A travel car seat is just a light and narrow seat that can be installed on a plane and carried more easily. It makes such a difference when you’re already drowning in luggage and keeping your baby or toddler happy (and fed!). As a first-time mom, I had one hell of a time deciding what stroller and car seat to get for everyday use, and I put even more time and stress into finding the best travel set! I researched, analyzed, polled other parents, tried some for myself, read reviews on multiple websites, and then researched and analyzed again. Here is what I found to be the best travel car seats and how to carry them.
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Best Travel Car Seats for ANY AGE
Yes, you heard me – ANY AGE! Well, any child’s age – up to 100 lbs and 57″. How do you like ‘dem apples?
Those are pretty good numbers. No wonder this brand I’ve never heard of is climbing the Amazon charts with its affordable, versatile, and environmentally friendly car seat!
Snag this Century car seat while they still have them in stock.
As with most of the seats with cupholders, you may have to remove the cupholders before bringing on the plane, otherwise it may be too wide.
When buying a car seat for travel, just know that
-The Flying Mum
the average airplane seat is about 17 inches wide.
Best Travel Car Seats for Infants
I recommend using an infant seat as long as you can while your baby is under the height and weight requirements, which are usually 30-32″ and 30-35 pounds. Baby should sleep better as these recline more.
The Chicco KeyFit 30 is a great quality seat for infants up to 30 lbs. It’s my favorite seat for everyday use and travel. This one has the base but Amazon has others without it.
When traveling with an infant seat, typically you
-The Flying Mum
don’t need the base unless you plan on clicking the seat in and out without waking your baby.
Graco has the Snugride (it just sounds like a cozy car seat for your little one, no wonder it’s one of the top selling car seats) one that can hold a baby up to 35 pounds (with height restrictions also). The seat without the base is under 10 pounds.
I have both of these seats. They both have been great. You can’t beat Graco’s price and Chicco’s quality.
Best Travel Car Seats – Convertible
I mentioned already that the Century might be the best convertible car seat going, for both travel and everyday use. Here are some of my favorites that I have either used myself and/or researched high and low:
The Evenflo Tribute is my top pick for babies and toddlers. It’s under 10 pounds, it holds up to 40 pounds, and both of ours have loved it. Our little ones have slept well on long flights and long European road trips with no complaints… which means mama slept well too!
my favorite for small toddlers
It’s affordable, lightweight, comfortable, narrow and FAA approved. Amazon also sells a combo with its carrying bag.
The Evenflo Sonus is a good substitute with great reviews, if the Tribute isn’t in stock. I have not personally used this one though.
The Cosco Mighty Fit is another popular budget option, but some complain about the difficulty with rear facing installation. Walmart also sells the Cosco Scenera Next, a popular budget option.
The Safety 1st Jive is highly rated, at 14 pounds so not quite as light as some others, but a pretty good price when on sale at Amazon at $87. Many reviews mention that it doesn’t do well rear-facing.
Best Transition Seat
For your growing toddler, switch to a seat that will transition to a booster seat later on. They can hold up to 100 pounds as a booster, and up to 65 pounds as a standard forward-facing seat. Again, the Century is highly rated newer one, but I haven’t used it myself.
The Graco Transitions is one of the highest rated transitional seats that’s been around a bit longer. It is almost 18 pounds, so be ready to strap it to a suitcase or throw in a car seat backpack.
The Cosco Finale DX 2 in 1 Booster is one of the cheapest and lightest out there. This is what we use for all of our Euro road trips. But warning! This seat is hard with little padding so you may have to stop more often during long road trips. I would avoid it if your child is sensitive to touch/pressure.
I have found that Safety 1st’s Booster is more highly rated in terms of comfort than the Cosco Finale, so that might be the better option but users say the cupholders cannot be removed, so it might be too wide for an Economy airplane seat.
One of the Best Travel Car Seats That Is Also… A Stroller?!?
If you want a seat that can turn into a stroller, yes you read that correctly, a stroller!
Do the Doona! It’s the best out there – I’ve heard moms just rave about theirs. Hurry, because Amazon sold 2,000 last month!
This seat is an awesome investment and will make your traveling so much easier. I wish we had something this convenient, but I spend too much on 5-star hotels.
Best Restraint System
Car seats are by far the safest on the plane, but the CARES safety restraint system is another option if you want your toddler safely secured in an airplane seat without lugging a full-on car seat. I’m not sure if they still allow these and I couldn’t easily find them for sale when I last checked.
For car use only, I see these Ride Safer Vests are popular. I don’t get why you wouldn’t just bring a car seat. But they state it’s legal. Do your homework first.
Best Booster
There are high back boosters like the Cosco Finale DX 2 in 1 Booster which was our every day booster until our son was big enough without the high back version. The seat is a bit hard but our son has never said anything.
We also have a high back Graco booster for every day home use now that our oldest is big enough. It converts to be able to remove the high back part and just bring the bottom of the seat for travel. Or Graco makes the booster without the high back for less than $30! These are great if you can’t lug around the high-back or if your child is tall enough or old enough for the backless. I preferred the high back for safety.
We just got the UberBoost Inflatable booster from Hiccapop. We are excited to try it on our next trip. It deflates and packs down pretty small, definitely small enough to shove into a carry-on.
The Chicco GoFit is another great travel booster, with it’s carrying handle and light weight. However, it doesn’t shrink down obviously like the inflatable booster.
You can also get a two for one by getting a high back booster you can use at home and then a backless booster for travel. We have the Graco and it’s great. Chicco, one of the highest quality brands, has an even nicer one if you’d rather.
How to Carry One of the Best Travel Car Seats
Once you decide on a car seat, you’ll have to decide how you’ll lug it around the airport or wherever you are headed. To easily carry the seat through the airport, use a suitcase belt, car seat backpack, durable car seat backpack for extra protection, or even a “travel system” stroller that the infant car seat can just click in and out of. Scroll to the bottom for more info.
We use the standard car seat backpack and it fits two seats with space left for diapers, hiking boots, the kitchen sink. Just go ahead and toss it all in there and pull tight to close it.
Or if you have a regular travel stroller with two handles (like ours for under $100 bucks that has lasted 6 years on European cobblestone!), you can hang the car seat from the stroller handles.
Here are your options in a clear list:
- use a luggage belt to attach it to your suitcase (we did this on our first two big trips)
- use a handi-truck that folds and fits in your overhead compartment
- throw it upside down over the top of your stroller
- carry it in a backpack (which is a nice way to pack more if you check it at the gate)
- hang it from your stroller using the car seat straps (or from the handle if an infant seat)
This padded wheelie car seat carrier is one of the top-rated ones. It’s sturdy, large, padded, has backpack straps, can stand up on its own, and wheelies for easy gliding.
If you don’t want to invest in that and are ok with looking like a silly pack mule, then go the cheaper route like we did.
We (and when I say “we”, I mean my husband, hehe) don’t have to carry the giant backpack carrier very far since we check it when we check our other bags. It’s thin and has held up just fine. We pack it to the brim with a ton of stuff in it along with two car seats!
Get it on sale otherwise it’s a bit overpriced for what it is. Just know their customer service is great. My friend had a tear in hers after one use, and they said they’d send her a new one when I contacted them. Woohoo! Those tears happen with these kinds of bags. Might as well go with the company willing to acknowledge and replace it for free!
Make sure you have the rest of your baby travel essentials before take-off! Still not sure whether you want to bring a car seat at all? Read my breakdown of the pros and cons of bringing a travel car seat.
Have fun! You got this!
Don’t forget to give breaks like this.
