International Travel Archives

Aug 30 2018

A one day tour of Tokyo DisneySea

While it’s on my list, I still haven’t gotten the chance to visit DisneySea in Tokyo. My friend Jerry visited with his wife this past July and wrote up his one day touring plan of Tokyo DisneySea. I had a blast reading it and it makes me want to visit even sooner – hope you enjoy it! And thanks to Jerry for this great write-up.

One day at Tokyo DisneySea

When planning our 2-week trip to Japan, my wife and I could only set aside one day for a Disney theme park in Tokyo. We chose DisneySea. Tokyo DisneySea is generally seen as the more unique of the two Disney resorts in Japan (the other being Tokyo Disneyland). Tickets are relatively cheap it only cost us $66.45 (USD) for an adult ticket on Klook.com. Of course, be prepared to spend about $6 million on snacks and souvenirs. (Ed. Note: Seems low.)

When to go

Your best bet is to avoid visiting Japan in the summer altogether, because it is incredibly humid and crowded. If you absolutely have to visit during the summer like we did, then make sure you avoid weekends and Japanese holidays. We visited DisneySea on a Wednesday in July and it worked out great for us. Using FASTPASS for certain rides, we did not have to wait more than an hour for any attraction.

One thing you’ll notice immediately is how much the Japanese people embrace the Disney experience. It seemed like every couple or group coordinated their attire with one another, making for a very festive environment. Pig hats were particularly popular the day we went, and some girls even wore matching Japanese kimonos and wooden shoes in 90 degree weather. That’s dedication!

Tokyo DisneySea - Toy Story Mania — Not sure what was up with the pig hats, but they were everywhere!

We lined up an hour before the 8:30am opening, which you’ll need to do if you want a jump start on the crowd. DisneySea is separated into 7 themed ports, so we prioritized getting a FASTPASS for the most popular rides and then visiting different ports throughout the day. (It’s important to note that Journey to the Center of the Earth, arguably the best ride at DisneySea, was closed for maintenance. And my phobia of coasters prevented me from riding another DisneySea exclusive, Raging Spirits. Your itinerary may also look different if you bring kids, as we chose fine dining over the two evening shows.)

Time sensitive attractions and grabbing FASTPASSes

(Ed. Note – FASTPASS at DisneySea works like paper Fastpasses at Disneyland, you go to a kiosk and get a return time for later in the day).

First on our itinerary was getting a FASTPASS for Toy Story Mania, located at the American Waterfront port. This was probably the most popular ride and everyone’s first destination, so getting a FASTPASS allowed us to come back later with little to no wait. After getting the FASTPASS, we headed to the Lost River Delta and queued at Indiana Jones Adventure. Afterward, we stopped at the Lost River Cookhouse for the Spicy Smoked Chicken and Sparkling Mango Tapioca Drink. Both were winners.

There are a couple of time-sensitive attractions that deserve your attention. At 9:15am, you should head to the Biglietteria to enter the lottery for Big Band Beat tickets. Big Band Beat is a music and dance jazz revue featuring Mickey, and it’s a really good show. It’s also one of the only attractions in English. Entering the lottery can get you a reserved seat for one of Big Band Beat’s five shows. If you don’t get a ticket via lottery, there are still some first-come first-serve seats available for the shows, but you’ll have to line up.

At 11am, you’ll want to make dinner reservations for Magellan’s Restaurant. Some call it the best fine dining experience of all the Disney Parks. We went at 11am and got reservations for 8pm, which was the earliest time slot available. It fills up fast!

Enjoying the attractions at Tokyo DisneySea

After making the reservation, we rode the Venetian gondola nearby. We thought that maybe the gondolas were on a track, because the boats were big and it seemed like a lot of work. But no, the gondoliers really were rowing! One of them even sang to us while steering. Seriously, give these guys a raise!

We didn’t really stop for lunch. Instead, we snacked on strawberry popcorn at Port Discovery and blue shaved ice at Liberty Landing Diner. (Ed. note – popcorn is a huge deal at Tokyo Disney, tons of unique flavors.) We were mostly saving our appetites for Magellan’s later.

In the afternoon, we hit up Mermaid Lagoon, which kids are going to absolutely love. It’s indoors, so it’s a great escape from the heat, and the ambience is amazing. King Triton’s Concert was excellent, featuring an acrobat as the Little Mermaid who literally flies over the audience, alongside some skilled Crustacean puppetry. The attractions at the Lagoon were all kiddie rides, but great for non-thrill seekers.

