Hi everyone,
DH and I want to take a trip sometime in October for 6-10 days with our 2 toddlers, almost 3 and 1.5 yrs. We have never traveled far with them before, and only by car. Frankly, we are petrified of spending a whole bunch of money and having a bad time, if the trip is too stressful for them. We want something relaxing, an "escape"- but with our precious babies. I think they could easily handle a flight of 2-3 hours, but not much more. Our nearest airport is New Orleans. Money is not too much of an issue, as we are long overdue for this vacation and want to splurge a bit. We had thought of a cruise, but our kids are too little for kids programs. Anyway, ANY suggestions or ideas would be really appreciated, thanks so much!!!

How about Disneyland? Lots of fun things to do in Southern CA! In October is when the crowds will be diminishing. It's our favorite month to go to Disneyland. Stay at the Grand Californian. ***kim***

Have you thought about leaving the US & going someplace like Jamaica? You can fly from Houston to Montego Bay in about 3 hours. Our favorite place is Negril. Very kid friendly. In fact, we stayed at Beaches Negril in May. It has a kids program & now is featuring Sesame Street activities for the young ones. The beach is fabulous & you can go on glass bottom boats to see the fish & underwater life.

If you want to stay in the US then how about just going somewhere in Florida? Disney might be a bit much for them. I remember when our youngest went & she was too short for several of the rides at Universal. Plus she got so tired out waiting in line.

Hi Kim,

We've talked about Disney, but wondered if it would be too overwhelming or scary for kids so small. I don't know the best age to start kids at a theme park like that. We definitely are considering a Disney cruise, but have heard that the food is pretty bad. I do love the idea of nice weather... I will check out the Grand Californian, are the rooms nice? It would be cool to have a fridge for their juice and snacks. Thanks Kim!

Benj,

I think the kids would LOVE Sesame characters!!! How are the rooms and food? Also, will the kids need a passport?

The tiny kid does not care. The big kid is old enough to actually enjoy some things.

I'd start by getting some cruise ship folders, and seeing what cruise lines have child care programs for kids this small. Back before Disney got its own ships, I was on a Disney cruise where the four year olds had a wonderful time with great shipboard staff, and parents had lots of free time.

Then every once is a while the kids would show up on some sort of adventure, pass by their parents, wave, and disappear again. Once they were tracking a pirate carrying a treasure chest.

But check the dates -- some ships end their children's programs when school resumes.

You are right about them being too young for Disney World / Disneyland.

Or fly to Barbados or Jamaica, to a family-friendly resort where there's good, well-trained, staff to look after children.

By the way, I'd be amazed if the food on a Disney ship was not really good, except perhaps in the mind of some snobbish food critic.

But you're goal, I gather, is to relax with the kids, and get big smiles from them, over and over. Not sit in some fancy restaurant comparing the flavours of four kinds of brie.

The big advantage of crusie ships and resports -- if you pick the right one -- is someone skilled to entertain the kids, and then bring them back to you.

Bak,
You are right, the Brie will have to wait a few years. We all need some R&R together without alot of travel hassle to get there, and a children's program to occasionally drop them off to. You are right, most cruise lines programs start with 3yr old kids that are potty trained, my oldest will not yet be three and, unfortunately shows no interest whatsoever in using the potty. Disney cruise and Beaches resorts are sounding good, has anyone else here brought kids under three there with good success? Thanks BAK!

Wherever you go, I'd suggest staying in a suite or a condo so you have some kitchen facilities. When our children were small, we found that cereal and fruit for breakfast (and coffee for us) got the morning off to a better start than going to a restaurant or hotel dining room. Having a frig for snacks, or to pack a lunchn worked for us.

Plus, having more space helped everyone have a better time. Having a separate room to put the kids down for a nap was a good thing for us. A cruise cabin can be pretty small.

never been myself, but the FDR resort in jamaica comes with a vacation NANNY. talk about some free parent time!!!

The rooms at Beaches were fine. We had a 1 bedroom suite & took our older kids (23 & 17). We had a bedroom with a kingsize bed & separate bath. The other room was like a big living room with 2 sofa beds & a separate bath. Each had their own balcony & there was a mini fridge & microwave there. Our bedroom also had a sofabed in it. The resort now has a small waterpark that the kids might like. As for food, there was always something to eat. There are 2 nice restaurants (not for kids) & then the main place, The Mill. That one is buffet style but does have a made to order section. There is also a pizza & pasta place near the kids section.

I have posted some pictures of Negril & the Beaches resort at http://www.tropictravelonline.com/cg...ategory=100203
Click on the Benj May 2004 pictures.

As for passports for the kids, here is a post from www.negril.com that gives info.
http://www.negril.com/config.pl?read=107915

Gosh, I'm ready to go to Jamaica now! I had no idea they had such highly-recommended programs for kids. Hmmm... my son's seven so maybe during his autumn break we'll just have to head over to Jamaica.

I love Disney but also think it might be a bit too much for your baby. Well, actually, I think it could be a bit much for you parents! Disney does provide some pretty nice perks for parents and babies in the park, though.

