Top Spots With Kids in Turks and Caicos

We’ve posted before about our recommended peaceful Caribbean destination with kids, Turks and Caicos. Our week of vacation was spent on the island of Providenciales, where most Turks and Caicos resorts are to be found. Here’s a run-down of our top activities and outings with Grace, who was only 10 months old at the time. Although Grace would have been content to stay on the beach and eat sand all day, we got out and did quite a bit. We think these activities would be enjoyable for kids of all ages.

1. Iguana Island – This uninhabited island is a national park just a short boat ride from Providenciales, but with no domesticated cats and dogs the native iguanas have no predators and have taken over the island. They are harmless but fascinating and a short walk around the island’s boardwalk reveals interesting fauna as well as these dinosaur-type lizards.
2. Snorkeling – Obviously at 10 months Grace wasn’t up for this activity, but thankfully we had grandparents along. Our entire group (grandparents, Grace’s aunt and uncle, plus the three of us) took a boat trip to one of the incredible reefs off the island. We chose a glass-bottomed boat so even those who weren’t snorkeling (namely Grace and Grandma) still got a peek at the sealife below. The rest of us enjoyed some of the world’s best snorkeling in the warm clear blue waters.



3. Sapodilla Bay – Our resort was on the north side of the island on Grace Bay Beach. We rented a car for one day and drove to the south side of the island to experience the tranquil waters of Sapodilla Bay, affectionately called “Children’s Beach” by some. We had a little trouble finding the unmarked beach but finally found a small parking area which led us to the clear still water of the Bay. Unlike Grace Bay, which experiences small but constant waves, Sapodilla Bay is perfectly calm. The water is incredibly clear and shallow as well, making it possible to both see and touch bottom even 200 feet from shore. We floated, snorkeled, splashed, sat and soaked up the sun and the quiet of this hidden gem of a beach.
4. Conch Festival – Our visit to Turks and Caicos happened to coincide with the annual Conch Festival in November. Here all the best restaurants in town cook up their best conch (pronounced “conk”) recipes and for one price you get a ticket to try and vote for them all. Let’s just say there’s good conch and there’s really nasty conch. It was a packed event with live music and a conch blowing contest, in which Steve’s brother Michael won second place!
5. Beach time – While there are diversions such as those listed above, the real reason to go to Turks and Caicos is for the beach. The sand is white and soft as flour. The water is warm and the waves lap the shore, never crash. Grace Bay Beach stretches for miles in either direction which makes for great walks. We saw families with kids of all ages and they all seemed to be having a wonderful time.

Have you traveled with your family to Turks and Caicos? What do you recommend?

One Reason We Travel: The Kindness of Strangers

Without exception, in our travel experience locals are generally kind and helpful to us travelers. Having a child along seems to only augment locals’ desire to help disoriented foreigners as well as their desire to provide you with helpful child-rearing information.

Take a recent foray into an Argentine supermercado as an example. I was looking for plain, unsweetened, yogurt for Grace. It seemed like a very basic staple, especially in the large Western-style grocery store where I was shopping. To my dismay I faced a refrigerator case full of countless packaged yogurts, all of which boasted interesting fruity (and highly sugared) flavors. No supermarket staff was in sight so I turned to the other lone shopper in that aisle, a smartly dressed woman in her mid-40s, and in my most helpless tone struck up the following conversation. Bear in mind the entire conversation took place in two levels of Spanish – poorly (me) and fluently rapid-fire (smartly dressed woman). I have taken the liberty of translating my Spanish as if it were perfect and her Spanish as I understood it, not necessarily as she actually said it.

Me: Excuse me, I am looking for plain yogurt for my baby. Do you know where I can find that?

Woman: Oh of course, let’s see it must be here somewhere. (Proceeds to wander up and down refrigerated case peering carefully at each variety. She finally pulls one down and hands it to me). This one is good for babies.

Me: (After reading container) Oh I see, but this one contains sugar. Do you know if I can find one without sugar or without flavoring? Plain yogurt?