DisneySea - Mermaid Lagoon — Mermaid Lagoon being indoors is a real lifesaver

Next on our itinerary was Arabian Coast. It was not overly crowded compared to the other ports, so it’s an ideal afternoon stop. The Magic Lamp Theater featured a 3D film starring the Genie from Aladdin. Not as good as Universal’s Shrek show, but a nice break from the heat. Sinbad’s Storybook Voyage ride is pretty much in the vein of It’s a Small World, if you’re into animatronics.

After returning to American Waterfront to use our Toy Story Mania FASTPASS (which was only a 10-minute queue) we went to Port Discovery. Warning: only ride Aquatopia if you have no qualms with getting soaked. Like, literally hosed down. You will need more than an hour to get dry, so bring your ponchos. They show no mercy. Nemo and Friends Searider, a fairly standard simulator ride, is the most popular attraction at this port, so get your FASTPASS for that as well.

DisneySea - Aquatopia — You will get wet!

Dinner at Magellan’s

At 8pm, we returned to Magellan’s for dinner. We chose fine dining over the two outdoor shows, “Fantasmic!” and “Brand New Dream.” Magellan’s explorer ambience is great. The food is very good as well, even for the hefty price. You can choose from a few different set menus. There’s also an infamous secret room you can ask to dine in, which is essentially a wine cellar. We elected to eat in the main dining area, which is beautiful. Definitely one of the highlights of our day.

DisneySea - Magellan's — Magellan’s was well worth it, even though we had to miss some of the shows. Next time!

Final Thoughts

Overall, I have no regrets spending a day of my Japan trip at DisneySea. If you are seeking more thrills (or anything Harry Potter), then Universal Studios Japan in Osaka might be a better alternative. But for families and people looking for a unique Disney experience, you can’t go wrong with DisneySea. And if you’re in Asia, why not stop by Shanghai Disney and Hong Kong Disneyland as well! 🙂

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Mar 20 2018

11 Hong Kong Disneyland Tips and Tricks for 2018

I’ve visited Hong Kong Disneyland three times over two separate trips semi recently (2015 and 2017). The first time I went I hadn’t been to any Disney park in over fifteen years. We had a short and sweet visit with our almost 2 year old daughter. This time we went back with our now 4 year old daughter and almost 2 year old son in tow. Each time I’ve visited I’ve found my friend Leslie’s Hong Kong Disneyland advice to be super helpful.

Let’s take a look at Hong Kong Disneyland in 2018. A few things have changed, mostly for the better. I’ll have my full thoughts on the park later but overall I found the park to be fairly underrated. Yes, it’s smaller than other Disney parks, but I kind of loved that. So let’s take a look at tips and tricks to make the most out of your trip to Hong Kong Disneyland!

1. Now is the perfect time to go

For a number of reasons, now is a great time to visit Hong Kong Disneyland. In the past, the majority of crowds have hailed from mainland China. However, less mainlanders visit Hong Kong these days (for a variety of reasons). On top of that, the opening of Shanghai Disney draws people away from Hong Kong. That means you have fewer crowds to deal with.

On top of all that, Hong Kong Disneyland improved greatly since my visit in 2015. The Ironman Experience, Mickey and the Wondrous Book, and Fairytale Forest have all opened. With lower crowds it’s easier to get your kids into Trials of the Jedi Temple.

Since our visit last year, a lot of new attractions have opened or are set to open in 2018. The new Karibuni Marketplace introduced new characters in the park (in Adventureland), and a new Moana show is slated to open on May 30, 2018!

Oh, and did I mention that a one day ticket only costs ~$75 USD? And due to low attendance, Hong Kong Disneyland seems to run promotions every year. Currently until July 15,2018 you can get a two day ticket with two $15 HKD vouchers (worth about $4 USD) for $689 HKD (~$88 USD).

2. Avoid Chinese holidays and weekends, don’t worry so much about Hong Kong holidays

Despite the decrease in mainland Chinese tourists, they still compose a large portion of Hong Kong Disneyland visitors. So you want to avoid visiting on mainland China holidays (here’s a 2018 calendar). In 2015 I visited the day after New Year’s and the park felt completely packed. This year I went on Easter Monday (a public Hong Kong holiday, but not a mainland China one) and experienced a very small crowd. The longest I had to wait for any ride was 20 minutes and that was by choice due to the kids’ schedules.

