Written by Guest Blogger, Elena Devecchi of “Globetrotting with my baby” Blog.
Travelling after becoming a parent: Reasons why you should persist on being a globetrotter.
When Johanna asked me if I were interested in guest writing on her site, I was just back from a trip to Japan with my baby girl and husband.
I was thinking carefully about a subject for this post: maybe about being a mother in Italy (which is per se a subject for a thriller movie), or about our experience in Japan, or – hold on – shouldn’t I write something for those who want to visit Milan with kids? Well, these are very interesting topics and if Jo hosts me another time, I can talk about it (I know you want to figure out how one can survive the Italian Sunday lunch with the family), but then I realized that I’m hosted here because Jo came across my blog. And I’ve recently started a blog, because I want to tell people that one can travel with babies.
Most of the people give up their passion for touring after parenting. It is very common to hear “when the kids grow up, we’ll do that trip”, or “we used to backpack through Asia every summer, but then the kids arrived…”. Well, pretty much the opposite: a child should experience and know what is far from his/her habits. He/she should realize that there are different ways of living and doing things. I’m deeply convinced that you can buy your kids the newly released smartphone or the most fashionable trainees, they are going to be happy during a couple of days, maybe a week if you are lucky. Whereas memories are there to last. They are going to remember the hike to Machu Picchu, or the view of Paris from the Eiffel tower. As parents, we shall leave fears aside and start organizing the trip we’ve been dreaming of for years.
Still not convinced? I’ll give you some hints that we used to travel with our baby since she was three months old and, as you can see, we are still here to tell!
- Choose a reasonable destination. This is the key success factor of your journey and much depends on your kids’ age.
With an infant (0-6 months old), you have less problems than you think: you might feel as if you were squeezed by the novelty of parenting, but this is the best moment to travel. Your baby doesn’t crawl or walk. If you breastfeed, the food is always there and ready. If you are on formulas, you can use the ready-to-use. The baby has long sleeping phases during the day, which makes him recover very fast from the jet lag. I repent not to have travelled more in that period.
With a baby that crawls (6-12 months old), you need to make sure that you can manage the feeding process easily. Consider that airlines normally allow you to travel with baby food in your hand luggage, so taking the plane is not a major concern. As for destinations, you should look for places where baby food is easily accessible. In this very phase, I think is one of the best destinations to visit, as their standards of cleanness are very high, you can find baby food almost easily and fresh food is very healthy. We had our baby girl on a Japanese diet for three weeks and she appreciated it a lot. Ok, who wouldn’t appreciate Japanese food, right?
With a toddler and with more than one kids of different ages, until you are near the scholar age, I think that Countries where the natural component is massive are the best destinations. On one side, it is interesting for your older kids to sea parks and animals, while you can “set free” your toddler with less risks. Canada is on our whishlist for next year, when our baby girl will be in that stage. Until your kids are three or four years old, I would avoid places where tap water is not very safe, just for the sake of simplicity. For the same reason, I would exclude places where it is harder to find diapers, wet wipes, baby food, etc. This is the kind of trips that can wait until your kids go to school. - Plan in advance. I know that many of us are the kind of travellers that just grab a few things and go, without any other planning than buying a flight ticket. With kids, this is the easiest way to go crazy. If it’s the first time for your baby abroad, check the passport requirement in your Country and at destinations. Children are more flexible than we think (and than we, adults, are), but I don’t think that looking for accommodation once arrived at destination is the best way to kick off your trip. The internet makes it easy to look for baby-friendly places. Early planning of accommodation also allows you to save some money: when you travel as a family, it is not that bad! Nor I think it’s a good idea to pack the children things very last-minute. You should plan at least some aspects of your baby bag. First, make sure you have their medical kit from home, discussed with their paediatrician: you are going to feel reassured to have drugs you know in case of a flu. Calculate some “stock” of diapers and baby food for the first day, in order no to rush in search of them as the very first thing on arrival. Lastly, have a look to what you can find at destination: it’s useful to know in advance which is the main baby food suppliers (grocery stores, drugstores..) or how you should ask “Excuse me, where can I find diapers please?” in the local language. Little things, little effort: big reward!
- Create involvement. It’s your kids’ vacations as well! Let them plan with you the whole thing. Make sure they get involved: what are habits in that Country? What’s the capital landmark? What’s the national treat food (a chocolate waffle can do whatever, doesn’t it?)? Are there animals that you’ve never seen before? Put on your itinerary a couple of places they are excited about, best on the last few days before going back home. Ok, I need to disclose something here: this is not my own idea, but my mom’s copyright. She made me happily tour all along Paris historical places (those who visited it know what it means) with the promise we would go to Disneyland on our last day before we were back to Italy. Tell you what? I’ve been in love with Paris since then. Ask my husband, who is forced to listen everyday “in Paris this, in Paris that, when are we going to Paris?”.
- Don’t listen to what people tell you. Not that one shouldn’t listen to advice, but this is a hot topic. People generally tend to discourage travelling parents. If you are Italian, even worse: you are considered a sort of terrorist if you take your kids outside the Italian borders, where they can safely have spaghetti and gelato anytime they like. Many people will tell you that if you travel with babies, they will not remember anything. Fine, but parents are persons with passions and needs: you deserve to travel if you love to do so. Having a baby shouldn’t mean giving up on everything or sacrificing an activity that bond you as a couple. Other people will tell you that it’s not worth the effort. For sure, you shouldn’t expect the romantic vacations you used to have, or a problem-free trip.Children have their own needs and the younger they are, the more you need to fulfil those needs. Still, there is nothing more rewarding than being off for the first time as a family. I can still feel the excitement of flying with our three-month-old baby girl to San Francisco. Even if they don’t remember personally about their first trips, you will be there to tell them. They will have photos.Moreover, travelling since a young age will make the whole thing much smoother. First, they are going to be used to be on long-haul flights: this is absolutely great, as it is not a piece of cake to travel through different time zones during more than ten hours when you are not used to as a family.Then, you are going to be happier and more self-confident: not giving up on something important to you will make you feel a more self-confident parent. And person. Last but not least, it’s going to be natural for them to be away from their home Country: it will be easier to see them eager to get in touch with diversities. This will be a valuable approach to life for them as grown-ups. And the world needs wise and open-minded future generations, don’t you agree?
About the Author, Elena
I’m Elena, a 35 year-old Italian born and currently based in Milan. I caught the travel bug years ago and since then it is my greatest passion, together with my family. In 2018, my husband and I became parents of a blond, smiley, ever-moving baby girl. Her arrival made us think about the fact that we want her to see as much as possible of the World. Suddenly Marco came up with the idea of a blog, to share experiences with other parents. Beside writing, I work in FP&A for a multinational company, I drink way too many coffees and I try to learn foreign languages. If you are interested, follow me on my Globetrotting Baby facebook page
