Let’s be honest, air travel with kids is not the easiest. Between weather delays, checked baggage fees, and the fear that your toddler will kick the seat in front of you the entire time, I’d say it ranks on the anxiety meter somewhere around preschool interviews.

Fortunately Seat Guru can minimize some of the stress and if you haven’t checked it out yet, it’s so worth it.

If you haven’t been to this site yet, Seat Guru, a service of Trip Advisor, offers coveted info about every kind of plane, every flight, from every airline. Before you book your seats online, open Seat Guru in another browser window, search your flight, and you’ll find out whether those primo seats are actually next to a bathroom, or whether the bulkhead is a bassinet location reserved for travelers with babies. Mouse over specific seats and there are helpful user tips too.

In fact, if I had used it on a recent European flight, I wouldn’t have spent all night with a blanket over my head, shielding my eyes from the bright galley lights right next to me. D’oh.

Book the best airline seats with Seat Guru

One other great feature: the site gives you a heads up as to whether your flight will have wifi, TV, and power ports–or whether you need to load up on iPad movies for the kids. Very helpful.

Oh and if your kid does kick the seat? Buy the person in front of you a beer. Trust me. –Liz

Get info about your airline seats and flight online at Trip Advisor’s Seat Guru