kim

Before children my husband and I were used to traveling a bit (Europe, big cities in the US) but we are now the happy parents of a one year old. Now I am trying to figure out what kinds of vacations I can plan that will ease my wanderlust while not imposing too much unneeded stress on my child.

What vacations have worked for you? What hasn't? Were there some places that you feel like you missed out on a lot of sights or entertainment because you had children with you? For example, if you had never been to NYC before I would think going with a small child would kind of make it a half of a trip because you wouldn't be able to see plays or go to nice dinners. However, having been many times before, I am looking forward to taking my son there and spending time in Central Park and living more like a NYer.

Some destinations I have considered: a cruise, Hawaii, Yellowstone, NYC (as mentioned), New England.

I live in Orlando, so Disney and the beach will be well covered in our travel plans.

What do you all think? I know it will get easier as he gets older, but I also expect there will be additional young uns!

DISCLAIMER: Please do not turn this into a "should we vacation/shouldn't we vacation w/children" debate. I am only requesting advice on where to travel to and what I can expect from PARENTS who have been there.

Sarah

San Diego is a great family vacation destination. Stay on a bay front hotel and plan on spending a lot of time enjoying the water with your son. It's amazing how happy a child can be just spending uninterrupted time with his parents building a sand castle and splashing around in the bay. San Diego Also has plenty of fun attractions like the San Diego Zoo, LegoLand, Balboa Park and Wild Animal Park among plenty of other places.

ddd

I think you can take your child anywhere he/she does not need a vaccination. I can only comment on my experiences on the Hawaii. I took older children 11,13,17. We had the most fun on Oahu, plenty to find. The Ilikai in Waikiki has very affordable, comfortable condos with kitchen and Lanai. You have zoos, aquarium, beach nearby, and million other items for all ages all over the islands. We were all over the island the parking was so easy at the ilikai and you still can get ocean views at steals.

Over the years I have seen people with young children (before walking) all over the world. My sister claims it is actually easier when they are very small. A good friend took her three year old to Egypt. They went for a month, based in Cairo with weekend trips into Sinai. I asked a friend who joined them how it all went, thinking she would give me an impartial opinion. The friend said the three year old had a blast. They did not curtail a great deal of their travel at all. The three year old cheerfully did a dawn hike in Sinai. Was happy to move around for jaunts into the country. One or two times in early evening the child did not want to go out and they stayed home. The single mother I mention is a PHD in Arab studies. I think because she did not curtail travel around the child they did very well. That kid will go anywhere comfortably. She is five now and does not want to go to Lebanon this summer so they are not going.

I know you were largely looking to hear from parents and I am only a step parent but I hope this was helpful.

curious

Hi! I am the mother of 2 boys who are 8 and 11. My husband and I traveled extensively B.C. (before children) so it wasn't as difficult to scale back, which we did. We love vacations with and without kids. You just have to plan for ages and not have unrealistic expectations. I agree that some travel is easier when kids are not walking. Our first trip was when my son was 8 weeks to Washington. It was a breeze, he slept nearly the whole time, until we stopped moving. I had to be prepared to nurse him anywhere, which didn't bother me. At 6 months we went to Cancun. Again, very easy as we stayed at the Hotel and pool the whole time, not much moving around. Once they walk it gets tougher. We found renting beach houses ideal from 1 year on. Easier to prepare food, take naps, not deal with the agony of very small children in restaurants. Cruises are also excellent - once they turn 3 and can go to the kids programs. My children LOVE them still, even though my husband does not. We do cruises with Grandma, Aunt and cousins, no whining husbands allowed! Actually resorts w/ good kids programs are also fabulous. They have a blast and you get a little R&R.
Sightseeing intensive vacations are IMO a big mistake. We have taken the boys hiking and mountain climbing, which they love, but get them in a city looking at architecture and they are miserable. We tried this once a few years ago and are planning our first trip to Europe as a family. I think next summer they will be old enough to appreciate it. We are also fortunate to have family who will watch them so we can go on adults only vacations like Italy, Paris, Thailand, etc. If you don't, wait. They grow up so fast that in a few years my kids won't want to go on trips with us, and you can save the ambitious vacations for later.
Take it slow, keep their (and your) capabilities in mind and make sure you allow children to do at least one fun (for them) activity a day and you'll be fine. You're smart to consider the stress of your child, I've seen parents who do what they want to do and won't let their children "hamper" their lifestyle. Everyone ends up miserable in the long run. Congratulations and happy vacationing!

