Since I became a mother, my Instagram has been filled with ads for family-friendly hotels and vacations. But finding places where my daughter and I could both enjoy our vacation turned out to be more challenging than I expected.
On our first couple trips together, I opted for family-focused resorts to ease my nerves about traveling with a baby. Over our first year of traveling together, I learned a lot, including that I will no longer take my toddler to hotels specifically marketed to families — not until she’s much older.
I can’t relax at family-friendly resorts
The tipping point in this decision was when I took my then-16-month-old to a family-friendly, all-inclusive resort that had advertised its baby concierge.
When we arrived, I had to juggle checking in and keeping my toddler away from the huge central water feature, which looked like a splash pad. It was a terrible experience from then until the day we left, exhausted.
They promised a baby pool, but it was actually a kids pool, way too deep for my toddler. Our room, while lovely, had a treacherously slippery floor. Though several tours and activities were offered through the resort, every single one was scheduled during her midday nap. It wasn’t a bad resort for families; it just wasn’t great for toddlers.
I realized this was typical of family-friendly resorts — while they had great amenities for older kids, they just weren’t built for very young children.
Most hotels that market themselves as family-friendly are actually focused on school-aged children. Kids clubs, a terrific amenity for families with older kids, are typically for ages 5 and up. Other family-marketed activities, such as water sports, appeal to tweens and teens. After much futile searching for a hotel suited to toddlers, I switched approaches.
Now, we stay at luxury resorts
I now opt for luxury hotels, which are sometimes no more expensive than the big resorts marketed to families. As for toddler-focused amenities, every luxury hotel I’ve encountered has the basics: a crib or pack and play and a mini fridge.
I ship things like diapers from Amazon ahead of time and rent anything else I don’t want to pack, such as my SlumberPod and bulky beach toys, through a site like BabyQuip, which delivers to the hotel. I give the concierge a heads-up, and it’s usually all set up in my room upon check-in.
At luxury hotels, the exceptional service doesn’t stop at the concierge. I typically bring a travel-size bottle of dishwashing soap for her milk cups and other odds and ends, which housekeeping more often than not goes the extra mile to wash and dry for me.
One luxury hotel we recently stayed at offered complimentary laundry service, which came in exceptionally handy when my daughter threw up her yogurt all over me. Another toddler-friendly luxury perk you can get when booking through a site such as Chase Travel’s The Edit is early check-in and late check-out — essential for little ones’ midday naps.
I get to enjoy the trip, too
Though luxury hotels have a surprising number of amenities that make traveling with a toddler easier, I don’t gravitate to them simply for my daughter’s sake. I love the peaceful atmosphere and adult-focused amenities at luxury hotels. I enjoy gourmet dining, soaking tubs, and turn-down service after a long day of parenting in paradise. After all, it’s my vacation, too!
Before I became a parent, I wasn’t sure what travel would look like for me as a new mom. Part of me feared I might stop traveling entirely during this stage of my life. I’m glad I quickly realized we could find our own path for to explore the world — even without family-marketed resorts.
