Travelling to Spain with Baby
 

Hi,

I have a 14th month old and we would like to visit Spain.
We would like to know what are the recomended cities we should do? We have 10 days, and we don't want to travel too much around spain and we want something easier with a baby. Also how shall we travel with the baby within the different cities?

Thanks!

Hi...when are you going? I am traveling with my husband and fourteen month old daughter in spain this september. i haven't done it yet but i've found some good info. there is a trip report on here from a girl who traveled with her baby in madrid - it's pretty recent if you do a search with "madrid and stroller". We decided to keep it simple and pick two cities - madrid and san sebastian. we rented apartments in each city and are taking the train between the two one way and car the other way (that part not simple). we are going to try to walk and take public transportation in the cities but will have our car seat as well. we'll probably bring a back pack carrier and a stroller. i really don't know how to limit the "stuff". I'll be curious what other people recommend to you. how exciting!

We are also going in september. What are the dates you will be going? We are thinking of staying at hotels( use up our points) I hope it will be ok with my baby. I am going to take a food warmer and bottler warmer. I was debating about the car seat, but wasn't sure if its worth taking it. I just wonder how my hubby and myself will be able to carry everything especially if we use train between cities. So I was thinking of taking backpack carrier and stroller. Also how easy would it be to attach the car seat to buses or cars?

Are you going to take baby food and milk?

Thanks for telling me about the trip report. I will read it now =)

The only reason we are taking the car seat is because we used our miles and we have a seat for our little girl on the plane. I haven't bought the bigger car seat yet but she definitely needs it so that is an issue too. Since we'll only be in two places and have one train ride I figure we can handle the stuff. Two suitcases, a lightweight stroller, a backpack and the car seat. It is a lot. I definitely wouldn't take the car seat if she wasn't going to use it on the plane.
I'm not going to take milk - hopefully she'll be drinking whole milk only by then (on formula now) so I can get that there. I assume I can get baby food there too. I have a contact in Madrid (friend of friend) who has a baby so I'll ask her about that. It would be easier to get the food and diapers there since that stuff takes up so much space. My baby is eating a lot of real food now too but I don't know what she'll eat in Spain - maybe more bottles since it will be easier. I might take formula just in case.
Do you know where you are going? When is your baby's birthday? My daughter turns 1 this sunday and we leave here on september 18th, and then boston to madrid on sept. 21st, home on october 1st. Where are you traveling from?

Hello there:
I see that westcoastdreamer has already reco'ed my trip report to you :)

Just wanted to say that another very useful resource for travelling questions is the "Travelling with Baby" form on Babycenter. The parents there are quite responsive and helpful!

Good luck!

Sgulrajani -- I haven't taken my son to Spain -- but I've taken him everywhere else! My only bit of advice is to wean your baby off the bottle warmer. That will be an added hassle for you. Do you plan to go back to your hotel for every bottle? I've found that most places (again, I really can't speak for Spain) the beverages aren't served ice cold as they are in the States but slightly cooler than room temperature. If you could get your baby accustomed to that it would be easier for you.

We took our son to Paris at 11 months. We didn't bring any baby food and we didn't buy any while we were there. He ate baguettes, yogurt, cheese, and fresh fruit. Of course it's available, but again, not being completely reliant on baby food will give you more flexibility. I remember one time when our son was falling apart and we were panicking, trying to calm him down. An older lady came over and shared her pain au chocolate with him. That cheered him up pretty quickly!

Enjoy traveling with your baby. Be prepared for lots of extra attention. Everyone will want to pat and tickle your child. One waitress even took my son out of the stroller to throw him up in the air! It's a wonderful way to see a culture from a different perspective.

Car seats(of any type) for a baby or children will not be usable in Buses. In cars it depends on the fitting. As I understand it some US seats are not the same as EU seats.
Seats are obligatory for the use of children up to a certain height and age. This rule extends all over the EU.
Car seats can be hired from car rental companies...but the price may be an issue!
There is no need to take baby food and milk as we have it all here too.

If you're in the major cities you can get a lot of what you need in Mothercare - have a look on the net for their stores in spain.
Spain has a less stringent attitude to litigation - which means you can prepare food if you're self-catering or in apsrt-hotels and then ask for it to be microwave heated wherever you are; same goes for babyfood in jars. Alternatively, you can ask for a bowl of boiling/hot water to place the food in.
Hipp Organic is available in El Corte Ingles foodstores within their department stores which are in every large city. It's the best (least unnatural) brand available here by far.
Nappies - sorry diapers - are also widely available of course.
You can take any type of food for your baby into a bar/restaurant and feed him/her there; you'll find a lot of places do really hearty stews and meat in sauces which are perfect for babies if their tastes are not too narrow (which, sadly, is a category one of ours falls into; he survives on fruit, some veg, loads of fruit, rice, french fries (chips), bread, sometimes a bit of soup and, weirdly, spaghetti bolognese). Pasta and tomato sauce is available almost anywhere.
If you really don't want to be bothered with a pushcair (stroller), any big store even supermarkets and hypermarkets sells them from around €60. Might be worth landing, buying one straight away and leaving it at your last stop - ask the hotel staff to pass it on for charity.
Car seat hire is maybe €30 a week on top of your car hire but if you're in the cities will you really need a car that much?

I've totally hijacked this post as my own and this info has all been so helpful! I am just going to buy my diapies/nappies and babyfood when I get there, if I need the jarred food, and try to just feed her as much regular food as possible. she is eating a lot of cheese, fruit, bread, some beans, meats. I also love the idea of buying the lightweight stroller there....good plan!
I wish I didn't have to take the big car seat everywhere with me...does anyone know if there is storage at Madrid Barajas airport? I guess I can check it out online.
Thanks again!

Thank you everyone for your tips!

What is the temprature usually in Spain in Sept? What shall I take for my baby?

I would either focus on Madrid for 3 nights, Seville for 3 nights and Granada for 2 nights minimum. Weather will be very hot, 85-95 degrees. Granada is much cooler. Or I would do 3 nights in Madrid and 4 in San Sebastian. SS is not as hot as Andalucia.