ilisa

I agree with ddd. You can pretty much take your kids anywhere. It may just mean planning the trip a bit differently than if the kids were without you (renting an apartment or house, less sightseeing, etc.). I have a friend who took her 7 month old to Australia. In October, she is taking that child (who is now 2) and his 3 month old brother back there. Another friend took her daughter to Israel when she was 7 months, and is back there again (she's 2) as we speak. Last weekend we took our daughter into NYC. No, we couldn't eat at any place really nice, or see a show, but that didn't matter because she adored the Central Park Zoo. Personally, I think it's best to start kids travelling when they are young to get them acclimated.

S

I think the key to successful vacations with your children is to all be accomodating. Personally, I want to totally relax on vacation. A large oceanfront beach house on the Outer Banks shared with friends has been awesome. Face it, when they're little, a child's ideal vacation is lots of play time with mom and dad! As they get older, you can start introducing them to your interests. Keep in mind that small children are very tactile - touring Minnie's house at WDW will be more enjoyable to a 3 yo than touring the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Plan on children time, family time, and Mom and Dad time. Sometimes all in the same vacation - sometimes all at separate times.

AmyG

As a mom of 2 boys, 6 and 4, I have had a lot of experiene in vaationsing with children. For younger children say under 4 or 5 years of age, you will need less entertainment. As someone else said renting a beach house anywhere is great for a amily. It allows separate rooms so little one can etc. and you an fix snacks and meals in the home. For younger children I highly reccomend Martha's Vineyard. It is a quaint, beah atmosphere. Rent a 1 or 2 bedroom home, grill out on the patio, ride bikes, go to the beach, its wonderful! however, for older children 6,7,8 and up it may not be as fun beause this age seems to wan to be entertained all the time with roller oasters and amusement parks, which MV does not have. I'll also say that we have done 2 all-inclusive vacations in the Caribbean and loved both. We did the Beach Palace in Cancun and FDR resort in Jamaica. Both had great kids programs and ativities, FDR even had nanies so we ould go out a couple of evenings to the nie restaurants and go dancing. I would do either again and in fact am looking at the Beaches Turk and Caicos resort right now in Antigua as my children are getting older. It is all-inclusive with kids clubs, Sega game center, pirate ship pool etc! This would however be WAY too muh for a 1 yo. Try the beah house or cruise idea for now. Do not take any type of trip where you are in the car for long periods of time! Do not take trips where you move around alot and change hotels several times! do not fore children to go plaes where they will be bored out of their minds like museums or art galleries! Most of all do not do more than your children an handle, if they are tired they will be cranky and make you miserable too. Go at a slower pace and adjust to their schedule. These are my tips from experience, Happy Travels!

Susan

I think you should post this on the European board also to get ideas from people who ventured outside US with children. Chances are they might give you a different perspective than people who chose to stay state side.

Nancy

I took kindergarten classes to modern art galleries in Manhattan, regularly.
They were always happy to go. I put it into a context that they could understand and they loved it.
They will love what you make interesting. Take them on a light hike and let them touch feel and smell the fauna. They will love this. Don't be confined by traditional ideas about young family vacations. Bounce a ball and make it exciting and your child will love that. The key always is what you make interesting.

kim

Great advice coming in! Thanks so much for the ideas, especially specific things like the all-inclusive resorts in Cancun and Jamaica. To AmyG - were you able to do any sightseeing in Cancun and Jamaica? I have never done the all-inclusive thing so I don't know if the point is to stay there all the time.

Our vacations thus far have not been the sit-on-the-beach-and-relax variety, mostly because I am from Florida (been there; done that) and I never travelled much growing up (want to go there; want to do that!). While I realize our pace needs to slow down to accommodate the little one, I would still like to go places and see things that I haven't done before. So I guess I am looking for places where we can sight-see at a leisurely pace!

I am hesitant about taking him to Europe though. I have seen lots of posts saying that it is no problem, but I think it would be too stressful to ME (he is more adaptable than I am!) so I think we will wait until he is older.

