Holiday destinations with 1 year old

[Shmerlock]

Hello!

I am currently 32 weeks pregnant with my first baby. Next June, my partner and I will be getting married - baby and wedding in the space of a year, we must be mad!!

We were given a travel voucher this year as we both turned 30 and were hoping to use it to book our first family holiday together for July 2022!

I have been doing a little research online but would love to hear other's experiences of places you have travelled with a baby that you would recommend! We are very open-minded and have always been big travellers so are open to any and all suggestions/experiences!

Thanks so much! :)

Don’t go anywhere too far away so you don’t have to contend with a long flight or a big time difference (a nightmare with naps!)
Copenhagen and Vienna were both very pushchair friendly. Not too many bumpy cobblestones, lifts at all public transport stations. All pavements have lowered curbs at the corners. Neither will be too hot in July and have lots of green spaces too.

@Fivemoreminutes1 fab, thank you - very good point about time difference and nap times!!

We went to Copenhagen with a 1yo and it was a bit rubbish, mainly because you can't do all those lovely city break things with a baby and it's kind of depressing having to go home at 7pm. It's a nice city though.

How about the Ile de Re off the west coast of France? We had a fab holiday there when ours were little- you can hire bikes with seats and cycle everywhere and it's so pretty it would feel 'special' for a sort of honeymoon. Great food everywhere too.

We went to Lanzarote when DS was nearly 1. Relatively short flight, same time zone & lots of sun. Hired a villa & car & explored the island.

We went to the US when she was 10m old and it was great, we could do lots of walks and exploring as she was in a carrier.
Take a look at the Tui family life hotels, they are good.

We went to menorca with a 1 year old. TBH you can go anywhere I found flying with a baby ok. Mine mainly slept, snacked, or drank. As long as you’re prepared it’s fine.

We did loads of Med places, ie Greece and Turkey from when they were months old. The key is a self catering apartment or villa, ideally on a small complex which had a bar and restaurant. We always booked them direct and one we returned to every year as the kids loved it and knew all the owners family and kids. That had about 20 apartments in it

Young babies are very portable imo. Self catering is good because you can pop the baby to bed and have a nice evening together .We didn't ever expect the DC to stick to their home routine though.

Are you considering the UK? I would say just be aware wherever you go that your DD may be walking by then so there are more things to consider.

If you use a baby carrier it really opens up your options.

We went on trains and ferries a lot with our small children. They are very portable but we preferred travel options where we could walk around freely not strapped to an airline seat or having to focus on driving.

It's also really handy to be self catering with a washing machine. Hotels are perfectly doable but the extra space is nice and once they are mobile it can be a bit of a nightmare baby proofing hotel rooms. If you go hotel, unplug the phone as soon as you get through the door and check the wardrobe in case there are loads of electrics in it. There often are.

I think at 1 you can go wherever you want though I would stick to shorthaul and not too hot or extreme cold. Apartments with restaurants and ideally swimming pools on site work very well as you have space, can get food there and have pool to relax in. We did Maderia, Sweden and Copenhagen and all were nice.

Menorca is ideal with a toddler. It’s just over a 2 hour flight. There are no long transfers because the island is tiny, although we always hire a car because we like to get out and about. The beaches are lovely and really safe, the people are lovely and there’s no rowdy resorts anywhere.

You can go anywhere really, it just gets more stressful as they move from baby to toddler and are running around/have to have a constant stream of snacks available and need to be in the bedroom by 7/8!

We spent my last 2 mat leaves travelling so left as soon as the baby had its 8 week injections and came back when they were one year - pretty much everywhere was enjoyable so I'd pick wherever you fancy, my youngest is 2.5 and is only really starting to care about having a pool etc.

My favorites places so far have been a US National Parks trip with lots of hiking and Mexico (toddlers were 1 and 2 for both), Dubai is fab outside of the hottest months and my kids love cities so anywhere with bright lights and lots of action works well!

I would try and avoid the school holidays if that is an option, both ours and the country you are visiting as prices are pushed up and things are busier. It may well be worth waiting until you've had the baby and see how you get on before booking anything as people vary - some people will take about 200 items out every time with the baby for every eventuality others will more take the absolute minimum. Some will find the baby a lot of work and have set bedtimes, others will move it. There's no right or wrong but it will vary the best place.

I would say at this age the child won't be able to express a preference / know the difference between a lot of places, if you are enjoying it and relaxed they probably will be too. But you just need to factor in things like feeding the baby, changing the baby, not letting the baby get too hot or cold, otherwise do what you enjoy.

Once ours got to 4 or so they wanted pools, AI, entertainment, waterparks, everything on site and there were several years of that then before going more adventurous places from around 9 or so. So for me I would do what you like before then and just adjust a bit for a baby. Italy is very child friendly and lots of beautiful places to visit.

We went to Tenerife as same time zone, very easy

Babies are portable and happy anywhere as long as they are with familiar adults.

I'd recommend thinking about where you would really like to go, especially if it would be tricky with a toddler or would be very expensive once you are tied to school holidays.

We went to Cuba when dd was 3 months old and backpacked around Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay when she was 11 months old.

Having a baby really doesn't need to restrict your holiday plans.

If you have a one year old who’s walking a long flight sounds like hell

Forgot to say ; I wouldn't stay somewhere with a private pool and a crawling baby or toddler. I have been in that situation and found it incredibly unrestful. Hotel with a pool, beach, communal pool, municipal pool etc all ok

Took my 8mth old DD glamping in Herefordshire and she was in her element. When she was 2 took her to Thailand, again she loved it. I took every conceivable thing to cover all bases and didn't need half of it.

Wow! So many brilliant suggestions, thank you all so much!! We're currently looking at Menorca - just wondering which areas people recommend? We've fallen down a Google hole and are getting overwhelmed with choices!! Hope we're all keeping well in the heat!!