Single Mom Travels (it's kind of a long read, so grab a snack!)

Well Hello There Readers!

I've been on a writing hiatus but I've got the sudden urge to blog.

A few weeks ago I was hanging out with my son and realized that as far as I'm concerned we have a pretty unique experience in terms of the way we go throughout our daily lives. I realize there's this stigma that as a single parent life becomes so limited and in many aspects this has proven true. However, I've also discovered my own ways to live and provide my child with a happy fulfilling life.

There is nothing that can truly distract my child from the absence of his father, but as his mother I've vowed to make his childhood experiences as meaningful as possible in the hopes of presenting to society a well rounded, open minded, curious, fearless, adult.

With all that being said, traveling alone and/or with your child are one of those single parent stigmas I was talking about. It seems as though as a woman I should live in fear of the world and somehow need protecting and incorporating a child into the formula is just down right unheard of. NOT! I am one to go and see a movie alone, have a meal alone, so the idea of  traveling alone didn't really scare me.

I decided to do it, with my at the time 5 year old son. I had this urge to just get out of Los Angeles, out of California. Somewhere close enough in case of an emergency, but far enough to feel like I had a new experience.

I had always dreamed of going to Puerto Rico, so that's where we were headed. I told my mother and she was terrified. I think some of her fears were valid. I was traveling alone, with my five year old son. I don't speak Spanish. I'm a diabetic and what if something happened to me while we were gone, but I could only help but think, that's our everyday reality. At any given moment, when my son and I are together, I could have a medical emergency, and he would be alone to advocate for himself. Its something that can't be prevented. We have precautions, but why limit our lives because of what-ifs?

I made a decision and I stuck to it.

Here is my experience:

Booking the Trip:

For all my travel needs I use www.bookit.com I don't work for them but I should lol! Of all the travel websites I found Bookit.com provided me with the best discounts and deals.

The trips are typically priced out on a per person basis. The website has a "Kids Stay Free" filter that only shows you hotels where "Kids stay Free" so essentially your only up front costs are your Hotel Stay, Your Plane Ticket, and Your Child's Plane Ticket

Our upfront costs for 4 days/3nights came to about $1,500.

Although I was going against the stigmas of traveling alone with a child with no man to protect us, I did admittedly have some insecurities. I knew nothing about where we were going and didn't speak the native language so I chose a hotel that was close (3 miles) from the airport. 

So tip #1: Kids Stay Free Travel Package


I prepaid for one of those Van Shuttles to take us to and from the airport. I wanted to limit our vulnerability of traveling alone and obviously being tourists.

Tip #2: Pre-Pay for a shuttle service or check and see if your hotel has an airport shuttle service.

When we arrived in Puerto Rico I was very disappointment in my choice to stay so close to the airport. The hotel was pretty nice but we were in the inner city and Puerto Rico's inner city wasn't very different from Los Angeles, there was poverty and gangs, and traffic lots and lots of traffic. It was far from my expectations but I didn't want to ruin our experience because I was being a snooty tourist.

Speaking of snooty tourist, I don't care where I go, if the bathroom looks suspect I automatically feel icky and uncomfortable. I'm one of those people that won't stay at a hotel that doesn't post a picture of the bathroom on their site. LOL!

We stayed at the Verdanza Hotel which is in Isla Verde, Puerto Rico

Pros: Super kid friendly, the hotel has a pool and splash pad. There's three restaurants inside the hotel. One of which served traditional Puerto Rican food like Monfongo. It was within walking distance to the beach.

Cons: This complaint is specific to my experience. The week we travelled to Puerto Rico, there was a prestigious beauty pageant going on and some sort of Professional Basketball league award ceremony. Our flight got in at 11 am and we had to wait until the 3pm check-in time because the hotel was so full. We literally sat in the lobby from about noon to 3pm. In hindsight I would've checked my bags with the front desk and explored, but I was still feeling some of my insecurities with such a new experience. (We did get to hang out with some of the Professional Athletes in the pool once we were all checked in, so that was a bonus lol, for mommy at least!)

Would I stay there again? Absolutely!

But tip #3 make sure your flight time coincides with the hotel's check-in time, especially if its your first time traveling to that area with your little one.

                                              Kayden in the pool at the Verdanza Hotel

Kayden playing in the Splash Pad

 

Who's your kid?

I quickly learned that speaking Spanish wasn't a requirement in Puerto Rico. Althoughh it was refreshing to see people that looked like me with those beautiful accents, we were fine. We did pick up on some words. A lot of the natives were adamant about us at least trying to speak Spanish! The free lessons were awesome!