Woman: Oh but your baby needs sugar. She will like this flavor. (some kind of mixed fruit) Babies love this flavor.

Me: (Placing tutti-frutti, high-fructose corn syrup-laden yogurt in cart) Thank you, I will try it. But do you know if there is also any yogurt that is plain?

Woman: (Not at all flustered by my persistence) Yes, I think so. (Wanders again up and down the entire refrigerated case, finally pulling down a small carton which she hands to me). This one is plain. But I don’t think your baby will like it. Babies like sweet yogurt.

Me: (Trying to be as diplomatic as possible in bad Spanish) Thank you. We’ll try both of them.

The kind but insistent woman and I parted ways and I left the grocery store with a carton each of tutti-frutti yogurt and plain yogurt. To my delight Grace preferred the plain yogurt. It’s nice to be right but it’s even nicer to have a warm encounter with a kind stranger.

Have you had a positive encounter with strangers while traveling with your children? Share it with us here!

Keeping Kids Healthy: Preparation is Key

One caveat: I am an internist, not a pediatrician, so I know how to treat adults who are sick, but when it comes to sick kids I’m just a dad. That said, there are some basic health care tips we have found to be helpful traveling with a child. The bottom line can be summed up as preparation.

Before leaving home, make sure your child is up to date on immunizations. Common diseases are just that – common. You can prevent many common diseases with simple vaccinations. Remember that influenza season is winter, so if you will be in the Southern Hemisphere your child will need the flu shot in July. Take a copy of your child’s vaccination record with you. If your pediatrician isn’t sure what your child needs, or just says “don’t worry, you’ll be fine,” find a travel clinic for some expert advice. My pet peeve is hearing anecdotes of people who decided not to take malaria prophylaxis and didn’t get malaria. Do you really want to play the odds game with serious and preventable diseases?

Simple medications are usually the best. Tylenol is a safe, effective treatment for pain and fever. Benadryl will help with allergies and, when sleep is the best medicine, can help your child get some rest. It will also sometimes help with nausea. Don’t forget oral rehydration solution – when your child gets diarrhea or is vomiting, rehydration is the most important thing you can do. Hyland’s teething tablets have a loyal following and are a harmless way to deal with troublesome fussiness. Upset tummies do well with gripe water, but keeping it cold might be a challenge. If you don’t have anything else with you, grate some fresh ginger into hot water to settle an upset stomach. Whatever you choose to bring, make sure you pack it in your carry-on luggage. From experience, there’s nothing worse than being sick during the flight while your medicine is securely locked in your checked bags.

It’s unlikely you’ll need it, but having an idea of where you might go for medical care if you need it can provide peace of mind. Most large cities have clinics or hospitals with English speaking physicians. A good place to start is by joining the International Association for Medical Assistance to Travelers for free, and look for their directory of approved providers in 125 countries. For less common illnesses, you can find providers with a specialty in travel medicine through the International Society of Travel Medicine. The ISTM is also a good place to find a travel clinic for advice and immunizations prior to your travel. If you are traveling to Southeast Asia, you can find some useful information here.

Your home medical insurance may not cover any medical expenses overseas, so you can get temporary travel insurance for any large expenses you encounter. It is extremely unlikely that you will need this insurance, as many countries with social health systems will treat you for free, and those that don’t will often charge a pittance (my experience in a Chinese hospital cost me less than $100). Travel medical insurance is useful in those rare cases when you need to fly out of the country. We have taken this type of insurance when traveling to places where we weren’t confident of finding high-quality care if needed. You can compare insurance quotes here.

In the end, don’t let worries about potential illnesses keep you from traveling. Kids get sick at home, and we treat them with some TLC and allow their amazingly resilient bodies to heal themselves. If you are prepared with some basics and some good information before you leave, you and your child will be able to enjoy more of this fascinating world together.

