A growing trend among traveling parents is taking off — airplane goodie bags. Delta Air Lines flight attendant Brianna Fletcher has noticed more parents handing out small consolation gifts to fellow passengers when flying with babies, especially during peak travel seasons like the holidays and spring break.
One recent instance went viral when a mother handed a seatmate a goodie bag while settling in with her newborn. Inside: candy, a granola bar and earplugs, along with a note that read:
"It’s my first flight! I promised to be on my best behavior — but I can’t make any guarantees. I might cry if I get scared or my ears hurt. Here are some treats to make your flight enjoyable. Thank you for being patient with us. Have a great flight!"
Creator Elliot Norris shared a video of the gesture, writing, “I’ll help take care of the baby!” alongside sobbing emojis. Reactions were mixed — some praised the extra thoughtfulness, while others lamented that parents feel pressured to apologize for their babies simply existing.
So, are airplane goodie bags becoming an expectation? We asked parents, passengers, flight attendants and an etiquette expert to weigh in.
The practice of handing out goodie bags is gaining momentum
The idea of goodie bags isn't necessarily new, but more and more families are doing it now than ever, says Fletcher.
“The passengers give us the goodie bags when they first come on board,” Fletcher tells What to Expect. “They typically have some variation of candy, hand sanitizer, hand cream, lip balm and a hand-written note.”
Some moms add personalized touches to the bag, like Hope Chambers, who ordered custom cookies for passengers on her son’s first transatlantic flight. “I’m so dramatic for doing this,” she tells WTE. “But he was only 3 months old and we were flying to London with him!”
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The purpose of the bags is clear: to win over your seatmates in case your baby, well, acts like a typical baby. Chambers hoped the custom cookies would preemptively smooth things over with fellow passengers in case her son got cranky.
Should you make goodie bags when you fly with your baby?
You should never feel like you have to give gifts when traveling with your baby. After all, babies have to get around just like grown-ups. But if you love putting together gifts and treats, go for it.
From a flight attendant’s perspective, there's really no harm as long as you avoid including any food that may be an allergen. Fletcher has not seen this disrupt the boarding process in any way. "Parents typically give out the goodie bags at the boarding door and quickly go to their seats thereafter," she explains.
However, if you don't want to hand out goodie bags, there's absolutely no need. You have enough to worry about ahead of a trip without the added hassle of packing these bags.
"Airplane goodie bags are all well and good for the craft-inclined or if you’re just excited to commemorate your little one’s first flight, but it's not the expectation that all parents must do this," says Jo Hayes, an etiquette expert who has conducted academic research on the topic. "Heaven knows, parents have enough pressure on them as is."
Traveling with a baby or toddler isn’t easy, Hayes continues. While a baby crying on a plane may happen, fellow passengers can and should be compassionate, she adds.
“I think any human, parent or not, with any semblance of heart and empathy, can understand the work and overwhelm that accompanies traveling with infants,” says Hayes. “It's an enormous job…to add the task of creating goodie bags on top of that, would, understandably, be too much for many parents."
Instead, Hayes says, just stick to the basics: “getting you and your baby to your destination, safe and well.”
If you *want* to make a goodie bag, here are some ideas to pack
You can stock goodie bags with anything you want, but remember: Keep it TSA-approved so you don’t inadvertently create a nightmare for yourself while going through security. That means nary a liquid above 3.4 oz. Here are some ideas:
Candy and gum
Snacks, like a small bag of chips or a granola bar. (Make sure they are free from common allergens, such as milk, eggs, wheat, soy and peanuts)
Travel-sized bottles of hand sanitizer or wipes
Hand lotion
Chapstick or lip balm
A cute handwritten note “from the baby”
Foam earplugs (just in case!)
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