We recently got back from a 10 day trip to France and Russia, and when I tell people we brought our almost one year old, they’re shocked. Everyone wants to know how traveling with a baby went, and honestly, it wasn’t bad at all. I think that a sightseeing type of trip is probably easier with an infant (versus a beach), as she spent a lot of time snoozing in her stroller while we toured the city. We typically woke up, ate breakfast, walked a mile or two to a museum, church, site, etc. and she would nap while we were there, then we’d go to a park and she would play, then eat lunch, then another tourist activity (and nap), followed by another park then dinner and bedtime. Isla was very well behaved so long as we stuck to this routine! The hardest part of the vacation was definitely the flight to Paris (with a layover in Frankfurt), but I learned my lessons and the return trip was much better. I’m sharing some of my travel tips today so hopefully you don’t have to learn the hard way!

• Rent an apartment versus staying in a hotel, if possible. If it’s more convenient to stay at the latter, then look for a hotel with a decent suite rate. We stayed in a suite at the Hotel Novotel St. Petersburg, which was so nice because we could put Isla down in her room, then spend the rest of the evening in our room and not worry about waking her up. I’ve also read that you can have them sleep in the bathroom, but that seems like a challenge to me. We rented an apartment with Airbnb in Paris, and had the best experience! Look for one with two rooms and a kitchen and ideally, a washing machine too (buy these Purex 3-in-1 sheets if you have one!)! Also, check to see if there is an elevator, and if not, how many stairs do you need to climb! I forgot to check, and we lucked out on only climbing two sets (which was still a lot!).