- A travel influencer said she left her son in economy while upgrading to business class with her husband.
- The post sparked an intense debate about when children are old enough to travel alone on planes.
A travel influencer who said she upgraded to business class while leaving her son in economy class on a flight said she was subjected to "mom shaming" for her viral post, despite later backtracking and saying that her son was in a separate business-class aisle.
Karen Akpan, who has around 305,000 Instagram followers, typically posts photos from her travels with her husband, Sylvester, and her son, Aiden, who live as "digital nomads" and travel internationally full-time, according to her bio.
Last week, she shared a clip of her and Sylvester holding glasses and toasting each other while seated in what appeared to be business-class seats on an airplane.
"POV: Enjoying business class with my husband on a 13-hour flight while our 10-year-old sits in the back in economy class because he doesn't have United Premier 1K status like we do and didn't get a complementary upgrade," the caption on her post read.
She added, "Sorry son" along with three cry-laughing emojis.
Apkan went on to ask her followers what they would have done if they were offered two upgraded seats while traveling in a family of three, writing in her caption that followers should explain whether the age of their child or the duration of the flight would affect their choice.
Most people wrote that they would likely have at least one parent stay with their child in economy class. A handful of people favored leaving the child alone, saying that adults were more likely to appreciate the perks of business class and that they didn't think there was anything abnormal about letting a child sit by themselves.
Some commenters said they were outraged by the influencer's question, however, writing that it was "irresponsible" to leave a child on their own on a flight, as it made them vulnerable.
"These parents are too trusting, naive even!" one user wrote.
— (@heyyitsjanea) May 15, 2023
A screenshot of Apkan's video was uploaded to Twitter by a user called @heyyitsjanea, where it received 1.5 million views, resulting in speculation about whether the creator was being serious in her post. Several users suggested that it was most likely a joke and that the screenshot was reuploaded onto Twitter to cause online outrage.
The influencer said in a later post shared on May 13 that she did not actually leave her child in economy class and that he was sitting in a separate row in business class. Apkan also shared more clips from the family's journey, which she said was from Los Angeles to Tokyo.
The influencer wrote that she did upgrade to business class using points, but that it was for the whole family — and showed a clip of her son appearing to sit in business class too.
"I prob wouldn't let me son fly alone in economy, YET!" she wrote in her caption.
She also addressed the intense reaction her post received, writing, "On my last post I agreed with every response bc whatever option you chose to go with is fine as long as it works for your family. There's no right or wrong answer, please let's stop with the mom shaming."
Commenters told Apkan they supported her parenting and travel decisions, saying they thought her son looked happy to be flying in business class with them in the clips.
On TikTok, videos about travel etiquette are very controversial, particularly when children are involved. Numerous TikTokers have gone viral for saying they don't want to make sacrifices for other people's children when they were asked to swap seats with families on flights.
In January, Insider reported that a mother who tweeted about not wanting to let her 6-year-old son fly alone on a plane sparked a viral debate about whether it would be appropriate to let children go on planes unaccompanied.
According to a US Department of Transportation booklet, most airlines let children who are 5 or older fly by themselves, but if they are under 15, they have to follow "unaccompanied minor" policies, which include special pickup and dropoff procedures, among other protocols. It also advises parents to sit near their children if flying together.
Karen Akpan did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
For more stories like this, check out coverage from Insider's Digital Culture team here.