Native Hong Kong residents like to get out of Hong Kong during the holidays, another reason not to worry too much about Hong Kong holidays. On the other hand, mainland Chinese like to visit on weekends so you want to avoid those.

3. Use the differences between HK and US time schedules to your advantage

Hong Kong people operate about an hour or two later than your average American. That means they wake up later, eat lunch and dinner at 1:00 and 7:00 PM respectively, and stores stay open much later.

That means if you get to Hong Kong Disneyland at park open (rope drop) you see even shorter lines than you would at the Disney parks in America. And park open in Hong Kong (10:00 AM) is pretty late to begin with. 9:45 AM is around when they start letting people into the park. If you eat lunch at 11:30 or noon and dinner at 6:00 PM you’ll avoid large lines. Then go ride when the majority of people in the park eat meals!

Visiting Hong Kong? Disney fan? Here are 11 Hong Kong Disneyland tips and tricks to help you make the most of your HK Disney visit! — The Mickey MTR is cute, but it takes awhile to get there

4. Budget in and be prepared for the long travel time to get to the park

It takes quite a bit of time to get to the park from the city. So if you’re not staying in a Hong Kong Disneyland hotel, make sure to budget an hour or more for travel. You often are traveling in the thick of rush hour (which starts later than in the US, see above). Be aware that the long travel time might make you want to just do the park for one day. While I think the park can justify two days (we did it), traveling 2+ hours to get to and from the park might make a second day not worth it for your family.

5. Most visitors go to Fantasyland or Tomorrowland first

Fantasyland and Tomorrowland have the largest concentration of attractions. They also are the most iconic parts of Hong Kong Disneyland so most visitors go to those lands first. I visited Toy Story Land at 11:00 AM and all three rides had a wait time of 10 minutes (both days).

So you can adopt two strategies. Strategy 1: Visit the other lands first. If you choose this tactic I recommend you make the Toy Story Parachute Drop your first ride of the day, it has the slowest load times in the entire park (36 people every 5 minutes, compared to Ironman which at capacity can accommodate over 200 visitors every 5 minutes).You can hit all of Toy Story Land in the first hour and then visit Mystic Manor and Grizzly Gulch Mine Cars. Then hit up Fantasyland and Tomorrowland later.

Strategy 2: Rope drop and get all of Fantasyland and Tomorrowland done before the park fills in. Just be aware that Toy Story Land gets super crowded in the mid afternoon, so make that your third stop. Definitely use Strategy 2 if your kids want to participate in Trials of the Jedi Temple. Either way, download the Hong Kong Disneyland app and keep an eye on wait times, just in case the park gets busy.

6. Use Fastpass for rides in this order: Ironman Experience, Winnie the Pooh, Space Mountain

Hong Kong Disneyland operates on a paper Fastpass system like Disneyland. You take your ticket to kiosks, scan it, and receive a paper Fastpass with a return time. You should be able to use Fastpass at all three rides it’s available for in a single day: Ironman Experience, Winnie the Pooh, and Hyperspace Mountain.

If you want to ride all three rides, I suggest you Fastpass them in that order unless you have young kids (in that case prioritize Winnie the Pooh). You could probably ride some of these rides multiple times on most days, since like I said before, park crowds generally are low.

As an aside, the Ironman Experience rules. Think a little bit of Soarin mixed in with a lot of Star Tours but Ironman flavored. Fun moments, exciting action, a little bit of humor – this ride is unique to Hong Kong Disneyland and definitely warrants your time.

7. Don’t miss Mystic Manor

Ghosts occupy a pretty negative place in Chinese culture, so Hong Kong Disneyland went a different direction with their Haunted Mansion equivalent. I totally loved Mystic Manor. It’s got a great storyline and some scary moments. It also is a lot more colorful than the Haunted Mansion which is a welcome change. Like the Ironman Experience, this unique experience qualifies as a must see. I won’t spoil the storyline here, though will do so in a later post.

8. Mickey and the Wondrous Book is a sight to behold – make sure to see it

I wrote awhile back about the impressive Disney Cruise Line entertainment. Mickey and the Wondrous Book, a show unique to Hong Kong Disneyland (sensing a theme?), continues that great tradition. The top notch story follows Mickey as he visits characters from various Disney stories.

