https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 29 Apr 2026 12:15:32 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2278699 Tue, 01 Sep 2015 07:38:35 +0000 erinbaderin 2278699@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>That sounds fabulous! Last minute vacations are the best! Something my husband and I try to do on vacation is to give each other some time - we do Vegas a lot so I'll take the baby while he plays poker for a few hours, and then he'll take the baby and I can go to the spa. That was you get some dedicated relaxing time. Also (this is hard for me) try to remember that you're on vacation and not to worry too much about your toddler's schedule. If he naps badly or goes to bed later than usual it's fine, you can fix it once you're home. Have fun! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2278543 Mon, 31 Aug 2015 21:45:51 +0000 jhd 2278543@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ElbieKay: that sounds great! Enjoy! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2278537 Mon, 31 Aug 2015 21:41:59 +0000 ElbieKay 2278537@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Update: After months of talking and zero action, we finally committed last week to taking next week off. Then we blew through the entire weekend without managing to book anything. My husband sent me a mopey text this morning saying that we will probably just have to stay home.</p> <p>Then, today, one of my friends posted on FB that his family had arrived at Mt. Washington Resort. I looked on their web site and everything is discounted (probably because it's the last minute). It looks great, and my husband LOVES the mountains, plus it's kid-friendly and I think they will even book a babysitter for us.</p> <p>So we booked tonight. Yay!</p> <p>When I got home, I asked my toddler if he wants to go to NH next week. He said no. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2232394 Fri, 10 Jul 2015 04:44:47 +0000 lamariniere 2232394@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@looch: haha! </p> <p>Yes, Austria (where I live) has a ton of tourism that is extremely family friendly. The kinderhotels are great and if you like hiking and mountains, there are plenty of places to choose from. Vienna is also a gorgeous city to visit and extremely easy logistically-speaking. </p> <p>Otherwise, I would probably pick a week long beach resort. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231219 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:43:56 +0000 hotchildinthecity 2231219@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ElbieKay: maybe Costa Rica? We went there pre-LO and plan on going back with him. I didnt feel like this past trip was a lot of work but I don't know if he's just a chill kid (he's our first/only). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231208 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:40:30 +0000 Charm54 2231208@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm with you... We took a "vacation" when dd was 11 months old and it was WORK. We had fun at times but she didn't sleep well and that kind of threw the whole trip off. It was not at all relaxing. We have since put off traveling as a family, besides for more local trips so that if they didn't work out it didn't feel like such a loss of time, energy and money.</p> <p>At almost 2, she's finally old enough where I think we could enjoy a family vacation again. We've booked a trip to Florida for next March, she will be 2.5 ... I'm hoping we have a good time! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231206 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:40:14 +0000 looch 2231206@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ElbieKay: You know what you would like then, is a trip to Austria, to a kinderhotel. Seriously, sounds like torture, but they have everything there you can dream of, even strollers you can use. And you're in the Alps! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231201 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:38:59 +0000 ElbieKay 2231201@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm not a big beach person. We tend to like the mountains more than the beach.</p> <p>It's just so much more work with a baby that I have a hard time feeling any enthusiasm. Maybe we should try something like a rainforest trip. It would need to be accessible though. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231197 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:38:01 +0000 mrsjyw 2231197@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We've done Myrtle Beach (DS 8 months), Hilton Head (just shy of DS being 2), and plan on doing the Disney Cruise next year (DS1 3.5, DS2 6-12 months ish).</p> <p>We've also done NYC (2x), Chicago, and a western MI trip (3 hour drive) with DS all before he was two. </p> <p>We haven't braved going camping yet, but we want to do that too in the coming years. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231194 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:37:05 +0000 looch 2231194@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Do you enjoy the beach? If so, I would look for a hotel that has a pool and beach access, so you get the best of both worlds in term of things being set up for you and you don't have a million things to lug around and set up. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231193 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:37:03 +0000 Pancakes 2231193@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We visited Austin, TX when DD1 was about that age. We rented a 2-bedroom apartment through airbnb that had a pool. We took her swimming at the apartment pool, we visited Barton Springs, we went to the children's museum, and then we did the things that my husband and I like to do on vacations (visit local bookstores, go out to eat, see historical things--in this case we visited the state capitol). Renting the 2-br apartment was key because we could easily come back for naps and we could still have our own space. It's definitely different than a pre-kids vacation, but we enjoy seeing our DD have fun. Btw, this trip was a long weekend and that was a good amount of time away from our routine, I thought. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231185 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:34:52 +0000 Keybee 2231185@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I've seen very successful beach vacations with little ones. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231177 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:32:38 +0000 aegie 2231177@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>i think the rental + mosquitos probably made the previous trip more of a bummer than the fact that you went with a 6 month old? Besides, 16 months is easier than a 6 month old because I found the months where my kid could only crawl the hardest to leave the house bc she always wanted to crawl but I wouldn't let her unless we were at home or a friend's house. Otherwise, it's just too nasty. </p> <p>Beach vacations are always great with kids. But if you'd rather do something more cultural, you just need to make sure you plan naps and meals into your itinerary, </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231147 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:21:16 +0000 hotchildinthecity 2231147@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I just went to Puerto Rico with my toddler and honestly we had a blast. He loved the pool and the beach during the day. We hiked in the rainforest and explored old San Juan. They love kids there so everyone was super super friendly. We got a suite and he slept in the living room/kitchen, which had a door that closed. So we were able to enjoy the rest of the room and the big balcony for the rest of the evening. Also there were no windows in that room so he slept late. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231133 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:11:54 +0000 regberadaisy 2231133@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think you can still go on vacations like you normally do but maybe lower your expectations? We visited a friend in Boston when DD was around that age. We still went and did/see things, ate out, went on a hike at a state park etc. We just also planned downtime for naps and ate dinner earlier because of bedtime etc. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/family-vacation-ideas#post-2231121 Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:08:46 +0000 ElbieKay 2231121@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My husband and I have a 16mo. We want to plan a family vacation for this summer, but we have zero ideas. Last year we went to Acadia National Park with our 6mo. The baby was fussy (he was frustrated by his inability to crawl), there was a heat wave, the AC barely worked at the house we rented, and there were so many mosquitoes that we couldn't hang out on the beach after the baby went to sleep so we were stuck in this stuffy dumpy too-hot house every evening. We did go on some nice hikes, and we ate a lot of lobster, but to be honest it was not the greatest time.</p> <p>So, we are skeptical about our ability to plan a baby- and us-friendly vacation. We are not theme park people, and we typically like more authentic-style travel. Our three trips before the baby were to Provence, southern Germany, and southern Africa. That sort of trip sounds like a nightmare with a toddler.</p> <p>Honestly, it sounds easier to just go to work for the week.</p> <p>I realize this is a good problem to have, but if anyone has any suggestions on how to not spend an entire vacation mourning the types of vacations you used to enjoy, I am all ears. </p>