Wherever you go, if you could get a suite of some sort that might make it easier for you to put the baby down for a nap or to bed early, so that the rest of you can do something else in the other room.

Good luck!

We took our two children last fall to Acapulco, Mexico. Our son, then 28 months and our daughter, then 9 months had a great time. We stayed at the Hyatt and had a nice suits that overlooked the bay.

The reason we choose Acapulco was because of the relatively low rates, as it is the low season. But, the rub was that it was actually the nicest time of year weather wise. We had 8 days of nothing but sunshine and warm tempatures.

Part of the appeal of the Hyatt's location was the fact that it is just a few blocks to the Wal-Mart. (Yes, I know.) We liked the idea that we could easily get a few large bottles of water, snacks, yogurts, milk, etc.

Our kids are both pretty adaptable and we had no problems having the hotel babysitters come in every other night. The cost was pretty reasonable at about $20 for 3 hours.

We actually liked it so much, that we'll be going for two weeks this November.

BTW, one caveat with any beach resort, definately plan for the sun. We have full length wet-suits for both kids and either use them, or we just let them keep their t-shirts on.

Make that a nice suite. While my wife and I are good dressers, we didn't bring the suits this time!

Have you considered the Cancun/Riviera Maya region? The Gala Resort (about 45 minutes south of Cancun) has a children's program that accepts kids as young as 18 months. If you wait just a few months until your youngest is age 2, you can check out the Crown Paradise Club in Cancun. Their Kids Club starts at age 2. October is low season for that area so you should be able to get some pretty good prices. Also, I'm sure you can get some direct flights to the area from NO. If you go near the end of October, your risk of hurricanes drops. Personally, I wouldn't do a cruise with two kids that young (been there, done that). If they don't like the kids program, there really isn't anything else for them to do. Could be a recipe for a very, very long and exhausting vacation.

I think the Disney Cruise ship programs accepts kids as young as a year old.

My other thought is wherever you go, rent a condo instead of a hotel room if you don't go all inclusive.

just one thing. don't assume that small children will LOVE characters. my friends little girls get so scared that they get physically ill when they see a character or a clown. depends on the kid. my nephew loves them. I think a beach vacation is your best shot. I vote for cancun. pick an all-inclusive that has a babysitting service and a kiddie pool. the flight is short, no worries about drinking the water anymore, and there are now beautiful air conditioned department stores (Neiman Marcus for one) if the heat gets to be too much.

My 22 year old stepdaughter is deathly afraid of clowns.

San Diego is a very family-oriented vacation spot. You have Sea World, THE Zoo, Legoland, and the beach. In October the weather will still be warm but there won't be big crowds to deal with. The flight may be longer than 3 hours, though.

Beach type vacations are great---IF you get good weather. Look out if you don't! I'd recommend a city, Boston, Washington, DC, Philadelphia, etc. If you can afford it, bring the children's babysitter or an older cousin along as a "mother's helper". They get a free vacation and you get some time alone. All 3 of the cities I mentioned have children's museums, zoos, and playgrounds galore. They have city parks where toddlers can run, shriek, look at people's cute dogs, and generally do all the things little kids like to do. If your hotel has an indoor pool, that will be as much fun for a toddler as the ocean. An elevator can amuse a toddler for hours (not by themselves...obviously). Suite hotels with kitchenettes are good because when kids are in a bad mood, NO restaurant is fun. Cities have lots of stuff kids like: trains, boats, fire engines, walkable sidewalks that are conducive to strollers, outdoor festivals, outdoor sculpture parks and botanical gardens, indoor malls, office building lobbies that have atriums, fountains, etc. Toy stores are toddler museums, and you don't even have to buy anything, (or just buy a little something so you don't feel guilty). (We used to let our kids visit FAO Schwarz in NYC, and then we'd buy them something at more affordable Toys-R-Us.)If you can't take along a babysitter, you and your spouse can take turns visiting the hotel spa. Some hotels even have sitters on site so you can eat at their restaurants or take in a show or concert. Toddlers are really too young for theme parks of any kind. People dressed in costumes can be very scary, lines are intolerable, and if you have paid a big admission price you will feel bad cutting the visit short if your kids aren't enjoying themselves. Also, in a city you can feel confident that good medical care is nearby, if needed. An ear infection in Acapulco or Jamaica could be a real nightmare for you (unless one of you is a doctor). And why is it that kids always get sick when you take them on vacation?

I get the impression you're looking more for a destination, and in that case I would second the suggestion for San Diego.
Other wise...
When our kids were 1 1/2 and 3 we rented a motorhome for a couple weeks. Their car seats strapped onto the sofa facing our the window. We drove from Southern California up to Canada (Okay, if you must know how long ago it was, we were going to Expo '86). But, as is the case with road trips, the fun was in the journey. I planned for stops each day that were fun for the kids. We had a "train" theme, so we found everything from a miniature train ride in Oregon to a huge steam engine in British Columbia. I found children's museums and "living history" farms along the way. The motorhome made it great because we could stop and eat or use the restroom whenever we wanted and they could take their nap whenever they wanted. It was a great trip that we still almost 20 years later as one of our very best.