However, as we settled in I started to notice that the main travelers were college students and couples on vacation....My son is pretty mellow (and by mellow I mean a high energy extrovert with the gift of gab!) He's not the tantrum type of kid, so that wasn't my worry. He's loud, and silly, a kid! So I started to worry that he would disturb people who were travelling kid free. I quickly got that out of my head. It was his vacation too. It was his experience. It was his memory to hold onto or utilize to make new ones as an adult and so I just let him be him.

One of my other concerns was drinking on the trip. To some that's a huge no-no. I'm more of a social drinker and will have 1 or 2 drinks occasionally, but come on it was Puerto Rico, the land of rum and Pina Coladas. I did indulge. I didn't get drunk, but I did drink, and so did Kayden. He had about 6 mugs of chocolate milk too many (total of 8; hey don't judge he was on vacay lol) and threw up all over a restaurant table. I was startled and concerned and quite frantic because this was the first time I had experienced real kid throw-up (gross I know) he had never thrown up before. I mean he did as a baby all the time but not as a child. I felt like I got a glimpse of 21 year old college senior Kayden. It was an intense situation.  It was quite the experience to say the least! and Now I know I'm going to have to monitor him once he turns 21, hell 14, because that kid is a party animal lol!

Tip #4: Let go a little so it feels like vacation, but not so much that someone gets sick, or that you're too incapacitated to care for your child (in my case, vice versa)

The Experience is Most Important:

I honestly wasn't impressed with the inner city beaches, they were prettier than Venice Beach but not $1,500 prettier. I found myself in a bit of a rut, not wanting to be confined into only hanging around our hotel. I didn't know what to do. I didn't really plan anything or research ahead of time so I felt kind of stuck.

We found a mall and our hotel shuttled us there and picked us back up. We found a movie theater in the mall and watched Mr. Peabody & Sherman for which I only paid $9.00 for two movie tickets, two bags of popcorn (we typically don't share) and two sodas. $9.00!!!!

When we returned from our excursion we headed back to the pool. We met these really cool young ladies on break from school. They were from New York. They were super sweet to Kayden and I. They told me about an expedition boat trip. It was the next day. I rushed out of the pool to the hotel lobby and hoped that we could get in the trip. We did!

It ended up being a booze cruise and Kayden was the only child on the boat, but the captains (two males, and one female ) took him under their wings immediately!) It was refreshing! People could've been easily annoyed but everyone was super nice. The boat took us to a Private Island called Icacos. It hadn't dawned on me that Kayden and I would have to exit the boat. Neither one of us can swim. (I've admittedly been super lazy about swim lessons) I was terrified, but didn't want Kayden to be scared. One of the Captains actually assisted Kayden off the boat, I had to jump on my own. LOL!

We did it though, the water was so shallow, my fear was a bit embarrassing. We stayed on the Island for about two hours. We snorkeled. Yes we did! Two non-swimmers snorkeled in the OCEAN! We played and just enjoyed ourselves. It was the Puerto Rico I imagined.

For the two of us the Excursion was $96 for me and $89 for Kayden. This included being picked-up from our hotel; lunch, unlimited drinks, time on the Island, we stopped at another Reef as well on the way back and we were picked up and shuttled to our hotel and plus they played (blasted) really good music on the boat: Michael Jackson, Prince, Smokey Robinson good!

Tip #5: Research and plan your experiences in advance or visit the hotel experience desk to find fun things to do that are kid friendly (kind of)

Had I known better I would've planned our itinerary much better but it still ended up being a great first experience travelling so far away with my child and by myself..Kayden's favorite part you ask? ROOM SERVICE: PANCAKES of course! 

Here's some more photos of our Puerto Rico trip.

                                           the picture below is the night of the Chocolate Milk incident ....

This is some traditional Puerto Rican Food called Monfongo...it was really good

This is us on Icacos Island

This is one of the boat captains

This is Kayden with another one of the captains feeding fish in the ocean

This is food from the pool side restaurant in our hotel

This is Kayden talking to strangers...that he adopts as his friends

After our Puerto Rico trip, I've vowed to take him everywhere he wants to go whether it's in Los Angeles or requires a plane ride. The best thing I feel like I can do as a mother for my child is show him a world outside of his own!

Where-to Next?

We visited Hawaii. Using bookit's Kids Stay Free filter, we ended up staying at a 4 star hotel- called the Hawaii Prince Hotel in Honolulu

Trip Cost Up-Front: Including 4 days/3 nights/ hotel and Airfare + shuttle services: about $1,300

Excursions:  We did the Kuoloa Ranch Expedition  $270 total which included : transportation to and from the Excursion, a tour of the property which included visiting movie sites such as Jurassic Park and Big Foot, a boat ride to a Private Island, Play time on the Private Island which including a Canoe Ride (Kayden politely asked a man traveling with his family to Canoe him around in the ocean and he did!). I relaxed on a hammock while he played with other kids in the ocean. They also served us lunch.

