This was our first trip with a child and we had some learning to do. We went when we only had one (and he was 11 months old). Living in South Florida, this was an easy (and short) flight. Leo did great on the flight! LFT Tip: Plan the flights to align with a baby’s feeding schedule to help with ear pressure adjustment (sugar-free lollipops work great too for older kids). Overall this vacation was relaxing and incredible. As it was our first trip with our child, we did forget a few items (that we have not forgotten since); namely, our baby carrier and a pool floatie for him.
Melia Grand Paradisus Reserve One bedroom suite swim up
Pros – It was convenient to have a separate bedroom from the rest of the hotel room. This permitted us the opportunity to watch TV, talk and/or otherwise not be concerned about waking up the baby while he was sleeping at naptime and/or the evening. The room that we reserved also had access to a backyard and pool. This allowed us to enjoy the outdoors, sunshine and pool while the baby napped, the same way we would if we were in our own backyard at home. We even brought the baby monitors so that we could listen in case he woke up and could go back in to get him.
By staying at The Reserve, we got a dedicated concierge who helped us book all our restaurant reservations.
Kids Club – There is a great indoor kids club not too far of a walk from our room. For older kids, it included a supervised kids club filled with activities and for our baby there was a whole room with soft padding and toys where he could safely crawl around and explore and play. This was a great way to escape the sun for a short while but still provide entertainment for the littles.
Cons – We stayed in the Reserve (or specially upgraded) property to get to the backyard access to the pool. This area is separate from the main part of the resort, so it was a little quieter (which was a plus for us!) but made getting to the main pool, shows, beach, and many restaurants a little harder. The resort did have a golf cart shuttle system though, and we were able to transport the umbrella stroller on it just fine. It was a tradeoff we were happy to make for the convenience of the private pool access and backyard during nap time.
August 24, 2018
