kreinbls

Hey all,

My daughter will be 18 months when we take our trip to Italy. We will be in a villa in Tuscany, a hotel in Florence and ending our trip in either Genoa and the surrounding area or Venice. I have drank the local water on past trips to Europe but only had Milk once in Spain, which didn't go over well but I blame most of it on the 100 degree bus ride. Would you suggest giving our daughter bottled water and bringing powdered milk with us? Any other suggestions for traveling with toddlers is also welcome, thanks!

tuscanlifeedit

If it wasn't for wine, bottled water would be the national drink of Italy. Tap water is fine, though.

I buy a lot of milk in Italy. Never had a problem. I think you are safe on things to drink.

jnjfraz

I've never had a problem with milk and the tap water is delicous

alihutch

Tap water and milk just fine

jkbritt

Back to my suggestion to use Grandparents if available. Use the trip to get reacquainted with spouse. Child will not remember the trip and you surely will if child gets sick. Plus carrying all the luggage a child entails really slows you down. If available, grandparents are a wonderful resource to be used. If not, then you have to take the child and all the sundry problems associated with them.

alihutch

Italians love children, which make many things easier

StCirq

When I took babies to Italy, we just stopped in a bar or caffé for milk. The proprietors were always happy to fill up the bottles with warm milk, sometimes adding a bit of sugar. But milk and water purchased at stores are also just fine. Just be sure never to fill up a bottle from a fountain with the sign "aqua non potabile."

poutine

Certainly tap water and milk are safe for kids to drink in Italy. However, milk does not taste the same everywhere. My daughter drinks a lot of milk and can always taste the differences. If you think your daughter might balk at any changes in taste, bring a bit of the powder. It won't take up much room or weight, and it might save the day if she gets cranky.

ellenem

Does your child drink the powdered milk at home? If not, it may be just as unfamiliar as Italian milk.

I find the milk in Italy delicious.

kreinbls

Thanks for all the great responses. She hasn't had her first birthday yet but will drink regular milk (not powdered). Hadn't thought about it but she does get about 30% of her daily intake from formula while I am at work but isn't a huge fan, might not bode well for the powdered milk. Traveling used to be so easy but I don't want to leave her at home for 2 of my 3 weeks of precious vacation.

poutine

By 18 months she will be eating mostly regular food anyways. I would bring some of her favorite snacks, and feed her a mini portion of whatever you are eating.

If she doesn't drink powdered milk before you go, chances are she won't like it!

Don't despair about bringing her with you. Yes it will change the way you travel, but you will still enjoy Italy. You just have to modify your timetable a bit, and it helps to try and think/prepare ahead. It doesn't sound like you are moving around too much, which helps. I always travel with my kids as I either had a choice between travelling with them, or staying home. Just don't sweat the small stuff!

eastave

We have travelled extensively with our daughter. It is true that it is a different sort of travel than when we were childless, but not it isn't all bad. We travel much more slowly now and experience places on a new level. We were in Spain when our daughter was 15 months old and we never had a problem with the milk. She has been in Italy twice, once when she was just over 2 and then a year later. The only problem we ran into was that restaurants tend to think children are going to want hot/warm milk. So if you want it cold make sure you specify. Have fun!

StCirq

Whenever someone posts here about taking babies or toddlers to Europe, some busybody has to come along and tell them what a bad idea it is. Ignore them. There are plenty of us who have traveled all over the world with young children and had wonderful experiences. Have a wonderful time on your trip. Speaking of warm milk, my daughter would never drink it cold again after we cam back from Italy.

Michael

When we traveled with our 10 month old baby we used a baby food grinder for her food. At that time it would have been difficult to find baby food in the French provinces (pharmacies had items for babies at prohibitive prices), and the grinder was what we used in the States anyway. The grinder is light and relatively compact, which is a plus when traveling.