Liquids On The Plane With Kids: When A Quart Isn’t A Quart

Packing to take a plane trip with children is stressful enough but the new-ish TSA (Transportation Security Administration) rules about liquids only add to the challenge. The current rules explicitly state that each passenger is allowed only one-quart sized ziploc bag of liquids and none may be over 3 ounces. This rule would seem to disallow the needed milk, juice, some food (applesauce?) and medicines for children so let us explain why this is NOT the case.

The TSA rules clearly make an exception for breast milk, formula and juice for children. They also make an exception for all medications, prescription or not. This is all good news but still leaves the traveling parent to question if we can bring cow’s milk or liquid foods such as baby food or applesauce.

The TSA’s website does not explicitly answer the above questions, so we offer you our anecdotal response. We have flown with Grace both internationally and domestically more than a half a dozen times in her first 16 months and we have never, not once, had a security agent question the quantity of liquids no matter how much, so long as we pack them in clear ziploc bags (gallon or smaller), pull it out at each security checkpoint and, in a few rare cases, explain the liquids are for our child. Typically we have at least 3 single-serve boxes of milk, a bag of baby meds (liquid tylenol, benadryl, etc), a sippy cup which may or may not have liquid in it as we go through security, plus a bag of various liquid-type baby foods like jarred pureed fruits or veggies. On top of these liquids for Grace we still always bring one quart-sized bag each of our own toiletries.

We can not tell you unequivocally that this quantity of liquids will always be allowed when traveling with children. TSA only says you must bring a “reasonable” quantity so it is possible what one security agent deems “reasonable” may not be seen so by another. Still we think it’s safe to say that, so long as you bring more or less what you think is reasonable, pack it in clear ziploc bags and pull it out at security, you will likely be just fine. If you are given a hard time you can always ask to speak to a supervisor to explain why you need certain items for your child.

Have you had any issues carrying liquids on planes with your children? If so please share them with us here.

Mia Moda Travel Strollers: Cielo vs. Cielo Evolution

As we’ve posted elsewhere on this blog we are big fans of the Mia Moda Cielo stroller, despite the fact that two have broken on us. We figured out how to fix them with a simple screwdriver (popping up the latch behind the seat) but the manufacturer has kindly replaced the stroller each time at no charge, increasing our undying love for this brand. We’re now on our third Mia Moda stroller and this time the company upgraded us to the all new Cielo Evolution. The Fed Ex guy just dropped it off this afternoon and we’re in stroller heaven.

We love the basic Cielo (above) because it is small, super lightweight (15 pounds), easy to fold with one hand, comfortable for our daughter, and easy to push even on rough surfaces thanks to large rear wheels and front-wheel suspension. It won the JPMA award for design innovation it’s so clever.

The all-new Cielo Evolution (above) has us drooling though (isn’t it crazy what we parents get excited about?). First of all it’s chocolate and mint-green. Love the color combination! The basic Cielo is light-blue and shows every speck of dirt (and there are a lot of specks on there). This brown will hide Grace’s smeared snacks so much better. The Evolution is a teeny bit bigger but increases in weight by only 2 pounds, weighing in at just over 17 pounds. Steve noted the rear wheels seem a little bit bigger which should only add to the control we’ve found to be so great in the basic Cielo. The seat has more padding for Grace, a deeper recline as well as arm rests (the basic Cielo does not), PLUS, wait for it, there’s a cup holder! That’s a great bonus for a travel stroller when it’s nice to have your water or your child’s sippy cup at your fingertips.

Overall we’ve been happy with our basic Cielos (both of them!) but we are thrilled to give the new Evolution a spin. We’ll update this posting once we’ve used it for a bit if we have any changes. The basic Cielo retails anywhere from $99-$139 through various online retailers. The Evolution seems to run higher at around $180 although we imagine the price will go down after it’s been on the market for a while. Either one is a good investment for the traveling family, as far as we’re concerned.

Have you tried the Mia Moda? What did you think? Or do you have another favorite stroller for travel? Do tell by leaving us a comment here.