Disney presents the show in both Cantonese and English, alternating between the two and using subtitles. The Cantonese => English translation was pretty good, my Chinese isn’t good enough to say anything about the other direction. It’s also pretty hilarious hearing Mickey, Goofy, and Olaf speaking in Cantonese (they get the cadence of these characters down pat).

I also appreciate how the show highlights some lesser heralded Disney properties like The Frog and the Princess (my favorite performance from the show for the record). The music in the show is great, my daughter and I are still singing it five days later. Don’t miss this show and beware of long lines, get there about 15 minutes before showtime to avoid them.

Fun fact: the title song in the show, Happily Ever After, was adapted to make the theme song for the Magic Kingdom’s new fireworks show in Orlando. That fireworks show happens to be my favorite of the nighttime spectaculars.

While you’re at it, Festival of the Lion King is worth your time too, but you can also see that in Florida.

9. Bring cash and try something new to eat

As a miles and points geek I always hope to pay with credit card, but like much of Hong Kong plastic doesn’t go as far in Hong Kong Disneyland. You can use credit card at a lot of stores but places like the eateries don’t take them. You can also use an Octopus card. I highly recommend getting one if you’re spending time in Hong Kong, they make life so easy.

Like much of Hong Kong, you can see 3-D models of a lot of the food. Hong Kong Disneyland food is pretty good and draws from a variety of cultures. Pick something that looks good to you and try it. And remember to eat earlier!

10. Be strategic about visiting characters by using the Hong Kong Disneyland app

All Disney parks post characters at the front of Main Street to cut down on lines. People stop to take these pictures and delay going on rides. Well, in Hong Kong Disneyland, these lines get crazy! Skip those and be smarter about meeting characters.

Download the Hong Kong Disneyland app. It will have a list of all characters that could possibly appear in the parks, but not all characters appear every day. If you don’t see meeting times that character isn’t appearing anymore that day. There are some regulars but others rotate (like Woody was there our first day but Jessie and Buzz took his place the second).

After the park opens, the app populates with the meeting times for each of the characters. Meeting a ton of characters is pretty simple: show up and line up 5 minutes before a character is supposed to appear. You’ll guarantee seeing that character and have a short wait time to boot. My daughter and I spent our second day just meeting characters, and though we missed Mickey and Minnie, we got to see a ton (including the aforementioned Jessie and Buzz). And with the new spot in Adventureland, you’ll have a lot more chances to meet characters!

11. Get stickers, stickers, stickers!

Almost every cast member in the park, from Guest Relations to custodial staff, carry stickers with them. It’s a lot of fun for kids to ask for these stickers and the cast members are super friendly about it. Think pin trading but free.

There are some really cool stickers to collect. If you’re feeling particularly forward, you can even ask cast members to see what stickers they have (they usually have more than one type). Asking for stickers doesn’t get old for kids, or even some adults.

Final Thoughts

Hong Kong Disneyland may be overshadowed by Shanghai at the moment, but you should definitely visit. With the news of Disney investing more money into it, now’s the time to go before it gets too popular. Hopefully these tips can help you maximize your experience.

Have you been to Hong Kong Disneyland? If so, please share some of your experiences and tips in the comments!

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Nov 17 2017

Applying for an Infant Passport – Step by Step Guide

Now that we’ve got this newborn baby situation mostly sorted, time to start thinking passport. (Who am I kidding, our lives are a mess! But still.) Back when we had M, I wrote a bit about getting an infant passport. I decided instead of updating that post I’d just re-write it as a guide for applying for an infant passport (or the passport of any minor).

So, if like me, you’re in the market for a passport for one of your kids, follow these simple steps!

Applying for an infant passport is easy. Follow this simple step by step guide to get a passport for any minor. Includes checklist of everything you need! — Make sure you use a white, not green background!

1. Gather necessary documents for passport for a minor

The most annoying part about getting a passport is getting all the necessary documents for the application. Here’s what you need:

Proof of US Citizenship

In most cases this will be a birth certificate. Make sure you go to your local city hall and have this before you start your application! Also, you need to bring an original birth certificate, so if you want an extra copy for yourself make sure you got that from City Hall! (They’re supposed to mail it back, but I pay the extra $2 or whatever at City Hall for peace of mind).

New Passport Application (Form DS-11)

This application form can be filled out online here. It is the same application form that adults use.

