no kids
I’m conflicted on Malaysia Airlines new no-kids zone.
Hotel Lobby. Are you tired of my NYC pictures yet? Sorry. I'm having a bit of trouble letting go.
As a parent, I’m offended for a variety of reasons, but mainly because:
- All kids are not disruptive and irritating.
- All parents do not let their kids run wild on planes.
- Sometimes adults can be more annoying than kids. (Case in point: the woman whose voice reverberated during my red-eye to NYC last week. I thought Ali was going to kill her. I believe he wished Delta had a “No-Annoying-People-Who-Talk-At-The-Top-Of-Their-Lungs-On-A-Red-Eye” zone.)
Hotel Room. Before Ali made it a giant mess.
On the other hand, I kind of understand where Malaysia Airlines is coming from. Because as much as I sympathize with parents who have to deal with a screaming infant on a long flight, I really don’t want to have to listen to a screaming infant on a long flight.
After making it through nine long, colic-filled months 6 years ago, I find the sound of crying unbearable. And I can certainly understand why other people do too.
Not sure why the Time Warner Center gets a bad rap? I love it.
I agree that Malaysia Airlines’ no-kid section sounds….harsh. But I didn’t travel with Maya until she was 3-years-old because I feared passengers glaring at me because she wouldn’t stop screaming bloody murder.
Had airlines offered dedicated kid-zones back then, I think I would have made friends with others in the same boat (or plane), knocked back some Nyquil, and settled in for the ride.
View from our hotel room. The St. Regis is nice but not worth the $$. But is any hotel in NYC worth the money? Suggestions?
So maybe, as parents, we shouldn’t be viewing Malaysia Airlines’ new endeavor as something negative, but instead as a valuable key to freedom from reproach. And stress.
Thoughts?
While I'm not going to win Mother/Wife of the Year Award anytime soon, I haven't killed anyone yet or shot myself in the head. And that, my friends, is how I calculate success these days. 
FANCY THAT FANCY THIS 
I am totally with you on this one. It totally is beyond me why people are so offended all the time. Personally if am lucky enough to go some place without my children I would rather not have to listen to other children.
And if I do have my children I really prefer to take them child friendly places. Plus it would be so nice to tell someone who happens to be giving me the evil glares because my children are not meeting their expectations that they could have always opted for the kids free flight/dinner/movie, etc.
And is any hotel worth what we pay for it. At least you were in NYC.
I also find it hard to handle other kids when Maya isn’t with me. I think she breaks the ice or something!
I have been on flights with crying babies, but hey, they’re babies, they can’t help it. I get annoyed with older children who obviously have not been taught to behave. Of course, there are the annoying adults as pointed out in your post that we can’t do anything about. Lucky for me, Ralph won’t fly so I don’t do it very often!
I agree…it’s the older kids who should know better that can be really frustrating. The babies can’t help it of course.
I agree with you. Not all kids are annoying or disrupting. Actually I think when they’re being disrupting it’s their parents’ fault. These kids need to be taught early what kind of behaviors are acceptable and what are not. Not everything that kids do are adorable.
Unfortunately, there are parents that think whatever their kids do are adorable and that their kids could do nothing wrong. Hence, the No-Kid/Kid-Free Zone rule, which I support.
I’ve never stayed in a hotel in NYC, however, usually people from my office stay at Affinia Manhattan: http://www.affinia.com/Hotels.aspx?city=New-York-City, and they never complained. Sorry, couldn’t be more helpful.
Yes…there isn’t too much that kids do that’s adorable. Terrible, I know!!
Thank you for the recommendation Lydia! I am definitely going to check it out.
Time Warner gets a bad rap? Says who!? I love it too. I used to visit the Whole Foods there daily back when I was an Exhale member. Also, it’s home to Per Se, a restaurant I’ve yet to experience but is on my list of “when I have enough money to feel Ok dropping a grand on dinner” meals! Lastly, pretty statues and amazing architecture! Time Warner is great!
As for the hotels…you have to shop around. Dreams Downtown often has great deals, as does the (don’t laugh) the new Holiday Inn in the Herald Square area, it has really big (new) rooms and under 200/night. I think Soho Grand offers some decent deals since it’s not as hot anymore, but still a great space. No hotel rooms are big in NYC!
I love the Whole Foods at TW! And I haven’t been to Per Se yet but it’s on my list. Don’t waste your time with Landmarc…it’s nothing special.
