would you???

[Holly_QD]

I think 6 is too young. I was in a flight with a 6 year old that was traveling alone. There was a little turbulence and she started getting a little nervous and then finally burst out in tears calling out for her mommy. Luckily there was a very sweet lady that was next to her calmed her down a bit. Meanwhile there were some scrooges on the plane that started complaining about her crying. Poor baby. Thank goodness it was only a 65 minute flight, but it probably was the longest hour in her 6 years of life. It's up to you I think, but no one will take care of your babies like yourself or someone related.

[Suzy]

I would let her go alone.

But-I don't have any skin kids of my own (yet).

My reason for saying YES is that I flew alone at 6 years old to go visit my aunt. The flight was probably 3 hours or so, from Minneapolis to New York. I LOVED IT-and I flew somewhere to meet her and spend some time in the summer with her each year after that-to Las Vegas, Wisconsin, Alberquerque, and Orlando. The experiences I had were wonderful, and I wouldn't trade any of those memories for anything. It was special because it was "our thing" and the whole experience was even cooler for me as a kid because I got to go by myself. I felt very confident and responsible-even though the flight attendants were with me the whole time.

You have to ask yourself and your daughter a bunch of questions about it though-is SHE comfortable going alone? What would she do in an emergency? Does she know her address and phone number, and the address and phone number of where she'll be staying? Does the flight need to connect anywhere, or is it a direct flight? If she needs to connect, does she know what to do if she has a long layover?

Talk about it with your daughter, and make a decision going from there.

[Jenn218]

My cousin (when he got divorced) had his two little girls fly alone to visit their mom. They were little, I think the youngest was six or younger. They never had a problem, but I know the family all hated the thought of that. They still fly alone all the time. The oldest one is 13 now.

When we flew to Disney World a few years ago, there was a group of kids, not the same family, but about four kids that were flying alone. They were met at the gate by an airport person and walked to their next gate. I don't know if they do that for all the children, but they did for this group.

I personally would feel better if there was another child or so...not just one going by themselves...I don't know....I guess "safety in numbers"......

Shoot....when my daughter was five, my inlaws wanted to take her on a driving trip for two weeks and both my husband and I said no. Is that bad? So, I am probably not the best one to give advice. HA!