Just curious if anyone has any tips traveling with a 10month old? My soon to be husband and I will be taking our honeymoon/family vacation in December and want to know places/restaurants/tours that will be infant friendly?

Thanks so much!

We went down to Aruba last June when my son turned 1. Rough plane ride from Chicago as he did not sleep for much of the flight and carried on... I think you could get a picture of that. Once down there, everything was great. It was our seventh time to the Island and everywhere you go you will find that the people are very friendly and all restaurants are kid friendly. Don;t overpack with infant needs as the grocery stores are well equipped with infant /baby food, formulas etc....

i highly recommend Diametap for the plane ride..helps with the take off and landing pressure.....as well as making them a little sleepy. It was dr. recommended to us.
Baby beach has nice shallow water and beach for a little one. Please watch the sun however there and the entire island. The sun is wicked on babies and they burn fast.
Enjoy.............

Cindyo

Girls at the Maid of the Mist- Toronto
Boat ride to Rennaissance Island
Next Aruba trip in

Advisory on Dimentap...warned not to give to children under the age of 2! Perhaps, you can use the baby medication for naseua (called Gravol in Canada) to help them sleep through the plane ride. Good luck! The youngest I ever took my kids on the plane were 31/2, so I don't envy you!

Randi

ooops..... forgot that Dimetapp is probably off limits to little kids, and I think behind the counter now. Sorry, I used it probably11-12 yrs ago, and my kids are teens now. Sorry about that. It was dr. recommended then, and I guess not now.
My niece wraps little presents to pull out of her bag when needed. She has had success with that.

Cindyo

Girls at the Maid of the Mist- Toronto
Boat ride to Rennaissance Island
Next Aruba trip in

Our son was 18 months when we traveled in July. Did not drug him. I personally don't agree with that. We brought a dvd with all of his favorite videos. Snacks and toys. Made sure we had a sippy cup for him to drink out of so his ears wouldn't pop.The only times he was really upset was during take off & landing. Either way, don't stress about the flight. Anyone who has or has had kids will understand that you can't keep them happy 24/7. And if they have a fit.....to bad. You've got every right to go on vacation with your family. ENJOY !!!!

Michelle & Mike

Welcome to Aruba & Congratulations,
I have three kids and traveled since they were 3 months old. I don't believe in drugging children either but I did give my babies benadryl only because after the first baby he was a little crabby all due to the high flight elevations and at 9 months on the way back to the island my doc told me the dosage to give and it was heavan on him and that was my secret to great adventures. Since I live in Aruba I can recommend many child friendly places, the beach for starters - Boca Catalina- while you take turns babysitting one adult can go snorkeling, there is a big tree for shade so bring a blanket for your child to sleep while you and hubby enjoy the sunset, also buy at local supermarketa cooler & fill it with snacks and water- maybe sneak in a bottle of wine!!! Depending at what your resort is there are many activities for kids to do on the beach especially building sand castles. Bring the coopertone sunblock that sprays into a fine mist, it works miracles and dries fast.
Another fun activity is Depalm island, shallow pool with lots of family fun activities for all ages- you can both take turns once again and do snorkeling there which is amazing with the colorful parrott fish.Also you may want to check out the Surf Club's pool with Lazy River and fun child zone with shallow water.
Restaurants to choose from are many but I recommend Buccaneer, reasonably priced, delicious entrees and aqauriums throughout which amaze your baby. Tony Roma's, Blossoms at Westin, Sunset Beach Bistro at Divi Phoenix, Mathews at Casa del Mar, Casa Tua and the Promenade.
I hope this information may suggest you to many wonderful tips to a fantistic vacation in paradise.

Capturing the passion and love of your special day .
bellarubaphoto@gmail.com

Just want to thank you all for the advice! Just 4 weeks from now and we'll be soaking up the sun! And covering our daughter head to toe in sunscreen about 15 times a day (haha). She's got lovely Irish skin so I've already invested in about 4 bottles of sunscreen. This will be my 2nd time to the island, but first for my husband. I can't wait to see his face as we are landing and being able to view the entire island. Took my breath away when I first went. But I will say that I'm so sad the Natural Bridge is gone! That was something I would have wanted him to see.

Just a few more questions; we both love seafood and have read/heard great things about the Flying Fishbone. But, when I went to do an online reservation, I noticed they have this sort of "disclaimer" about bringing children. While I completely understand it, I just want to be sure they don't freak out if you have a child. Though it does say they are welcome, I'm just worried we won't get the greatest of service or get 'looks' from the staff, etc. We go out to dinner frequently and she is so good for us, but we were thinking of going there for a late lunch as an alternative so we don't really interrupt the romantic dinner atmosphere. Anyone have any feedback on this?

Also, does anyone know of any places that rent out Pack-n-Plays? (for the beach and poolside). We are staying at the Divi Village

Thank you! We can't wait!

~Stacey
Massachusetts, USA

Great idea about going to flying fishbone at lunch. FF is far!! It is a lovely place right on the beach and while most restaurants are very family friendly, I would have to say you might get some looks arriving with a 10 month old during the evening. Simply Fish at the Marriott is a great restaurant and it is totally outside so if a little one gets fussy, it is very easy to take her for a walk along the beach. FF has a type of fencing around it to encompass the restaurant where Simply Fish is is part of the beach area.

More relaxed atmosphere but with great fish is Driftwood. Located downtown and a little noiser and lots of people go as families there.

Once talking about the Marriott, the lazy river is part of the Surf Club complex and they have become VERY strict about people using the pool. You can only use it if you stay there and they give out bracelets to wear and THEY DO CHECK!!

Randi

Thanks Randi for the info. Very helpful! All the good things we've heard about FF, I'm not sure we'll be able to pass it up and I'm hoping a lunch sitting will be a better alternative. And all the things I hear about Aruba being so family friendly, I'm thinking we'll be OK for lunch. Our daughter is so good when we go out, so I'm totally not worried about her being cranky. And I certainly can't imagine this trip without her (yes, even though its our honeymoon). Though I will say, the craziest thing is actually having to get a passport for a 10month old! It's expensive and nuts for that age. And when we got it done, she was 6 months old, so obviously she's changed already! Oh well....at least its a cute picture of her!

Oh, I just can't wait! I live in Massachusetts and we got our first snow yesterday; so if this is any indication of what this winter's going to be like, I may not come home; haha

Thanks again! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!