Photocopies of both parents IDs

This can be a passport, Driver’s license, or birth certificate. Be sure to make the copies beforehand to make your life easier.

Form DS-3053 IF one parent can’t make it to the application

I’d highly recommend having both parents go for the application. If one parent can’t attend, they will need Form DS-3053 filled out and notarized. You can find that form here.

Passport photo

2. Make a passport photo

You can go to CVS or Walgreen’s and pay them like $20, or you can make your own passport photo. To avoid the fee, my wife took a photo of our kids and cropped it to 2 inches by 2 inches. Make sure to take it against a white background. The hardest thing is to get the kids to hold still.

Another inexpensive option is using epassportphoto.com. You can use their Do it Yourself photo to crop your own photo and then send it to the drugstore to print. Or you can use their pay service and either have it sent to your home or to the drugstore. It’ll cost you like $10 for two photos though, as opposed to the $1 it will cost if you print yourself.

One note, Walgreen’s generally is a pain because they’ll force you to use their passport photo service. I’ve found CVS to be much more amenable to printing homemade passport photos.

3. Find your nearest Passport Acceptance Facility

Go to this link to find your nearest Passport Acceptance Facility. Most, not all, are post offices.

4. Decide between standard or expedited processing

Standard processing for passports is 4-6 weeks. Expedited is 2-3 weeks. My best advice is to apply for the passport ASAP so you don’t need to stress about waiting. I applied for expedited for my second child and it came in less than two weeks, but this was because I waited until 5 weeks before our trip to apply and was nervous. Don’t do that!

Expedited processing costs an extra $60.

If you are traveling within two weeks, expedited processing at a regular acceptance facility probably won’t cut it. For international travel within two weeks, you will need to make an online appointment here. You still need to pay the $60 expedited fee AND show proof of your travel dates. Those locations are usually in your nearest large city, so be prepared to drive. Try to avoid this situation 🙂

5. Bring all your materials and passport fee to the applicable Passport Acceptance Facility

Once you’ve got all this stuff together, you’re ready to get your passport! Grab your infant and both parents (or else fill out that notarized form) and head on down. Note the standard Passport Book costs $80, a Passport Card costs $15, or you can get both for $95. You also will need to pay the acceptance facility $25 for processing, so overall you pay anywhere between $40 and $120.

The post office will accept all major credit cards for the processing fee, though I’d just bring two blank checks to be safe (my post office has terrible internet and their credit card system is down all the time!). The passport fee itself must be paid by personal check (I think you can buy a money order at the post office too to pay for it).

You don’t need to make an appointment, just drop off your materials and they’ll tell you how to handle the rest!

Thoughts, questions, comments? Let me know!

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May 28 2017

Hong Kong Revisited: Breaking all the parenting rules in Hong Kong

Raising kids in America means being subjected to a large set of rules about what’s safe and best for your children. I semi-religiously adhere to these rules – car seat height and weight limitations, proper etiquette, acceptable tactics for disciplining your children, etc. etc. Most of these “rules” probably reduce statistical probabilities from like 0.5% to 0.4%, but I try not to deviate too much from the norm. Traveling internationally, however, generally requires breaking parenting rules. Or at least bending them. Even if the international standard of the country we visit matches the US, sometimes practically it’s impossible to follow all the rules.

On our recent trip to Hong Kong, I was surprised to find it’s become a lot more baby friendly than our last visit in 2014. The MTR subway system looks to be adding elevators to every single station unlike some other metropolitan cities (*cough cough* LONDON). It seems like car seats are being used more regularly, though they also seem ridiculously expensive. I saw a lot more strollers, too.

Every parent knows that sometimes you have to break parenting rules, especially on the road. Here are some of the rules we had to bend/break in Hong Kong. — It seems car seats are much more prevalent in Hong Kong now, though still nothing like the US

Still, like I said, practically, we ended up bending and breaking a lot of parenting rules on our trip. To me, it’s something that just happens on vacation and I’m okay with it. But feel free to judge me if you’d like – we all parent in our own ways. I’d also love to hear what family and parenting rules you bend or break when on vacation, overseas or otherwise. So check out my list and let me know in the comments!

Eating – eat whatever you want, whenever you want

I’d say in terms of strictness, I’d rank us above average amongst American families. It definitely helps that my daughter didn’t realize she enjoyed ice cream until she turned 4 (that’s not an exaggeration). She still doesn’t enjoy the taste of chocolate. But my wife makes sure they eat organic things or whatever and I try not to share my chips with them so we both do our part.

