Should Kids Fly First Class?

I'm Asking: Should Kids Fly First Class?

March 16, 2011

A few weeks ago, my sister used her points to fly to Hawaii for a fun-in-the-sun family vacay. To her surprise, she and my 5- and 3-year-old nephews were upgraded to first class. While I absolutely adore my nephews, Jakey (the 3-year-old) is a terror of a tot. Combined with Johnny (the 5-year-old), chaos ensued; water bottles were thrown; milk was spilled; and dirty looks and complaints from the fat cat in a suit in the next aisle came a comin'.

While these kids are generally well behaved, a six-hour flight was too much for them, and after my sister told us the story of the angry man in first class, a great debate sparked in my very opinionated family. Some said kids shouldn't fly first class because they disrupt other passengers, who pay for a level of peace and comfort; while others said the kids have a right to be there as much as anybody else since their parents paid the expensive airfare. What do you think?

Source: Thinkstock

I'm Asking: Should Kids Fly First Class? originally posted on POPSUGAR Smart Living

27 Comments

ladybirda 2 years 7 weeks

There should definitely be an age minimum, like 6 or 7 maybe. There is no reason a 2 year old needs to sit in first class. I'm surprised they upgraded her in the first place knowing she had two very young children.

2 years 8 weeks

Anyone who paid for 1st class should be entitle to be there!

sourcherry 2 years 9 weeks

I think it would be fair to keep kids out of first class. People pay a lot more money to have extra comfort, it only makes sense.I'm not saying this because I think it's unacceptable for a kid to misbehave on a plane, on the contrary. I think it's completely comprehensible, a flight is probably an excruciating experience for a child. Even well behaved children have a hard time sitting still for so long. So, if it is such a common occurrence, why not avoid it altogether and provide the comfortable space people paid for? I understand that parents might want to fly first class too, but there's a lot of things parents can't do while in the company of their children, it's just they way it is... That being said, I personally don't mind children on planes. And I don't fly first class, so it wouldn't affect me either way :P

sourcherry 2 years 9 weeks

I think it would be fair to keep kids out of first class. People pay a lot more money to have extra comfort, it only makes sense. I'm not saying this because I think it's unacceptable for a kid to misbehave on a plane, on the contrary. I think it's completely comprehensible, a flight is probably an excruciating experience for a child. Even well behaved children have a hard time sitting still for so long. So, if it is such a common occurrence, why not avoid it altogether and provide the comfortable space people paid for? I understand that parents might want to fly first class too, but there's a lot of things parents can't do while in the company of their children, it's just they way it is... That being said, I personally don't mind children on planes. And I don't fly first class, so it wouldn't affect me either way :P

2 years 9 weeks

People without kids are probably more annoyed than those who have kids. They just don't understand that three year olds are just going to have problems sitting still for a long period of time. Having kids of my own, whenever I see someone on a plane and they are having problems getting them to settle down, I just smile, knowing that all parents have been there in that situation many times. The bigger issue, though, and one that I didn't see mentioned on this blog is allowing fat people to ride on planes. My gawd! Is it just me or are people getting fatter and the seats getting smaller?!!!! Even if you are sitting in first class with wider seats, that person you are sitting next to is likely to start sweating up a storm and build up quite a stench. A fat passenger and long filght leads to quite an odor by the time you land. Seriously, we need height/weight standards and/or start measuring body mass density before letting people on the plane. If you don't meet the standard, you buy two tickets out of consideration for the rest of the passengers.

amber512 2 years 9 weeks

Definitely can depend on the child, but in general I'd be extremely annoyed if I paid more for peace and quiet and was disturbed the whole flight.

