I’m starting to gather all of the details for our upcoming European family trip and wanted to share a tip that could save you a LOT of grief and money if you’re driving with kids overseas: bring your car seats with you.
If your kids are under 5 I know this is a no-brainer, but did you know that in many countries in Europe booster seats are required for kids 1.35 meters and shorter? That’s 53 inches, or 4 feet 5 inches, which is definitely older than most kids use boosters in the states. Here’s a page with EU regulations. No worries if your kid hasn’t used a booster in years: this Graco Backless TurboBooster Seat is only $21 on Amazon and is the one we used for both Deal Kids. Walmart and Target B&M have them for around the same price.
The same booster seat on the Graco UK website. It lists “universal compatibility” and looks identical to the one I have in my car (and have posted above). While not 100% conclusive, I don’t think the UK would allow them to represent that statement if the seats weren’t allowed to be used in Europe.
Considering you can pay $20 a week for a single booster seat rental and carseats don’t count against your baggage allowance (well, I can’t vouch for Ryanair, but on legacy carriers they don’t) this is one item I won’t leave home without.