ABD Italy

amandaclare

Earning My Ears
Joined
Mar 7, 2018
Hi, I’m a single mom with a 5 year old son - would love to go to Italy and have read so many great things about this trip - wanted to see if anyone else had gone with one adult and if 5 is too young?

Thanks!
-Amanda
 
We are going in June so I can't help you. The website says minimum of 4 years but suggests 6 years. Ultimately only you will know your child's demeanor and capability. At 5, my dd was a lover of museums and art galleries and the like and could walk for long distances without complaint and ride in a plane/train/bus for many hours without issue.

Have you traveled much with him?
 
We have traveled ourselves to UK, France, Costa Rica. I think the only area I’d be a little worried about would be long walking days..

Thanks,
-Amanda
 
I agree with the others. The days on this trip can be pretty long, with a lot of walking. If you son is OK with that, then you might be OK. Hopefully you'll hear from someone who took a young child on this trip.

I'd also suggest calling an ABD Vactionista and discussing the trip and your child with them. They can help you decide if he's too young for this trip or not.

Sayhello
 


We did the adults only tour, but basically it was the same tour minus the games. You know your child best. There are some long days. Even the best of us can be a little cranky on a long day in a strange place.

I'm not saying it's not doable. But I know that at that age, I wouldn't have enjoyed or appreciated the tour as well as I did when I was little older.

Whatever you decide, I hope you have a wonderful vacation!
 
We love ABD and look forward to having you join the world of ABDers! I think the trips are particularly nice for single parents since the kids have other kids and you have other adults for when you need a break from each other. My youngest was 9 when we started taking the trips, and I think that was a good age. We have had 5-6-year-old boys on three of our last trips, and while they mostly kept up, they didn't really fit in with the kids group very well and ended up tagging along with their parents rather than getting to enjoy the junior adventurer activities. I would suggest waiting a couple more years to get the most out of it for you and your child. And then take as many as possible :)
 
Oh, and I will add, you can call and ask the ages of the other kids on the trip before booking. If you decide to book, maybe you can find a trip date with other young kids.
 


I'm a single parent and love ABD! I think my daughter has enjoyed the places we have visited but... if you asked her she enjoyed the time spent with the other kids in the group most. We have been on several trips starting when she was 8. On each trip there have been kids her age, maybe we're just lucky! I do remember on a couple of trips there were a group of young 5-6 year old boys that had a blast. I enjoyed travelling with them as well. It's truly something special to see the world through their eyes.
 
One thing to think about & to think hard , for your 5 year old, before you book.

Your child will be in a strange country ( not a bad thing ) BUT the people around him will

be speaking a different language . Food ...... will be different for your child .....

you might find it hard to find a McDonald or his favorite breakfast cereal

there will be lots of Nutella choc spread .
 
Keep in mind that the Italy trip is big on historic/cultural things. The OP will have to consider if their 5YO will appreciate or tolerate a full day of that. Yes, there are kids activities as well but it may not be enough to interest the child.
 
We are planning this trip for 2019. I will admit that I'm worried about art, museum and church overload for my 12 and 15 year olds.
 
Have you considered the DCL trips to Italy? Our first family trip to Europe via the Magic was in 2007...youngest was 7...perfect blend of culture and 'americanized' food & fun! We have since done MULTIPLE DCL European cruises and just completed our 5th ABD.....My son (and my slightly older daughter) LOVES learning and my son, even in 2007, was at the front of the group wanting to be near the guide to hear what they are saying!
 
We did an Italy ABD when my youngest was 8. She was the second youngest in the group (one boy was 6). The rest were all teens/tweens.

This is just my personal experience, but I’m glad we didn’t take her at a younger age. There is a ton of walking in the heat. Lots of museums/church/landmark type places. The days begin early and a few bus rides were long as well.

Our DD loved the trip and did make a friend (she was 11). The kids wound up pairing off with “friends” or groups after about the second day. They stay with their friends on buses, at meals, etc. so basically the group splits into kids/adults. We even took our kids’ “friends” with us on some free time activities.

Just some info to think about.
 
Maybe consider doing the trip with Sorrento, Amalfi coast and Florence. Then add a few days in Rome on your own (very easy to book the VIP tours of the Vatican and Colisseum on your own). We found that the central Italy trip was less museum intensive. More outdoor activities. Obviously, this doesn't get you to Venice. Not sure how important Venice is to you.
 
I heard on ABD they provide snacks while in transit, etc. Someone above mentioned Nutella. Can someone tell me more about what kind of snacks they usually have on Europe/Italy ABD trips? I’m asking both for myself and my children. Maybe it’s necessary to bring some of our own snacks if the snacks are too “different.” Then again, I hope they have some interesting local options!
 
We’ve been on a couple other ABDs out of the country and enjoyed the variety of local snacks they have to offer. You can bring your own but we found with our kids they liked trying something new that looked similar to what we have at home but with different names and ingredients.

In Australia our kids found a new favorite candy. In Scotland (a much harder sell food wise overall) I honestly can’t remember what we had on the bus but the kids were always excited when the snack bag came around.

Our son is not really adventurous with food but for the most part snacks are fun food anyway and he found something. Sometimes the snacks would change depending on what part of the country we were in so they always had a good variety.

We are usually given some downtime/shopping time where you could find own thing as well. We’ve found the guides are the ones buying the snacks so if you are partial to something maybe let them know so they can be on the lookout for the Italian version.

When are you going? We will be leaving June 7th.


I heard on ABD they provide snacks while in transit, etc. Someone above mentioned Nutella. Can someone tell me more about what kind of snacks they usually have on Europe/Italy ABD trips? I’m asking both for myself and my children. Maybe it’s necessary to bring some of our own snacks if the snacks are too “different.” Then again, I hope they have some interesting local options!
 
As OP have said, definitely call ABD to see the ages of the children on the trip you want to take. When I did the Greece ABD a number of years ago, there was a single mother who had her child on the tour who was between 4-6. I was really proud of how the kids adopted the younger girl and looked out for her. She really felt a part of the group and her mother got to have some adult time. That doesn’t happen on every trip, but people usually bond on the Italy one. I’ve done the Italy ABD, but all the kids on the trip I took were teenagers.
 

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