LoveItaly

Hello BKP, you just posted an interesting observation.

My parents took me everywhere with them although it was not a long distant travel due to WWII and the gasoline shortage.

They had tons of relatives they could have left me with..with whom I would have had such good care and lots of fun. But they took me along on their outings. And I remember (thanks to your post) feeling so happy when I was growing up and looking at the photo albums that they did. What a nice compliment to your child!! We always took our daughter with us. If she was at summer camp we would take a trip at the same time..but honestly we were always wishing she was with us.

Josh

BKP,

We just returned from a trip to Provence with our 8 month old son. We must have put 50 miles on our Peg Perego. It was well worth lugging it around all week.

We, too, were thrilled to learn that our Boy is an excellent traveller. He was very popular with hotel staff, waiters, fellow diners, etc. One lady at a cafe was travelling without her children and asked me if she could "have a cuddle!" (with the baby, not me).

I had real concerns with his ability to handle all the changes of being away from familiar surroundings (even though he has a great demeanor). I'm about to start planning our next trip.

I'm glad everything worked out for you.

eraybkln

Hi BKP-
THANKS SO MUCH for the information, your suggestions, and the supportive words. Long before we had our son, my husband and I agreed that we would take our future children on as many travels as possible. You are so right in that the pictures will last forever and while he may not remember he will be able to see that his parents always wanted him to be a part of their adventures. I'm already so excited about this trip and it's months away.

We are also bringing along my sister who will be 17 at the time. She may babysit one evening, but for the most part this will be a family vacation. The apartment option is looking better and better as many of the hotels say we have too many people for one room.

Thanks for the smile on the Bugaboo statement. Luckily, we have one we use here in NY. We will definitely have a more portable stroller for this trip.

Thank you again for the info. I may ask more questions. In the meantime, enjoy future travels with your little one.
-eraybkln

katharineclifton

There is nothing like looking at the world through the eyes of your child.

spottiew

One question that I don't see a comment about... how did your little one adjust to being several time zones over? Did you take a day to adjust, or did you always need to work around naps at strange times? That is my biggest concern in a Europe trip, is that I will have one very tired little guy who isn't much fun.

BKP

Hi Spottiew
We actually didn't have any time zone issues. I think children adapt much easier than adults. We left Seattle early morning and arrived in Paris the next day, early morning. Our son slept a little on the flight and a little more during the shuttle to the apartment. We were all settled into the apartment by noon so we just treated it like a whole new day. Hit the ground running. Still being small enough for a stroller he dozed some. That night he definitely caught up. He slept for almost 16 hours straight. We had to wake him up at noon the next morning just because we were so excited to go out and see Paris! After that his schedule was just fine. I think it also helps that he's on a schedule at home too. You didn't say how old your little one is -- but I'm sure any kid with enough snacks and a free ride in a stroller would do just fine. Good luck!

eraybkln

Hi BKP,

I can't tell you how much your trip report has inspired me in planning our trip. I just wanted to say thank you again for such useful information, especially for a family like us planning to travel with our little one.

I noticed in your replies that you did not purchase a seat for your son. Did you carry a car seat for cab rides or getting around? We mostly plan to walk and take the Metro (with a very lightweight stroller), but I do wonder about getting in taxis if we need to. How did you cope with or without a seat?

Not sure if I mentioned before, but we have decided to fly into London first for 2-3 days, then take the train to Paris for the rest of our trip. I'm trying to get a gauge on all the "things" we will need for the baby.

Thank you for any info.
-eraybkln

tetrabit

Good for you BKP! We too just came back from Europe with our little one and it was a fantastic trip. Our little one just started walking, so it was a bit tough than when he was 8 months. The flight was a bit rough, he didn't sleep much, too big for the bassinet etc, but the car rides was great!

We went to Venice (don't go if you have lots of luggage or willing to splurge on a water taxi), Bellagio, Cinque Terre and Nice. We checked in his car seat and got a rental car, which was fantastic because little one loves being his car seat (as long as the car is moving).

We're expecting another child this November (yep, I was pregnant when we were there). I'm still lurking about this message board because I'm thinking about our next trip, don't know when....but it'll definitely be tougher for sure with too. We brought our umbrella stroller, which was great.

So for all of you out there - if you want to travel with your kids, it's not as bad as people say.

CarolA

I have a friend who took her baby to Europe. She has the funniest stories. They did part of the trip on a cruise line. Somehow thier son became the pet of the ship. The cabin crews from all over the ship were dropping by to "play" LOL! They developed a very good relationship with thier attendant and paid her to babysit while they had dinner one night. Next thing they know the ships captain is finding them to tell them how much he enjoyed showing thier baby the bridge of the ship. (She claims that if they had it to do over, they would have attached "baby cam" just so they could see where he went during the 90 minute meal! LOL!)

All in all she said it was well worthwhile....