With toddler jet lag and the foreign environment, we got very lax about eating. Everything of course started on the 15 hour flight to Hong Kong. When our kids are cranky, the easiest way to placate them is with food and we did that in spades. Noodles on demand (from the airline) and crackers on demand (from us) meant that we fed our kids quite a bit. You have to make compromises to survive a flight like that so we did.

This continued in Hong Kong as we found our son didn’t have much of an appetite while jet lagged. That meant he got a ton of calories from crackers the first couple of days. Not ideal, but we did it to survive. At meals we didn’t make a big deal about “trying everything” until the kids were better adjusted. To be honest, my thinking went something like this: “Should he be eating so many crackers…….oh shoot he’s rolling on the ground better give him a cracker!” For my daughter: “Hmm…if I let her eat this sour patch kid she will let me close my eyes for two minutes.”

So yeah, all of our eating restrictions went out the window and I don’t regret it one bit.

Night time routines – we’ll do whatever it takes

Building on the food thing, general best practice dictates that people not consume food or drink after they brush their teeth. Crazy, I know. Well, one thing I decided after taking my son for a walk at 2 AM through the streets of Causeway Bay was that I’d do whatever it takes to get him to rest. So although I put him to bed at his regular time, I prepared myself for him to wake up in three hours. Same with my daughter.

By hook or by crook, I would get H as much sleep as possible. One night that meant standing up with him in the carrier. It meant co-sleeping with him every night (which I love doing by the way but he will have none of it at home, so haha sucker!). It meant giving him milk at night to calm him down. I may or may not have given him crackers at 3 AM one night, I honestly could not tell you. I definitely showed him a video (La Luna, I think) hoping he would fall asleep watching it (he did not).

A lot of this was because of his jet lag. As he adjusted, I broke the rules less and less. By the end of the trip I only would give him water if he woke up in the middle of the night. So it’s not like if I took a three week vacation I’d let my kids eat cookies in bed, but at least during those first few days of adjusting, I let a lot of the rules go. And that was just fine.

Escalators – that’s not how you’re supposed to ride

Our most egregious rule breaking probably were riding escalators. Yes, Hong Kong has a ton of elevators and the MTR has made big strides. But our home MTR station, Causeway Bay, did not have an operational elevator because the station was under construction (I think to improve handicap access hilariously enough). They posted agents at the escalators telling you to take your kids out of strollers before riding. They also said if you need help you could call a phone number and people would come to carry you up and down (I think this was for wheelchairs).

Anyway:

So our kids rode their strollers up and down escalators quite a bit the week we were in Hong Kong. Am I proud of it? No. Would I do it again? Most probably definitely. If it’s 2 minutes up the escalator versus 12 minutes wandering around trying to find an elevator, I’ll likely take the 2 minutes every time.

Car seats – we don’t need no stinkin car seats

OK, that’s not really true. I would have loved to have a car seat. But since we planned on taking the MTR for most of the trip, we did not bring one. We brought a mifold (portable booster) for M but knew that H would mostly be going without. Now I’d probably never ride without a car seat in the States. If I’m being honest, it’s more because I don’t want to get a ticket. Which is probably why they give tickets!

But sometimes taking a taxi was the only option and so we rode with H in our laps. And, oops, sometimes we forgot or didn’t use the mifold too, so M was without a safety mechanism as well. It’s not something we enjoyed doing, but it’s something we did to make the trip smoother. I understand that some parents would never ever do that and I totally respect that. I’m certainly not recommending you forego car seats just because you’re traveling, but just being honest in admitting that we did.

Why I’m comfortable breaking parenting rules and why I consider you to at least consider bending them

“Rules are meant to be broken.” While I don’t necessarily believe that 100%, I do sort of operate that way in my normal life. Heck, isn’t that what travel hacking is all about? But I’ve learned a lot while parenting, and one thing I’ve realized is my ultimate lack of control over my children and their futures. When Jess was pregnant with our first, I was nervous all the time. What if something went wrong, what if I am a bad father, what if what if what if? Now that H and M are running around in this world, I have the illusion that I have a greater measure of control than I did when they were in the womb.

But really, we don’t. Parenting rules? They are ways to decrease the statistical probabilities of something bad happening, but nothing can bring those probabilities to 0. Parenting in general? Parenting is a way to increase the statistical probability your child will be a positively contributing, functional member of society, but nothing we do can make that probability 100.

