Originally Posted by
TravelDoorsOut
Hey all,
My wife and I are thinking about doing a first big trip with the baby, sometimes in May, the baby will be 9 months by then. We have been brain-storming ideas, but hit a dead end. We have thought about Ireland/Scotland (original choice, short flight, lots of outdoor activities, baby friendly), Netherland/Belgium (short-ish flight, lots of walking, shops/cafe/museums), Caribbean (Cayman? Been to DR many times, would like new places not sure where), Prince Edward Island/Nova Scotia (beautiful, fun, laid back), Oregon, Vancouver, or Calgary (Banff National Park) or ???. We are open to suggestions, my wife thinks any place can be baby friendly, but I think places theres certain places like Spain, Germany, France, Asia, S.A/C.A which would be hard with a baby. What do you guys recommend? Thinking about 10-12 days, open to any suggestions and locations.
Why would Spain be hard with a baby? In general, Spain is very family friendly, as is Italy.
As for making it an outdoor focused trip: think about what would happen if it rained. I don't mind camping or hiking in the rain, but with an infant, that would be miserable. My kid had hit most of your list before age 2 (not UK, Ireland or Caribbean). Oregon, Vancouver, Netherlands all worked really well, and San Diego did, too. Banff, not so much because he started walking young and that trip resulted in some major logistical problems (Hello, front desk? Can you recommend a good babysitter?).
Surf through the Travel with Children forum for what to pack and you will find a very wide range of opinions. What you think you need today is going to quite different than what you think you need when the child 4 months older. Read the posts, make a list, revise as the child develops.