We view all forms of transportation as part of the fun of travel, particularly with kids. If we can get somewhere on a boat, we jump at the chance. The ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn (or vice-versa) is an easy way to combine these two cities into one trip. We boarded our ferry in Tallinn. …
Tallinn, Estonia with Kids in Winter – a Blast
Tallinn, Estonia completely exceeded our expectations. This city oozes charm. Despite the cold we enjoyed every moment of our three-day visit. Tallinn is an easy 2.5 hour flight from Amsterdam. We booked on KLM but our flight was operated by Air Baltic. The kids were eager to use their CARES Flight Harnesses. They always love …
Kid Friendly Hotel In Tallinn
The Original Sokos Hotel Viru goes above and beyond for little ones making it an ideal place to stay on a family visit to Tallinn. We booked a family room at The Original Sokos Hotel Viru. This meant we had two single beds, made into a queen bed and a set of bunk beds. There …
San Gimignano, Italy: The Town of 14 Towers
San Gimignano was a blip on our itinerary. It was quite literally a footnote just in case we had some time to kill. But as we were enjoying the meal we had lovingly cooked at our family cooking class, the hostess asked if we were headed to San Gimignano. We said we weren’t sure we …

Santa Brigida, Italy
The town closest to our Christmastime Italian villa was Santa Brigida. On our last day in Italy we decided to stay close to home and explore this small town. I’m glad we did, because although it probably won’t make your must-see list it reaffirmed that getting off the beaten path is always a good idea. …
Florence for Christmas
Although we stayed in a villa outside of Florence we ventured into the city on Christmas Eve and Christmas to enjoy all the city has to offer. We opted to take the train into Florence. Certain roads in Florence require a special pass to drive on. The maps are confusing and the fines are high (90€). It …
Museum Rotterdam – The Whole City in One Place
An easy 10-minute walk southeast of Rotterdam Central Station, Museum Rotterdam is a home run for kids! It took us over a year of living less than 20 kilometers from the museum to finally make it there. The Maritime Museum in Rotterdam tends to get all the accolades because it has a kids play area on …
Roman Holidays
We decided to spend our first Christmas as a family of five in Italy. The trip was divided into two parts. We started in Rome where we explored the city with kids and baptized our new little one. We then moved the whole group to Tuscany, enjoying more space and adventure. We were treated to (mostly) …
Wine Tasting in Tuscany with Kids
Wine tasting tops the list on most Tuscan itineraries. I’ve read lots of comments online that say taking the kids wine tasting is impossible. Even more state that wineries aren’t open in the winter. I’m here to tell you that wine tasting, in winter, with kids in Tuscany is lovely with a bit of preparation. …
Vatican Tour with Toddlers
It sounds like a terrible idea, right? Taking your pre-schoolers to the Vatican Museum. It’s really not, so long as your expectations are low. We brought our 4, 2 and newborn into the Vatican Museum and enjoyed ourselves. I promise you can too! We arrived as early as we could with timed tickets. On our …