Climbing Zapotec Pyramids While Pregnant

Just because you’re pregnant doesn’t mean you have to stay home, at least not in the first two trimesters and you have your midwife or doctor’s OK. When I was pregnant with Grace I worked for an international development organization and travel was a big part of my job. I probably could have bowed out if I’d asked nicely but the my scheduled travel was to Oaxaca, one of my favorite places in Mexico, and I didn’t want to miss out, especially knowing I’d be staying closer to home for a while after Grace was born.

I was five months pregnant and had just climbed to the top of a steep pyramid when the above photo was taken at Monte Alban in Oaxaca. Steve took the photo because, thankfully, he joined me for the trip.  This brings me to one of our recommendations for traveling while pregnant: Don’t travel alone. You don’t have to travel with your spouse necessarily, but even having a co-worker or friend along makes for a more comfortable trip (who’s going to put your suitcase in the overhead bin or help you find tortilla soup when nothing else sounds good?). In the unlikely event that anything goes wrong, having your spouse, co-worker or friend along also makes it easier to get to medical care.

A few other recommendations:

1. Talk to your midwife or doctor before you go. Let her or him know where you’ll be and for how long. They will let you know if there are any concerns.
2. Don’t travel in the third trimester. Not only will you be big and uncomfortable, most medical professionals will advise against it and some airlines won’t even let you fly. Even driving long distances at this point is not recommended unless absolutely necessary.
3. Bring a small pillow. Airplane and car seats are not comfortable for anyone; add 20 extra pounds to your belly and you are asking for a backache. A small pillow tucked behind your lower back helps to ease discomfort on the plane or in the car and an extra pillow comes in handy in the hotel room when you’re trying to get comfortable as well.
4. Drink plenty of fluids. Dehydration is a serious issue when pregnant. Be sure to drink lots of water while you fly or drive but also at your destination, especially if you are traveling to a warm climate.
5. Walk. A lot. Walking helps ease the fatigue of extra weight on your body, especially after long periods of sitting. Take short, regular walks during travel, both on the plane or when you stop the car and at your destination, especially if long meetings are a part of your itinerary
6. Bring plenty of your favorite snacks. I was still experiencing nausea during my second trimester while we were in Mexico. As much as I love the food in Mexico, most of the time on this trip the only thing I could eat was tortilla soup. All meat sounded bad as did much of my favorite spicy food, so I was pretty limited. Nutritional bars were a great thing to have tucked away.
7. Know where you’ll go for medical care if you need it. If your midwife or doctor has given you the OK to travel, it’s unlikely there are concerns that will need medical attention while you’re gone. Still find out before you go through the web or someone you know in your destination where to go for quality medical care if it’s needed. Talk to your insurance company ahead of time as well to find out what their policies are for medical care away from home.
8. Enjoy yourself. You will soon be spending most of your time at home, at least for a few months. Enjoy this chance to be out in the world. Even while pregnant you are introducing your baby to new sounds so consider this your baby’s first adventure!

The All-Inclusive Resort – Good For Parents, Fun For Kids

By nature we are not “all-inclusive” types of travelers. We prefer the thrill of not knowing where or what we’ll eat for dinner until the time arrives, giving us the opportunity to discover a culinary treasure (or to end up hungry and disappointed!). While the latter may not be a big deal for most travelers, when children enter the picture meals, entertainment, lodging, transportation and other travel details are the last things some parents want to think about. The all-inclusive resort solves these problems by taking care of all these details for you (and you pay a handsome price for the service as well).

You won’t find us in a resort for every vacation but you will from time to time. Last Thanksgiving we traveled to the Caribbean island nation of Turks and Caicos. Ah paradise. We actually opted out of our hotel’s all-inclusive option, instead doing a combination of our own cooking, eating at the resort’s restaurant and dining outside the resort. Still the resort took care of our transportation and activities so we were well cared for and had to do very little planning on our own.

