online for sure at target.com that just fold up and have a handle.
leapsandbounds.com has a 4 lb., fold flat-as-a-pancake carseats. I've never tried one myself, but it might be worth looking into. Please thank your husband for his service to our country! (And thank YOU as well.)
Last year I brought my two kids to Mexico and did not bring a carseat, and regretted it. This year I brought those little booster seats. Though technically my younger one is about the right size for a booster, I would not be comfortable using one for every day, but I felt much better putting him in that while we were traveling.
Alternatively, if you don't want to carry one around when you go into town, use the bus! It's such a great way to observe culture. You could use the boosters from the airport to the resort and the bus to and from the market.
Have a great trip!
I would take the car seats that fold flat like the other ladie suggested. i have seen them in target and walmart. No sense taking a risk if you don't have to. Plus could you live with yourself if something did happen.
I know that some taxis actually carry car seats. Pretty sweet, huh? Just call them up and make a request.
Thank you everyone for your feedback! I would also like to add that I would never put my child in a car without a car seat and I know that I could never live with myself if something happend, I was simply just looking for suggestions from other moms and thier travels! We are going to look into the flat foldong car seats and we are hoping that the resort might possibly have a shuttle… we could just leave the seats in there!! Anyways thanks again!