I’ve heard of Dream …I see specials on Jetsetter all the time. I love staying in midtown though, that’s my problem! Maybe the better hotels are downtown?
Thanks for the recommendations!
Maybe if they’d worded it to advertise the flights that are kid-friendly instead of branding it a kid-free zone? Sometimes it’s all in how you spin it. I don’t know about you, but I don’t ever want to have to be the mom with the small child that is having a “mood” surrounded by adults that have no patience for it. I’d rather be with other parents that get it. In a restaurant I am always perturbed by the parents that subject everyone to their crying baby. Get up and GO OUTSIDE. Babies = sacrifice and those people just need to accept that they can’t sit in a restaurant and have a meal without interruption for a couple of years. It’s part of the program. Airlines are tricky; you can’t exactly leave. I’m good with the no-kid zone- it can be pretty hard to reason with little kids 🙂
I was also curious why they didn’t spin their family sections as kid-friendly zones? Maybe their primary clientele are business travelers and they respond better to marketing?
Babies = sacrifice…well said Heather.
PS. I actually don’t mind crying babies on planes. I see them as insurance against crashing. It’s flawed logic, but I assume that they’ve got God on their sides!
That’s one way to look at it! 🙂
I sort of agree with what they’re doing. Because when I hear a kid crying, I do go “oh that poor mother… traveling must really suck for them at this age”, but I’m also thinking, “ok, it’s been 15 minutes… that child is driving me nuts”.
They should definitely be careful on how they market it. “Child free” or “No Kid Zone” are phrases that should be avoided…
It’s all in the marketing…so true. Maybe they should have gone the other route and said they had child-friendly zones?
Love all the pictures! Hotel rooms anywhere are usually not worth the price :). I think after a while I just block out the annoying/crying kid unless theyre right next to me. But I agree w/ Ali, there should be a rule for annoying adults!
Have a great day!
Katie
I’ve stayed in places where I thought the room rates were worth it…but New York? Not so much.
I agree with the other comments that older, poorly-behaved kids are definitely WAY more annoying to me than babies. I’ve been flying with my kids since my oldest was 11 months old and I work really hard to make sure my kids don’t disrupt other passengers. I think I have succeeded, for the most part. Now, what excuse do the rude, older passengers have for their bad behaviour? I once sat through a (night-time) flight where a girl was playing her iPod with her external speakers. Her boyfriend kept shushing her and telling her to turn it down, but she didn’t seem to clue in. I’m still scratching my head on this one 2 years later, because this seems like something you should know not to do. I mean, most other people on the flight were trying to sleep, you know?
And the “child-free” doesn’t bother me. I just wouldn’t fly with them when I had my kids with me…
I’m so curious why other passengers didn’t have a problem with the external speakers? Or even the flight attendants? I feel like that has to violate some kind of rule…
I am sure everyone will have different views to Malaysian airlines “child-free” zone but here is what I feel..
As a parents we have to understand that there can be some people who really don’t want or understand crying and cranky babies/kids around them. This is good or bad, I am not judging but as a grown up I feel it is better to have them travel with child free feature than have them stare at us and our kids at every scream n cry… Trust me I feel more upset when I see adults getting upset by little babies who really don’t know the so-call protocol of grown up traveling….
And trust me I have travelled with adults who have made my flight miserable…
I totally understand why people don’t want crying and/or annoying kids around them. Kids are not easy to deal with! Thus why I think this new offering by Malaysia Airlines is kind of smart…
Totally agree with you….
I’m sure my response would be different if i had kids but crying babies on board drive me nuts! More than crying, what irks me is smelly babies! One flight, a baby crapped her pants and her dad left the soiled diaper on the ground…visible for every passenger to see (and smell).
That sounds…wrong. That is way worse than any crying child!!
What the HELL? Seriously? Do we really want life to be SO PERFECT we can’t have a little bit of tolerance and patience these days? Goodness, what’s next? If you sneeze they will kick you off?
What they should do is give out free xanax to the passengers when a kid is crying…that would be awesome.
I think you have a lot of tolerance for people/things that can grate on others’ nerves. I wish I was like that!
Yowza, hot button topic! I think Malaysian Airlines should test their new program on me. I will leave the little man with hubster, go on an fabulous international flight sans babies, drink lots of fancy drinks with umbrellas, and eat airplane snacks all in the name of market research 🙂
I’d happy be a tester too! 11 stress free hours of peace and quiet! I wish…
I don’t really know what to think here. I can see both sides. Although, as many children as I have it is so stressful to hear a baby cry for hours. I won’t go to a particular Target in my area after certain hours because people have their small children and they are all just crying because they are tired. It’s awful to shop like that, let along ride on a plane like that. I can see where their coming from.
