HAVE BABY, WILL TRAVEL : MORE BUSINESS TRAVELERS TAKING CHILDREN ALONG.

Byline: Maggie Jackson Associated Press 

When Elliot Beddor is in New York on business, he stays at a small hotel where the staff knows him. There and in other cities, he takes in the sights when his schedule permits. His nap schedule, that is.

Elliot, the 15-month-old son of a Minneapolis retailing executive, is one of a growing legion of pint-size travelers who tag along when mom or dad takes a business trip.

About 15 percent of the 275 million business trips taken in 1995 included children, up from 12 percent of 222 million trips in 1990, according to the Travel Industry Association of America.

As in olden days, many trips involve a working dad, stay-at-home mom and kids. But increasingly, working parents are going on the road with one or two children, and perhaps a nanny. Call it adventure travel cum briefcase.

With teddy bear in tow, the youngest travelers sightsee or swim in the hotel pool while their parent works. Older children go to kids' camps proliferating at hotels that are eager for such business. In between or after work, the fun begins.

``I get to see more of Elliot when I travel than when I'm home,'' said his mom, Gail Dorn, vice president of communications and community relations for Dayton Hudson Corp. ``In between meetings, he's right there.''

On a recent trip to New York, Dorn finished morning meetings in time to meet Elliot at a restaurant for lunch. As he chomped on peas and tortellini, guzzled orange juice and gurgled at waiters, Dorn pondered with his nanny, Cheryl Anderson, over which museum Elliot would take in that afternoon.

Of course, taking baby along is often tricky. Changing a diaper in a closet-sized airplane bathroom is a challenge. An earache on the road is doubly painful to all. And novel foods don't always sit well.

Once Elliot accompanied Dorn to a business dinner at a New York restaurant and happily sampled mango sorbet and other tidbits. But back in the hotel elevator, up came Elliot's dinner - all over a group of businessmen sharing the ride.

``To this day, the hotel staff teases me and Elliot about that night,'' laughs Dorn, who also travels with her stepchildren Paige, 12, and Paris, 10.

Yet parents say the effort is worth it, providing not only extra time with their children but opportunities for children to see the working world and the wide world.

T.J. Cline, a 2-1/2-year-old who has flown more than 100 times, is ``friendly because he's used to being around so many different people,'' said his mother, Nancy Lieberman-Cline, a professional basketball player. ``To me, there's only been an upside to taking him with me.''

Boston consultant Khouri Jamison-Carlen also finds that she's more effective in her work when her 14-month-old is near. ``I'm not worrying, wondering, missing her. She's there. I'm able to focus better,'' she said.

A child might say the same. ``Sometimes I miss my mom. I'd rather be on a trip with her,'' said Elayna Schranz, the 6-year-old daughter of Hilton hotels executive Joanie Flynn. Elayna names new foods, hotel pools and airplane rides as her favorite parts of such trips.

For many parents, business trips are a staple of work life. Yet they're also growing shorter (3.1 nights on average) and more frequent (5.73 trips a year) - a trend conducive to taking a child along.

It's often easier to bring a child on a trip than to arrange extra child care.

``The option of mom staying home and taking care of the kids, as in the Ozzie and Harriet era, is often no longer there,'' said Nancy Dunnan, an associate editor at the Travel Smart newsletter.

Older working parents also have the means and desire to bring kids along on business trips, notes Christine Tempesta, president of KiddieCorp, which cares for children during conventions and other business meetings.

Tempesta's 11-year-old business has grown up to 20 percent a year as both hotels and companies wake up to this trend.

If a hotel or convention center can't baby-sit the children accompanying a meeting, Tempesta steps in. She can create a day-care center or preschool at almost any site in 26 cities, using managers and toys dispatched from her San Diego headquarters and local helpers.

Caring for children of the business traveler has become a point of competition for hotels, said Jim Austin, spokesman for the Point Hilton at Squaw Peak resort in Phoenix, where roughly 30 percent of visiting children are with parents on business, up from 23 percent in 1994.

TRAVEL TIPS

Tips for those who want to bring a child on a business trip, from parents who have done it:

Before the trip: Make sure your employer supports you. Alert your boss and any colleagues who will travel with you about your plans.

Call ahead and tell the hotel of your needs, and inquire about their offerings for children. Get a guidebook to the city and plan your fun outings together.

Consider carefully whether the child is amenable to travel. Some children revel in new places and people, while others might not like it at all.

On the trip: Buy a few small toys and bring them out as the trip progresses. Don't forget snacks. Consultant Khouri Jamison-Carlen gives her toddler foods ``that she has to chew for a long time, such as raisins.''

At the hotel: Bring along well-loved toys and photos, along with the child's own blanket, to make them feel at home. Go through hotel safety brochures with your child if he's old enough, or with your nanny.

Don't forget to pack your sense of humor: Jamison-Carlen said, ``No matter what I pack, she can still have a meltdown. There will always be people on the airplane who wish I hadn't been born.''

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos, Box

Photo: (1) Retailing executive Gail Dorn and her 15-month-old son, Elliot Beddor, check in for a flight at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

(2) Basketball star Nancy Lieberman-Cline flies often with her son, T.J., 2.

Associated Press

Box: TRAVEL TIPS (See text)