2 years 9 weeks

I think it really depends on the kid! I grew up flying 11-14 hr flights my entire life, starting at barely a month old. When I was flying with other family members, especially my mom or grandparents, they always flew business class (which is practically the equivalent to first class). I was always really good at flying. I either sleep or watch movies the whole way (and still do to this day), but only because I was used to flying ALL THE TIME, and I'm an only child. This means no other children to get rowdy with. If you have multiple children, forget about it! Just being around each other will spark any rowdiness they have within them. When I'm flying alone these days I absolutely despise anyone even TALKING (louder than a whisper) on a flight. But am however guilty of laughing the whole way when I'm flying with other people. I just can't help it! It's contagious! That being said, first class is okay for a kid who is perfectly fine keeping to themselves for the duration of the flight (IF the family has money for it. No business in buying super exp plane tickets if you' don't have the money, yeah?). NOT okay for a fussy whiny kid, or multiple children.

mjokisch 2 years 9 weeks

im on the fence about the whole thing. i mean no one likes to hear or see crazy kids on planes. i haven't flown that much but ive never seen or heard children misbehaving on the flights i have been on. now i have an 8 month old and someday she will go on a plane. i don't know when that will be. i'd like to take her places. my family will most likely drive when we can. i think i would get overwhelmed attempting to bring her on a plane. i already get a little overwhelmed in airports. anyway, i was wondering if any of you thought it possible to have like.. practice pretend flights with your kids before going on planes. my sister in law has practice self control sit time with her 3 yr old and he's pretty awesome at it. he can sit quietly for extended periods of time. and she practices this with him so that when she needs it, like at the drs office, it goes smoothly. i mean its a completely foreign experience for a kid thats never flown before. its weird, new, exciting, scary, etc. even a generally well behaved child might have trouble being so calm in this situation. so is it possible to prepare them for this specific situation beforehand? what do you think?

mjokisch 2 years 9 weeks

stellaRuby 2 years 9 weeks

I am with Weffie. It sucks not matter where you sit to have to deal with that behaviour. People do have families the live in other countries and until teleportation is available a plane is the best option to travel abroad with children.

stellaRuby 2 years 9 weeks

I am with Weffie. It sucks not matter where you sit to have to deal with that behaviour.People do have families the live in other countries and until teleportation is available a plane is the best option to travel abroad with children.

Bettye Wayne 2 years 9 weeks

Brilliance that is ridiculous! Kids that young should be with their parents, no exceptions. I would wait til 8 or 9 at least before letting my kid sit on her own, and would not hesitate to ask someone to switch to be closer to her if I had to. Snarky that last one, with the water bottle, that is terrible. Poor little girl. I voted yes, I mean if you're willing to pay for the ticket you should be able to sit where ever you want. I've only flown a couple times though so I'm not really an authority on the matter.

Bettye Wayne 2 years 9 weeks

Brilliance that is ridiculous! Kids that young should be with their parents, no exceptions. I would wait til 8 or 9 at least before letting my kid sit on her own, and would not hesitate to ask someone to switch to be closer to her if I had to.Snarky that last one, with the water bottle, that is terrible. Poor little girl.I voted yes, I mean if you're willing to pay for the ticket you should be able to sit where ever you want. I've only flown a couple times though so I'm not really an authority on the matter.

snarkypants 2 years 9 weeks

evie, well-behaved children are fine. to me, they are the same as adults. i don't even notice them, that's why, if you actually read my posts, my comments are directed toward poorly behaved children. emily, i don't really think it's bad parenting as much as flying is probably a traumatic experience to some young travelers. sadly, i have been on far too many international flights that have been overrun with screaming children. why the heck does a small child need to fly internationally? does it have an important business meeting in paris? i just don't understand. i don't even like flying internationally, why would a toddler enjoy that experience? most of the time, the parents are trying their best to control their little ones. i've only seen one experience where the parent was being a dumb@ss. the little girl (about 2 years old or so) asked her mom for water. the mom picked up her water bottle, chugged it, and said, "sorry, it's gone". i probably would have thrown a tantrum too.

snarkypants 2 years 9 weeks

evie, well-behaved children are fine. to me, they are the same as adults. i don't even notice them, that's why, if you actually read my posts, my comments are directed toward poorly behaved children.emily, i don't really think it's bad parenting as much as flying is probably a traumatic experience to some young travelers. sadly, i have been on far too many international flights that have been overrun with screaming children. why the heck does a small child need to fly internationally? does it have an important business meeting in paris? i just don't understand. i don't even like flying internationally, why would a toddler enjoy that experience?most of the time, the parents are trying their best to control their little ones. i've only seen one experience where the parent was being a dumb@ss. the little girl (about 2 years old or so) asked her mom for water. the mom picked up her water bottle, chugged it, and said, "sorry, it's gone". i probably would have thrown a tantrum too.