Thanks for all the great ideas, keep 'em coming!

patg

We took our oldest to Europe when he was a few months shy of 2. This was as good an age for him to go as any among the early years. There were pluses and minuses - he wasn't toilet trained, but he wasn't struggling with it, either (wait until 2 1/2 if you don't know what I mean yet). We couldn't eat at nice places, but we ate outdoors all over Paris and Barcelona, and had a lot of fun feeding birds, etc. Once or twice we had room service which made everything super-easy. People were incredibly nice because of the baby. We got all kinds of attention that we wouldn't have had as solo travelers. We spent maybe 30 minutes MAX in the Louvre because he was fussy that day, but we got to skip the long line out front because of the stroller! We also joined family for a few days at the beach - really the best kind of vacation, as many have said already. But the city part can be done if you work with his nap schedule, seek out lots of outdoor activity, always have something for him to eat (restaurants may not have anything that appeals) and have enough supplies and patience to be flexible. No, it wasn't the European vacation we had dreamed of, but it was a vacation we didn't know existed - one of our very best.

GOL

Our parameters turned out to be:

Crying / Diapers phase - Stay in places where a crying baby won't bother neighbors or others in hotel rooms, etc. No all day long events; had to plan around a sleepy/cranky kid (don't take a 9 hour boat trip!)
No romantic trips.

Toddler / Pre school phase. Trips around kid-related things. Many zoos. Were not yet forced into vacations by school breaks, so we could go to popular places when older kids are in school. Great time for leisurely road trips, stopping at any nearby kid thing; park etc.

Early School Years (5-11). Education-related. By accident, many of our trips were initiated by something my kid was learning. Washington; History; Science; Geography; My kid hearing from other kids... Some of the best vacations were the ones where my kid chose the places to see (major and/or minor).

12 - 18. Making FAmily Tradition. Now, regularity sets in. We do the same thing each summer (plus at least one other trip). This anchors the "family" to tradition. [Ours is the place at the beach/shore]. When my kid said he will bring his kids where we vacation... I had a lump...

Remember - now that you have kids... time will FLY. Live for today when you make vacation plans...

My kid doesn't remember much before school years, although they are just like yesterday for us.

xxxx

There are a lot of dangers to consider when traveling to someplace like Yellowstone with young children, wildlife, is the first thing that comes to my mind. You could do it, but I think it would fall into the catagory of 1/2 a trip. I agree with the previous posters who said that young children are easier to travel with. When our child was very little we went to Quebec City and had a wonderful time. I think NYC would be fine. It may actually be harder in a couple years than it is now. San Diego, which another poster mentioned, also has my vote, though... Anyway, I hope you enjoy traveling with your child as much as we have. And take lots of pictures gt;)

kim

Thanks again for the great advice! I really appreciate being warned away from things (yellowstone, travelling getting more difficult when children are older). I know anything can be done if it is important enough to you, but it is very helpful to know the pitfalls, especially if we are travelling somewhere we haven't been before. There is a security in going to places that we are already familiar with as well as a security with staying in the US, but perhaps it won't be too bad to keep up with new places for a while.

Kim

Barbara

Since you live near the ocean consider trips to the mountains. Also, kids love to play in snow - consider a winter vacation.

Janet

I would highly recommend a cruise for several reasons.
Since you live in Florida, as I do...the cruise is your only expense...no airfare. Also many, especially the newer ships have fabulous camps for kids onboard. Royal Caribbean is our favorite so far...but trying NCL this winter.
My kids, and our friends kids literally beg to go to camp...We have family time in the afternoon, grown-up time in the evening....in my opinion, its the best of both worlds.

Lexma90

I have a 6-yr-old and a 2 1/2-year-old and we've taken them on a variety of vacations, both outdoors and the city kinds. Seeing things through their eyes, even places I've been before, is to see them in a new way.

The 6-year-old (like his mom) loves cities. We've been to N.O., San Francisco, Chicago & Boston - each for long weekends. Yes, what we visit is a little different than what we would do if it was just us adults, but not entirely (it helps that we've been to all those places before). Both kids really love taking public transportation (taxes, buses, T, El, ferry boat). Some culture, some museums, mixed in with visits to playgrounds (every city has them - I love the one in Chinatown). Restaurants with outdoor seating are useful. If you can get a suite at a hotel, your evenings will be much easier, and give the kids more room to wind down. There are lots of kids' books on specific cities these days; some we liked, some we don't. Show them as many pictures as possible before they visit (the internet is great for this). Our cab driver was amazed that my son identified the BAY BRIDGE as we saw it in the distance. The little one loved the "Let's Go Lobstering" book we got for our trip to Maine.