On the other hand that comment above, (specialkphd) is pretty funny. It is the world we live in, we have children, they do cry and also, like you said-a lot of babies/ kids are great. Very interesting.
On New York: It looks so awesome!!! I’ve only been once and I took the generic tour. That is such a great city and I can tell you just love it-so fun.
We also went to Boston on our trip and I loooooved it! Have you ever been? There was just something about it.
Take care friend!
Shauna
I can see both sides too…it’s a tricky one. Love that you have so many kids and yet you also find a crying baby stressful. Good to know.
And I love Boston! I’ve been a few times and I love the classy vibe it has. I agree…there is just something so great about it.
I have to disagree here. I think there should be kid free zones and also kid zones. I was traveling for work this week, left my kids and had a crying baby I could hear in the hotel room next door. Terrible. Having said this, I’m equally annoyed by adults and at least the baby isn’t “too old to know better”. And Time Warner, love.
I’m so jealous you are traveling…kid-free! Lucky you Lauren.
And next time? We’ll meet up at Bouchon. So glad you love Time Warner as much as me.
We brought Dudette home from Armenia on a 13-hour flight and the ones who treated us the most poorly were the flight attendants. The people around us were very sympathetic, especially since we were doing our darnedest to keep her quiet. The attendants were very, very unhelpful. I have a feeling that that zone is for the flight staff’s sake. It’s where they put parents with kids and never ever check up on them.
Sometimes flight attendants are so amazingly helpful. And then other times? Forget about getting a drink even.
13 hours! You deserve an award my friend.
Um, if a flight attendant reads that; I’m kidding. Kinda.
🙂
You know, I have to say I’m torn on this. As in, I’m not sure what to think. I see why they have it but I mean people have kids that they want to travel with and they cannot control what to expect in the air. I too have been in airplanes with screaming babies. Everyone (and I mean everyone) on the plane is thinking the same thing, but I mean, it’s almost a blameless thing. How can you tell someone not to travel with their family?
You can’t…of course. That’s why I think this idea Malaysia Airlines has (although marketed badly) is kind of great for families!
As someone who has suffered on long flights with everything from screening babies to crazy 5 year olds running rambunctious down the aisles, I completely support the zoning, (as long as it wouldn’t cost more!!) I appreciate that you were thoughtful enough not to travel with maya until she was three. I always like to think I would do the same if and when I had kids.
I have to say that I didn’t travel with Maya for selfish reasons…I could barely get her to the park. Just imagining hauling all kinds of stuff on a plane with me, plus dealing with her crying? It seemed impossible. I don’t know how parents do it and make it seem so effortless.
Oh, I understand the kid-free zones. I love my nieces, but in public is not the place to have a tantrum.
Never! Maya tried that once when she was little. I dragged her sorry little self home and she realized I wouldn’t put up with it!
I have kids, and love my kids. I am headed on vacation to a kid-free all-inclusive very soon, and am oh-so-thankful that such a place exists. Go Malaysian Air.
I envy you. So much! Have a fantastic trip Janelle!
I don’t fly enough….
But I get it. When I go on vacation my child isn’t with me and that’s for a reason. Is that mean?
Anyways, my son had colic too. Any baby that screams sends me running for the nearest bottle of booze. No lies.
If I drank I would have been hitting the bottle pretty hard during those days too. Those were rough times!
I totally agree with you–if you know your child is able to handle a flight, go for it, but you should be respectful of other people’s space. But isn’t that the case with or without kids? I once sat next to a man who spent the whole time with his newspaper in my face on our flight. That sort of thing makes me even more angry.
The room is GORGEOUS!
Did you say anything to him? Did he even realize his newspaper was everywhere? Interesting…
My kids were always extremely well behaved on planes and in restaurants and such. And yet… I can sure see the appeal of getting to be in the kid-free zone when I travel.
Maya is usually well-behaved as well but sometimes it’s just easier to know that people won’t hate you if your kid is having an off day…
I can understand both sides of the situation. If I were a parent, I would be offended by this new regulation. Since I am not a parent, I applaud them. I would be biased either way. I do agree with you in saying that not all children are loud, and of course some adults are worse than children. It’s a situation where I’m not going to complain, but I wouldn’t blame someone if they did.
