It’s never too early to get the travel bug.
Let this photo collection of the past year’s intrepid kid travellers prove that yes, you can travel with young tots, and that the whole family can have an amazing time doing it, too! One of our favourite pro tips for travelling with children this year comes from Abbie, who took a trip to Milan, below. Ahead of a trip, she makes a point to read kid-friendly travel books for bedtime stories so her daughters can get familiar with the scenery. “My favourite moments are always watching their eyes as they recognize each landmark without being told,” says Abbie. “As we turned the corner and saw just the first glimpse of the Duomo, both my kids squealed in excitement and my heart was full, both with their contagious joy and my own sweet memories of this place that is so meaningful in the formation of our family.”
Read on below to see our favourite photos of jet-setting kids from 2018:
Favourite Memory: “Stay at W Shanghai on the Bund (the Bund or Waitan is a waterfront area in central Shanghai). The room facing the Pearl Tower and night view is so great.” —Phoebe in Shanghai
Favourite Memory: “To help our daughter be engaged with all the art we were seeing during our museum visits, we asked her what she thought about each piece we spent time looking at. Her little observations were hilarious and I ended up documenting them on my Instastories for our family and friends back home to enjoy. We also spent a beautiful long evening at the park next to Saint-Eustache, watching our daughter play on the playground and splash pad.”
Inspiration: “This was our first real family vacation with just the three of us. Our only purpose for visiting was to experience a new place, together! We wanted to visit somewhere with delicious food and fun things for our four-year-old to do, and Paris checked both those boxes!” —Stephanie in Paris
“Lyndsay made us feel very comfortable and had lots of great ideas for pictures. One of our favourite parts of our vacation. Would love to book her again on a future trip to Banff.” —Matt in Banff
“My favourite moment is always the time I spend with my kids and husband. We always learn and try new things every year in Kauai, which to me is impressive because Kauai is not a big island. And our kids are daring and adventurous for being so young (a baby girl who just turned one yesterday, Sept. 22, and a three-and-a-half-year-old son) that watching them be enthusiastic and eager to do this or try that brings joy and pride to our hearts. This year we’ve been twice to Kauai, maybe next time our son will be ready for the long hike at the end of the road. My other favourite memory from this trip is finally trying the shaved ice from Loco Moco—it is a must-do in Kauai, hands down!”
Inspiration: “We travel to Kauai every September and we couldn’t decide on a date and time that worked with Matt’s coaching schedule and the availabilities with our photographer in California, so I did my research and found Flytographer. I’m thrilled I did because the whole process was easy, seamless, affordable, excellent service and product from the concierge to our photographer, Kazumi.” —Maria in Kauai
“It’s unbelievable how Rachael was able to capture such beautiful moments of the kids even though they were so cranky during the shoot. She’s so so so amazing with the kids!! Love the photos so much!!” —Christine in Paris
“Before every trip we buy our kids an age-appropriate book introducing them to the city and use it as a bedtime story for a few weeks leading up to the trip. This time it was a beautiful pop-up book featuring many of Milan’s famous landmarks. My favourite moments are always watching their eyes as they recognize each landmark without being told. As we turned the corner and saw just the first glimpse of the Duomo, both my kids squealed in excitement and my heart was full, both with their contagious joy and my own sweet memories of this place that is so meaningful in the formation of our family.”
Inspiration: “Greg and I met in Milan 12 years ago during a college semester abroad. We have been together ever since. The last time we were in Milan together was when he proposed 10 years ago. Travel has always been very important to us, and increasingly so as we started a family. This year, we wanted to return to the city that brought us together, this time with our two daughters.” —Abbie in Milan
Favourite Memory: “My son swimming with the dolphins.”
Inspiration: “We take family photos every year for our family Christmas card along with my son’s birthday photos, since his birthday is so close to the holidays. We have a photographer we use every year, but since we travelled for my son’s fourth birthday, we decided on a destination shoot.” —Lillian in Cabo San Lucas
“We walked over 12 miles a day, we got really lucky with the weather. I loved walking around the city with my family. We went to so many neighbourhoods, but if I were going to pick a favourite memory it would be going to the Princess Diana Memorial Playground and watching my daughter play around the park. The playground was inspired by Neverland and you can only enter if you are accompanied by a child. The sounds of laughter and fun exuded from the people that were there. Seeing my daughter run around the playground was so much fun.”
Inspiration: “My husband and I loved travelling before we had a baby. My daughter just turned 15 months and if we were going to go on a trip overseas, this would be the time. My brothers warned that it would be too hard, the jet lag, the different time zones, etc… but she was amazing. She adapted better than we did! Having a baby didn’t change our love for travel. Of course, we travel differently, but it’s still so fun to explore places and see different things that you may not have seen when you didn’t have children such as the Princess Diana Memorial Playground where you have to be accompanied by a child to get in. My daughter may not remember this trip, but we will be so happy to tell her all about it when she is older and show her photos!” —Allison in London
“Daniel was more than we could have asked for in a photographer. I was worried that 30 minutes wouldn’t be enough time, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. He had a well thought out route and provided just the right amount of direction for us to receive some staged and some candid shots. The photos are beautiful and we will treasure them our entire lives.” —Christine in Tokyo
Favourite Memory: “We loved exploring the cobblestone streets and markets. Our favourite day was spent in Jean-Talon eating spring strawberries, cherries and delicious aged cheeses!” —Laura in Montreal