EvieJ 2 years 9 weeks

Sorry, the above comment should be to @snarkypants, not @solidarity.

brilliance13 2 years 9 weeks

I'm sure there are perfectly behaved children too and most of the time this is totally not an issue :)

brilliance13 2 years 9 weeks

I was just particularly sensitive since I was just on a flight and 2 children continuously kicked and bumped the back of our seats on a 6am flight. The entire plane was sleeping except for these two children (who were sitting 4 seats away from their parents) I would have gladly moved but then possibly subjected other people to the same kicking and bouncing. Their father came over about 6 times to quiet them down... they seemed to be about the ages of 4 and 6 and also ignored their father and continued on while my neighbor and I and the rest of the plane tried desperately to sleep. I didn't say a word OR give dirty looks but I did feel bad for the father... and felt worse for the person sitting next to me who looked miserable and was falling in and out of sleep. I was not able to sleep after the first few kicks.

EvieJ 2 years 9 weeks

Sorry to all the above posters, but when I fly with my daughter, we tend to fly first class. I pay just as much for our tickets as anyone else in first class, so we are just as entitled to be there. My daughter is extremely well-behaved, and rarely throws tantrums - and has yet to throw one on a flight. I've even had an obvious business flyer tell me after how pleasantly surprised he was. And trust me - if a kid is throwing a hissy anywhere on a plane, you'll be able to hear it in first class, too. @solidarity: This is going to sound incredibly rude, but I think you're attitude is awful. If you hate flying on planes with kids, I do hope you drive for your vacations.

EvieJ 2 years 9 weeks

Sorry to all the above posters, but when I fly with my daughter, we tend to fly first class. I pay just as much for our tickets as anyone else in first class, so we are just as entitled to be there. My daughter is extremely well-behaved, and rarely throws tantrums - and has yet to throw one on a flight. I've even had an obvious business flyer tell me after how pleasantly surprised he was.And trust me - if a kid is throwing a hissy anywhere on a plane, you'll be able to hear it in first class, too.@solidarity: This is going to sound incredibly rude, but I think you're attitude is awful. If you hate flying on planes with kids, I do hope you drive for your vacations.

kimmieb124 2 years 9 weeks

I agree that it stinks if kids are disruptive no matter whether it's first class or coach. Having said that, I have had to fly on a plane with my young child and it's hard on the parents as well. My child is well-behaved, but we still got some dirty looks from passengers who clearly don't have much experience with children whenever she made a peep (which she barely even did since she slept the majority of the flight!). This made the flight miserable for me as well. Most parents are doing the best they can and they aren't trying to "let their kids act up." Even the best parents can't control another human being, and bystanders seem to forget that fact. Kids and parents who buy plane tickets have just as much right as anyone else to be on the plane and be seated in whatever class they paid for.

testadura67 2 years 9 weeks

While weffie has a good point, I think part of what you pay for with a first class ticket, is not to be in the line of fire of kids' tantrums. I'd be pretty pissed if I paid those prices and had a child throwing a hissy fit for 6 hours.

Emily Co 2 years 9 weeks

I sympathize with some parents who can't seem to make their kids quiet down. Here's a question: do you think it's a matter of poor parenting or are flights just a horrible experience for kids?

snarkypants 2 years 9 weeks

true weffie. poorly behaved children are obnoxious everywhere. i hate flying on planes with kids.

weffie 2 years 9 weeks

Because people in coach would be ok with having water bottles thrown at them?! It doesn't matter where they're sitting, it's always annoying when parents let their kids act up in public.

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