Also…include as many travel pictures as you want. I’m always jealous, but I still love the pictures.
Love your opinion as always…I understand both sides of this argument too. But I tend to think that it’s actually a good thing that an airline is offering this solution!
And thank you for appreciating my pictures. 🙂
I think airlines should make kid friendly zones too, separated by sound barrier, maybe even between each passanger so mom with quiet baby doesn’t have to listen to another baby cry, or she can snuggle/nurse in piece. Chairs with buttons to push that do nothing, or maybe pop out coo coos. That would work for me 🙂
Wouldn’t it be so nice to have your own plane? And have all of these things on it? 🙂
Ameena,
That room is STUNNING ❤
I LOVE that bed. Xx
Thank you my friend!
first, I have to say the st. regis is really nice. I think all hotels in NYC are expensive, but if you really like “nice” hotels, my cousin goes on and on about The NY Palace. Also, a few Bollywood celebs have stayed at The Jumeriah.
second, I’m sure it is offensive to some parents, and I’m not one yet so it is easy for me to say I find screaming kids very annoying. Luckily, I have some really good kids in my family that do behave well, but also those who don’t and I get so irritated. So if I can’t handle family kids, I doubt I will be able to tolerate other people’s.
And the worst is on a flight to INDIA – OMG! It’s a kid zone!
I enjoyed the Jumeriah but it was really expensive. The Palace was slightly more reasonable but it too was pricey. I think I just need to adjust my expectations for NYC hotels?
I agree…I haven’t been to India in a while but I remember those flights being full of crying kids!
I love kids, but I think being a parent should involve knowing where you should and should not bring your children. It’s like the woman here who caused a scene when she wasn’t allowed into a play with her newborn. She claimed because she was breast feeding, she couldnt leave the baby at home. Fine, then you should both stay home.
There’s a time and a place for everything, and even though I agree plenty of kids behave properly, I don’t think it’s unfair to kid free zones. If you’re paying to fly, and if you’re going to be on a plane for awhile, not having to listen to screaming babies would be wonderful.
The breastfeeding debate is such a stressful one! I’m scared to even voice my opinion on that matter…so I applaud that you did Leah. 🙂
I dont think there’s anything wrong with kid-free flights. As someone who had to endure constant glares while her 6-month old cried for 80% of a transAltantic flight I would have loved to have said “well, you could have taken the kid-free flight!”
Why does Time Warner get a bad rap? I like it. It may get a little touristy but New Yorkers definitely go there too. A Voce is another good option to try the next time you are there.
I haven’t tried A Voce yet! It’s on my list.
I remember you telling me about your flight…talk about a nightmare! The good thing is that it only gets easier so hopefully your next flight with Z. will be relatively painless Sam.
Heh, perhaps they need a screening system. Home visits and observations and kids that pass the behavior test get to fly. Or just give em’ tranquilizers. Lots and lots of tranquilizers.
I jest. Mostly:)
Some people give their kids cold medicine to make the flight easier…crazy but true!
well, im still devided on this one… wailing kids are pretty annoying, and since i seem to have some wierd affinity to them i always find myself seated next to them which wants me to support this whole kid-free thing. but on the other hand like most have mentioned the poor lil kids obviously dont know bout etiquette and its kinda sad for the parents
I’m divided too…there is no easy answer to this one!
I think it’s easy for me to say that a kid-free zone is an awesome thing right now, but I may change my mind once I actually have kids. I’m torn! However, I will say that I always feel bad for the screaming kids…not only is everyone annoyed with them (including me) but they’re probably in so much pain.
Having a kid really changed my opinion of crying kids on a plane. I get it now! It doesn’t make it easier to deal with but I get it…
I think it’s a great idea, as long as they offer other flights that you can take kids on, or I guess you could just use another airline. I fly maybe once every 5 years so it’s not something I worry about, but if you are a frequent flyer I can see how you would totally appreciate this.
So Maya had colic, yikes, that is ROUGH! I don’t blame you for never wanting to hear another baby cry. I feel the same about diapers. I never minded changing my own kids, but I will flat out refuse to change anyone else’s kid.
Except for Maya…I’ve never changed a diaper. Somehow I just don’t have it in me.
Kid free zones might not be such a bad idea! Agree with the others, babies aren’t as much of a problem, as obnoxious kids whose parents just watch indulgently!