If you’re looking for a quiet, safe Caribbean destination we recommend Turks and Caicos. It’s far less touristy than many of its neighbors and it’s perfect for a family wanting a relaxing getaway for everyone. We stayed at the Ocean Club Resort on the island of Providenciales, which is accessed either through New York or Miami. There’s not much to do in Turks and Caicos beyond lay on the beach, snorkel, take a boat trip, scuba dive, or visit an island full of huge iguanas. We were looking for quiet relaxation so the island was perfect for us and the extended family who met us there. Our daughter Grace was 9 months old and loved splashing in the resort pools and digging in the soft white sand. What more does a baby need?

We recommend renting a condo with a kitchen rather than just a hotel room. Restaurants prices in Turks and Caicos are comparable to the U.S. or often more expensive, since they cater to wealthy tourists. Even groceries at the local IGA were expensive (everything is flown in from the U.S.) so we brought a suitcase full of non-perishables. We also brought enough diapers, wipes and baby food for the full week because we had heard these were expensive and hard to find, which turned out to be true. In some ways it was easier to do much of our own cooking and dine in our condo, along with our family in the condo next door. This way we didn’t have to figure out transportation to restaurants, worry about missing our infant daughter’s bed time or care if she got fussy at mealtime.

Do you have a favorite resort destination for your family? We want to know about it so leave a comment here.

Tips – Buenos Aires With Kids

Our daughter was 16 months old when we took her for two weeks to Buenos Aires. She absolutely loved it (as did we). Here are a few things we are glad we did and/ or wish we had known:

1. Avoid red-eye flights – All flights from the U.S. to Buenos Aires are red-eye flights. We had the time and didn’t think our daughter would do well on a red-eye, so instead we flew Mexicana airlines to Mexico City during the day. We stayed at the airport Ramada hotel (recommended) and continued on the next day to Buenos Aires. This worked well for all of us, especially for Grace as she only had to nap on the plane, not try to get a full night’s sleep. This plan backfired on us on the return though when Mexicana canceled our return flight and we ended up on a red-eye anyway. Some parents say their kids do well on red-eyes by sleeping all the way through, so do what you think will work best for you and your child(ren).
2. Rent an apartment – Apartments for rent are widely available in Buenos Aires because of a hotel room shortage and because of investment real estate. Many of them are cheaper than comparable hotels. We paid $120/ night for a very nice 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom apartment in Palermo, a great neighborhood to stay in with a child. We rented through ApartmentsBA and found them professional and, apart from a few minor hiccups, easy to work with.
3. Keep your child on the time at home – If you’re from the west coast that is. If you’re from the east coast the time difference is only 1 or 2 hours (depending on time of year), from the west coast it’s 4 or 5 hours. We kept our daughter on Oregon time by still feeding her dinner an hour before bedtime but at 8 or 9pm instead of 5 or 6pm. This way we were able to stay out until 9 or 10pm and sleep in until at least 8am. Argentines don’t even think about dinner until 9pm so by keeping her on a later schedule we could actually eat when locals eat.
4. Bring a portable booster seat – While most restaurants in Argentina have high chairs, some don’t. Of those that do have them, every single one we saw was actually just a tall chair with no straps or even bar to keep the child in. This might work with an older child but our daughter would have simply slid right out. Thankfully we had brought The First Years On The Go Booster Seat which fit nicely into the restaurant high chairs and kept our daughter in place.
5. Don’t bring diapers and wipes – We had heard diapers and wipes would be expensive but they really weren’t. Major U.S. brands (Pampers, Huggies) were available in every grocery store and pharmacy, so we were never without a place to buy them.
6. Do bring baby food – If your child is still eating pureed baby food you’ll need to bring it with you or bring a hand grinder to make your own. We had heard jarred baby food would be available but we checked in multiple large grocery stores and it never was. Our daughter was old enough that she was also eating table food, so it wasn’t a problem for us but could be a big headache for someone with a smaller baby. Our daughter drinks whole milk which was easy to find but formula also seemed easy to come by.
7. Bring a baby carrier – We highly recommend the Ergo baby carrier, no matter where you are traveling. See our list of essential travel gear for more information. We used it daily in Buenos Aires.
8. Bring a plastic changing pad. Diaper changing stations were very rare in public bathrooms. We either changed Grace’s diaper on the floor on a changing pad or just waited until we returned to the apartment. Since we returned at least once a day for naps this worked most days but there were a few emergencies where the bathroom floor had to do. We were told all McDonald’s have changing stations and McDonald’s are everywhere.