We also attended Paradise Cove Luau, which included transportation, food, and activities at the Luau. The total costs was $148

Photos:

This is the awesome Dad that canoed Kayden around

This is Kayden and I canoe'ing at Paradise Cove. By far one of the funniest experiences I've ever had!

This is food from the restaurant from our hotel pool

This is the view as we traveled to the Private Island on Kuoloa Ranch

A little while after we got back from Hawaii, Kayden randomly asked to go to Las Vegas for reasons unknown to me. I was hesitant but it ended up being a really fun trip! He's already asked to go to New York City to see the Statue of Liberty, Ride the Subway, and find the Ninja Turtles. He also wants to go to Mexico and eat Cactus Soup....our journey has only just begun and I'm excited for our future.  Getting out of the Country on our adventures is going to be a whole new beast for us, but I'm up for it and I encourage you to be as well!

 

Here's some deets on our Vegas Trip:

We stayed at the Downtown Grand Hotel and Casino. It was a really nice modern hotel. Since I was traveling with my child we did a Monday -  Friday trip because I feel like Vegas comes alive on the Weekends, moreso than Weekdays. This actually ended up being much cheaper. I paid $39 a night + tax+ and resort fee.

We flew in thanks to Southwest's "Wanna Get Away" deals our flights were $152 each, but we should've rented a car once we got there. We paid $40 each way to and from the airport. It was $60 total to go to the Strip (Circus Circus) from Downtown. Cab fees got pretty pricey, so we walked around alot!

We spent a lot of time relaxing in the pool. We walked Fremont Street at night and watched the Street Performances (the PG13 ones). You'd be surprised how many kids were there. It was kind of refreshing for me, because I was worried about what I was exposing my child too...

We visited New Orleans Buffet (Gluttony Central!)

 We  also visited Circus Circus where Kayden got to play the Midway games. My only complaint was Circus Circus' Adventure Dome fee. It was $6-$9 per ride $31 for an unlimited pass if youre over 48 inches and $17.95 if you're under 48 inches. I had never experienced an amusement park that charges by height rather than age. I refused to pay an additional $14 because my 6 year old is 50 inches when he's only going to ride the smaller rides anyway. It was a disappointing experience, so if you have giant children be prepared LOL!

Overall though, it was a rather relaxing trip for Vegas.

Photos:

This was probably the best Chilli ever. From the S+O restaurant inside the Downtown Grand





More Single Mom Travel Tips:

Pack Rat:  Buy 1 piece of luggage large enough to fit you and your child's/children's belongings (preferably one with wheels!! The last thing you want to be doing is hauling a hyper kid and heavy bags.

Purse or No Purse: (that is the question): my favorite travel companion is a waterproof case that holds money, credit cards, and if its large enough to fit a phone that's even better ( for pool and water activities, because there's no one to watch your belongings while you play). I also wear a backpack for adventures that require a change of clothes or a a little wristlet for adventures that don't involve water.

Speaking of someone watching your belongings: WATER SHOES:  I had this realization at Soak City, in Buena Park. There are so many people with all black old navy flip flops and when you need to remove your shoes to get in the lazy river or water slides, it's kind of a challenge keeping up with them. But water shoes have rubber bottoms so you don't risk slipping and sliding, and you can keep them on!

In case of an Emergency:  Write a letter detailing your information and your family's information in case of any emergency to keep in your luggage, or wristlet, or backpack. Or if that's too much, write your emergency contact's phone number on the inside of your shirt tag or your child's shirt and explain to them what an Emergency is and how to get help so that they know when to use it..

Airport/Airplane Distractions: Avoid the meltdowns from boredom and bring a carry-on bag (preferably a backpack your child carries) that has all the essentials of happiness in it. My kid gets screen-time. I brought his Kindle so that he can watch Netflix in the hotel room while I watch the TV. I also brought my tablet to share the TV as well (duh, I saw you judging me for being selfish lol); a sketch pad and pens, video games, headphones, his favorite stuffed animal, and his favorite TSA friendly snack, chips, sealed, unopened! It's vacation, so make both your lives as easy as possible!

Etiquette: We work on manners year long but being on vacation gives you more of an opportunity to show your child how to be polite and kind to people providing you services throughout your entire trip. Give your kid the cash to tip the taxi driver, tell the front desk clerks thank you for their service and teach your child to do the same!, If you do end up staying in the more rural non-touristy areas of your destination, support your street hustlers and performers! Let your child put  a few dollars in  their bucket. Gratitude for having the opportunity to travel is highly important to me!

The most important tip of them all  though is to have fun. We all work so hard. We get up and go to work everyday, surely we deserve to live a little. Life can't just be going to work to pay bills. If you could save $100 to $150 a month for a year you can get away for a bit. Treat yourself, don't cheat yourself.