Akuvikate

I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
-- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
America is that it's a lot more affordable.

Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
much.

Kate
and the Bug, 2 years

barney2

In article <[email protected] .com>,
[email protected] (Akuvikate) wrote:

    > *From:* "Akuvikate" <[email protected]>
    > *Date:* 8 Aug 2005 18:48:00 -0700
    >
    > I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
    > happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
    > 2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
    > I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
    > where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
    > -- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
    > Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
    > somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
    > degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
    > nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
    > day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
    > America is that it's a lot more affordable.
    >
    > Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    > suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    > specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    > much.

I can't speak for Costa Rica (except to assure you that the Hammond
corporation has finally got rid of all the dinosaurs), but both southern
Spain and southern Italy would suit you fine.

Do bear in mind that not everywhere will be warm in March - parts are
highly elevated and could be quite chilly.

Southern Spain is, broadly speaking, likely to be less costly than
southern Italy. Neither is terribly expensive, though.

Broadly speaking again, infrastructure in terms of public transport etc.
is probably better in Italy.

But really, you won't go far wrong with either.


----------------------------------------------
The poster formerly known as [email protected].
My new email address is that one, with the first digit of years in the
current century placed after the first word.

Steve Rainbird

Akuvikate wrote:
    > I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
    > happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
    > 2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
    > I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
    > where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
    > -- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
    > Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
    > somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
    > degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
    > nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
    > day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
    > America is that it's a lot more affordable.
    >
    > Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    > suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    > specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    > much.
    >
    > Kate
    > and the Bug, 2 years
    >

We have been to Spain 4 times so far with our 4 year old and he loves it
and the locals love him. Restaurants are all child friendly and have no
problem letting a child share his parents food.

Be careful where you go in the south of Spain if you want to meet the
Spanish, it can look like a part of the UK with the amount of fish and
chip shops and full English breakfasts being offered.

Personally I prefer the Costa Brava I find it more "Spanish" but some of
the south is nice as well.

Steve

Tom Peel

Akuvikate wrote:
    > I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
    > happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
    > 2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
    > I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
    > where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
    > -- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
    > Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
    > somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
    > degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
    > nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
    > day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
    > America is that it's a lot more affordable.
    >
    > Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    > suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    > specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    > much.
    >
    > Kate
    > and the Bug, 2 years
    >
If you're looking for a beach holiday, March is still too cold in Spain
and Italy. I'm still hoping to go to Costa Rica.
T.

Jordi

Tom Peel ha escrito:


    > >
    > > Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    > > suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    > > specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    > > much.
    > >
    > > Kate
    > > and the Bug, 2 years
    > >
    > If you're looking for a beach holiday, March is still too cold in Spain
    > and Italy. I'm still hoping to go to Costa Rica.
    >

Except for the Canary Islands, of course.


J.

The Reids

Following up to Akuvikate

    >Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    >suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    >specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler?

I cant comment on Costa Rica, but as you speak Spanish not
Italian, Spain seems the obvious bet. Its also cheaper to stay in
Spain than Italy. Northern Italy is also too cold for most in
March. The Spanish generally love kids so no problem there.
Andalucia is the Spain that is usually portrayed as all of Spain,
flamenco, manana and all that. The north is cooler with its own
cultures and we be a bit chilly in March. The east coast is
dotted with "fly and flop" beach tourist destinations frequented
by Brit's and Germans, they will be empty and partly closed in
March. As for what activities to do with a toddler, I have no
idea, I'm afraid, bars, restaurants, museums and churches
presumably all being non starters? Western Andalucia has lovely
noisy old cities like Cadiz, Sevilla and Cordoba, less stylish
than Italy but with a similar love of food and socialising.
My website might help a little:-
general boring stuff:-
"http://www.fell-walker.co.uk/spain.htm"
Andalucia, food and main places:-
"http://www.fell-walker.co.uk/andalus.htm"
You must not miss out on flamenco, its often rubbish in tourist
resorts and away from Andalucia, but there you have a chance of
the real thing:-
"http://www.fell-walker.co.uk/andalus.htm#flamenco"
--
Mike Reid
Walk-eat-UK "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site
Walk-eat-Spain "http://www.fell-walker.co.uk" <-- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap
Photos of both "http://www.lawn-mower-man.co.uk"

