Travelling with Children - Age of Passengers

At what age can passengers travel alone?

Package holidays

Passengers need to be at least 18 years old to be able to go on a package holiday independently.

Flight only bookings

Children under 14 years old who are travelling on a TUI Airways flight-only booking must be accompanied by another passenger aged 16 or over, who is travelling on the same booking reference.

Children aged 14 or 15 can travel alone, as long as they don't need assistance. That said, we recommend that they be accompanied to the check-in desk by a parent or legal guardian. We'd also advise that the parent or guardian stays at the airport until the flight has departed.

Visit the FCO website for details of travel requirements for each country around children travelling alone.

What are the age ranges that TUI class as 'infant' and 'child'?

When booking a TUI package holiday, young passengers are classed as follows:

(*) Infants: Under 2 years old on the return date of travel. If your child celebrates his or her 2nd birthday while on holiday, you must book and pay the appropriate child fare.

(*) Children: 2 - 16 years old on return date of travel.

When booking a flight-only with TUI Airways, young passengers are classed as follows:

(*) An infant must be aged less than 2 years on the day of travel and must be older than 14 days for health and safety reasons. Charges for infants vary depending on the route and length of flight and will be detailed in the booking process.

(*) Children aged 2 years and older pay the full fare and have their own seat and also have a full baggage allowance.

Each infant must be accommpanied by at least one adult. Please note there is a restriction on how many infants can travel on each flight. Infants are not entitled to their own seat or to a personal baggage allowance.

At what age can a baby travel on an aircraft?

An infant must be more than 14 days old to travel on an aircraft, for health and safety reasons.

We are travelling with a baby. Do we need to have a baby car seat with us for the coach transfer?

No - car seats are not required for children or infants travelling on coach transfers between the airport and your hotel.

Can I take a pushchair and a car seat on my flight?

We carry pushchairs as hold luggage for free on TUI Airways flights. You can usually take the pushchair to the boarding gate before handing it to a member of staff to put into the hold. Ask us to confirm this when you get to the check-in desk. If you’re bringing more than one child, you can bring a pushchair for each of them.

In addition to carrying a pushchair, if your flight is part of a package holiday, infants under 2 years old will get a hold baggage allowance of 10kg.

If you need to take a car seat as well as the pushchair, this will make up part of your main luggage allowance. However, if you’re just bringing a car seat, we’ll carry it free of charge.

Does my child need their own passport?

All children, including newborn babies must now have their own individual passport. The child's passport will initially be valid for 5 years, but can be renewed for a further 5 years at the end of this period. Once they reach their 16th birthday they then become eligible for a standard 10-year passport. You can visit the Gov.uk website for more information.

What are the ages accepted for Kidzone children's clubs?

Our Kidzone children's clubs are open to children aged 3 - 12 years. Kidzone is split according to the following ages:

(*) 3 - 5 year olds (Tots)

(*) 6 - 8 year olds (Team)

(*) 9 - 12 year olds (Tribe)

Safety is paramount, and we therefore work to a strict staff:child ratio. All of our clubs work to a maximum ratio of 1:8 with two representatives present. On some occasions activities may be combined, however this will not interfere with either safety or enjoyment, due to the enforced ratio restrictions at all times. Carers are welcome to attend.

What is the staff to child ratio at your Kidzone children's clubs?

All of our clubs work to a maximum ratio of 1:8 with two representatives present. In the case of unforeseen circumstances such as illness, when two staff members are not available, then we reserve the right to cancel or postpone activities. To meet UK Health and Safety legislation, and at busy times, we may need to limit the numbers in Kidzone and attendance may have to be on a rota basis. This is to ensure the safety and well-being of children in the club. However a rota system makes sure everyone gets the chance to join in.

What are the session times of your Kidzone children's clubs?

All groups offer up to 2 hours of fun daytime activities five times a week, and 2 hours of evening activities up to three times a week. Some evening activities may incur a charge (approx £4 per session). Some Kidzone clubs are available in July and August only - please see individual hotel pages for details. On holidays departing in April and returning in May (Early Summer Savers), club activities will not be available until 1st May unless the club is also featured during the winter months.

Can I request a cot for my room if I book online?

To request a cot for your room, please check either in the relevant brochure or on our website (on the hotel details page) to ensure that cot space is provided for the accommodation you wish to book. If the hotel details page states that cot space is provided, then you will need to request a cot to ensure that it will be at your hotel when you arrive. To do this, ensure you click the 'Infants' dropdown list and select the number of infants travelling (during the booking process), as this will automatically request the number of cots for you (please note that infants must be under the age of two years old on the return date of travel).

If your child is over the age of two but you wish to request a cot, or you cannot find reference to cot space online, please contact our Call Centre on the relevant number (below).

Accommodation Only:

Not yet booked: 0871 231 4691 (Calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras)

Already booked: 0203 451 2688

TUI package holidays:

Not yet booked: 0871 231 4691 (Calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras)

Already booked: 0203 451 2688

To find details on our website for specific accommodation, you can either perform a search and view the information provided for each accommodation, or use our 'Destinations' browse facility at www.tui.co.uk or our Accommodation Only site.

Can I take a pushchair on the flight?

We carry pushchairs as hold luggage for free on TUI Airways flights. You can usually take the pushchair to the boarding gate before handing it to a member of staff to put into the hold. Ask us to confirm this when you get to the check-in desk. If you’re bringing more than one child, you can bring a pushchair for each of them.

In addition to carrying a pushchair, if your flight is part of a package holiday, infants under 2 years old will get a hold baggage allowance of 10kg.

If you need to take a car seat as well as the pushchair, this will make up part of your main luggage allowance. However, if you’re just bringing a car seat, we’ll carry it free of charge.