We are huge fans of traveling off season; there are fewer crowds so your wait times for everything from museums to restaurants are less, hotels often have lower rates and because you aren't battling the crowds you can actually get nice pictures without being photo bombed. With all this being said, we recently spent a week exploring the Netherlands and discovered that this land of canals, windmills and cheese is an incredibly family friendly destination.

We quickly discovered that bicycles are the preferred mode of transportation here with people of all ages and family configurations taking advantage of the dedicated travel lanes, traffic signals and bicycle parking garages that are located in every city and town. Entire families travel by bicycle with the youngest family members strapped into baby bicycle seats attached to their parents bicycles and older siblings trailing behind powered by their own peddling. You too can opt to travel by bicycle but we chose to take advantage of the amazing train network to visit six must see destinations in Southern Holland.

First up was Leiden, which also served as our home base for the week. Leiden is home to the oldest university in the Netherlands and was the birthplace of Rembrandt. To take in some of his masterpieces you can visit the Museum De Lakenhal which is located in the famous Cloths Hall which dates back to 1640. Another great spot to visit is the Leiden American Pilgrim Museum. Here you can go back in time and get a glimpse of what life was like before the Pilgrims embarked for their new life in America.  But if the weather is nice simply get out an explore. Leiden has the second largest pedestrian area in the Netherlands (with Amsterdam being first) so there are miles upon miles of cobblestone streets you can meander through. You can zig zag over the canals, feed the ducks and enjoy a leisurely meal in one of the many sidewalk cafes. And because this is a university town, the pricing at many restaurants is geared towards students.

By: Zosia

Ah the carry on bag. Its so necessary yet produces the biggest dilemma when traveling by air. And when you are traveling with small children the decision as to what to include and what to omit is even more pressing. What items are so absolutely necessary that you can’t be without them for a few hours? A change of clothes for each family member? Snacks? In-flight entertainment to keep kids of all ages occupied during those inevitable delays? And more importantly, how do you fit it all in what seems like a microscopic space? I’ve always strived to be more of a minimalist than a packrat but even I’ve struggled with this issue.
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The world is your oyster and it is yours to enjoy. And for many, myself included, that means traveling both near and far.
 
This is great advice, but if you have children it might feel as though it is easier to hunker down in your shell and be content with where you are. During the first year of motherhood I certainly felt this way. After all, if it took me a solid hour to get myself, my son, the diaper bag packed with snacks, toys and two changes of clothes –one for him and one for me—out of the house for a doctor appointment, how on earth would it be possible to actually take a trip that potentially involved trains, planes, automobiles and a hotel or two. Not possible.  Or is it?
 
Eventually my wanderlust got the best of me and baby or not my little family was ready to hit the road again. It wasn’t easy; the car trip included a stroller, baby backpack and a pack and play plus all of the necessary clothing and essentials you would expect. We looked as though we were moving rather than spending a long weekend away. But the experience was wonderful and whetted our appetites for more travel.
 
We quickly began planning our next trip and that one didn’t disappoint either. Because we were already living in Europe it was easy to visit many of the world’s great capitals and we fully took advantage of the opportunity. But we quickly discovered that by traveling with a child, we saw parts of the cities that we would never have seen if we were traveling as a couple.  We slowed down and spent time discovering the great architecture of the parks and playgrounds of Paris on a spring day rather than spending hours inside of a museum. We turned drinking from Rome’s numerous water fountains a game and discovered beautiful lesser known churches along the way. And we discovered that playing hide and seek along the glistening and winding white marble streets and alleys of Dubrovnik’s walled city center is more fun than any amusement park.
 
As adults, our travel often takes us out of our comfort zone but it has made me realize that children don’t have such limitations. I remember sitting on a restaurant patio in Bulgaria trying to decipher the Cyrillic writing on the menu while my son played with another nearby. As he offered his favorite yellow matchbox car to the boy I realized that their common language was childhood. Nothing else mattered as the two little boys played their game. The same held true a few months later on a Greek beach and then later when my four year old suddenly found himself in a Belgian pre-school surrounded by French speakers. He quickly adapted and assimilated.
 
Traveling has made my family citizens of the world and that is something that will stay with us for a lifetime. We’ve visited places that I had only read about in textbooks and I have loved sharing our world’s history with my inquisitive son.  Trips to the library have turned into hunts for books describing where we’ve been and quests for finding new places to visit.
 
And over the past few years as we our travel bucket list has continued to grow. For every one place we cross off two more seem to be added. The entire family now contributes to our wish list of places to visit and those we want to return to yet again. We’ve lightened our loads significantly and now get away with little more than a backpack apiece. But the pictures we have of our adventures and the stories we can share--those are truly priceless. They are memories that will last a lifetime. And that is why we travel.