The Reids

Following up to Steve Rainbird

    >Be careful where you go in the south of Spain if you want to meet the
    >Spanish, it can look like a part of the UK with the amount of fish and
    >chip shops and full English breakfasts being offered.

only if you go to a package resort destination or a villa
development made for expats. Just check the website of a UK
package holiday company if you think a chosen destination might
be one. Alternatively get in a car and drive 2 miles!
--
Mike Reid
Walk-eat-UK "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site
Walk-eat-Spain "http://www.fell-walker.co.uk" <-- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap
Photos of both "http://www.lawn-mower-man.co.uk"

Steve Rainbird

The Reids wrote:
    > Following up to Steve Rainbird
    >
    >
    >>Be careful where you go in the south of Spain if you want to meet the
    >>Spanish, it can look like a part of the UK with the amount of fish and
    >>chip shops and full English breakfasts being offered.
    >
    >
    > only if you go to a package resort destination or a villa
    > development made for expats. Just check the website of a UK
    > package holiday company if you think a chosen destination might
    > be one. Alternatively get in a car and drive 2 miles!

Seconded

Rosalie B .

    >Akuvikate wrote:
    >> I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
    >> happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
    >> 2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
    >> I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
    >> where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
    >> -- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
    >> Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
    >> somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
    >> degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
    >> nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
    >> day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
    >> America is that it's a lot more affordable.
    >>
    >> Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    >> suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    >> specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    >> much.

In general, if you try to keep at least a reasonable toddler schedule,
a child will travel just fine. That means relaxing and not trying to
do too much each day, and things like taking a naps.

Costa Rica is very family friendly and they do speak Spanish. We
drank the water there with no problem. It is also pretty safe, and
they have a lot of ecological stuff and adventure stuff to do. Some
of that would be appropriate for a kid, but in most cases if you
wanted to do those things, you'd have to do it one at a time. March
is the dry season so the weather should be good. It is also close to
the west coast.

Spain is also very child friendly. My sister flew from Germany to
Spain with her 1 year old child - the German flight attendant helped
her with the diaper bag. The Spanish flight attendant carried the
baby. They do have somewhat different meal hours - eating dinner at
10 pm etc, but generally the Spanish schedules, with the siesta should
work out pretty well for a child. I drank the water there too
without any problem.

I would suggest Portugal, but of course they don't speak Spanish there
although that would be IMHO a good alternative to Italy..

Most of the other places I might suggest I have not been to myself,
partly *because* I don't speak Spanish. But if I wanted to go to some
Spanish speaking place, I might consider Puerto Rico, the Canary
Islands, the Balearic Islands (Palma), Trinidad and Tobago. I don't
know about drinking the water there.

Of course there is also Key West where there are a lot of Spanish
speaking people, and it is warm in March and you can drink the water.

If Spanish was not a priority, then maybe Barbados or Belize.

grandma Rosalie

cjrohr31

Akuvikate wrote:
    > I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
    > happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
    > 2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
    > I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
    > where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
    > -- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
    > Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
    > somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
    > degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
    > nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
    > day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
    > America is that it's a lot more affordable.
    > Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    > suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    > specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    > much.

Costa Rica is a fabulous place to take a toddler! It's close and easy
to get to, not as cheap as it could be and getting more developed.
March would be late in the dry season so should be nice.

Spain or Italy would be great, but if you're looking for a beach
holiday, I'd go to CR. Save the European cultural trip for when you'll
do more exploring than beach.

Robert J Carpenter

"Rosalie B." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

    > But if I wanted to go to some
    > Spanish speaking place, I might consider ....Trinidad and Tobago.

T&T is fundamentally English speaking. East-Indian majority on
Trinidad, West Indian majority on Tobago.

