traveling with an 18 month old

What time of year? Kids are rock stars in Italy.

June-ish?

What do you mean "rockstars"

A couple of parents have posted that their young children and especially infants get lots of positive attention in Europe, but in Italy they are treated with abundant affection. Maybe all those Madonna and child images.

The rockstar appellation is because when you are with your baby, he/she will get tons of attention, and perhaps some skip-the-line perks as well.

It will be great, easier than the naysayers will have you believe. I travelled when mine were that small and the key is slowing down, not changing cities every 2 days, and renting apartments if possible. You're on it!

Italy does love kids - but Venice and Rome are tough with the littlest, if you use a stroller. Venice bridges have constant stairs. Crossing a street in Romr can be a challenge, and the crowds in Vatican are insane. You could do it if these places are your dream, but you asked about best. So...
Florence or central Italy (Siena?)
Paris!!
Barcelona

All 3 have plenty of interesting things for you, good areas to walk with a stroller and child, and plenty of day trips.

The rockstar appellation is because when you are with your baby,
he/she will get tons of attention, and perhaps some skip-the-line
perks as well.

That's exactly what I meant: Italians are very good with children. While some of the challenges of travel in Italy with a baby have been thoughtfully pointed out, those may balance out nicely with the cultural acceptance of/regard for little ones being present just about anywhere at all, and in just about any state - fussy or not - they happen to be in.

Well we booked tickets to Rome, Italy it is!!

Hello All, before you say, "don't do it" please hear me out! We love
to travel and now we have a baby, who will learn to love to travel as
well.

Just wanted to mention that my wife and I love to travel, and we were told by who knows how many "don't do it." While we haven't gone as far as Europe yet, our 9-mo old has already flown twice, been to the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. We have two more trips planned (one driving, one flying) before his 1st birthday. I think by then he will have been to 9 or 10 states. So many bad experiences it seems happen because both the parents and the kids haven't been "trained" to travel. So, just keep traveling, and the kids will learn to love it as well.

Hi Nicole ,

We have a 14 month old and have traveled a lot with him. We are firm believers in traveling with kids. We spent two weeks in Italy when our son was 6 months old. We split our time between Rome and an agriturismo (with an apt complete with kitchen) in Tuscany. It was absolutely wonderful and we would do it all over again. Apartments are definitely the way to go, having a kitchen and washer and dryer proved to be invaluable. I would definitely recommend staying near the city center or sights you definitely want to see so you can walk to them. Otherwise you will need to travel by bus or metro if you don't have a car seat with you. Have a wonderful time!!

thank you for all your positive words! we can't wait to go on our first European Vacation as a family!

Good for you! We just booked tickets to take our 17 month old (he will be 2 by then) to Ireland this June. We'll have to trade travel tips!

I agree with Kathy and Jessica.

Kids are rockstars!

We travelled when our baby was 10 months and the big girl was 7 years old. We went hiking in Murren, Switzerland then jumped down to Rome and finished in Venice.

In most restaurants in Italy, someone, the owner or waiter, would come out and play with and feed her while we were eating. One restaurant brought out five or six things for her to try for free when we did not order for her. Some of her first steps were in the Vatican. The workers there immediately perked up when they saw her. We also changed her diaper in the corner of a room when she started to leak out of her diaper, but we were done before the guard was able to say something (20 seconds) Nascar pit stop.

We stayed in apartments so we had a refrigerator and sink to wash clothes. We had reservations for as much as we could. We entered places when they opened. We went back to the apartment for nap time then went back out later. We factored in playgrounds every few days. If we found one, we would stop and play.

We used an Osprey Poco Plus Child Carrier. https://www.rei.com/product/895652/osprey-poco-ag-plus-child-carrier It is big enough to carry a baby bag and snacks for the day. It can sit up by itself as a high chair in a restaurant. She frequently fell asleep in it and I just took it off and left her in it while we took a break or a meal. It is loose enough for her to be able to move around. It comes with a sun shade, we also bought the rain cover to be safe. We tied her pacifier to one side and her favorite toy and her milk cup to it and we were good. She could reach her milk cup. We always walked with someone behind me to watch if she threw something on the ground. My wife and I practiced several months before our trip getting her used to it and us to carrying it. We are not in the best of shape and had no problems carrying it. If I stopped too long she would grab the handle and start shaking it!

We carried enough formula for the whole trip because she did not do well at home when we changed her food or formula. We bought diapers there when we ran out.

Our 7 year old was begging to come back before we left! After our trip, my wife thinks we were treated better than other US tourists because we were treated like family because we had kids.

Carry sunscreen for the little one! We travelled a year later, when she was 22 months old and ventured to Germany and more hiking in Switzerland and she loved it.

Go for it! You will have lots of fun.

Wade