First holiday abroad
How old were your LOs when you first went abroad with them?
I'm desperately trying to book us a holiday middleish May and H is really dragging his heels. His arguments so far:
E is too young (she'll be 9.5 months)
What if it is too hot? (Nowhere we can afford to go is going to be hotter than maybe 25 at this time of year)
What if she is ill? He keeps going on about how she has been so ill recently (she has had a cold!) and he won't take her away if she isn't better.
List goes on.
He is now trying to get me to book somewhere in the UK so that if she is ill we can drive home. Then maybe think about going abroad in October. I'm starting to get really hacked off.
I'm not being stupid am I? It is perfectly possible and acceptable to take an infant away, right??
Replies
We took T away when he was 13 months for his first time to Portugal. It was absolutely fine, he slept the while way there on the plane. We did a self catering apartment type, we could get his milk out there, he slept alot in his buggy due to it being warm and lots of swimming. He could walk by then really well so was running around the beach loving it.
You have nhs cards incase of any illnesses. Tbh it will probably do her good, this country seems to always be full if coughs n colds!
We are taking J this year at just over a year so we'll have the both if them, looking forward to it.
The heat is fine really, we made sure T was covered with a suit and factor 50, he is very pale skinned but didn't go red at all, he didn't really look like her been away as we were always keeping him covered up, his hair just went blonder!
I think you'll be fine, lots of people take infants of all ages abroad x
We took J away when he was 3 and a half months old. My only concern was that he was nearing 16 weeks and I hoped he didn't have the dreaded growth spurt while we were away :-)
Babies who live abroad get poorly too. That's why you have insurance/take your E111.
Likewise, plenty of babies are born abroad in the heat.
Tell him he's being daft.
Where you looking to go?
I'd be playing on how much easier travelling is with a child who doesn't walk/need their own seat paying for.
9 months
To Majorca (Cala D'Or Marina - Amazing and fab for kids)
Villa with pool and air con, kept N out of the sun from 11-2ish daily and did day trips or just relaxed
Dinner out every evening and he stayed up or snoozed in the buggy
If she's ill you see a Dr and that's what insurance is for. We had to see a Dr in Mexico when N was about 20 months as he got prickly heat and scratched so it scabbed over. I took him to the neighboring resort (in a taxi, this saved us a £80 call out fee, and as it wasn't urgent it was fine) and saw a lovely fluent English dr. She totally knew what she was doing, we paid for the steroid cream and camomile lotion and went back to our hotel. Claimed it back on insurance. I also googled the steroid cream before using it and gave my Dr the info when we got home, my Dr said it was the exact right stuff to use.
Honestly I think your H needs to JFDI!
L went to France at 8 months and morocco at 10 months.
Morocco was quite hot so we went to the pool in the morning and early evening and either had long lunches in the afternoon/walks etc
I took calpol and neurofen with me, he was on our travel insurance so if he got ill then he would have went to a medical centre over there
Both holidays were fine tbh
We took F to Portugal at 4 months, and L at 5 months. It was slightly easier as my parents have a place there and were there too so we knew what we were going to in terms of accomodation etc and had help out there, but it was fine both times. We went in April and September, so out of the hottest times, and it sounds like you'd be avoiding the hottest temperatures too, so that would be fine. With sun suits, shades, hats and sun cream the sun wasn't an issue at all. We've had minor illnesses over there, the pharmacist has spoken enough English to resolve things for us but so long as you're not somewhere off the beaten track there'll be medical care if you need it just as there is here.
Go for it, it's a daunting idea at first so I can kind of see where your H is coming from, but once you've done it you won't look back x
Sammy was 2 and we went to Tenerife in June. I was massively paranoid and even got my cousins Spanish bf to translate his extensive medical history for me just in case! But obviously S had been a regular hospital admission before that and couldn't cope with any sort of temperature. Sure normal babies cope just fine!
We went to Spain with L when she was 3 months and regularly after that. With K he was 5 months and that was only because L is at school so waited for the holidays. We went for 3 weeks then. Totally fine, had insurance, calpol etc etc - to be honest its our summer holiday this year I'm dreading with a crawling (walking maybe by then???!!) toddler! I'd say go for it!
Hi Stripey,
We took I away to Rome when she 3 months, Stockholm at 5 1/2 months & Romania at 8 months. They're so much more portable to travel when they're younger & need less amusement. With the heat in Rome we just kept her in the shade & used an umbrella (although we didn't have great weather the whole time). It's unlikely you'll be going to the middle of nowhere so it'll be easy enough if you need medical attention. I have a small bag with calpol, teething gel, thermometer...that I take with us & we've barely had to use it. Definietely tell him it's easy to do & good luck persuading him x
Glad that I'm not being mad, thanks all! He needs to man up really and stop faffing or we'll never get anywhere.
He just keeps going on about her ill E has been. It's a COLD FFS
And like Lauren says, perhaps some warm weather would do her some good!
Rusty, we'll go anywhere to be honest. As long as it's warm, has a beach and pool I'm happy. I do not want to end up being rained in in bloody Cornwall, or Devon or Wales. Again.
We took A at 13 months to Spain, FIL lives out there, it would have been so much easier at <8 months when he wasn't moving, but actually despite a hellish flight on the way home it was fine. We're going again next month (getting it in before we have to pay for him on the plane!) and I think this will easier than 13 months as we'll be able to entertain him with and iPad/iPhone on the plane and he's more steady on his feet so unlikely to get a big graze on his nose like he did on day 1 last year!
If you're going to Europe in May the heat will be fine, just be sun sensible. Your H is being a bit silly!
I got back just yesterday from a trip to Vienna with LO and my sister. We had a totally fab time. LO is 21months but I coped with just a sling and my backpack. We went by Eurostar and various trains thru France & Switzerland on way there and Germany & Belgium on the way back. I would say its easier to take baby on holiday than a walking, climbing toddler :-).