Never mind the little kids who cry on long-haul flights, dine at white-tablecloth restaurants or monkey around in hotel gyms.
If you want to stir up curiosity — or controversy — let your children zip around an airport on a scooter or ride-on suitcase.
Last year, the Hendrix Tribe, a nomadic family of five, drew attention after posting videos of their three young children flitting through airports, boarding ramps and airplanes on candy-colored scooters.
“Yes, they’re the kids racing scooters through the terminal,” reads one caption from a May post on Instagram. “And yes — we’re the parents filming instead of stopping them!”
Thousands of people left comments. Some praised the family for their ingenuity in dealing with airport doldrums and slowpoke children. The majority, however, criticized them for perceived entitlement and thoughtlessness.
“Airports are not a playground,” one commenter wrote.
Wheeled accessories for the junior jet set have introduced a new flash point in family travel. Ride-on luggage such as Trunki, Younglingz and Jetkids by Stokke, or bags that attach to scooters (see: Kiddietotes and Advwin) allow kids to be more self-sufficient and mobile, according to parents and product manufacturers. They can also be a source of entertainment and an outlet for pent-up energy.
“This product allows them to keep up in the airport. It keeps them more engaged and happier, and they can carry their stuff, which makes it easier for everybody and helps them have a sense of ownership,” said Kiddietotes co-founder Brenton Clive, a father of five.
However, for travelers in their direct path, these innovations can become a pedestrian traffic hazard, obstructing progress to a gate and potentially causing harm.
On the Hendrix family’s Instagram account, a commenter said her mother-in-law landed in the emergency room instead of Vancouver after a child on a scooter crashed into her, fracturing her hip. (The Hendrix family did not respond to requests for an interview.)
Make way for ride-on luggage
Kid-driven luggage comes in two main styles: suitcases that operate like a pedal-less bike and kick scooters with a bag affixed to the front. For older kids and adults, manufacturers such as Modobag and Aotos have created motorized smart luggage that can reach speeds of up to 8 mph. The scooters used by the Hendrix clan do not have a luggage component but are collapsible.
Though this category of luggage is still niche, sightings are becoming more common, especially in hub airports frequented by families.
“I’ve been seeing the rideable luggage everywhere,” said Alison M. Cheperdak, a D.C.-based etiquette coach and founder of Elevate Etiquette.
A few days after Christmas at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, I saw a young boy riding a Jetkids alongside his mother, who was pushing a stroller and toting a swaddled baby. A panda Kiddietotes was parked at my gate.
Aurora Karbe, 8, divides her time between Virginia and Estonia. She has been using her Kiddietotes for more than half her life. The scooter was a birthday present from her parents. Her dad, Sharif El-Mahdi, said his daughter has flown with it dozens of times to around 10 countries.
She sometimes rides it during hours when most kids are fast asleep in their beds, such as before a red-eye transatlantic flight from the East Coast or after a wee-hours arrival in Europe.
“It helps perk her up,” said El-Mahdi. “If it weren’t for the scooter, I would be carrying an exhausted child who did not want to walk from this terminal to that terminal.”
El-Mahdi said Aurora, who has been riding scooters since age 2, always stays within sight of her parents.
“I usually stop when I can’t see you guys anymore,” Aurora said during a phone interview from Tallinn, Estonia.
The reaction from other travelers, El-Mahdi said, has been a mix of intrigue, envy and amusement.
“At least 5o percent of the people we walk by have some sort of reaction,” he said. “They elbow their friend and say they wish they made it for adults, or people with kids will say it’s amazing. I’ve never seen any negativity.”
Before Anna Karsten became a parent, she found ride-on luggage charming. Now a mom of two, she’s had to adjust her rose-tinted glasses, especially after she tested it with real-life pilots.
On her blog Anna Everywhere, Karsten reviewed luggage that her sons, now 4 and 6, could push, scoot or sit in. They liked Trunki, but their little legs got tired easily from the pushing. She often ended up pulling them by the strap, creating potential pitfalls in busy airports. They would tumble off, she said, or travelers would stumble on the long leash.
“It was causing more of a headache than it was actually helping,” said Karsten, who is based in France. “When you’re dragging your kids, you constantly have to look behind you to make sure they’re all right and you’re not tripping anyone.”
The family also tried a Jetkids product that converts into a bed. Karsten said the 360-degree wheels spun smoothly, but the interior space was small, and some airlines did not permit the leg extension, part of the sleeper setup. She had high praise for Younglingz, which includes footrests, a padded seat and a seat belt.
Luggage scooters are a smart idea and a crowd pleaser, she said — except in their intended environment.
“They’re super useful for walking around a new city,” Karsten said. “But at the airport, I feel like everyone will hate you for them.”
Aviation rules on rideable suitcases
Travelers should be aware of aviation industry restrictions on luggage that doubles as conveyance.
Before the 2020 launch of Kiddietotes, Clive said the company contacted 50 of the largest airports in the United States as well as the major airlines. The feedback was encouraging: Luggage scooters are allowed as long as they are not battery-powered and are compliant with Transportation Security Administration and airline rules. The company has not repeated its survey since then, even as it develops new products with a detachable carry-on and scooters tailored for teens.
More recently, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said it prohibits recreational scooters inside its three airports: JFK, LaGuardia and Newark. At Reagan National and Dulles International, scooters fall into the same category as balance boards, bicycles, hoverboards, Rollerblades, skateboards and Segways: The items must be pushed or carried, not driven. Ride-on luggage is okay.
Two years ago, Haneda and Narita airports in Japan asked travelers to refrain from using electric suitcases for safety purposes.
TSA said it permits rideable luggage at airport security checkpoints. The Federal Aviation Administration has guidelines on devices that use lithium batteries, such as smart suitcases. TSA recommends that travelers check with their airline about its carry-on policies.
El-Mahdi said he has had no issues stowing Aurora’s llama Kiddietotes in the airplane’s overhead bin. However, the rules are not always consistent. Some carriers require travelers to gate-check their scooters along with strollers and wheelchairs.
“After 50+ flights, our kids were refused entry onto the plane,” read a caption accompanying a video of the Hendrix children attempting to board with their scooters.
Best practices for scooting
Before setting your kids free on their chariots, Cheperdak, the etiquette coach, said parents and guardians should appraise their surroundings.
She said ride-on luggage is “generally fine” in quieter, uncrowded terminals and gates, but that riders should dismount in congested or sensitive spaces such as security lines, boarding areas, jet bridges and narrow walkways.
“It works best when paired with clear boundaries,” Cheperdak said. “Airports are shared, high-traffic spaces, and anything that turns into a toy rather than a transport solution can quickly affect safety and courtesy for others.”
As with other public spaces, parents should not let their children wander off. They should also enforce slow speeds and quickly intervene if their child starts to weave through people or block the flow of traffic, she said.
“Teaching kids to stop, yield and dismount when asked helps them practice good public manners in a way that translates far beyond travel,” Cheperdak said.
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