So I’m comfortable breaking parenting rules because sometimes that’s the best option. Everything in life is a give and take. Walk 20 extra minutes to find the elevator but maybe your son will be so overtired they won’t eat and that’s bad for their nutrition. Milk might hurt their teeth at night, but lack of sleep might hurt them more. We can’t control everything. So I’m comfortable when I need to bend or break the rules because I know I’m just doing my best to put my children in the best situation possible for them. And yes, I am well aware that traveling internationally with these little kids comes with a bunch of cons – but I believe the pros outweigh them.

Anyway, bottom line is, we can only control so much and sometime we need to make compromises. That’s something I encourage all parents to do whether they are traveling or not. Parenting means meeting our kids where they are, and sometimes that means bending hard and set parenting rules at the very least.

Final Thoughts

Like I said, I’m not telling you to break the rules all the time. I’m just sharing that sometimes when we are on the road we let some of the rules go by the wayside, and I’m okay with that. I don’t think that makes me any worse of a parent (though I’m sure some others might think that!). I’d love to hear people’s thoughts in the comments. Are there rules you break with your kids when you travel? Or when you’re at home? Let me know, and let’s have a mature discussion about it.

May 16 2017

Cheapest lap infant award tickets for international travel

In general parlance, you usually hear that lap infants are “free” until they turn two. That’s generally true – if flying domestically you can bring your under 2 year old on a plane and they can sit on your lap free of charge. However, on international flights, you have to pay at least some money for a lap infant – not free. This extends to lap infant award tickets – even if you pay for your flight with miles, you’ll have to pay cash (or miles, for some airlines) for your lap infant.

Most airlines charge 10% of the adult cash fare for international lap infant award tickets. So regardless of how you pay for your ticket (cash or miles), the lap infant ticket costs 10% of the cash fare. So a lap infant on a $400 cash fare costs $40. For business and first class lap infant tickets, this can be very expensive! Our Cathay Pacific flight (paid with 140,000 AA miles) to Hong Kong cost $8000 if bought with cash. The lap infant should have cost us $800! (Not sure how AA screwed it up, but they only charged us 10% of the coach fare so oh well. I was ready to pay $800.)

For families, if you have the miles flying in business class or better often can help make the long hauls more bearable. You can lie flat with your child or get some rest while the other parent takes care of them. And it IS possible to avoid expensive cash outlays for the infant award tickets. I thought I’d share the airline award programs that offer the cheapest lap infant award tickets. Use these programs to save money or miles when booking your lap infant award.

Note, in almost all cases, you will book the lap infant ticket with the airline issuing your ticket, aka whoever you pay your miles to. This seems a little counterintuitive at times, but I’ve never had to pay the carrier I’m flying, always the carrier who I paid miles to for the ticket. As in all of life, there are exceptions, but they are few and far between.

I’ve listed what I’ve found to be the cheapest programs in alphabetical order but I’m sure I missed some so let me know your experiences below! If a program isn’t listed here, it’s likely to cost you 10% of the adult revenue fare (or more). I’ve also included a few notes of things to bear in mind for each program.

Air Canada (Aeroplan)

Infant award ticket cost: $50 or 5000 miles (economy), $75 or 7500 miles (prem. econ.), $100 or 10,000 miles (business), $125 or 12,500 miles (first)

Airline Partners: Star Alliance

Transfer Partners: Membership Rewards

News broke last week that Air Canada will move away from their Aeroplan program, well let’s hope that they don’t change their lap infant award ticket fares! You can use Air Canada’s Aeroplan miles to book flights on Star Alliance carriers. Star Alliance still remains the largest airline alliance and you can pretty much get where you want to go anywhere in the world.

Lap infant award tickets seem pricey, but not if you know the best airline award programs to use. These airlines have the cheapest lap infant award tickets!

Flat rates really help to save money, and the flat rate of $125 or 12,500 miles for first class is one of the best in the business. $100 or 10,000 miles for business class ain’t too shabby either. One thing to beware of for Aeroplan, they do levy fuel surcharges on a lot of routes so you need to factor that into your calculations. Still, a lot of times you come out ahead booking through Aeroplan. Check out their reward chart here.

