Is there any travel that's enjoyable solo with a toddler?

[Anonymous]

My spouse travels for work, and sometimes he'd be gone for 2 weeks at a time. I used to do mini road or rail trips with my kid as a toddler, starting at about 2.5.

What we like is hotels. Room service, no cooking, no cleaning. Extra points for an indoor pool. Check into the hotel, chill out, I'd let my kid watch cartoons (which we don't often do at home) while I read a book. We'd find somewhere for an early dinner then get takeout dessert for the hotel room. Room service breakfast is expensive but a treat -- and if your kid is little, you really just need to get a big breakfast and split it. If that busts the budget too much, go find a cafe. Then we'd do sightseeing stuff in the AM, grab some lunch, come back to the hotel to chill out for a few hours (nap). A swim in the pool, showers, and then dinner.

Philadelphia is a nice trip with a little kid. Not more than a couple of hours in the car. I'd play audiobooks, we'd stop midway for "treats" from Wawa (a fruit cup!!). The Please Touch museum in Philly is lovely for little kids. You can take the train to Philly but it's hard to get to Please Touch without a car.

Train is nice to NYC, though.

We also did a trip to Raleigh, slightly longer drive. Luray Caverns/Front Royal is within range, or Harpers Ferry, if you want a more country/outdoorsy kind of vibe.

[Anonymous]

OP. Thanks everyone. The train is a great idea and some of these city itineraries sound perfect for us. Paris is top of list when travel opens again. I’ve been a lot but never with my toddler. Philly is a great idea in the meantime.

And I’ll check out Club Med for resort options. Beach vacations aren’t my usual go to, but a beach vacation with some childcare sounds really great.

[Anonymous]

I love visiting my parents! They have a winter home with a pool and right next to the beach. My dad puts my toddler in a stroller and they will disappear for two hours into town and I can veg out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP. Thanks everyone. The train is a great idea and some of these city itineraries sound perfect for us. Paris is top of list when travel opens again. I’ve been a lot but never with my toddler. Philly is a great idea in the meantime.

And I’ll check out Club Med for resort options. Beach vacations aren’t my usual go to, but a beach vacation with some childcare sounds really great.

A number of years ago we went to Club Med Sandpiper in Florida as they have clubs for toddlers and older kids. My son would spend about half a day or so in the club and I could relax. The Club is very family oriented so there were tons of young families there and they were very welcoming to a single mom with a child.

[Anonymous]

No

[Anonymous]

Philly is a great suggestion. Pittsburgh too. Honestly, any city with a nice kids museum, a zoo, a waterpark, an aquarium—places like that. I always found city trips like this to be more enjoyable than beaches because it’s so much work to lug all the stuff around.

[Anonymous]

I always liked small cities with toddler, walkable downtown. Enjoy the hotel breakfast, visit parks and a children's museum. Room service or take out for dinner.

[Anonymous]

I loved Arizona with young kids. I want to go back with my older kids now.

The Phoenix Zoo was just wonderful as was their children’s museum. There is also this amazing zoo museum in Tucson. I learned about it here on DCUM and that was one of my favorite trips when my kids were young. The actual flight was pretty hellish. It was our longest flight to date at the time.

Another awesome trip was to beaches Turks and Caicos. Again, flight was bad because we had a layover and delay. I remember vowing never to fly anywhere that stops and have only flown nonstop direct flights after that trip. The actual destination was absolutely wonderful. Beaches has a great kids club and the whole vacation was so kid friendly.

Disney with young kids during non peak times is also very enjoyable. We went when kids were 1 and 3 in late April where there were no spring breaks and low crowds and perfect weather. Stroller walks around parks was nice. Kids rode the kiddie rides with short waits.

[Anonymous]

Why were you "miserable"? Answer that question and then you'll know what to avoid. The not cooking part seems easy to solve - obviously you need to go to a resort or hotel where you get in-room dining. What are the other issues that made you miserable?

