Final July, the U.S. Division of Homeland Safety and the Transportation Safety Administration introduced a brand new initiative to make the journey by means of the airport much less demanding for households.
As a part of the “Households on the Fly” marketing campaign, the TSA created devoted safety checkpoint lanes for households at greater than a dozen airports and introduced plans to roll out this amenity at extra airports nationwide.
Many households have used the TSA’s new household lanes already — however the thought isn’t a brand new one.
Historical past of family-friendly airport choices
Some vacationers could keep in mind that again in 2008, the TSA supplied a ski slope-inspired checkpoint system at many airports the place vacationers might self-select their path.
Along with the black diamond (or skilled) traveler lane and the blue sq. (frequent traveler) lane, there was a inexperienced circle (newbie) lane for households and individuals who may want particular help.
This system was phased out across the time TSA PreCheck rolled in.
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There are many different family-friendly providers and facilities already in place at airports throughout the nation that may make the journey day rather a lot simpler for households. For instance, whereas not only for youngsters, an growing variety of airports now have calming sensory rooms to assist with anxiousness and overstimulation on journey days.
And whereas not typically properly marketed, many airports have crayons and coloring books, scavenger hunt maps, airport buying and selling playing cards, and plastic pilot wings free for youths who ask for them on the data cubicles. You possibly can normally discover out extra about these sources (and others) on-line earlier than your journey or on the airport.
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US airports with kid-friendly areas
Below its “Traveling with Children” web site tab, for instance, Chicago’s O’Hare Worldwide Airport (ORD) lists the places of the Household Lounge and the Mom’s Rooms, and it additionally supplies a listing of eating places with nice views of the airfield. There’s additionally a coloring ebook exercise and an artwork scavenger hunt highlighting the airport’s artwork assortment.
Because of the Pleasant Airports for Moms Act (and its replace, the Pleasant Airports for Moms Enchancment Act), small, medium and enormous hub airports should now have devoted lactation areas for touring breastfeeding moms.
In restrooms at greater than 100 airports in U.S. cities, households touring with youngsters will even discover Step ‘n Wash folding step stools on the sinks.
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“There is no want for adults to wrestle to elevate their little ones to achieve the cleaning soap and water, inflicting spills and moist clothes,” Api Appulingam, chief growth officer at Philadelphia Worldwide Airport (PHL), mentioned. PHL simply put in the family-friendly amenity in newly reworked restrooms.
Nursing rooms, family TSA lanes and playgrounds are simply a number of the facilities that assist help households at airports, in line with Julie Melnick, founder and CEO of SkySquad, a service that helps vacationers navigate airports.
Melnick is aware of youngsters love the Cloudscape playground in Terminal 1 at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Worldwide Airport (FLL) and the entertaining Disney retailer at Orlando Worldwide Airport (MCO). Additionally they benefit from the youngsters play house at Ronald Reagan Washington Nationwide Airport (DCA), which she mentioned gives views of the planes.
Newark Liberty Worldwide Airport (EWR) has three play zones for youths in Terminal A, situated at gates A6, A20 and A29. There’s additionally a student-created ebook swap, or Kids’s Lending Library, in Terminal A by Gate A32, and in Terminal C by Gate C104.
At Terminal 5 of John F. Kennedy Worldwide Airport (JFK), youngsters can go exterior (and pet some canine) on the Rooftop & Wooftop Lounge. They will additionally hand around in the aviation-themed play space.
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In Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport (LGA), there are airport-inspired kids’s play areas in each concourses, in addition to two sky bridges that provide nice spots to look at airplanes, and a water characteristic that thrills with choreographed lighting, video projections, music and reveals that change with the season.
Seattle-Tacoma Worldwide Airport (SEA) has a big aviation-themed space by Gate A1 — however in Could 2025 added a smaller, second spot for youths on Concourse D, close to Gate 25, themed on the Palouse area in japanese Washington.
Denver Worldwide Airport (DEN) not solely has three outside decks providing nice views for youths (and adults), but in addition two themed play areas for younger youngsters. The one on Concourse C (close to Gate C4) has an outer house theme, whereas the brand new play space that opened this previous December on Concourse A (by Gate A25) is aviation-themed.
And San Francisco Worldwide Airport (SFO) has each pre- and post-security remark decks, in addition to a number of Youngsters’ Spots all through the terminals. Search for the handmade mural by Walter Kitundu that includes Bay Space birds (Terminal 2, close to Gate D7); Eric Staller’s Spirogyrate, which options 6-foot rotating spiral discs on the ground and the wall (Terminal 3, Gate E7); and Tree City (Harvey Milk Terminal, close to Gate B18).
Lots of the altering exhibitions within the SFO Museum’s strong exhibition schedule are positive to curiosity youngsters as properly.
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