Croatia : Tips for traveling with a toddler

We just returned from 2 wonderful weeks in Croatia (Dub, Korcula, Hvar and Trogir) - traveling with our 16 month old daughter. We had a fabulous time and will post a trip report soon but wanted to get SFMaster and Bortk some answers to their queries. I started a new thread bc I figure it will be useful for others to know as well.

Diapers - Pampers are available in all the local markets. They even had small packs of 20. We didnt always find the exact size that we needed but a size bigger never hurts (especially since there is a + between sizes).

Rocky Beaches - We found the rocky beachy much easier with a toddler. It is much easier to get pebbles out of a mouth rather than a fist full of sand. And it is a much easier clean up after beach time since sand sticks to sun lotian like glue! Our Ella enjoyed licking the salt off the pebbles and collecting them in her little bucket. The pebbles tend to be smooth but I still advise water shoes - this makes it much easier for the wee one to walk - and the same goes for Mom and Dad. Water Shoes are sold everywhere but we were thankful that we had brought them ahead of time for Ella bc we did not see such small sizes - for me and my husband we bought them on Korcula bc we were tired of the pebbles getting under our feet in our tevas.

Stroller vs. Child carrier/backpack - We went back and forth as to which to bring and in the end decided to bring both since we packed so light - we had just one big duffle bag on wheels for the three of us and a day pack (both completely stuffed full). We were really glad to have both - stroller was great for the airport, getting to and from ferries and buses, in restaurants since we never saw a highchair and the occaisional nap when out and about. The child carrier (we have the Kelty Kids Carrier bought at EMS)was a life savor in Dubrovnik and lots of the old towns due to all of the stairs - and for walking the wall in Dub as it would have been impossible, I think, with a stroller. There were certainly plenty of people with out the child carrier but then you have to tend with carrying it up and down all the stairs - and there are lots of them! Like I said we were really happy to have both and used both but it was possible for us bc we kept our other luggage to a minimal.

Milk - We never had a problem getting whole milk - it was not organic which I like to use but it was fresh milk. A few times in restaurants they offered to fill Ella's bottle or sippy cup or we just ran to the market bought milk, filled it and the restaurant provided us with a bowl of hot water for warming it.

Ferry experience with toddler - There are advantages and disadvantages of slow boat vs fast (catamaran). We used Jadrolinja in most cases and the big slow boat was great in that there was lots of space for Ella to roam around and they had a play area for children - this was ideal. There was a tv with a childrens video playing, a few rocking horses and a playhouse. It was perfect! On the other hand the Cat. is a much quicker trip but there is limited space to run and roam. But we were never on the Cat for more than 1.5 hours so it was not problem.

Babysitters- We never used any babysitters but our hosts at every one of our apartments were so lovely and adored Ella that I am sure they would have jumped at the opportunity. We brought our baby monitor along and in Dub and in Korcula were able to use it to go for dinner after Ella went to sleep because there was a restaurant directly next door to our apartment (and we were lucky that in every apt we had a baby bed). In Hvar we did not have a restaurant next door (Hotel Podstine was really close but not close enough to be in the monitor range). But here we had the luxury of a beautiful huge terrace with an unobstructed view of the Sea so staying at the apt for dinner was as much of a delight as going out even though we had to cook. And it was in Hvar that we went into town more at night and just kept Ella up later than normal. We would go for a simple quick dinner like pizza and she was happy running through the town square chasing the pidgeons and other children about when she was not eating. It also was not a problem keeping her up later bc she slept really well during the day for her naps - must be the playing in the sea and the sun.

Most of all we found that doing less was best for us with traveling with a toddler. There were lots of things that we could have done that we opted not to do because we wanted to keep our life simple. We enjoyed lots of family time, early mornings and late afternoons on the beach, chatting and playing with the locals and other travelers, and seeing the world through the eyes of our 16 month old daughter - and all of this in beautiful Croatia!!

Like I said a trip report will arrive sooner or later but for now hope this is some helpful information.

original message posted by:
Author: sfmaster
Date: 07/17/2005, 12:13 pm
Fabulous....... I know you are just back and certainly have some catching up and recovering. I look forward to the trip report. I am just being impatient! Todays NYT and the August 2005 Bon Appetit article make me so excited to have booked this vacation. I haven't even been there yet but I can't wait even to plan trip #2!

I will look forward to your trip report so no need to rush but would be wonderful to hear whenever you get to it the child related details.

Diapers availability??
Rocky beaches with toddlers
Stroller usage at all?? Worth taking backpack and stroller??
Finding milk out and about (or bringing thermos etc.)
Ferrry experiences with Toddler??
I have this fantasy that someone in our travels (owner of apartment we stay in) will have a nice and responsible older teenage daughter that my kids think is the best, and I feel comfortable maybe going out for a couple of hours here and there without kids. Thoughts?

(As a reminder we are travelling with 4.5 year old, 20 month old Split, Hvar, Dub).

cheers.