Have Kids Still Travel

I was tagged in a game of  Tripbase Blog Tag!  Travel Blooggers are revealing their 3 Hidden Travel Gems and my good friend over at  Travel Mamas nominated me to join in the fun and pick my 3 favorites!  I decided to include the kiddos on this one so these are my 3 hidden travel gems with kids!

#1 Mallorca, Baleric Islands

Mallorca is just of the coast of Spain and is apart of the Baleric Islands. It is the hottest European vacation destination and for good reason, it has over 200 Beaches! Unlike the neighboring party island of Ibiza, Mallorca is a great family dstination. In fact a lot of the hotels and resorts cater to families by offering playgrounds, club activities and childrens entertainment.

We stayed at Viva Cala Mesquida in Playa Mesquida home to the very popular Galactic Super Hero Bufo!  Oh yes, they have a mascot of sorts and he entertains the children nightly at the Mini Disco! They also have Bufo Kids Club , a drop off child care service during the day. We had quite the room with a view, most of the apartments are located beachside. It was a very short and easy walk down to the sand.

We rented a car from the hotel so we could drive into the beach side town do do some tourist shopping and found another huge playground swarming wiht kids!  We also drove to the Capital city of Mallorca, Palma. The city of Palma is very easy to push a stroller around, we literally walked around the entire city. It is the most charming city with cobblestone streets, cute cafes and some very historic buildings.  The most famous building is La Seu, the Cathedral, it is one of Europe’s tallest Gothic structures.

#2 Sedona, Arizona

Sedona is the earths natural playground for kids! (you can quote me on that) We lived in Scottsdale, AZ for a year and and so we took many day trips up to Sedona and the drive from the Phoenix area takes just a little over an hour. The kids loved to walk, run, jump and stretch over the rocks, it’s really a nice little workout for them.  And not to mention the fresh air and the beautiful scenary!  They thought “hiking” was so exciting and took exploring very seriously.

I highly reccommend the Pink Jeep Tours they are worth the price and you see some incredible views!  They allow children 18 months and up – however, one of the more rugged tours you should not take a child under the age of 4. We went on the most rugged, heart pounding tour with a 2 yr old and our 4 yr old – not the wisest decision we have ever made. The 2 yr old was pretty scared at some points and the bumpy ride was pretty hard for him to handle. They were locked securley in car seats but his head was getting knocked around too much.  So pick the more scenic tours if you have younger kids and save the true outback tours until their older.  And hold on tight cause it s a bumpy ride!

#3 Playa Flamingo, Costa Rica /Play Conchal

We rented a house for 3 weeks in Playa, Flamingo on the Guanacaste side of Costa Rica. This coastline is known for its unique string of beaches, each with their own personality. So naturally we set out to visit them all, even the most difficult one to get to, Playa Conchal.

Playa Conchal is truly a “hidden beach” it took me 3 tries to finally fiqure out just how to get there. If you are not staying at the fancy Paradisus Playa Conchal then the only public entrance is by driving your car down onto another beach and then 4 wheel driving it up a rocky path and praying no one is trying to come down at the same time. I was with the kids by myself on this adventure while my husband stayed back to get some work done. Needless to say I was a little nervous, but determined to find this beach! I was a Mom on a Mission!

Playa Conchal is made up of millions of crushed shells! I thought for sure there would be sand and just a lot of shells, but nope, no sand – all shells! I kept running my hands and feet through the shells and it was as if I was having an exfoliation treatment at a spa. I am still a little mistified by this secret piece of paradise. It was also some of the bluest water I have ever seen. I was so glad that I didn’t give up and forged ahead on finding this hidden gem. In all my travels, Playa Conchal is my favorite beach so far!

CostaRicaOnlineTravel.com has a Great Costa Rica Family Vacation that includes Conchal Beach!

HaveKidsStillTravel.com
What are your 3 favorite Hidden Travel Gems?  Please leave a comment below and tell me where you have been or where you are going? 

I would like to nominate:

Kim Tracy Prince of The House of Prince
Shanna Coady of My Favorite Everything
Summer at teamjessee.com
Nancy at Kidsintowtravel.com
Lee Vandeman of momswithoutblogs.com

TAG you’re it!
Trip Base Blog Tag

Have Kids Still Travel!  That is our Motto! Both of our kids had their passports by the age of 2! We’ve been lucky enough to travel quite a bit, but our favorite trips have been our two month-long trips, the first being to Barcelona, Spain, which was an amazing family experience!

We figured out that when traveling with kids you want to make it as low-stress as possible. Rushing around with jam-packed itineraries would never work with a one year old and three year old in tow. So, we figured that by staying a month, we could really embrace our surroundings and not miss a thing.

Something that many people don’t realize is that renting an apartment for an entire month allows for better negotiating on the price. We’ve typically experienced 30-50% discounts for a longer term stay. Now, even if you’re only staying for a week or two, you’ll still want to consider these kid-friendly amenities when looking for a rental apartment.

1) Bath tub (in Europe they are often hard to come by)

2) Elevator (another luxury not all European buildings have) But don’t expect it to be big enough for your stroller. Speaking of strollers DO NOT bring a double stroller (side by side seats) because they will not fit through the metro stations entrances, or in some elevators) You are much better off with two single lightweight strollers.

3) Balcony (is it safe for children?),

4) Laundry Facilities (kids will be kids, but don’t expect a dryer)

5) Kitchen Necessities (ask if there is a microwave, highchair, or booster seat)

6) Extra Bed Linens (2 words: Bed Wetting).

7) Bunk Beds (Ask if they have a safety railing or if they can be separated)

We found our apartment at Apartime Barcelona and we were very pleased with everything! The first night our 3 year-old daughter sang from the Balcony “Barcelona, Barcelona, I Love this City!”  Once you have settled in I would recommend walking around your new neighborhood a few times just to get your surroundings and have a better sense of direction. While walking around you’ll want to locate the Grocery Store, Pharmacy, Bank, Hospital, and Metro Stations and take note on the hours they are open and closed.

The greatest resource I found while planning our trip was Anglo Info Barcelona Life in Barcelona.. .in English.  This will have everything you need while you are in Barcelona! It is a great guide and resource for local news, weather, events, nanny, shopping, entertainment, nanny services, schools, parks etc.

My highest recommendation is finding out if there is a School or Daycare your children can attend (contact them before you go). We put our kids in Kinder Barcelona for 3 weeks from 9am -1pm , so we were able to explore the city and do all the not so kid friendly things in the morning. Our kids loved it, but we loved it more! I honestly didn’t think that they would say yes, but they had room in the English speaking class with an English speaking teacher so they let us enroll them! Our daughter McKenna learned the all the days of the week and the months of the year while attending school there and our son Hudson who just started walking was happily running and jumping by the 2nd week!

Call a Nanny Service, I found Tender Loving Canguros in Barcelona and most of them will have someone who speaks some English. You may even get lucky like we did, the Nanny they sent over was an American girl from New York City and had been living in Barcelona for 5 years. Her name was Gabby and was totally fluent in Spanish and it was like having our own Concierge!  The few nights we had her come to babysit she pretty much planned our night for us, telling us where to go and the best way to get there. Because of her we went places of the beaten path, where the locals go and was able to skip all the overpriced tourist traps. This was an amazing added bonus to our trip!

A part of me is still shocked that we took a 1 year old and a 3 year old to Barcelona, Spain to live for a month. Traveling with kids is not impossible, but it is not for the weak either! My husband asked me on the flight home.  Would you do it again? To which I replied, Absolutely! And we did, a month in Costa Rica was our next adventure!

SEE THE WORLD

http://havekidsstilltravel.com