What To Do In Buenos Aires With Kids

Buenos Aires is an excellent destination to visit with children of all ages. The city is full of interesting things to do, see and eat including parks, world class museums, historical sites, zoos, restaurants, shops and sidewalk cafes. There’s a decidedly European flair to the city but the prices are about a third or less to what you would pay in Europe or North America for everything from food and lodging to transportation and admission to sights. It’s relatively clean (apart from the dog-poo-on-the-sidewalk problem), quite safe and easy to get around using taxis, busses and subway. We enjoyed strolling through some of the prettier neighborhoods such as Recoleta and the gigantic green parks like Parque 3 de Febrero as much as the tourist destinations. Here’s our list of top places we visited with our 16-month old daughter.

1. Parks – There seemed to be a small park and good playground around every corner in BA. We enjoyed the playground close to our Palermo apartment where our daughter could swing. We also took long strolls through different parts of Parque 3 de Febrero (includes a boating pond and Japanese gardens) and Parque Las Heras (where the dog-walkers gather, which is great fun for kids to watch).
2. Recoleta Cemetery – We were skeptics when this historical site was recommended as a “must-see.” How much fun could a cemetery be? Recoleta is more like a small city of mausoleums of every shape, size and architectural style. It’s full of big trees and is well-maintained. There’s nothing creepy about it, just a fun place for kids and adults alike to explore and discover. The church (Basilica de Nuestra Senor del Pilar) just behind the cemetery is especially beautiful as well. On weekends and some weekdays there’s quite a nice handicraft market set up on the square just outside the cemetery.
3. El Ateneo Bookstore – El Ateneo has several branches around BA but the one not to miss is in a sparkling converted movie theater on Avenida Santa Fe in Recoleta. The old movie theater style balconies and cafe on the stage are a lot of fun. There’s a great kids area in the basement and, if mom and dad are in need of something to read in English, there’s a small English literature section.
4. San Telmo Sunday Market – While decidedly touristy, this was still a lot of fun for us and our daughter. Locals flock to this antiques and handicraft market as much as tourists, so it’s well worth it. There are excellent street musicians, marionettes and tango dancers to watch as you pass by plus beautiful handicrafts and interesting antiques. Hint: The cafes around the market are few and packed. We were thrilled to discover the delicious Italian restaurant, Amici Miei at 1072 Defensa, just across the street from the Plaza Dorrego, the main plaza for the market. You enter this cafe through a narrow doorway at street level and the cafe is on the second floor, so only locals know about it (except you now!). The food was excellent and they even fresh-squeezed some orange juice for our daughter. Impeccably clean bathrooms too!
5. Temaiken Biopark – Temaiken is actually an hour and fifteen minute bus ride from the center of Buenos Aires but we consider it a must-see for anyone visiting Buenos Aires, with kids or without. The beautiful park design, the natural-like habitats and the wide variety of interesting animals we would never see in North America made it a highlight of our trip. Adult admission is 22 pesos ($US 7) as of May 2008 but we went on Tuesday when admission is half price so only paid 11 pesos. To get to Temaiken by bus (5 pesos one way or $US 1.50) take bus 60 from Plaza Italia in Palermo. Make sure you get on the semi-rapido bus just north of Avenida Sarmiento. There’s a little booth where you buy a ticket before you get on the bus. If you’re not sure just ask the driver before you get on if the bus goes to Temaiken. You’ll know when you’ve arrived at Temaiken. It’s the end of the line and the bus literally drops you off at the main entrance so you can’t miss it. The bus runs often every hour during the day.
6. Tigre- This beautiful day trip destination from BA could also be an overnight trip if you wanted it to be. We did it easily in a day by taking a taxi from Palermo to the Tren de la Costa station in Olivos for less than $US 20. From there we took the Tren de la Costa to Tigre, with a brief stop in the cute town of San Isidro. Their weekend market and cafes are recommended if you have time for a stop. Their church is very pretty as well. In Tigre there are delicious dining options with river views along the Paseo Victorica. We ate on the terrace at La Terraza and loved it. There are a wide variety of length of boat trips you can take through the delta and the tourist office can tell you about them. We opted for the basic one-hour boat trip, not sure how long our daughter would enjoy being on a boat, and that turned out to be a wise choice. We’ve also heard there’s a great fruit and handicraft market in Tigre but we’ll have to catch that on a future trip. You can take the Tren de la Costa home but we took the regular commuter train instead. While the views were nothing special, the hawkers and musicians on the train were much more entertaining for us and our daughter than the crowds of tourists on the coastal train.
7. Eat ice cream – The ice cream in BA is as good as the gelato in Italy. It’s fresh, homemade and delicious. Once we discovered the Persicco ice cream chain we had to go back almost every day, even though we were there during fairly cold weather. They offer dozens and dozens of interesting flavors like dulce de leche (yum!). They’ll even deliver by motorbike if you want (you can get just about anything delivered in BA if you want). Other good chains are Freddo and Altra Volta.