Hillary Israeli

In <[email protected] .com>,
Akuvikate <[email protected]> wrote:

*Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
*suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
*specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
*much.

Given your criteria - cost, Spanish-speaking, European, kid-friendly -- I
would highly recommend Barcelona. I haven't been there since the kids were
born, but thinking back on what we did, I have no problem imagining
bringing them along. Check it out!

--
Hillary Israeli, VMD
Lafayette Hill/PA/USA/Earth
"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it is
too dark to read." --Groucho Marx

Senor Pescado

lot better to El Salvador than Costa Rica
www.tropicooltours.com
see the site
On 8 Aug 2005 18:48:00 -0700, "Akuvikate" <[email protected]>
wrote:

    >I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
    >happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
    >2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
    >I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
    >where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
    >-- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
    >Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
    >somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
    >degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
    >nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
    >day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
    >America is that it's a lot more affordable.
    >Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    >suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    >specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    >much.
    >Kate
    >and the Bug, 2 years

Jonathan Levy

I cannot comment on Italy or Spain but we went to Costa Rica pre-kid
and had a great time. My parents have also been there
(post-kids-at-home) and also had a great time.

However, if you are only going to go once you might not want to make
that time now. Obviously, there is range of things to do and parents
with kids are likely to plan a different itinerary than we did.
However, my sense was that the difference between toddler and just a
little bit older opens up a lot of possibilities. Some of the hiking,
walking through hot springs with really slippery rocks, etc. might be
too much for a 2 1/2 year old but a lot of fun a few years later. Some
of the roads are kind of rough and we ended up in a cabin at one stop
that was surprisingly cold at night. There were also a few
transportation snafus that required a little scrambling or waiting by
the side of a road for a car you hoped was coming. No big deal for
adults prepared to go with the flow and improvise but being old enough
to rough it at least a bit could be an advantage. Also, one of the
highlights of Costa Rica is the canopy tours where you slide along a
cable through the treetops but you may have to be at least a teenager
for that, anyway. (If you do go, do the canopy tours even if you have
to do them one at a time while the other parent watches the kids. Yes,
they are initially terrifying if you don't like heights but they are
worth it.)

Our final stop was a really nice little resort on the Pacific coast so
I think one definitely could plan a very nice, toddler-appropriate
vacation in Costa Rica and if you don't feel as if going now closes off
the possibility of going back, you might want to consider it. I just
think if it would be your only trip, you might miss a lot at this age.

Good luck and have fun wherever you end up going.
Akuvikate wrote:
    > I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
    > happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
    > 2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
    > I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
    > where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
    > -- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
    > Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
    > somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
    > degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
    > nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
    > day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
    > America is that it's a lot more affordable.
    > Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    > suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    > specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    > much.
    >
    > Kate
    > and the Bug, 2 years

Rosalie B .

"Jonathan Levy" <[email protected]> wrote:

    >I cannot comment on Italy or Spain but we went to Costa Rica pre-kid
    >and had a great time. My parents have also been there
    >(post-kids-at-home) and also had a great time.
We went there but without kids as all of ours were married by that
time. But I saw lots of tourists there with kids, and some of them
were pretty small, and young.

In particular I remember one couple that took a day trip from San Jose
to Tortugero - we left about 6 in the morning and got back around 10
pm (we stayed overnight because that was too strenuous for us), and
the kid who looked to be about two (Costa Rican parents) was OK with
that. We had a bus ride, breakfast, more bus ride, and a boat ride
and then lunch and then a walk and then we stayed there and the rest
of the group took the boat and the bus back.

I would advise against doing something like this BTW.

I also went hiking with my kids even when they were very little, but
this would depend a lot on the kid. My girls walked up the Vernal
Falls trail in Yosemite when they were maybe 4.5 and 2.5. We also did
the trail at Pinnacles state park in California.

It would be a good idea to start walking now. One of my dd's did a
lot of walking with her kid to get him tired enough so that he'd take
a nap, and the result was that both of them were in great shape.

