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europe with an 18 month old
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Anonymous
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is it absolutely insane to travel to spain with our baby, who will be 18 mon in April? we are planning 3 cities with 3 days in each and are doing train in btwn cities and then walking when in each place... is this a bad idea? as we're planning, we're getting seriously cold feet |
Anonymous
| I think it sounds like fun. the only problem might be if hte baby has trouble sleeping in hotels etc. just because of the change in routine. no fun. |
Anonymous
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We've done it in France and Japan when DC was 18 month. The good thing is that you won't have to deal with a car seat and a rental car!
We never had any problems with DC sleeping in hotels because we always made him sleep between us in the bed, and he was very happy. On the other hand, every time we have travelled, he lost weight because we could not be as vigilant about his feedings. Enjoy your vacation! |
Anonymous
| OP here: how DO we handle food? that's actually my biggest worry - we've traveled in the US a lot and to the bahamas and at least here, i know at absolute worst, i can find a mcdonalds and feed DD the bun or fries or chicken strips... but what about in spain? how will i find whole milk? should i put her back on formula for the trip? what about food? |
Anonymous
| I would pack some cheerios or other backup food, but I am sure you can find food that would be ok. The only thing I would consider is if you are going to use a stroller (possible, but often harder than here) or a baby carrier, or what, when the little one is too tired to walk. |
Anonymous
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Where in Spain are you going? Southern Spain to see Seville, Granada, Cordoba? The best thing you can do is rent an apartment and use that as your base. Get a full kitchen, living room, and bedroom. Unpack everything, and take day trips from there. If you have to skip a city that is further away, I'd do that rather than the constant travel/packing/unpacking. If you must see one city that you can't do in a day trip, still get the apartment, but just leave everything there and take the bare minimum with you for the overnight trip. I've done a lot of sightseeing in Europe with friends and never had a problem getting an apartment anywhere in the bigger cities.
Have fun! |
Anonymous
| PP here... really don't worry about food in Spain. Lots of American style places, and they eat a lot of eggs, meat, etc. Just ask for the tortilla (omelette with potato). And the hot chocolate and churros there is to die for! |
Anonymous
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22:02 here.
Milk is indeed an important issue: at every hotel we have been to in France - where they rarely have little fridges in the rooms - we ask the kitchen staff to store a whole milk carton we buy ourselves in one of their kitchen fridges. Hotel staff (and restaurants, etc) in Mediterranean countries love children and will go out of their way to accommodate them. DC used a bottle at that time, and we asked the kitchen staff to warm "our" milk in his bottle, or DH went down to do it himself. Depending on whether you go to little family hotels or big tourist ones, they might allow you in the kitchen to do it yourself. Of course they have milk available at regular eating hours, but we found that hotels and restaurants usually only have the half-skimmed variety. If early morning milk is important and the dining room is closed, you might consider heating a bottle late at night, wrapping it up in a towel to insulate it, and leaving it on the table in your room until it is needed. Your child will probably love the food, with the attractive colors and tastes! Not sure about mussels in paella at 18 months, though, but definitely the rice and little veggies (this is making me hungry!). Your child can try nearly everything, and as long as it is balanced correctly (grain, vegetables, meat, etc) there should not be constipation or diarrhea problems. Avoid, of course, little seedy tourist places. Overall, it is a great way to broaden your child's horizons - listening to a different language, eating unusual foods, etc... We always found that our DC had a developmental boost after each international trip. |
Anonymous
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OP, it is not insane. Many people travel extensively throughout the world with babies and children in tow. We have been doing it since our oldest was 6 months old. Having kids doesn't mean you're limited to Disney and Delaware beaches the rest of your days.
There are many prior threads on your topic specifically, so definitely do a quick search because there are a lot of good tips. From my own travels to France (Paris and Luberon and Riviera regions) I would say: definitely buy a seat for your child, and take a carseat on the plane. With all the recent news about turbulence-related injuries, I think it's smart to have a place where your child can be securely buckled in via 5 point restraing (a lap belt doesn't really work with a wriggly toddler, especially if anyone wants to attempt sleeping during the flight). A few other things: --buy kid sized ear plugs, and have the child practice "for the airplane" before you go. The earplugs white out any plane noise and allow for a good sleep. --if there was ever a time to allow chew candy (gummy worms or something small and non-chokable), it's when the plane is landing. You want them chewing and swallowing, to avoid ear popping, which many kids find confusing and scary. --Cadogan Guides has a special series called "Take the Kids" and covers many European destinations. Worth checking if your Spanish destination is among those covered--a great way to find kid-friendly restaurants, phrasebook for kid-related things (we learned the hard way that we'd been asking for sanitary pads, and not diapers...oops) --I really like the book Travel with Your Baby, and a Fodors book with a similar topic, for other ideas. |
Anonymous
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Honestly, I'd be most worried about the new travel restrictions in international travel. There was recently a post on a blog I like about traveling with children.
http://www.deliciousbaby.com/journal/2009/dec/27/flying-kids-under-new-tsa-security-regulations/ After reading it, I don't think I'd be even considering international travel with children. |
Anonymous
the child is 18 months. He will eat what he is given. spain is full of fantastic food. Yes they have milk. no you shouldn't put her on formula. and I am not sure you really need to feed an 18 month old chicken strips or bun or fries - just give them some of whatever you eat. |
Anonymous
| Not sure how adventureous you are with your own eating, but you'd be surprised at what an 18 month old will try. We are much more successful at getting our DC to eat exotic foods than "normal" foods. Curry chicken - yes. Chicken nuggets - no. Udon - yes. Mac & cheese - no. |
Anonymous
...Agreed. Why would you put him back on formula? I'm confused as to what could be so harmful about your child having 2% milk for nine days... just me? Unless your ped insists on it because of weight issues, I didn't think whole milk was a must nowadays... |
Anonymous
| Definitely go! Spain is great for families. We've lived and travelled across Europe and Spain is one of the easiest places to to deal with. Food in general is one of the best reasons to go to Spain. PP is right that an apartment and day trips from a base will give you more flexibility and less hassle. Consider a combo stroller carseat if you plan to travel more in the future. Enjoy! |
Anonymous
| OP here - thanks for all the advice... what's a combo carseat? Like a snap and go? Or just adding wheelies to the carseat to get it through airports? Or is there some other carseat/stroller combo that is more secure and easier to use? We have a great travel stroller - a city mini - that i love for how lightweight it is and easy to fold, and i can't imagine how a carseat stroller would be good for walking around while traveling... |