Those indulgent parents are so peaceful though…I wonder how it doesn’t drive them nuts that their kids are wild?
Most airlines do have a dedicated zone for kids and it’s usually at the front of the aircraft.
Really? What do you mean?
Most airlines will try to sit people with young kids at the front of the aircraft… i dont think its a strict policy because if you request different seats they will give you them… I know BA does this and Lufthanza
Yes there are some hotels worth the $ like the Klimpton group. Or you could try VRBO.com or BNB.com and rent an apartment if you want to feel like a native.
I have been so tempted to use VRBO.com as someone else suggested it to me…but I always wonder how clean these places are? Have you used either site before? I’d love to know your experience with them?
I’m passing you a handful of awards— they all came my way, and I think someone else’s award post may have been how I found your blog in the first place. Accept them or not, just thought I’d take a minute to let you know how much I enjoy the reads I find here. Funny with a healthy dose of honesty and always entertaining! Thanks for stopping by sugardishme.com on the regular to drop a few lines– I appreciate it!
Whoops! Forgot to link the post:
http://sugardishme.com/2012/04/18/a-whole-buncha-things-and-cake/
Thank you Heather! I’m so glad that you find my blog entertaining…and thanks for the award. So nice of you!
It makes me crazy when fellow single, childless people get all up in arms about a baby crying on an airplane, because even though you don’t have/want kids, you WERE a screaming baby at one point in your life! That being said, I wouldn’t mind not having to listen to a screaming baby on a long flight. I think I’m just as torn as you are on this subject.
Crazy to think that we were once those kids that are being glared at, right? And yet we (or I) have no tolerance! Great point.
I just found you through Heather’s sugar dish Me blog, and this one has be in two minds too. Even though I’m not a parent. Most of me couldn’t agree more that sometimes adults are far worse – I often fly back from spain to the UK, and have many a time sat next to mum and child as I fly alone and there’s usually an aisle seat left) and had a nice chat/distraction/play and relieved the boredom of my flight. Equally I’ve had many flights full of obnoxious, rude, drunk, lairy adults who I’ve wanted to poke in the eyes with my coffee stirrer. My sister once spent our flight to South Africa next to possibly the smelliest man in the universe. At least if kids start to smell, you can change their nappies! however, a long flight with screaming children when there was an alternative…hmmm…!
So I’m really just envious that you get to travel between the UK and Spain…both places that I LOVE.
Secondly, I am feeling sorry for your sister…that must have been a LONG flight.
I assume Malaysia Air also has kid-friendly zones/flights too. Because if you absolutely gotta get to KL and you have a kid, you’re kinda stuck.
They do! I read that they have a revamped economy section with kid-themed entertainment. Interesting that they neglect to mention that fact much in their marketing…
It’s an interesting debate. I was talking about it with someone the other day. I definitely see both sides!
Yes…this is a tricky one! With no one answer I guess…
The only thing that should be messy in your hotel room should be that bed cause you where kid free and there with your husband.. 😉 (blushing) oh and of course Trump soho or Trump New York city.
I have not stayed at any Trump properties before…thank you for the suggestion! I will definitely check them out…hopefully sooner than later. 🙂
I hate how hotel rooms in NYC are so expensive! But your photos look gorgeous! I wish every parent was as on it as you are. Sadly most wouldn’t qualify for a parenting license, if there were such a thing. When I become a parent, you will be my number one role model. Seriously.
Really? I am so touched…to be someone’s role model when it comes to something I think I struggle with? That means a lot. Thanks Andrea!
My first thought was, what the hell, it’s not right to have a “no kid” zone like a “no smoking” zone! But your point of view makes sense.
I don’t have kids (yet) and sometimes we (is it ok if i speak for the rest of the world too? :P) do get annoyed seeing cranky kids throwing tantrums, so guess it’s a good idea. May be some parents will start disciplining their kids more in order to not be in the dedicated kids-zone? 🙂
Hmmm….this is kind of a difficult one for me. On one level, I agree with you- not all kids are Crazy On Planes and some adults can be worse than toddlers. My son is well behaved for the most part, except that he likes to blow kisses to all the stewardesses and the people around him…but some people may actually find a kid staring at them or blowing kisses annoying because they just want to sleep. You never know who is sensitive to what. Guess we just have to live, let live and plug in our ipods on flights.
I can’t imagine that someone would find a kid blowing kisses annoying…a kid that barfs up a storm maybe? 🙂