We do try to limit the moving around - for example, one hotel in Boston, then a rented house in Maine on the last trip. Getting used to a new place is a bit stressful, though that's easier as they get older. My younger child gets stressed out by a lot of noise, so if I see that she's getting bothered, so in a city, we find a shady park or quiet cafe.

The younger one can nap anywhere - which she does while we visit sites and sights that she would be less interested in.

When visiting cities, we have hired babysitters to watch the kids while we went out for a "grownup dinner." I wouldn't do this too many nights of a trip, but I think I'll be more comfortable doing it as the kids get older.

We live near the mountains, so we do the outdoors thing almost every weekend. Lots of short hikes, with special treats and diversions for the kids. We visited Yellowstone & Grand Tetons last year. I was happy to see even the baby enjoyed the geysers. The older one looks forward to returning, when we can take longer hikes. Even with the hikes we did, 1-2 miles, we were still seeing scenary that lots of Yellowstone tourists don't get far enough from their cars to see. The older child loved the geysers, hot springs, mud pots, etc. too. Our trip to Maine was a success too - we bought lobster from the local pound almost every night & ate it at our rented house.

We haven't really done the beach or resort vacations because we adults don't enjoy them.

On our trips, we try to make a point of doing some things for the kids, some things for the adults. I think it's important that they know that our family life is not just about them (though of course, we don't take them places that it's not appropriate to take a kid to).

kim

Lexma90,

When using a babysitter on vacation did you go through your hotel to find them? Any tips about doing this? It makes me a little nervous but it seems like the best of both worlds...

Teresa

Kim,

My husband and I have always loved traveling and our kids (12 and 9) have also picked up the travel bug. We take them as many places as we can afford and have so many wonderful memories. Don't rely solely on the Disneylands and Disneyworlds--those even wear thin with the kids after awhile. Museums and exhibits with hands-on activities are always huge hits, especially with the little guys. We have a video of my son (then age 3) waiting for Old Faithful to erupt while he lay on the ground with his chin resting in his hands--he didn't move for at least 10 minutes. When it finally did erupt he danced all over the place shrieking with excitement. What a nice memory (for all of us--he remembers it). We've taken our kids all over the U.S. (we're planning a New York trip for next month) and totally enjoyed Beaches Negril last Thanksgiving. Since you live in Florida and are used to sand, beaches etc. I might make another suggestion--what about someplace like Steamboat Springs, Colorado in the summer? We just got back from Steamboat (soccer tournament) and had a great time. Families everywhere and plenty to do--all in the most beautiful setting. Honestly (and you'll see this as your child gets older), the benefits of traveling with children FAR outweigh the negatives--it's so great seeing the world through their eyes. All-suite hotels are a godsend on even short trips--that way, everyone has some space and you're spared the "it's 10pm so EVERYONE's going to bed" problem. We always buy travel books and do Internet searches on our destination beforehand. That way, even the kids know what to expect and can have input on what we see and do. Get them involved (not with a one-year old, of course Just to keep things in balance, though, we do enjoy some Mom and Dad trips-only once in awhile. After all, that's what Las Vegas is for! Enjoy that baby--you have so many fun times ahead of you!

Lexma90

Kim - The hotel babysitter thing is a bit nerve-wracking, and whether you feel comfortable hiring one is a very individual decision, but in 2 cases (S.F. & N.O.) the hotel recommended an outside service, so there was some assurance that the hotel wouldn't recommend them if it wasn't a decent service. The services had bonded employees, and all that. I checked them out the best I could, and my son had a good time (my daughter was too young to comment); the babysitters also brought toys, etc. We did it once in Vail, and the person was an employee of the hotel who did babysitting on the side. Somehow I felt more comfortable with that arrangement.

Re Yellowstone, the wildlife worries are a bit overwrought. I must admit we were a little nervous hiking with the kids, but that's mostly because we didn't have our large dog with us (dogs are not allowed in national parks); at home we always hike with him. But there are wild animals all over (including where we customarily hike); you just use normal precautions (just as you would travelling in a big city). And the experiences we had there were great - did I mention the encounters with the moose, the elk, the bison & other smaller animals, and the (far-away) sighting of a mother bear and her two cubs? My son certainly remembers!