After traveling with 2 convertible car seats, I vowed to make my recent trip to Los Angeles with my 3 and 5 year-olds easier. And I found one of the best new travel products that I am so excited about! My 5 year-old isn’t big enough for a booster seat yet, so I ended up purchasing the WAYB Pico seat for both girls. Traveling with a portable car seat made our travel days so much easier. I have a 9 month old, too, so we should get a decent amount of use out of both. This is not sponsored – I paid for these seats and wanted to share a review. 

WayB Pico Travel Car Seat Review

Flying with little travelers can feel like a lot of work, and the extra stuff really adds up. Safety is top priority, but I was really hoping to make navigating the airport easier. It’s such a pain getting through the airport with traditional car seats. I wanted to find a lightweight car seat that was easy to use. And I found the best travel car seat – getting through the airport was a breeze, it meets and exceeds U.S. safety standards, and it fits in the overhead bin. The WAYB Pico car seat is  great tor travel, but it’s not a car seat I would recommend for daily use since it cannot compare to a convertible seat. And children who haven’t yet maxed out in weight and height should be rear-facing. 

WayB

Travel Car Seat

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Meet Pico, the car seat that’s actually portable!

Pico is a forward-facing car seat for kids kids 22-50 pounds and 30-45 inches. It is not an infant car seat, and is recommended for ages 2 and older. I don’t know that I’d be comfortable with a 2 year-old forward facing, so I would say it’s a better choice for ages 3 and up. My younger daughter is 3.5, so I let her forward face, even though she’s still rear-facing in her convertible seat. 

The car seat weight is only 8 pounds and it has a much smaller footprint than a convertible seat. 

Headrest Lowest Use Position: 15.2” L x 14.5” W x 22.8” H.
Headrest Highest Use Position: 15.2” L x 14.5” W x 27.8” H

Using the WAYB Pico

I did not want to spend $100 on a bulky car seat bag, so I just propped the car seat on the handle of my suitcase. Do not check your car seat! It is likely to be banged around or damaged, and then will no longer be safe for use. Either use your car seat on the plane or put it in the overhead bin. Since the Pico is so compact, I opted to put it in the overhead bin – had there not been room, I would have installed on the on plane since it is FAA approved. I decided to put it overhead and used this airplane harness instead since I thought my kids would be more comfortable on the plane.

Safety and testing

The safest car seat is installed properly, so if you need installation help, contact a certified passenger safety technician to help. I worked with the Car Seat Lady to choose the safest car seats for my kids and where/how to install each one. 

Pico meets all US standards regulated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This means it is approved for use while flying with a plane seatbelt.  The Pico’s safety testing meets all FMVSS 213 and FMVSS 302 standards.

The Pico is made from aerospace-grade aluminum alloy which makes this car seat superior in strength, safety, durability, weight, and environmental footprint. 

The Pico car seat uses minimal plastic components. Fabric pads are made from polyester and responsibly sourced wool, and high-performance mesh keeps little travelers cool and comfortable.

CARES

Airplane Harness

You can use a Pico on an airplane set but I prefer this harness since it's a little more comfortable and less bulky.

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Installing the Pico

I love the ease of installation – it takes a minute to figure out so I’d recommend reading the owner’s manual and testing installation at home before your trip.

The car seat installation was pretty straightforward.

First, you’ll attach the tether.

The Pico can be installed with your car’s latch system, seatbelt, and top tether. Put the seatbelt between the seat back and Pico frame and attach the lower anchors. 

Put the lap belt through the red belt guides. 

Switch the retractor and tighten the tether, lap, and shoulder belts. 

The seat is safely and properly installed when it moves less than one inch. 

When you first open the Pico, the headrest will be in the lowest use position for storage. When installing the Pico, the headrest should always be in one of the notches in the headrest bar. I wouldn’t want to have to install it in Ubers or cabs all day, but I’d rather install and carry this than a convertible seat, so I suppose it’s the best option. 

The chest clip should sit tightly between the child’s armpits, and not above or below. 

Use and comfort

When researching the WAYB car seat, the issue of the crotch buckle kept coming up. I’m not sure why it was designed the way it is, but it’s a tight fit, so if your child is on the larger side, they may size out of this seat faster. Both of my girls are on the smaller side, so my 5 and-a-half year-old fit quite well. I imagine she will size out in height before she does fit or weight. 

I hope you found this review helpful. Safe travels! 

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