Caribbean with a 4mo..?

[MummySSB]

We've been told by many parents that going away on holiday before weaning is t best time as you don't have to worry about taking much in terms of food. So we've been thinking about going to t Caribbean in march...our DS will. E nearly 4mo by then.
I'm just after any advice, tips and general recommendations if any had been with a young baby, which island/resort, do I need to book a child seat(do airlines charge for baby bassinets?) and do resorts charge extra for cots in rooms? Also what about car seat for taxis locally? Have never seen anyone travel with a car seat but how does it work once u r there?

Thanks x

Have you considered whether your DS will have had all his vaccinations by then? Not sure if you might also need further travel jabs for the Caribbean? Little babies are quite hard to keep cool, but I have never been there so I can't comment on that.

Personally, I wouldn't do it, although others may have more advice.

have you been to the Caribbean before?

I personally would probably stick to the more americanised resorts with a child of that age, for example the Bahamas. Alternatively the gulf coast of Florida and the Florida keys are very good too.

We took our daughter when she was 4 months to Sarasota and she came down with an ear infection and she needed medical treatment- I personally wouldn't have been as confident in some parts of the caribbean which are fairly poor.

also- the weather in Florida in March is very similar to the Caribbean and there are also fantastic beaches. You could combine Key West and Miami- South Beach is lovely, and there is a really nice broad walk which would be good for long walks with the wee one.

DS prob will need to have his last set of jabs around t time we were thinking if going, so need to make sure that's done.
I guess I had assumed t parts of t caribbean we r looking at would be better off in case of medical needs. Hubby is a GP so I haven't been overly worried in that respect but it's a fair point that we do need to consider...will discuss with him.

Our original thought was Dubai - but we've been there only last year so we'd like to try somewhere that we've not been to. Will have a look at Florida though - kinda ruled it out as a place I would like to go to once DS and any more kids are a bit older so can do t Disney thing too! I'd love to go back to Thailand but hubby not too keen due to t healthcare..so any other suggestions would be welcome!

Well, people do have babies in the Caribbean too, you know! (I have had 2, the youngest is now 7mo). It's a fantastic place for children, and West Indians adore babies.

The weaning thing is sort of nonsense, you can get baby food or at least steamed veggies practically anywhere in the world that you'd want to travel to. But 4mo is a good age, because it's way easier to travel with them before they get to the crawling stage.

Specifics re: vaccines and other logistics etc depend really on the exact place you're thinking of going. I'm in the British Virgin Islands. Feel free to drop me a message if you've any more questions.

Btw, we always travel with a car seat, and I'd certainly recommend it for anywhere in the West Indies or US. Hiring them is generally impossible here. You can hire them in the US (in rental cars, not taxis), but for anything more than a few days it's usually cheaper to buy one.

I took dd to visit family in Barbados when she was 6 months old, with no problems. Barbados is a very 'easy' place to visit, family-friendly, good medical facilities. it is a very well developed holiday destination and I'm sure you will be able to book minicabs with car seats etc.

I can't help on hotels, as we stayed with family, but I think you do need to book a ticket for your baby, even though they'll be on your lap. You can try to book a bassinet (there are never enough for all the babies on board, IME) but be warned: they are very small and even at 4mo your baby might find them a squeeze and prefer to be on your lap. It is an 8 hour plane flight.

In Barbados, the west coast is considered the most desirable, but the south coast generally more affordable. The east coast is less developed for tourists, but beautiful. It's a small island (about 20 miles by six, I think) and you can hire a car and tour round. It's a very safe and friendly country with a low crime rate.

Slightly bemused by your parents' reasoning, though. What food do you need for weaning that you can't get in the Caribbean? In fact, I started weaning while there - bought baby rice locally, added purees of local squash, papaya, mango etc. Only thing she didn't like was cho cho, but that just shows her good sense.

OK, ignore me on car seats and go with what Tolalola said. She should know

We took DD to Antigua at 4 months, and it was fine. They are very portable at that age, and she wan't weaning, just a combination of breast and bottle (mostly former). No jabs needed. I would recommend taking a car seat though, we hired one and it was basically a shaped bit of plastic with a tatty cover! We also took DS to Nevis at 8 months and it was harder - his sleep was disrupted quite a lot, smaller was definitely easier!

Can't help on resort as the one we went to is closed now (Sunsail)

Thanks for all your replys - been thinking about it alot, and have been stumped on a number of fronts. Can't find a resort that we really like, within price range is t main reason and also general nervousness about medical facilities (obv just being overly anxious).
So have decided safest bet is to stick to original plan of going to Dubai! Although we were there exactly a year ago - its perfect I think! So t search begins again...!!

i too can recommend Barbados, and they really do love children there.

Martinique or Guadeloupe are bith technically French and therefore your EHIC will cover you and safety is pretty stringent. They also use the Euro and British cards will work, plus the flights from Paris aren't too cheap.

Martinique in particular is stunning...

I meant flights aren't too expensive!