- Business Insider spoke to two millennial moms who always fly business class with their babies.
- More space and better service are just a couple of reasons why they prefer it to economy class.
Magdelena Arbelaez-Chujfi may only be 2 years old, but she's already quite the jet-setter.
The toddler has flown at least 80 times since birth, her mom Sara Arbelaez-Chujfi, 31, told Business Insider — and over half of those flights have been in business class.
Arbelaez-Chujfi, the former global sales director for Nails Inc., said that she rarely traveled in business class outside work before her daughter was born.
But during her pregnancy, Arbelaez-Chujfi — who lives in London but often travels to her home country of Colombia to visit family — said she decided to "splurge" on business-class tickets for long-haul flights, and she didn't want to stop once Magdelena was born.
"I was like, 'OK, I don't want to give this up,'" Arbelaez-Chujfi said.
Whether babies should be allowed in business class has long been debated. But for Arbelaez-Chujfi, it's a no-brainer that they should.
She's also not the only parent who thinks so.
Lucy Cafferkey and her husband Tom only book business-class tickets for long-haul flights with their 21-month-old baby Edward.
"I used to fly business class before having a baby and have continued to do so," Cafferkey, 37, told BI. "It's probably more important now."
Almost every aspect of flying with a baby is easier in business class
Both moms told BI that one of the biggest perks of flying in business class with a baby is the hands-on service from flight attendants.
"There is so much more, I hate to say it, but respect from the flight attendants because they're there to help you out," Arbelaez-Chujfi said.
She cited numerous examples, including how flight attendants routinely babysit Magdelena when she needs to use the bathroom, bring her extra blankets and pillows, and offer to hold the bathroom door open when she needs more space to change her baby.
"That doesn't happen in economy," Arbelaez-Chujfi said, adding that "in business class, you feel like somebody is looking after you."
Cafferkey has had similar experiences. "You get more patience from the staff when perhaps you might have a child that is being unruly," she said.
Having more seat space also doesn't hurt.
"When you're trying to get them to sleep on you, you can actually lie flat rather than sitting upright," Cafferkey said.
As babies become toddlers, there's also an advantage to having floor space around the seat for the child to "play or walk around," she added.
Other benefits to flying business class with a baby, according to Cafferkey, include priority boarding, more flexible luggage allowances, choosing when meals are served on board so it doesn't disturb the child, and having fewer people around to distract an infant from falling asleep.
"You're more likely to get more sleep because you have more space, so you start your holiday feeling a little bit better," Cafferkey said.
Some airlines also have children's play areas in business-class lounges, which can provide some preflight entertainment and help tire out a baby before boarding.
"The fact you can wear your child out in a lounge that's secure and safe before you fly is really worth having," Cafferkey said.
Both moms said fellow business-class passengers haven't complained about their babies
Sitting next to a baby on an airplane might not be everyone's cup of tea. Still, Arbelaez-Chujfi and Cafferkey said they've yet to receive any complaints.
People are either completely disinterested or excited, Cafferkey said.
For instance, Cafferkey said that while flying with Edward to Mexico, fellow business-class travelers were mostly retirees who were overjoyed to see a baby in the cabin.
Meanwhile, on a flight to Los Angeles, she said other passengers were mostly traveling for work and weren't as warm.
"I get it, people want to do their work," she said. "Children are not the most quiet things, so it's always been a little bit mixed."
Nevertheless, Cafferkey said she's never had someone express having an issue with a baby in business class.
"Generally, people are quite bored in business class, so when a child may be doing a bit of peekaboo behind a chair, it's probably more entertaining than waiting for a Bloody Mary to be poured," she said.
Arbelaez-Chujfi said she's also never had a bad encounter. But if the situation did arise, Arbelaez-Chujfi said she wouldn't hesitate to defend herself and Magdelena.
"I would tell them to put their headphones on," she said. "You're paying for comfort; you're not paying for silence."
Arbelaez-Chujfi also pointed out that flying business class with her baby is not just for her and Magdelena's benefit but for other passengers, too.
"You feel less pressure if your baby cries in business than if it cries in economy because, in economy, you have like 200 people who are pretty pissed at you," she said.
Flying business class with a baby is worth paying more, the moms said
The cost of bringing an infant on a plane — no matter the class —depends on the airline.
Cafferkey said she typically flies British Airways, which allows babies under 2 to fly for the cost of a percentage of an adult ticket if they sit on a parent's lap.
Meanwhile, Arbelaez-Chujfi is an Air France frequent flyer and said she generally pays the cost of 10% of an adult ticket for her baby.
According to Air France's website, tickets for children under the age of 2 who sit on a parent's lap receive a 90% discount.
Business-class tickets cost more than economy, but both mothers said it's not as expensive as it sounds, and there are ways to make it more affordable, such as booking flights with layovers.
"I always tell my friends with kids that fly economy, let's say London to Bogotá. They pay £1,500 in economy to fly direct, but myself, with a layover in Paris, I would pay £1,800 per person in business," Arbelaez-Chujfi said. "For £300 more, and the little hassle you have to do by having a layover, you're flying with that comfort."
In Cafferkey's case, she uses airline points accrued from past travels to purchase her business-class tickets as well as money that has been purposefully saved for traveling in an upgraded cabin.
"I know it's a privilege, but equally, I would rather prioritize this than perhaps staying in the best hotel," she said. "To me, a holiday should be from the moment you have that day off to fly."