Another dd walked her ds to school every day, and his little sister 3
years younger went with her, and of course the mom and little sister
walked both ways twice a day. At first she rode in the stroller but
by the time she was 3.5, she was doing both ways on her own feet
(about a half mile each trip). By last Halloween the little one out
walked her brother by a mile when trick or treating.

So start practicing now <g>

    >However, if you are only going to go once you might not want to make
    >that time now. Obviously, there is range of things to do and parents
    >with kids are likely to plan a different itinerary than we did.
    >However, my sense was that the difference between toddler and just a
    >little bit older opens up a lot of possibilities. Some of the hiking,
    >walking through hot springs with really slippery rocks, etc. might be
    >too much for a 2 1/2 year old but a lot of fun a few years later. Some
    >of the roads are kind of rough and we ended up in a cabin at one stop
    >that was surprisingly cold at night. There were also a few
    >transportation snafus that required a little scrambling or waiting by
    >the side of a road for a car you hoped was coming. No big deal for
    >adults prepared to go with the flow and improvise but being old enough
    >to rough it at least a bit could be an advantage. Also, one of the
    >highlights of Costa Rica is the canopy tours where you slide along a
    >cable through the treetops but you may have to be at least a teenager
    >for that, anyway. (If you do go, do the canopy tours even if you have
    >to do them one at a time while the other parent watches the kids. Yes,
    >they are initially terrifying if you don't like heights but they are
    >worth it.)
    >Our final stop was a really nice little resort on the Pacific coast so
    >I think one definitely could plan a very nice, toddler-appropriate
    >vacation in Costa Rica and if you don't feel as if going now closes off
    >the possibility of going back, you might want to consider it. I just
    >think if it would be your only trip, you might miss a lot at this age.

We didn't do any canopy tours, because where they were it wasn't an
option. I would have liked to - it just didn't work out that we could
do it. We spent a day in Tortugero which was wonderful for wildlife
but humid, and then drove up to Arenal and went to Monte Verde. I
would skip Monteverde with kids for sure because it takes too long to
get there. Costa Rica has many different rain forest areas so you
don't have to do that one. The Arenal area was nice. Then we went to
Drakes Bay (Pacific Coast), where they had wild spider monkeys at the
lodge, and the people who ran the camp had little kids there.

In the San Jose area we stayed at the Hampton Inn by the airport.
This was a real nice place - had a pool that was all about 5 feet
deep, a nice free breakfast, and at that time the van that picked you
up at the airport would take you out to a restaurant to dinner and
pick you up afterwards.

Really, even if you might be restricted, just take the present one day
at a time. Prioritize what you want most to do, and do those things
first. Be flexible and don't concentrate so much on the goal that you
forget to look around and take advantage of the happy accidents. And
if you don't get to everything, then at least you will have done what
you wanted most to do.

It is particularly important to keep yourself aware of your child's
stress level and have an 'out' to decompress when needed. Even though
it may be quite mundane, like a little time at the pool or beach.

    >Good luck and have fun wherever you end up going.
    >Akuvikate wrote:

    >> I'm itching to go abroad and for the first time post-bambino it can
    >> happen. In March we'd like to take our daughter who will be a bit over
    >> 2 and a half on a trip from the West Coast of the US for about a week.
    >> I don't want to go somewhere cold and I don't want to go somewhere
    >> where we can't drink the water. I'm open to suggestions of other places
    >> -- particularly in Latin America -- but what's come to mind is Costa
    >> Rica, southern Spain, or southern Italy. The nice thing about going
    >> somewhere Spanish speaking is that all three of us speak it to some
    >> degree or another, and it would be great for my daughter's Spanish. The
    >> nice thing about Europe is that my husband has spent a grand total of 1
    >> day there, and would like to see more of it. The nice thing about Latin
    >> America is that it's a lot more affordable.
    >> Any comments on the relative merits of those three options -- or
    >> suggestions of places I might be overlooking? Any suggestions on
    >> specific activities or places to visit or stay with a toddler? Thanks
    >> much.
    >>
    >> Kate
    >> and the Bug, 2 years

grandma Rosalie