Many families are preparing for long-awaited summer holidays with the kids and online searches for ‘child-friendly airlines’ have increased by 1,400 per cent in the past 12 months. Latest research has looked at regulations various airlines have in place about taking a pushchair on the journey or providing a free seat for children.
Life insurance broker Reassured has taken a closer look at 24 carriers departing from UK airports to compare what they’re offering to travelling parents and their kids. Taking the top spots are British Airways, Qatar Airways, Emirates and Qantas because they offer the most perks for children.
Everyone of the 24 airlines studied allow for a pushchair to be taken on board for free. However, 18 charge extra for a child’s seat and among those are Etihad Airlines, Lufthansa and Jet2.
Most of the airlines offer kids’ entertainment such as appropriate movies or colouring pens and paper. However, parents flying with Flybe, Jet2 or Ryanair are in for a disappointment, as no entertainment is offered for the little ones. Ryanair and Jet2 do offer free kids’ meals.
A spokesperson for Reassured said: “During the summer months many families will be looking forward to their holidays, but the planning can be daunting. Packing and ensuring you’re allowed to take everything on board can be time-consuming, so we hope our breakdown will help towards a relaxed start to your holiday.”
The below table showcases how different airlines compare against one another in terms of child-friendliness:
Rank |
Airline |
Free seat reservation? |
Free checked luggage? |
Priority/Pre-boarding for families? |
Kids meals? |
Child-specific entertainment? |
Bringing carry cot for free? |
Bringing a pushchair for free? |
1 |
British Airways |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
1 |
Qatar Airways |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
1 |
Emirates |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
1 |
Qantas |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
2 |
Virgin Atlantic |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
2 |
KLM |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
2 |
Singapore Airlines |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
2 |
Etihad Airlines |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
2 |
Aer Lingus |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
2 |
Turkish Airlines |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
2 |
Japan Airlines |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
3 |
United Airlines |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
3 |
Lufthansa |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
3 |
Air France |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
3 |
Delta Airlines |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
4 |
Air Transat |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
4 |
Thai Airways |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
4 |
Air Canada |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
4 |
American Airlines |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
4 |
Jet2 |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
4 |
Easyjet |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
4 |
Tui Airways |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
5 |
FLYBE |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
5 |
Ryanair |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