For more information on these and other activities in Buenos Aires, we highly recommend The Rough Guide to Buenos Aires (May 2008 edition).

Have you traveled to Buenos Aires with a baby or young child? If so tell us your family’s favorite spots by leaving a comment here.

Rental Apartments Vs. Hotels

One of the potential pitfalls to traveling with children is being cooped up in a small hotel room, tiptoeing around the room while they sleep or keeping all the lights out while you’d rather be doing something else. We have nearly given up on hotels when we travel because of these downsides. Instead, we have found it is more economical and spacious to rent an apartment, something the web has made quite simple.

Imagine these choices: get a hotel room in Buenos Aires for $150 a night with limited space and requires eating all your meals out, or spend about $120 a night for a two-bedroom two-bath apartment with a kitchen, living room and beautiful views which offers all the freedoms of living at home while traveling. You can imagine which one we chose. We have rented apartments in Vancouver, BC, Turks and Caicos, and Buenos Aires and have never regretted it. Apartments are often rented by a management company which provides additional services such as 24-hour emergency assistance, concierge services, and transportation.

In Buenos Aires, our daughter had her own room complete with crib arranged by the rental agency, and space for her to toddle around while we could read on the couch or use the wireless internet connection. Argentina is a perfect place to find a rental for your stay. There are many interesting parts of Buenos Aires, and easy access to supermarkets and restaurants makes choosing an affordable place to stay relatively simple.

We usually start looking for an apartment on the Vacation Rentals By Owner website, which has listings for apartments and homes all over the world. Many of the listings will link to a rental agency with their own website, which provided a good launching point for research. Other recommendations came from forums on Frommer’s website, which led us to ApartmentsBA.com. This is a well-regarded company with many rental options and helpful additional services such as arranging airport transportation and tracking down a Pack-and-Play (apparently not an easy task). The apartment we chose was half a block from a beautiful park where dog walkers being towed by 15 dogs at once entertained our daughter. It was also easy to walk 3 or 4 blocks to two different supermarkets, half a block to the laundromat (never more than US$5 a load), or countless banks and ATM’s. Most apartment buildings in Buenos Aires also have security guards, and our night watchman was friendly and helpful as well.

Our trip to Argentina provided a perfect contrast in lodging to reinforce our belief that renting an apartment is the best way to go. We chose to overnight in Mexico City on the way to avoid a red-eye flight, and the cramped quarters, hassle of getting a crib, and tiptoeing in the dark were good reminders of the benefits of more space in an apartment.

Have you had good (or bad) experiences renting your accommodations when traveling internationally? Any tips or good companies to work with?