Italy with a baby?

[justhayley]

Hiya,
I'm in desperate need of a little holiday. My DS is 10 months & I'm thinking of going to Italy for 5 days.
Anyone got any tips on where in Italy to go, and how to get the best out of a holiday alone? (well just me & a baby)

Thanks

Hayley x

Hi Hayley.

I took my daughters to Italy when DD2 was 5 months which was probably easier than a 10 month old as she wasn't weaned yet, so I didn't have to worry about feeding her.

The Italians love children - especially babies- so you will be stopped everywhere you go by people wanting to chat to your DS and make a fuss of him. If you go to a tourist area, you'll be absolutely fine even if you don't speak Italian.

We went to Sorrento which is pretty laid back.It was easy to get around on buses and boats with the pram. There are little beaches within walking distance of Sorrento and you can do day trips to Capri, Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast.

The evenings are probably the hardest part, as you can't go out. If your hotel has an outside pool, that's a good place to sit in the evenings and chat to other guests. Failing that, you can take a few good books to keep you company.

Good luck with planning your holiday.

Lake Garda was lovely

Taranto is a gorgeous place, Lovely coastline, Very flat, great restaurants!

Although to be fair anywhere from Ancona down is fabulous.

I would avoid the Amalfi area with a baby, as it's very mountainous and you may struggle with a pushchair.

We've been going to Italy with our DCs since DD1 was 2 (9 now). Fabulous place!

Can i just agree that italy is amazing, and the italians love babies and children. We always go to tuscany as ILs have an appartamento there, and always have a brilliant time.

Agreeing with PP who suggested Sorrento, took DS in October and its wonderful. Children are made a big fuss off, so relaxing and everybody really friendly. Have a great j

Silly phone! Have a great time that was supposed to say!

Thank you everyone. Iv always wanted to see Italy - if it was just me I'd go for 3 months and see it all but as it is a 5 day taster will have to do.

Thanks for the advice on pushchair friendly places - my back dies on me when I try a sling so need to go somewhere flat ish.

I go to Como a lot in the Italian Lakes - just north of Milan. It is easy to get to by train or car from any of the Milan airports. The lake is beautiful and plenty of places to see via ferry. Also Lake Maggiore - Stresa is lovely and flat. Como is more hilly.

The Italians adore children and will touch your baby a lot. Quite normal - they will babble at him/her in Italian and not mind at all if you dont speak the language! I do now but didnt so we always smiled at anything that was said! They will also show you tremendous kindness for eg baby change - not always a lot of public places.

Be slightly careful of letting the baby crawl on any green grass spots - they do tend to be used for dog toilets

My ex husband and I took our son at 9 months for a month. We didnt realise that particularly in North Italy it is very like the UK and they do have nappies, so we had the car half packed with nappies! There are plenty of big supermarkets where you can get what you need for a baby.

Go fo 3 months! I cant wait to take my son (now 7) inter-railing for a month around italy - just need him to appeciate the sights a bit more!!