Paris and Bilbao in December- with a 5 month old...

I don't know if they have them in the states, but over here they have stroller covers for walking in the rain, covers the whole stroller. My daughter used to love seeing the rain drops on the clear cover when we went out. Another nice thing they have here are sleeper sacks, sort of like a cross between a sleeping bag and overalls. Keeps them nice and cozy while sleeping. Order some warm baby clothes from Penney's or any other catalog if they don't have them in the stores in Texas. Or borrow some from friends who might have lived elsewhere. As for walking in the rain, if you are sightseeing, get a decent raincoat, preferably long & with a hood. Otherwise, you will have soaking wet pants after a short while of using just an umbrella.

Make sure you let the hotel know ahead of time that you need a crib, unless your baby is going to sleep with you in bed. If you are nursing, your trip will be a lot easier than if you have to use formula. Take your products with you so you don't have to worry about changing them, but diapers you can of course buy everywhere. Also take whatever baby medicine you think you might need so you don't have to run out in the middle of night and try and find a pharmacist that is open and then struggle with the language to boot.

I went to Greece for a month with my daughter when she was 3 months old and it was a breeze, but we had sunny hot weather. Just took a supply of diapers and some tee shirts for her and she was good to go.

Click here for average weather by month for Paris http://tours.ricksteves.com/tours09/weather.cfmscroll down to France then Paris, then look under the December column: average daily high temp ( say 4pm) is 44avg daily low temp (overnight) 36This means average day-time temps are high 30's to low 40's On average about half the days in December have some precip, mostly rain, snow is a possibility in December.But remember these are just long term averages, the weather in December in any particular year can and often will vary somewhat from the above.The temp averages for Bilbao in December are about 10 degrees above what they are for Paris; I don't have precip data for Bilbao. It's on the northern coast of Spain.

In Paris and London in March we saw lots of those stroller covers that Jo mentioned. You'll be horrified-think of using them in Texas! They'd heat up like a terrarium. But they seemed to work well in cold/rainy weather. Google "stroller cover" and you'll find them.

Hi,

I actually was in Paris and the Basque Region early this past January - just after new years. I was somewhat displeased with the weather. I have lived my entire life in North Dakota and Minnesota, and I am thoroughly used to cold weather. But up here, the temperature stays low enough so that most of the winter precipitation falls as snow. In France and Spain, the problem (???) is that the weather was too warm during the winter. The precipitation (at least when we were there) fell strictly as rain. Rain at 45 degrees feels much colder to me that snow at 10 degrees, the thing about snow is that it doesn't really accumulate on you like rain.

I would highly recommend wearing warm (wool) sweaters underneath whatever warm coats or rain jackets you will be wearing.

I apologize, but being 23, I can't provide a hint of information about keeping a baby warm, but just make sure you do keep it warm, because rainy cold weather reminds me of pneumonia and colds.

Thank you for the replies so far. They have been helpful. I have seen those stroller covers online, but didn't know if that was my best option for keeping the rain out of the stroller. Does any one have a suggestions on waterproof shoes for women (that aren't boots- I want to be able to wear them again here in Texas)? Also, any suggestions on rain jackets? We both have snowboarding jackets, but don't know if those are sufficient enough for the rain. Thanks again! THis has been extremely helpful!

CAra are your snowboarding jackets gore tex?? Gore tex is great for rain , wind and cold.
Another great option for keeping baby warm and dry is wearing baby in a snuggli under your coat( actually I made hubby do that since his coat had room to zip around baby and he didn't mind carrying the extra weight.
A stroller cover is actually pretty important.. remember a baby is not walking and generating any heat, they just lie there, so a wind/rain block is important. Also, we also always put our baby in a one piece snuggle snowsuit type outfit, when we went inside building we could unzip it from neck to foot so baby didn't over heat inside, but outside it kept him warm.

As suggested by Geoffrie, wet cool windy weather is worse then snowy cold weather sometimes, its the damp that goes right through you..

A baby of 5 months is a great age to go though, so portable,, hope you are BF since it really does make it super easier,, but what ever.
Have fun.

PS For you,, yes , make sure you bring pants other then just jeans, jeans wick moisture and take days to dry,, yikes.

Cara,
I am a baby lover. Kids are great. But I say leave her at home with a caring relative or friend. What
will she get out of this vacation? It's a very long flight and she will not remember a thing! It's going to be cold and rainy more than likely. I did not bring my children to Europe until they were old enough to appreciate it. I am sure that you will miss her but she is better off at home!
Happy Travels!

Debi

We WOULD leave her at home- except we are going to Europe to visit Grandma and Grandpa for the first time (for the Holidays). They live in Spain, but we thought we would have a little time in Paris too! Otherwise, we would not take a kid on such a vacation without them being old enough to appreciate it!! THanks for the advice though, it will be helpful for future trips!