No beach vacations on the horizon, but this weather has me wanting to plan one!
What are your must haves when you plan a vacation with little ones? A separate bedroom for naps and early bedtimes and a zero entry or shallow pool for toddlers to swim in are a must.
Any suggestions for favorite places to vacation with little ones?
pomegranate / 3658 posts
Separate bedroom, kitchenette of some kind, and some way for us to keep having fun after toddler bedtime, like a balcony with a hot tub, or other entertainment possible within the reach of the monitor
honeydew / 7235 posts
Kitchen/kitchenette is key! We did a beach vaca with our son when he was 2.5. It was a suite style room so separate room was great, and it had a great sized kitchen with a stove so we could make a lot of meals in the room!
pomelo / 5573 posts
It's 7 here but we leave Sunday for St Lucia! I'm 50% excited 50% terrified - a 3 year old and a 10 month old in one room for a week! But it's an all inclusive with a kids club (although there is zero chance B will go to it) so I'm hopeful that it's going to be a good time. At the very least there won't be a wind chill factor.
grapefruit / 4649 posts
I was totally searching for last minute fares yesterday. I'll spend a week at a red roof inn if it's warm there! I'm so over winter!
My biggest must is at least a fridge and microwave, ideally a kitchen. Separate bedroom is ideal but for a long weekend we can make do in one of the bedroom living room type hotels where there's only a half wall. I realized after a trip to Portland, Or when we stayed downtown that I need access to play space outside. The pool we nice but we needed a place to run around and parks are scarce and shady there. In Pittsburgh we stayed two blocks from a park ave it was awesome to run her over there for twenty minutes while one of us showered or packed up.
cherry / 226 posts
A villa with a washer dryer so we don't need to pack alot of clothes. I like Disney Aulani resort on Oahu.
grape / 77 posts
@erinbaderin: so jealous of you right now!! I've always wanted to try an all inclusive, just the idea of not having to meal plan or cook for a week is a vacation in itself!! I've heard st Lucia is amazing too!!
grape / 77 posts
@Cole: yes to a red roof inn anywhere warm, haha! I never thought about proximity to a playground, but that makes a lot of sense!
grape / 77 posts
@Teachermama: that resort looks amazing! Have you been? We are semi-planning a Disney trip, but I'm honestly so overwhelmed that Ive thought about just taking us there instead...for about the same price we'd get the Disney experience, plus a beach in Hawaii! Win-win for everyone!
cherry / 226 posts
@kpc324: yes we went last yr. Got a 2 bdrm villa, split cost with inlaws, so made it a good deal. Pools are great, even for babies and adults. Aunties beach house is a perfect place to send the kids when adults want an evening out or a massage at the spa. Plus having the disney characters is also fun. Costco had a promo at the time we booked, we got a $150 resort credit. We went in Nov and it wasn't busy.
pear / 1961 posts
Now that we have more than one LO, my preference is to vrbo a house with a pool, even if we are somewhere with a beach. It's so great not to have to schlep everything to the pool and back all the time, plus if one kid wants to swim and one wants to play (or needs to nap!) everyone can still be together.
pomelo / 5866 posts
@Teachermama: I've been to both- Red Roof and Aulani. LOL! 
Thumbs up for both.
honeydew / 7463 posts
Separate bedroom and childcare - Either a drop off daycare or in room. Both are a must for us.
We did Nizuc in Mexico when he was 15 months and it was heaven. They provided a highchair, fridge, crib, babysitters, and a kids club so we could drop him off and go to the pool for a bit. Heaven!
Not a must but VERY nice to have is a plunge pool off of the room. We had a balcony with a private plunge pool - so when he napped we could still have pool time!
We also did a VRBO condo in Grand Cayman which was great. It didn't have all the amazing amenities that Nizuc had, but it was awesome to have a full kitchen, separate bedrooms and living space, and a washer/dryer. The condo was on the beach and had a pool.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
Things to do...I think this is one thing where I learned the hard way. If we're going to the beach, I pack a collapsible bucket, a shovel of some sort and a bag to carry them in. Since he's an only child, I try to bring a second shovel so that he can ask other kids to play with him.
I also bring him a ton of stuff to do by the pool, like coloring books, stickers, markers, story cubes, some card games. I always buy him a surprise new game for trips, he really loves that.
I also pack food, I know my husband hates it, but it's so much less stress on me when my son gets hungry, which is often. I always have something to give him. And meds. I always have advil and bandaids for kids and adults!
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