CARES awards

The CARES airplane harness for children continues to generate positive reviews and media buzz. In the last few months, CARES has been awarded the Dr. Toy's "Best Vacation Product" and "10 Most Socially Responsible Product" accolades. It's also been given the 2009 National Parenting Center's "Seal of approval."

CARES can now be used on any plane certified under the jurisdiction of Canada, the UK, the US, Australia and New Zealand. It's also been used successfully by parents on nearly all the European and Asian airlines. Notable exceptions include Aer Lingus, Lufthansa and ANA. For more info, visit the Kids Fly Safe website.

Anyone planning to travel with children in the 22-44lb weight bracket (approximately 1 to 4 years) should consider giving CARES a try. It's available to buy or rent through Little Traveller baby equipment rentals in Calgary, Alberta. We ship across Canada.

Hurry for your chance to win!

There's just over a week left to enter to win a CARES harness at Canadianbabies.ca. Enter online by voting for your favourite entry from Little Traveller's blog. We want to know what you want to know!

The major pros of the CARES harness:
- it's easy to use
- it fits in your purse
- it stops your toddler from squirming out of his/her seat
- it offers the same safety rating as a car seat (so much safer than a lap belt alone)

If you're not the lucky winner on June 8, don't despair. Little Traveller has CARES available to rent as well as to purchase. Visit us online at Little Traveller's website or call us on 1-877-242-4067.

CARES and special needs children -- new breakthrough

There's great news of a breakthrough for parents of special needs children who would like to use the CARES airplane harness on flights in the US. If the CARES harness will physically fit your child (the black straps actually expand enough to fit a child about 4 ft 10 inches tall) even though they are over the 44 lb / 40 inch current limit, a request in writing can be made to the FAA for permission to use the CARES harness. Specify in the letter that you are willing to sit in a bulkhead seat (the last row of any section of the plane) so no one will be required to brace by leaning against your child's seat. According to Kid's Fly Safe MD Louise Stoll, the FAA will not take long to grant the exemption. Carry the exemption with you when you fly. When you make ticket arrangements, ask for a bulkhead seat, but there is no need to discuss anything further with the individual airlines.

The situation is Canada is less accommodating. Transport Canada told me that it is unlikely that an exemption could be issued at this time for special needs passengers over the current CARES limits since no regulatory requirements are yet in place for the use of CARES by children with special needs. Also, in Canada it is up to the individual airlines to make their own rules regarding the use of on board child restraint systems.


Little Traveller baby equipment rentals in Calgary sells and rents the CARES harnesses (we ship across Canada). Visit our website for more information or call us at 1-877-242-4067.

CARES harness for children with special needs

The CARES airplane harness can be a very useful tool for families flying with children that have special needs. If your child is in the 22-44 lb weight bracket and has physical disabilities, check with your doctor or physical therapist to determine whether the harness will provide sufficient upper body support. If you get the green light, check your bulky car seat and carry the little 6" CARES stuff sack on board instead.

For children with autism or related issues, the CARES harness has been successful in providing a level of security beyond what the lap belt alone does, and families that have used it say that it helps to keep their child calmer during the flight.

For more information on flying with children with special needs, check out this About.com web page that has relevant links to the major airlines.

Little Traveller baby equipment rentals in Calgary sells and rents the CARES harnesses (we ship within Canada). Visit our website for more information or call us at 1-877-242-4067.

Turbulence Tips

Most flights experience some form of turbulence from weather systems or erratic air movements. And while pilots often know when to expect it, clear air turbulence can catch the crew (and therefore the passengers) unawares. To help prevent injury from turbulence during a flight, follow these guidelines:
- keep your seatbelt buckled at all times when seated (to keep yourself safe and to set a good example to your children)
- keep your child's seatbelt or restraint harness buckled at all times when seated
- don't get up unless necessary
- when walking about the cabin, hold on to the seat backs or overhead bins and keep hold of your child at all times
- don't stow heavy items in the overhead bins
- keep the overhead bins closed at all times
- consider renting or purchasing a Baby B'Air flight vest for your baby travelling in your lap or a CARES harness if your child is over a year old, weighs at least 22 lbs and has her own seat. Both restraints are designed to keep little travellers safe during mid-flight turbulence.

Safe travels!

Baby B'Airs are here!

Little Traveller now has Baby B'Air flight vests available to rent or purchase.

These award-winning quilted flight vests are for lap-held infants up to the age of two. They are designed to protect infants during the flight portion of a trip when 90% of turbulence occurs. They also help to safely secure wriggly children.

The vest is made from 100% cotton and is comfortable to wear (and easy to wash).

For more info: Baby B'Air / CARES harness

CARES news

I have some great news about CARES to share with you. British Airways just approved (end of January) the use of the CARES airplane seatbelt on its flights. I travelled to England with them at Christmas and was disappointed, no make that disgusted, that they didn't allow it yet. But now they do. Hurray! Most of the European airlines now recognize CARES as a permitted and important safety device and the people at Kids Fly Safe (the company that developed the CARES system) are working to expand the list of international airlines that permit the device. They keep an updated list of airlines on their FAQs page. But if you have any questions about using the harness, or want to rent one or buy one, drop me a line at Little Traveller.