[Anonymous]

We had a wonderful pre-Covid weekend in NYC with toddlers (not a single mom, though). We got a hotel room on the UWS, and pretty much just spent time at nearby playgrounds, Central Park, the natural history museum, and the Central Park zoo. I know we just scratched the surface of what NYC offers, but given that the adults just wanted a getaway to eat some fun food and have a change of scenery, it was perfect, and we plan to do more of these neighborhood-based NYC trips in the future. Since we have lots of friends with kids there, we were also able to get a sitter so we could go out to dinner alone, which was truly amazing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also - we kept dd more on a split with eastern time so she went to sleep @10-11pm and woke around 10am, so I slept the same hours. Usually we went back to the hotel for nap time. I would read or rest or watch a movie on my computer in the (gigantic) bathroom while dd napped. We also made many visits to the marchés for food. We were there in June/July and had excellent weather and lots of amazing fresh fruits. We’ve taken other trips in the summer and had less amazing weather, but got lucky this time.
I think if you manage your expectations and generally like your child you can have fun together anywhere. It won’t be the same as single travel, but young children are quite adaptable and at that age mine were usually up for whatever I wanted to do - something that has changed a bit now they they’re older.
We also went to Copenhagen when my youngest was a toddler and that was also a wonderful city with young kids. That trip was with all 3 kids and my husband but I could see one doing it solo with a young child. Very easy to get around, lots of simple and fun things to do.

I had a similar experience with my toddler in Rome. SO much to see and do outside. We stopped and had pasta at outdoor cafes when he was hungry. Stopped by neighborhood playgrounds for him and just walked around with him in a backpack so I could see the city. We stayed in a hotel and ate out or did room service for every meal. Splashed around the indoor pool when it rained. I accepted that I wasn't going to necessarily be in museums for hours and adjusted to his schedule, but when I let go of those expections, it was great. Also, the Italians are so kind to moms with kids. It was honestly one of the most magical trips I've ever taken.

[Anonymous]

Lord. No. If you don't like AirBnBs and you don't like cooking on vacation, I can't see how traveling with a toddler could possibly work. I can't think of anything less relaxing than dragging a toddler to a restaurant for every meal.

[Anonymous]

HI OP. I am also a single mom and I traveled with a toddler.

Gotta say, the Paris mom is giving poor advice. I would never want to be alone with a toddler overseas. Remember that a single parent must be ever-vigilant and does not get a moment's rest - possibly while little one is sleeping but be sure little one cannot wander off. And flying across an ocean twice with a toddler just for fun? No thank you.

When I had a toddler, we tended to visit family and close friends, driving or flying, partly so I had extra hands and partly to introduce DC to the village. It sounds like you are really looking for ideas for just the two of you, so I will echo Philly (by train would be fast and fun) and a Club Med with a kids group.

In a year or two or three, so many more options will appeal, be manageable and fun for both of you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:HI OP. I am also a single mom and I traveled with a toddler.

Gotta say, the Paris mom is giving poor advice. I would never want to be alone with a toddler overseas. Remember that a single parent must be ever-vigilant and does not get a moment's rest - possibly while little one is sleeping but be sure little one cannot wander off. And flying across an ocean twice with a toddler just for fun? No thank you.

When I had a toddler, we tended to visit family and close friends, driving or flying, partly so I had extra hands and partly to introduce DC to the village. It sounds like you are really looking for ideas for just the two of you, so I will echo Philly (by train would be fast and fun) and a Club Med with a kids group.

In a year or two or three, so many more options will appeal, be manageable and fun for both of you!

“Paris mom” here... I travel a ton with my kids solo. Just because it wasn’t for you doesn’t mean it isn’t for everyone. A 7-8 hour flight really is nbd especially the overnight if you have a kid who can sleep, which I did.

[Anonymous]

Anywhere with family or friends to help or a resort with babysitting.