Babies in Venice
 

Hi,
How do people get around with babies in Venice? My twins will be 14 months old, and so too big for baby carriers. Are prams too hard to deal with in the crowded streets and bridges?

We hauled our babies around in Venice in a stroller (PITA!) and backpack (a bit easier). Hope you're in good shape! Buona fortuna!

The venetians use strollers with big inflatable wheels. I don't know where they got these strollers, but we were envious. We had our child hop out at each bridge. I don't think that would work with two 14 month olds. Good luck. Crowds were a bit of an issue, but manageable. If you stay off the main drags, its much easier.

I think you can do two strollers but don't try a double one. Many of the passages are too narrow. It will be steep going over bridges, and some of them have steps, but you can manage.

What is more difficult is that none or virtually none of the canal banks have railings of any sort (most bridges do). A child who does not mind and runs away could fall into a very nasty soup very, very easily.

prhirsh-I'm afraid I'm a bit mystified-I've never seen what you are talking about-the inflatable wheels-I've seen, as recently as my last trip a couple of weeks ago, where I was staying in all Venetian neighborhood, many young mothers, struggling a bit to get their prams over the bridges. They manage somehow, on their own, and with multiple kids.

AJ-it's not easy, but my Venetian friends have an 18 month old, and they carry her around in one of those papoose things on their back, (well, the father does) and then, of course, everyone heads for Campo San Giacomo dell'Orio-over in Santa Croce-which I dub "the children's campo of Venice" Children run wild here, and parents and others (like me) sit there in the piazza with a spritz and watch their kids go around and play with each other. My friends let their 18 month old just wander around-but keep an eye on her- and we sit and talk and drink our spritzes. Here's a picture of the Campo I'm talking about:

www.cheapvenice.com/campo-san-giacomo-orio.jpg

So be sure and head over there, and you'll feel right at home. It is a lovely Campo surrounding the ancient Church of San Giacomo dell'Orio-one of Venice's oldest churches, built around the 9th century, with works by Veronese, Paolo Veneziano, Francesco Bassano. There are great pizzerias here, not expensive (because it is a very local neighborhood) and there is a supermarket there on the Campo as well.

The inflatable wheels are like small bicycle tires. The front wheels were regular stroller wheels, but the back tires were these bicycle type tires. The parents would lead the strollers up and down the bridge stsirs backwards. We had several venetian parents, trying to be helpful, stop us to show us the proper way to do this as we were going up and down in the forward position. However, their strollers had these bicycle wheels, which made for a much less bumpier ride.

I think I know what you mean, that the tires weren't plastic roller types, and instead were like bicycle tires, which are inflatable. That makes sense to me.