r/Travelwithkids

My wife and I are currently a week into an 18 day Holland America cruise with our 3yo daughter and my parents, and we're not exactly enjoying it.

Of course someone is going to point out that this was predictable. Holland America is not known to be a family-focused cruise line, but believe me... it didn't use to be this bad. I used to go on Holland America cruises with my family as a tween and teen in the mid 2000s, and while it wasn't exactly exciting, there used to be outdoor playgrounds with hammocks and spaces to hang out or play, and I remember ship-wide treasure hunts with teens running all over the ship searching for objects that begin with ever letter of the alphabet. (When I was about 13, me and a few other teens, won the treasure hunt by convincing a medical technician in the sick bay to give us what they claimed was a piece of "X-ray" film -- probably just a piece of plastic -- to win the treasure hunt with the final missing letter.) It felt like a more serious type of cruise, with a focus on actual travel, but there was stuff for all ages to do on board. My family actually had some brand loyalty to Holland America back in the day. All told, I've probably been on 7 or 8 Holland America ships in my life. I remember that part of my childhood as a really fun time.

Not anymore. I can't believe how bad it is now. Their kids programming is worse than most daycares. Just a mostly-empty room with a person whose main jobs seems to be to keep kids safe and minimally entertained so parents can get a break. This is clearly a choice to disinvest.

Holland America's whole value proposition seems to be worse now too. Their passengers are older. The musical acts are barely passible as entertainment. The food is increasingly bland with little diversity of flavors, and the quality varies widely. Some excellent food, to be fair, but some of the deserts wouldn't be sent out at Applebee’s. The entertainment even for adults seems more focused on selling you shit than anything else. And mind you, this is not an entry-level cruise. It's priced as a solidly mid-tier option.

We're not big on cruising anyway, but it is a convenient option for travel with older parents. And we're really not at all into the tacky characters and all the rest of the nonsense that goes on with Disney ships. Royal Caribbean looks fun, but the quality of the food seems not great, and as huge foodies, that would be a dealbreaker for us. So I'm not sure where that leaves us. If we go on another cruise in the future I think we'll try Celebrity ships. From what we've read online they seem to have at least put some thought into their kids programming. But yeah, we're so done with Holland America.

We are traveling to Europe with our kids for a week. Flying to Munich from east coast US and then going to one of those kinder hotels there for 5 days or so.

We want to pack strategically since we will definitely be doing train travel. Ideally one large checked in bag, one stroller for the 1 year old and then backpacks for my wife and I with plane necessities for all of us.

This feels nearly impossible. Do we just overpack?

I’m thinking we are going to need to do a second large checked in bag as well and honestly with this we have no problem, plenty of space. Then rolling two bags, holding a crazy 3 year old boys hand while pushing a stroller would be doable but would be a handful (literally)

Would love your hacks, recs, and most unhinged tips. First trip to Europe with our 18-month-old and I'm equal parts excited and terrified!

Flights (United):
SFO → London overnight on a 787, 3 middle seats
Home is a daytime flight, 3 seats in a 4-across middle row 🤞

Would so appreciate tips on:
- Overnight sleep: car seat, CARES harness, or wing it? My daughter hates her car seat, and I see that most of the inflatable foot or seat extender things are banned.
- Surviving a 10+ hour daytime flight
- Quiet toys, jet lag, snacks, must-pack items
- any other advice!

London & Amsterdam:
Favorite toddler-friendly spots
And your most unhinged hacks, please. I'm all ears!
Thank you so much, will report back 🫶

Hello! I’m flying with my 1 year old who is now on wholes milk! Only using bottle! I see a lot of parents packing horizons shelf stable milks! I’m just worried that tsa will open it! Does anyone know for sure tsa will not open it? I would hate to waste milk. SFO airport FYI!!

I’m looking for recommendations for Fiji please. We’ll be going from Australia. Family of 4, kids will be 8 and 10. I’m thinking sometime around May - July next year.

We’ve had a few busy holidays so we’re looking for a relaxing holiday to mostly “plonk”, but with enough activities that the kids won’t get bored. My husband likes golf, I like massages etc. The kids love swimming, and are pretty sporty. Kids club isn’t necessary, but I’m open to it.

I’d like breakfast included, open to other meals being included. I’d like at least one bedroom (I don’t want 2 queen beds in the same room). Mid range budget. 5-8 nights roughly.

Where have you stayed that you would recommend? Thanks

My husband and I are planning a trip and will be going to either Prague or Vienna for a week right before Christmas. We are having a hard time deciding which place, as they both seem to have amazing markets and feel very Christmas-ey. We have four little kids under 5, and will have our double stroller with us. We’d ideally like to be walking distance from Christmas markets, restaurants, etc. Any advice or input is much appreciated!

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