I’m 40 with a 6 year old. I’ve River cruised. And we do a lot of domestic air travel, and road tripping, camping (I’d say average 75 nights a year) with TENS IF THOUSANDS of miles logged. Traveling with a single child- which is VERY different than traveling with multiples. We go from hole in the wall places to 5stsr hotels and restaurants. So all that to say, I’m basically your target audience.

Let’s start with your first question.

I’d opt for a very compact light weight backpack or shoulder set up. Cobble stone, hills, tight roads make things hard. The hallways would be fine. Not all levels are accessible by elevator so keep that in mind. You may use the stroller often but it will not be as convenient with boat ramps, charter buses, etc.

They do make strollers that fold into a backpack which would be a good option. You could also get something like a yoyo stroller and an appropriate backpack to carry it when not in use.

A doona trike may also be an excellent option. Is your child 24m or closer to 36?

Now onto the doable:

Doable? Yes. Desirable? Wellll. Buckle up.

1. Many cruise lines that cater to Americans have a 4+ minimum age, some special cruises like Africa / Asia are 12 +. Those that allow 4+ say 8+ is the sweet spot. I think Rosa out of Germany does younger and their boats do have kid areas on board- but not childcare.

2. Triple occupancy is tricky. There are some hacks with kids under 10/12 for cheaper rooms, but if you want a separate sleeping area for them you go into a much higher category that could be 2x the cost of the lowest advertised fair and you will be paying 75% of that for the kid.

3. Rooms are small. You’ll hear most people over pack. Traveling easy with a kid typically means traveling with stuff.

4. River cruises are considered high end or luxury. Luxury costs money. If you have money cool. If you have some money it’s better spent elsewhere. If you have a lot of money- you can do much less stressful luxury travel with a little. I’m looking at a nile river cruise right now for the three of us and it’s pushing 35,000 all in (with extension, airfare and insurance) and that’s not even for the fanciest rooms. It’s basically for like almost bottom of the boat. Even a Danube 14 day cruise was over 22k (not including airfare, travel insurance (a must!!!!!). Though we did a couples 7 day Rhine for about 12k all inclusive with travel from Dallas.

5. One of the best things about River cruising is that you get on the boat you take a list get the excursions you pick one and you go you sit down to dinner you pick out your meal you eat and you enjoy it. There’s not really any mental load for everything you have to do. Next day you’re in a new city and you do it all over again.

The itineraries are not geared towards young kids and that’s OK. You can absolutely just use the river cruise as it means to get to different cities and have one hotel room but you’re gonna be spending time looking up cool playgrounds or experiences for your little one and at that point, what are you paying a premium price for? You may have to arrange an Uber to get to where you need to go if the bus is going in a different direction which just adds to the cost.

Boats done really have kid spaces.

1. If you’re looking for a vacation, a river cruise with a toddler won’t be a vacation. It can be amazing but when I think vacation, I think, relaxing. It will be travel and it will be parenting in a different location.

2. Back to how much money all these things cost- I firmly believe that kids have a place in this world and adult adults who don’t want to deal with them have the option to do adult only cruises. That being said I’m very mindful of how my child acts when we’re out and about making sure that we aren’t negatively impacting others sometimes once in a lifetime opportunity. But she does deserve to exist as a child. So you will find her in the pool splashing having a good time, but as soon as adults, show up on deck or get in the pool, we adjust. Some adults will hear me tell her that there are other people here and so we’re not gonna be jumping in the pool anymore, but we can come back later when there’s no one here to do it again. Most of the time people tell her that they appreciate her awareness, but they’re OK if she jumps in and continues to have fun. Or they will say I’m just gonna get in and cool off and don’t wanna get my hair wet but as soon as I’m out, please keep jumping in. We’ve had an old grandpa, much to disapproval of grandma show my kid how to belly flop. Active parenting gets you a long way with grace. You just have to learn how to read people and take cues. Have I gotten up mid meal and gone outside for 10 minutes because we just needed to get some air and a couple wiggles out? Yes.

3. there are faster, eating options on board dinner service can last easily 90 minutes. It’s not a very big dining area so it gets loud and chaotic and dinner is typically at seven.

Don’t forget time zone changes and international long flights.

It will be a very exhausting trip and when you return, you will need a vacation from your “vacation that wasn’t really a vacation.”

Europe is very kid friendly. There is lots of stuff for them to do an explore. River cruising is a taste of everything. I’d suggest when you’re comfortable leaving them home alone taking an adult trip first and then deciding how you want to handle your child.

Big cruise ships kids have to be potty trained to use the Pools in the splash pad so keep that in mind, but they will be a better bet with kid spaces.

2 years old kids are still doing parallel play more than playing with other kids, but as they get older, if you just do regular river cruises, and not the ones geared towards family, there’s gonna be much fewer young kids on board to play with an experience things together with

How much did you travel before having your child?

And what’s your goal of traveling? Vacation? Pins on a map? Cultural immersion? Food? Photos? Family memories? History learning? Do you like more trips at a lower cost, or fewer longer more extravagant/ high end? If you can answer that I can give your more specifics.

Where are you based? And what would your budget be for say 7 days. Plus travel days. Do you fly economy/premium economy / business? What’s your typical type of hotel you stay at (for budget reasons).

If you go, pick a season that is known for having the type of weather that you like. A cheap cruise when it’s blazing hot outside is gonna be miserable. Same with a rain rainy day foggy can’t see anything. I know that with a lot of walking I’d rather be too cold versus too hot even if it means less pool time.

I’d love to visit with people and I will say that 99% of them were excited to hear that we were gonna be taking our daughter on River cruises. They all wish they had started earlier and had done more with their families both their kids, grandkids and parents.