For our daughter's first birthday, my hubby and I flew to Malaga, Spain, pinch our almost-1-year-old, my mom, my dad, my mother-in-law, and 2 family friends. We were a group of eight, each traveling together and sharing a four-bedroom, three-bathroom Airbnb for a week of sightseeing and celebrating.
As a recreation blogger, I had a full itinerary mapped retired for america pinch day trips planned and restaurants saved connected Google Maps. In betwixt sightseeing, we'd walk tons of clip catching up pinch our family members and celebrating our daughter's first birthday.
While we each had a awesome time, the travel didn't look thing for illustration I thought it would.
We had to wholly overhaul my original travel itinerary
The original itinerary I had planned for our week successful Malaga, Spain, included time trips to Córdoba and Granada, positive visits to 2 aliases 3 section attractions each day. But we quickly realized we would request to pivot.
By that point, my husband, daughter, and I were already 4 months into a six-month travel walking done Europe. We learned that a slower gait of recreation — wherever we could walk clip backmost astatine the Airbnb playing and napping — suited our family best.
So, a fewer weeks earlier the trip, I fto the group cognize that we would request to slow down the original itinerary. We trim the time trips, scrapped creation museums, and focused connected doing conscionable 1 aliases 2 things each time alternatively of 3 aliases more.
We didn't expect everyone other to recreation astatine a toddler's pace, but we knew for the 3 of us, that was the correct call.
Missing retired connected sightseeing and family clip led to disappointment
It was difficult to fto spell of the itinerary I had planned and beryllium backmost astatine our Airbnb, knowing truthful galore unthinkable places were correct extracurricular our door. I don't cognize erstwhile we'll return to Spain, truthful it really felt for illustration we were missing out.
My hubby and I looked on, a small spot jealous, arsenic others from our group went retired to rooftop drinks aliases to circuit the bull ring, while we stayed backmost to supervise naptime.
While we wanted our parents to enjoy their vacation, we besides assumed the privilege would beryllium to walk clip pinch their granddaughter, since the full travel was successful grant of her birthday.
Our parents hadn't seen our girl aliases america successful galore months since we'd been traveling. So we were amazed and a small spot disappointed whenever it felt for illustration sightseeing took precedence complete family time.
The day travel was still truthful worthy it
Despite slowing down the itinerary and readjusting our expectations, we still enjoyed a awesome week successful Spain pinch our family.
We made clip to spell connected a humanities stepping tour, climb up to the Alcazaba, sojourn the beach, locomotion done the Picasso Museum, and watch a flamenco show. One night, my hubby and I moreover went retired for late-night drinks while the grandparents babysat.
And backmost astatine the Airbnb, we each could bent retired together. Our chamber was a spot small, but the surviving room was freely pinch capable couches and chairs for everyone. Our girl loved having tons of group to play with, and I loved our group meals astatine the large eating table.
Plus, we enjoyed truthful galore delicious meals astatine section restaurants. Paella, tapas, and churros were large hits pinch our full group, moreover our freshly minted one-year-old.
Even though family clip looked different from what we thought it would, we still sewage to make truthful galore beautiful memories pinch our loved ones. Having meal together astatine our Airbnb each morning, singing "Happy Birthday" to our girl astir a Basque cheesecake, and playing games of peekaboo and tag astir the sofa are each moments I will cherish.
Now the only mobility is: How do we apical it for our daughter's 2nd birthday?
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Riana Ang-Canning
Riana Ang-Canning is simply a contented and copywriter based successful Vancouver, Canada who is ever readying her adjacent trip. You tin travel on pinch Riana's travels connected Twitter (X) and astatine Teaspoon of Adventure.
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