Mom says Delta won’t let her sit next to her 2 toddlers on flight from Florida to Minneapolis. What can she do?
Air travel with young children can be stressful enough without worrying about where you and your large party will sit. And while passengers might think they’re set if they buy assigned seats, that’s not always the case.
Airlines can still make changes because of operational needs, aircraft swaps, or availability. According to one woman traveling with Delta, that can happen even if it means the change separates you from your small children.
How Did Delta Rearrange a Family’s Seats?
TikToker Tay (@taytayhumphrey) shared a storytime video of what she described as a frustrating experience with Delta Airlines. Her storytime video has received over 18,500 views.
“I have a massive bone to pick with Delta Airlines,” she begins. “I need anybody who knows anything to chirp in; flight attendants, people that have had a similar experience in the past.”
She adds, “I just need advice, solidarity at minimum.”
Tay says she and her family are “massive Delta fans,” and it’s the only airline they fly with.
According to her, she had booked the trip in question months in advance.
“We booked a flight back in July of 2025 for our trip that is now upcoming next week, Friday,” she explains. “It’s currently Wednesday, February 11th.”
She says she logged into the Delta app to double-check the flight details when she noticed an issue with the seating arrangements.
“It’s a total of seven of us,” she says. “Two of the seven are my husband and I, and the other two are my two twin toddlers under two.”
The remaining passengers included her mother, her younger brother, and his girlfriend.
“When I’m first looking at our flights on the way down, I realized that our seats were changed,” she says.
She explains she arranged the original seating plans so that each toddler would be sitting next to two adults for support during the flight.
“In hopes that there can be two adults with one baby, two adults with another baby,” she says.
However, she claims the airline rearranged the seating into one group of three and two groups of two, seated relatively close to one another.
“So I’m like, OK, I’m gonna call and see if I can get this changed,” she says. “Because what the heck?”
She says the initial change on the outbound flight still appeared manageable, but the return trip from Fort Myers to Minneapolis was a different story.
Delta Seat Changes Left Toddler Without an Adult
“And then I look at the flight home… and I’m really confused,” she says.
She filmed the seating arrangement on her laptop, which showed only two members of the group seated together while the remaining four were each assigned individual seats nearby. The seventh one is nowhere close to the rest of the group.
“I’m confused that there’s only two sitting by each other, and everybody else is scattered,” she says. “And yet there is only six out of the seven people that have an assigned seat.”
Tay says she called Delta customer service and waited roughly 40 minutes before reaching a representative.
“I explain the situation,” she says. “And she says that they’re not able to change any of the seats.”
She says she remained calm initially but became increasingly frustrated when customer support told her that moving to another travel date was the only available option.
“She wasn’t working with me and giving me the option to change to a different day,” she says. “Which doesn’t work for us.”
After asking to speak with a manager, she says she received the same response.
“This manager said the exact same thing,” she recalls. “That they were unable to make any seat changes for us.”
According to Tay, the manager offered to move the group to main cabin seating near the back of the plane, though she says even then, they might not sit together.
“At that point, I asked… how one of my toddlers is supposed to sit by themselves,” she says. “I just feel like this isn’t OK.”
“When you book 7 Comfort+ seats together for your family… and Delta changes your flight and seats your toddler alone,” she added in the caption of the video. “We’ve called and asked 2 people to help. No solution. @delta please help.”
What Are Her Options?
Just as Tay mentioned, Delta Airlines does reserve the right to change “published schedules, flight times, aircraft type, [and] seat assignments,” as stated on its Legal Notices page.
In her situation, where customer service has told her they are unable to help, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) says families can try to rearrange seating at the gate.
The agency suggests that families arrive at the airport early and speak with the gate agent. Generally, the DOT notes, airlines will try to accommodate families traveling together. “Even if the airline is unable to seat your whole family together, they may be able to assure you that each child is seated next to an adult family member,” it writes.
If an airline does not make a satisfactory effort to seat families together, the agency recommends filing a complaint with the airline or with the DOT.
Commenters Offer More Tips
In the comments section, viewers were appalled at Delta’s customer support. Others advised Tay on how she should handle the situation.
“I do not understand how its 2026 and the system doesn’t automatically check to make sure that young children are seated with an adult in their party,” one user wrote.
“I saw a post where a father asked who he should give the diaper bag to,” shared another. “He got seats together.”
“I say put them in their seats! I promise once they see two toddlers by themselves they will make adjustments!” advised a third. “Especially after you tell them you did everything possible to try and change it!!”
@taytayhumphrey When you book 7 Comfort+ seats together for your family… and Delta changes your flight and seats your toddler alone. ? We’ve called and asked 2 people to help. No solution. @delta please help. #deltaairlines #familytravel#FamilyTravelids #comfortplus #airline ♬ original sound – Tay
The Mary Sue has reached out to Delta Airlines via email and Tay via TikTok messages for comments.
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