Like everyone else in America, I’ve been dying to travel. One of the first things I did after learning the vaccine was coming for all Americans was to book a trip to Florida for Zara and me to see my family.

My husband’s job doesn’t come with a whole lot of leeway for time off, so he has to use his vacation days sparingly. That meant I’d be going it alone for this trip.

I went back and forth quite a bit over when to book it—sooner, when Zara was smaller and easier to tote around? Or later, when she was a little older and could sit on her own and stay awake for longer stretches?

In the end, I wound up booking the trip for the most convenient dates, which fell a few days after Zara turned four months old.

Traveling alone with a baby isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s a highly physical endeavor filled with lifting and lugging and schlepping. Aching back aside, our trip was largely a success and I’m so glad we went! I’m already looking at dates for our next trip.

If you’re reading this, it’s probably because you’re considering traveling or about to travel with a baby and trying, like I was, to avoid it being a total nightmare. Disclaimer: there will inevitably be some hiccups, and that’s okay. The key is setting a low bar, taking lots of deep breaths and doing your best to loosen that death grip you have on being in control (hi, I’m talking to myself).

Setup for Flying Alone with a Baby

Before I get to the tips, I thought it would be helpful to share our setup for flying. Before our trip, I was totally clueless about how to fly with a baby and the logistics involved.

A couple important things I learned: children under two can sit in your lap for free. If you want them to have their own seat, most airlines require you to buy a separate ticket. A few allow kids to fly free or at a discounted fare.

A baby’s travel necessities, like their stroller, car seat and diaper bag, don’t count toward your baggage allowance. So, in addition to all your baby gear, you can bring a personal item on board without an extra fee. Obviously double check with your airline before you show up for your flight, but this was the policy for Allegiant and JetBlue, which I flew with on this trip.

When I first booked the trip, I thought, babies fly free? Great, she’ll sit in my lap. The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized what a disaster this could potentially turn into with my daughter, who hates to be held while sitting down. At the last minute, I called both airlines and booked her her own seat. I’m so glad I did.

So, here’s what my traveling-with-a-baby setup ended up looking like:

• I packed one bag (from Away, which I adore) for both of us and checked it
• I rolled to the gate with her stroller + car seat. They make you take the baby out of the car seat at security, so I had our Baby Bjorn handy and popped her into that
• I gate-checked the stroller and the base for her car seat. Gate checking is super convenient for baby gear and doesn’t cost extra. You leave your items just before you get onboard and pick them up right when you deplane, instead of having to go to baggage claim
• I boarded with her in the Baby Bjorn, carrying the car seat for her to sit in

I have to give major props to the crew at Allegiant, who went above and beyond to help me get boarded and settled during our NY-to-FL flight.

It’s very easy to feel like you’re one big inconvenience when traveling with a baby, but they made me feel like it was totally normal and they wanted to make it as easy as possible. I will definitely be flying Allegiant again for our future Florida trips.

Now for what I learned from traveling solo with a baby.

1. Fly Early in the Day

If your baby is like mine, her mood has an inverse relationship with the hour of the day. The longer she’s been awake, the fussier she gets. Conveniently, airports operate on a similar clock. The later it gets in the day, the greater your chance for delays, crowds and other travel snafus.

Fly early. Our flights were between 10 a.m. and noon both ways and it worked out really well for the timing of her meals and naps. Next time I’d go even earlier—a 9 a.m. flight would be perfect.

2. Arrive Early

Before I had a baby, I would roll up to the airport 30 minutes before the doors of my plane were set to close. I’ve run to the gate more than once.

The thought of doing this with a baby and all the ancillary gear is laughable. While you’re probably worried about getting there too early and being trapped in the terminal with a baby, that’s highly preferable to rushing to your gate in a panic or worse, missing your flight.

Get there early, feed your baby, get yourself a snack. Lay out a blanket and let her kick around and get some tummy time since she’ll be confined to a seat for the next few hours. Get friendly with the gate agents, who can hopefully help you get onboard smoothly.

3. Sit at the Front and Board Last

Most airlines call for families traveling with children to board early, which is nice, but that just means you’ll be cooped up on the plane that much longer. With a small baby, I think it’s easier to wait and board last, especially if you can get a seat up front.

For our first flight, I was able to get us seats in the third row. We waited until everyone else had boarded and then breezed into our seats, taking off just a few minutes later.

On our second flight we were near the back and boarded early. We had to wait almost half an hour for everyone else to board and to finally take off, and Zara got pretty fussy during that wait. In the future I will definitely pay extra to be at the front.

4. Unpopular Advice: Get Your Baby Their Own Seat

I’ve heard a lot of moms rave about taking advantage of the kids-under-two-fly-free policy, but I’m so glad I went with my gut and coughed up the cash for another seat. I guess some babies love to be held, but Zara would’ve had a fit if I attempted to keep her on my lap for the entire 2.5 hour flight.

I followed popular advice and nursed her while we took off (the swallowing helps their ears with the change in air pressure), then transferred her to her car seat next to me. She complained a little but fell asleep after a few minutes and slept for the majority of both flights.

5. Book the Window and the Aisle

Babies sitting in a car seat are required to be placed in the window seat. When you’re selecting your seats, book the window seat for baby and the aisle seat for yourself.

Other people booking their flights will avoid choosing a single middle seat, making it more likely it’ll stay empty and you’ll have the entire row to yourselves. If it’s a full flight and you do wind up with a third person in your row, you can always switch with them for the middle seat.

6. Bring a Pillow

I wished I had brought one to prop Zara on while I fed her instead of having just the arm rest. The round neck pillows that snap together at the bottom would have been perfect to tack onto her diaper bag and carry onboard.

7. Wear a Watch

We take for granted that we’ll always have our phone to check the time, but when you’re traveling solo with a baby, your hands will pretty much always be full. This makes digging out your phone difficult. The last thing you want is to absentmindedly set it down somewhere, like I did on our first flight (bless the TSA agents who came running after me with it!).

Make your life a little easier by wearing a watch.

I was pretty stressed about flying with a baby on my own, but we made it from New York to Florida and back without any major disasters. I now feel a lot more confident about taking her places by myself and know that when Johnny and I travel with her together, it will be a piece of cake in comparison.

Have you traveled with your baby or do you plan to soon? Leave me a comment and let me know how you’re feeling about it/what other questions you have!

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