Taking a baby on holiday

C

Carpenter

Registered User
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Hi All

Just back from the annual 2 weeks builder's holiday...and depressed! Spent the two weeks holidaying in Ireland, weather was poor, spent a fortune and with no sun tan we don't really feel as if we've had a holiday at all! Here's my question, we've a 6 month old baby and I'm wondering would we be mad to consider taking off with the little princess to a sunny destination for a week, sometime in September/ October? Is it worth the hassle with a baby? That said she was brilliant for the last two weeks and is (generally) a joy to bring anywhere. Myself and the missus haven't had a sun holiday in about three years and I think we could both do with a tonic. Irish summers do nothing for your mental well being........Could you recommend a destination, somewhere with a reasonable flight time? I was thinking Portugal.......
 
Menorca was on the cards for us Carpenter, but a recent wedding celebration put a stop to that idea, mainly due to the fact that the youngest lad is a little older than yours, sleeping arrangements, strange bed etc caused us problems. Anyway Menorca seems a very family friendly area and is within 3 hours flight time from Dub, apparently you need to have a pram/buggy to get in!!
 
I have been dragging my two around the world from the age of 8 weeks onwards with no problems, so go for it!
 
The nice thing about a child of this age is that the sun really knocks them out. If there are two of you one can bring the little dear for buggy rides, they usually fall asleep and you can then adjourn to some cafe bar on the sea-front and enjoy a pint. The other half of course is basting happily beside the pool, shifting regularly to ensure an even sun-tan.
 
Start em young, thats what i say. I have been carting mine with me since they were dots also. Nothing like pushing a buggy up and down the seafront, checking out the shops etc, with baba cool as a cucumber in just a vestie!!! Only way to go!! i love it and would highly reccommend it. We are taking 8yr old, 2.5 yr old and 17 mth old in Oct to Espana, torrevieja to be exact and cant wait
 
Hey Man relax!!! I took my 9 monthb old twins to the states for a month and I survived to tell the tale, had a ball, go for it!!!
 
Have booked to go to Menorca based on the recommendations here. Am going in September and am alternatively dreading and looking forward to it. Loads of screaming kids ~(my own included!), kids club reps, package hell-v- sunshine, seafood, beach, stunning scenery ( from what I can tell)...however if it is really awful, I will blame you lot!
 
Vanilla,

As most of the school going children will be gone back to school in September it should be fairly quiet then. The standardised school year has put paid to a lot of off season hols. What part of Menorca are you heading to?
 
Hi Sue Ellen, we are going to Sa Caleta, it sounds as if its going to be fairly quiet anyway, but I believe its easy to get to more lively spots in the unlikely event we want to. I'm hoping for good weather, a few good books, time to read said books ( dependant on Vanilla Jnr ), good food and a few glasses of wine. We will probably also hire a car and go on a few half day trips around the island, so if anyone knows of good spots to look out for, I'd love to hear about it.
 
Also heading to Menorca in Sept and found the following site extremely useful
 
Hi Vanilla
We went to Menorca a couple of years ago, and loved it. It's a tiny island, so if you do hire a car, expect to travel the lenght of the island in about an hour. The best beaches we found were in Son Bou ... on the south side of the island ... beaches elsewhere were more like small coves ... not the long stretches of sand in the brochures.
Have a fab time.
 
Hi Vanilla,

This site looks useful http://www.holidays2menorca.com/

We went to Cala Blanca first time around and it was very quiet and lovely. There is a very nice/popular restaurant in a cave there and it is well worth a visit.

We went to Cala 'n Forcat the second time and IMHO its the liveliest spot on the island and not too good. A bit too tacky/commercialised.

Ciutadella is very nice and great for a wander around. Was not too impressed with Mahon but in hindsight maybe we did not give it enuf time.

Fornells was very quiet and we didn't even get to see him.

Carpenter,

You could play around with a few options on On-line holiday booking sites and check them out on Holiday review sites

I see this crowd do Sa Caleta on-line.
 
Vanilla said:
a few good books, time to read said books ( dependant on Vanilla Jnr )
Click to expand...
Ha, Ha, Ha - On our first holiday with the little one last year, I brought my usual 3 or 4 books - I got to read about half a book (but I still enjoyed every minute with her).
 
Had our first 3 weeks ago and very much looking forward to the one and only priviledge offered (rightly so) by Ryanair = "anyone with infants or young children kindly board first"
 
Lakeview said:
Had our first 3 weeks ago and very much looking forward to the one and only priviledge offered (rightly so) by Ryanair = "anyone with infants or young children kindly board first"
Click to expand...
Actually, you might be better off holiding off until the last minute before boarding with baby, to minimise the time spent on the plane, but you can always send the other half on ahead to hold your seats.
 
Carpenter, we booked through Airtours ( http://www.airtours.ie/ ) because apparently the kids clubs are run by Airtours reps and if you don't book through them you have to pay extra. However Vanilla Junior is only just over one, so doubt she'll appreciate it anyway, but just in case...

Sue Ellen & Henny Penny- thanks for the information, its good to have an idea of where to go. Can either of you remember where the best supermarket is? Not to be mundane, but we'll need the usual toddler essentials when we arrive!

Rainyday- I know you're right, but I have been squirrelling away some books all the same..
 
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