If you've done STJ with a 1 year old, would you again?

[GotToGetAway]

My son was 1, but really just shy of 2. It's a handful and probably very different from your usual St. John vacation. At 1, he's probably doing two naps a day which is trickier than 1 nap, unless you think he'd nap at the beach. One nap was easy enough, we went to the beach in the morning, home for lunch, then nap time, then hit the playground or something else fun.
We choose to rent a vehicle on STT. That way we strap them into car seats right away and don't have to deal with taxis.
We enjoyed our visit as a family of four, but this time we're going with more family to share the experience and make it a little easier for us. With grandparents there and one child, you'll be fine.
Either choose a villa that comes equipped with baby items, or rent them and lighten your load to make traveling easier.

[Teresa_Rae]

GotToGetAway made a great point that I can't believe I failed to mention. Our little one switched to one nap just a couple weeks before we went to STJ last summer...it would have been a much more difficult vacation if she had still been taking two naps.

[PA Girl]

I think it all depends on you and your child if they are good at adapting and going with the flow...We have always taken our kids everywhere...it involves more STUFF but you create precious memories... (2 yr old remembers the plane from the Maui trip and five year old still remembers getting sandblasted on beach)
.

Yeah I think almost EVERYTHING depends on this but I don't know how to quite put it into words.

I have friends that have metal breakdowns if their kids are 15 minutes late for their naps and think the world will end if the kiddos don't eat dinner at 5:00pm. They would not do well on STJ.

We are very laid back parents. If we could see that our son was getting ready to nap and we were hungry for an afternoon snack, into the car we would go, we would drive an extra 10 or 15 minutes so he could fall asleep and we would just carry him into Shipwreck where he slept on the bench next to me.

It just never was a big deal, we just did it. But I do understand that every family is different and if my husband was the type to turn into a cranky @ss because we needed to shift gears to accomodate a little one, my advice would be different.

[Nic in KC]

Thank you all so much for the different input! We've booked so I guess we are going! We will leave the day after T's first birthday so he'll be exactly 12 months. He's cruising around furniture and standing up by himself in the middle of the floor now so he'll probably be a half way decent walker by then! This week he's started just wanting 1 nap so we may end the morning nap soon. If he does still take a morning nap, it's always only been 30 minutes or so which we can handle.

TR-I have to say that I still think it'd have been an easier trip at 5weeks! Instead of being in St. John, I spent the week at my parent's house watching three dogs and swimming in their pool.

We are the type of parents with a very flexible schedule like PA Girl described so being on island doesn't really worry me too much. I know he'll be thrilled to be outside every day and have four adults willing to play with him. We know it'll be different, but having my parents along will still allow us time to maybe go to dinner by ourselves after he's in bed one night or something! I will freely admit the flight terrieis me, but I'm hoping for the best! If you are flying out of KC or Charlotte in June, PM and I'll let you know what flights to avoid!

[chicagoans]

I think it all depends on you and your child if they are good at adapting and going with the flow...

I agree. On my recent trip the house next door had a baby that cried incessantly -- so much that at times we worried he had been left alone. (We had a similar experience in Kauai in a condo with apparently very thin walls.) This is a drag for the child, for the parents, and for anyone within earshot.

I have kids, I get that kids cry, and I'm not one to be crabby about a baby crying on a plane. BUT I think parents of little ones need to put their own vacation relaxation aside to do whatever they can to comfort their child while traveling (bring a bottle on the plane for ear aches, don't let the baby cry himself to sleep at night even if you do that at home, etc.) If you can keep the child happy, then everyone is happy!

[traveler22]

We booked our flight as close to his usually nap time as possible and he slept most of the flight. Flight wasn't a problem just the extra stuff you need. My mother in law was a great help with that too.

[PatrickMcc]

We took our 1 and 3 year old daughters to Cinammon Bay in 1983 and went back every year for about 15 years with them. The advantage of Cinammon Bay was that they both napped and you could sit outside the "cottage" and enjoy the Caribbean. Dinner was right there as was the commissary for snacks or walks. You would have the same advantage at Caneel if that is in your budget. Now when they were 5 and 4 we rented a house in Great Cruz Bay(Cinammon was booked) and did get a tired of going back and forth to the beaches.
We just returned with our daughters this past February and took our 20 month old grandson but we rented a house at Hart Bay.We had six adults and that made it a lot easier. We went to the beaches about 8:30 in the morning, left by noon for nap time and returned to beaches about 4:00 P. M. Now returning to this house was easy because it had a beautiful view and a pool. We babysat several times while the young people went out for lunch or dinner.
Of course it all depends on your own baby. My wife and I are always commenting on how we are always moving when watching our grandson and it seems a lot harder than our daughters. Maybe we have forgotten or maybe he does need a lot more supervision..
Good luck.

