for people who LOVE to travel

[Anonymous]

were you able to do it with two kids? i mean financially/energy to track two kids? or did you pretty much just stop traveling with your second? i really love to travel and i'm thinking of not having a second baby because of this....call me crazy

[Anonymous]

Oh my gosh no! We just drag the kids everywhere. We've been to Monterey, San Francisco, Disney World, Vermont, Ocean City multiple times (doesn't really count as traveling though), NYC, San Juan, the Bahamas, someplace in Mexico that I can't remember right now, a cruise. That's all in the past four years - my brain isn't working well enough to go back further than that. And, at lunch I was just working on our summer plans for a trip to the Grand Canyon, Bryce, Zion, Sedona and a few other places I have not yet picked out. I have three kids ages 10, 7 and 1. At times, I have flown alone with the kids because we couldn't all get flights together or we were combining travel with a business trip.

I will say this. When you get to three kids, it does change things. I am having great difficulty booking hotels for a family of five. Many require me to book two rooms or a more expensive suite because they allow only four per room. Also, you no longer fit in a car or SUV. You end up needing a minivan, which is more expensive. So, costs go up. But that doesn't happen until you get to child number three. The only difference in expenses between one kid and two is the extra airfare after they turn two and an extra admission into those places where you have to pay. We tend to share meals so I can't even say I think it's a big difference in the cost of food.

[Anonymous]

Like the previous poster, I travel all the time with my kids (currently ages 9 and 5), both with and without hubby, internationally and domestically, though I do think three kids would be hard for me! There are a few tricks. For example, airplanes with rows of three aren't as good as those who have sets of two, if you are travelling with a spouse; but if you're alone with the kids, a row of three is essential. Two kids is harder in general, just because you can no longer give all your attention to one person, and for someone like me who has a hard time multitasking, it does increase the frazzle factor. However, if you otherwise want and can handle two kids, you definitely can travel with them.

[Anonymous]

We have two (expecting # 3) and take at least one international vacation a year and one domestic. I come from a family of travelers and my parents took us (3 kids) absolutely everywhere! From them I learned that it usually makes more sense to rent a house or an apartment (especially in Europe) and that way save on hotel and restaurants as you will have access to a fully equipped kitchen and more space.
You adapt your travel style to all members of the family and do things at a slower pace. In our family we combine kid friendly activities with grown-up activities. For example we might be able to get the children to sit through a gourmet meal if they know they will be going to the zoo in the afternoon.
Sure air travel is more expensive when you add more people and tickets and food adds up, but for us it is worth every penny. We just love the memories and all the great things our kids have learned through out the years.

[Anonymous]

We travel the exact same amount with 2 as with three. International trips, domestic, etc. Both our kids had passports by 3 months of age. Just get a double stroller so that you don't have to wait for the big-kid slow-poke while running through the airport. If your eldest is at least 2 when the baby is born, you don't have to carry an extra carseat onto the plane, which makes things so much easier (I can only handle 1 carseat at a time!)

And - the kids keep each other entertained in the airport, on the beach, at friend's houses, etc. It's actually EASIER, if you can imagine.

I would definitely not let travel be the thing that keeps you from having a 2nd.

[Anonymous]

PP here. I meant to say we travel the same with 2 as with 1!

[Anonymous]

OK not to be the downer but I used to love to travel and now with 2 kids we've basically put it on hold. We thought that we would simply take the kids with us and continue traveling internationally but after a few trips out to visit family, plan to hold off until they are much older. We do family oriented things now like visiting relatives or Disney World, no Paris or Rome.

Its just too big a hassle. I used to love traveling on my own, just wandering around a new city, very little planning and very relaxing. The experience just is not the same with kids. The packing alone is exhausting, 4 tickets to anywhere adds up, the kids are hard to manage in one small hotel room, food issues, etc.

[Anonymous]

PP - I hear you (20:30 here). However, is it really different with 2 than with 1? We still travel, but just to family friendly places (also no Paris or Rome). But we wouldn't have done Paris with just 1 kid either. We try to get suites where-ever we go, or a house/condo so we don't have to share rooms. I hated sharing a room with 1 kid (8pm bedtime doesn't work for me), so the issues are the same with 2.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OK not to be the downer but I used to love to travel and now with 2 kids we've basically put it on hold. We thought that we would simply take the kids with us and continue traveling internationally but after a few trips out to visit family, plan to hold off until they are much older. We do family oriented things now like visiting relatives or Disney World, no Paris or Rome.

Its just too big a hassle. I used to love traveling on my own, just wandering around a new city, very little planning and very relaxing. The experience just is not the same with kids. The packing alone is exhausting, 4 tickets to anywhere adds up, the kids are hard to manage in one small hotel room, food issues, etc.

I only have one kid, but find the thread very interesting. But I do think this poster has a point to seriously think about. A good portion of your answer, I think, lies in "your" personality and what you find stressful, relaxing, enjoyable, boring, or whatever.

[Anonymous]

OP here, thanks for all the responses! sounds like as long as you plan a bit more you can reduce expenses - re: rent apartment vs. hotel and as long as you "redefine" vacations as more of an adventure vs. something relaxing but I think you already have to do that even just traveling with one.