Asiana

Infant award ticket cost: 10% of mileage cost plus taxes and fees

Airline Partners: Star Alliance

Transfer Partners: Starwood

While it’s tough to beat Aeroplan’s flat rate, a close second would be programs that offer lap infant award tickets at 10% of the mileage. For a 100,000 mile adult redemption a lap infant award ticket would cost 10,000 miles. Asiana’s program operates in this fashion which is great if you need to fly on Star Alliance.

Lap infant award tickets seem pricey, but not if you know the best airline award programs to use. These airlines have the cheapest lap infant award tickets!

The Asiana program has a few things going for it. First, it allows family pooling, which makes a big difference when you are sitting on tiny balances for your kids (though less of a difference than you might think, considering you probably don’t credit to Asiana often). Asiana has some great sweet spots, like 50,000 one way in Lufthansa First Class (or any first class) to Europe but they hit you pretty hard with the fuel surcharges. Still, 5,000 miles for the lap infant for LH F is tough to beat, so it’s something to consider.

To me difficulty of getting miles presents the biggest difficulty with Asiana. Bank of America offers a credit card with a modest signup bonus but other than that you need to transfer from Starwood, which can be difficult to earn. Still, if you can get the miles, it’s a program worth taking a look at for your lap infant needs.

British Airways

Infant award ticket cost: 10% of mileage cost plus taxes and fees

Airline Partners: Oneworld

Transfer Partners: Membership Rewards, Ultimate Rewards

British Airways saved our family a ton of cash the first time we took our daughter back to Asia. British Airways Avios are easy to earn and can transfer from both Membership Rewards and Ultimate Rewards. The downside of Avios comes in the form of the distance based award chart, which gets pretty annoying. But when you consider booking a lap infant on your award, sometimes Avios can make sense. 10% of the mileage fare beats the $800-$1000 or so you’d pay when booking the same premium cabin with AA miles.

For example, now a one way direct first class flight on Cathay Pacific cost 140,000 Avios or 110,000 AA miles. But the lap infant cost would be 14,000 Avios or something like $1000. So in some cases using British Airways will save you overall. So even though people mainly use British Airways for short haul flight these days, don’t ignore them for long haul flights if you plan on bringing a lap infant in a premium cabin.

Korean Air

Infant award ticket cost: 10% of mileage cost plus taxes and fees

Airline Partners: Skyteam

Transfer Partners: ~~Ultimate Rewards~~ (RIP)

Korean Air is a bit of a hidden gem in my mind, especially since their fuel surcharges have gotten less expensive. They have great availability on their own flights, including in premium cabins, and infants only cost 10% of the mileage fare. If you’re flying to Europe from the East Coast they can be a great option for flying on Delta metal too (and saving on lap infant award ticket fees).

The biggest drawback with Korean Air is having to create a family plan with all your family members. It’s not super difficult (as in it no longer requires faxing) but it can be a bit cumbersome. Create the family plan earlier rather than later so you don’t need to deal with it if you need to buy last minute tickets. You can also hold awards for a ridiculously generous amount of time, two weeks (here’s how to create a family plan and an award hold). As a Chase Ultimate Rewards partner, earning Korean Air miles is pretty straightforward and you have a lot of options, making Korean Air a great option.

Lufthansa Miles and More

Infant award ticket cost: Just taxes and fees

Airline Partners: Star Alliance

Transfer Partners: Starwood

Lufthansa Miles and More only charges taxes and fees for lap infant awards which is great! But they charge high fuel surcharges, not great. The best way to use Miles and More is for flights with carriers like United who don’t charge fuel surcharges. If you can find flights on United to Europe you like, you can get to Europe and back for 105,000 miles round trip and not too many fuel surcharges while taking your lap infant for very little as well. I probably like the Miles and More program the least out of all the programs in this post, but if you have a lot of SPG points lying around, they can be a good option. Check and compare the Asiana and Lufthansa award charts before you make your decisions.

Final Thoughts

If you want to fly in a premium cabin, lap infant award tickets can be expensive, even if you pay for the flights with miles! When deciding what to book, there are a ton of factors – convenience, point balances, out of pocket cash costs, etc. etc. If you can, I recommend using one of these five programs to book at least one person in your party’s ticket. That way you can attach the lap infant to their ticket with the lowest cost possible. It takes some extra work but with the potential to save almost $1000, it’s worth it in my opinion.

Let me know if there are friendly lap infant programs I missed and any tips and tricks you might have in the comments!