[PatrickMcc]

We took our 1 and 3 year old daughters to Cinammon Bay in 1983 and went back every year for about 15 years with them. The advantage of Cinammon Bay was that they both napped and you could sit outside the "cottage" and enjoy the Caribbean. Dinner was right there as was the commissary for snacks or walks. You would have the same advantage at Caneel if that is in your budget. Now when they were 5 and 4 we rented a house in Great Cruz Bay(Cinammon was booked) and did get a tired of going back and forth to the beaches.
We just returned with our daughters this past February and took our 20 month old grandson but we rented a house at Hart Bay.We had six adults and that made it a lot easier. We went to the beaches about 8:30 in the morning, left by noon for nap time and returned to beaches about 4:00 P. M. Now returning to this house was easy because it had a beautiful view and a pool. We babysat several times while the young people went out for lunch or dinner.
Of course it all depends on your own baby. My wife and I are always commenting on how we are always moving when watching our grandson and it seems a lot harder than our daughters. Maybe we have forgotten or maybe he does need a lot more supervision..
Good luck.

[RickG]

Lots of good notes. When I first started taking my babies baby food was pretty scarce. If you have very particular needs (my second daughter had food allergies), then bring what you can't live without.

I'm a big fan of adapting to the kids schedules, rather than the other way around. Suns up early and so are the kids, we hit the beach and get a nap in there. A popup and a towel make a great nap spot. We brought lunch and ate on the beach half the time. Lunch out was tough, but an early dinner worked out well. The benches in La Tapa are where my kids have slept through many a meal. To be honest, one year old is easier than 3 years old. I'm more leery of a kid who's between two and four than a one year old. Both of my girls got it at about age 5 and were snorkeling.

Get them hooked early. My youngest is convinced she can remember her first visit at 5 months. Her sixth trip was in November at 14 yo and we're headed to VG for Spring Break, her choice over Europe. Number one is 20 and not pleased with Dad for missing this trip.

Eventually I'll be the grandparent with the baby. At the pub.

Cheers, RickG

[akersten]

We took DD at almost 3 years (pregnant with DS)
DD4 & DS 7 mos
DD6 & DS3
DD7 & DS4
next trip DD8 DS almost 5

It was such a pain when they weren't potty trained and dealing with all the gear that we had to bring. So I probably wouldn't go again with a 1 year old. Once DS was out of diapers and done with naps, it got much easier.

[ccasebolt]

We took our daughter for her first visit at 18 mo, along with her 3 yo brother. Two items I found invaluable - the Kelty backpack carrier and the Safe-T-Seal power swimmer: http://www.swimways.com/power-swimr-c-53.aspx
It really works - she was actually able to swim unassisted with it:

[traveler22]

One good point to pigggy back on, if the baby has any special needs, make sure you bring it with you or ship it ahead. My son needed special formula at the time and I couldn't find it anywhere on St. John, so I had to ferry over to St. Thomas and ride around in a "local" taxi to different stores until I found it in the "Kmart in the country" as driver explained it. I was riding around "jammin" with my formula back to Red Hook, it was quite the experience. I should have called a few stores ahead of time. Good luck, you'll be fine

[alw1977]

You've received some great tips. We took our oldest when he was 9 months. We haven't been back to St. John yet with two, but we'll going to Mexico in less than two months with a 28-month old and a 7 month old, help me.

Some tips: most normal baby food is available on island. At 1 year, your son will likely be off formula and on cow's milk, but if not, then bring your formula. That stuff costs a FORTUNE on St. John.

There are some good baby gear rental companies on island. Island Baby is one, if you don't want to lug everything.

Our son would NOT nap on the beach, which sucked. He did nap great at the villa though, so that was positive. At least we could be in the pool!

If you can help it, go during a temperate time on-island. Babies don't like extreme heat. We went in late September and Wyatt was miserable in the heat. He even got a heat rash and we ended up at Myra Keating because we didn't know what it was. And we're from GA, so we are used to heat!

On the subject of healthcare, be sure you know how to get to the clinic, if you need them. They were actually pretty good for minor problems and we paid very little. If you have to go, you'll need your villa/condo ADDRESS, your passport, license and insurance card.

[jcm]

Hi- Not sure if you have been to St. John before. It is a long travel day with ferry
from St. Thomas etc. If your parents are along it should be fine. Restaurants
are very nice if you go around 5 with a little one. Might be a few that don't
accept children. If you rent a villa with a pool, you will need to check with
rental agent if there is a fence around the pool. That would be a concern and
that the bedrooms have interior access. Have a great trip. We have three children
and they went with us. Back-up help is key!! If your one year old is on the run
it can be a challenge. Have a great trip.

[jcm]

Hi- Not sure if you have been to St. John before. It is a long travel day with ferry
from St. Thomas etc. If your parents are along it should be fine. Restaurants
are very nice if you go around 5 with a little one. Might be a few that don't
accept children. If you rent a villa with a pool, you will need to check with
rental agent if there is a fence around the pool. That would be a concern and
that the bedrooms have interior access. Have a great trip. We have three children
and they went with us. Back-up help is key!! If your one year old is on the run
it can be a challenge. Have a great trip.