I wish there was a nursery cabin in all passenger airplanes. If airline companies could afford providing business class, first class, residential suites and the humongous airplane Airbus 380 (double-deck jet passenger airliner), for sure they could provide a space exclusively for families with very young children (under the age of 5), yes the kind of children who do not sit still and cries loudly, the kind of children that passengers (who don’t like children) do not want to sit next with.
What it would be like:
- Exclusive for families with children age 5 years and younger.
- Roomier legroom.
- Seats to recline further back to let children sleep properly.
- Mini playground providing soft toys and soft books.
- Curtains for nursing mothers.
- Roomier restrooms with baby changer table.
- Restrooms providing clean water and dish soap for washing baby bottles and children’s eating utensils.
- Restrooms providing shorter or child version of the toilet for potty trained toddlers.
- Children will be able to play with other children.
- If one child is upset, it’s okay, you’re in the nursery cabin, they’re all parents and they’ll understand 100%.
Comment below about what else should be provided in the nursery cabin! Also, please share, I am hoping that this blog post would circulate enough to reach at least one airline company!
Right now, airlines prioritize families with infants to sit on the front row (where the wall/divider is) and provide them with bassinets for infants under 30 inches in height. That is actually already very good. Infants only cry when uncomfortable (hungry, wet diaper, just want to be picked up) and you don’t have to really leave your seat. But if you’re travelling with a toddler, that is a another story. Toddlers are on the move, they are not used to be confined in a small space for long hours. I walked the aisles of Asiana and Korean Air with my toddler because she was so bored. What did I do? Move around with her and endlessly think of different distractions for her not to be loud. Many times the stewardess would approach us in our seats whenever my toddler cries even just for a few seconds. Words cannot calm them down or make them understand that they have to behave inside a plane considering that they are still building their language and vocabulary. Believe me, parents are doing their best not to disturb other passengers but that’s just how toddlers are.
Therefore, again, I wish that someday, airline companies would consider an area inside their airplanes dedicated for families with children age 5 and younger.