Motorhome vacation with baby and toddler

The next family vacation is just around the corner and you're still thinking about where to go? Read our blog post by family photographer Sophia to find out whether a motorhome vacation with two children under 2 is possible, what stress you can avoid and how it can be one of the best vacations as a family.

Summer was approaching and my wanderlust was growing. So I grabbed my laptop and started searching. Which vacation would suit us and where do we want to go? We had been parents of "Two under Two" for a few weeks. With a 22-month-old toddler and a 3-month-old baby, the search wasn't that easy. We wanted to be able to reach everything on site on foot and the accommodation had to be well equipped for a family. Baby crib, high chairs, garden, close to the water and so on. If you've ever traveled with children, you'll know how difficult it is to plan a child-friendly vacation. Our search was unsuccessful and we couldn't find anything suitable. Hotel vacations with children - no way. So why not try something completely new and travel in a motorhome? After all, we have everything with us and can go wherever we want. It was this idea of freedom and simplicity that convinced us.

So let's go to Ahorncamp. We looked at all the models in the showroom in Speyer on a Saturday. From camper van to semi-integrated. I highly recommend this to get a feel for the space and to get advice from the competent team on site. With two children on board, we wanted to be sure that we could feel comfortable in the motorhome even on rainy days.

At home, we all sleep in a large family bed, so we wanted a vehicle with a large bed and not several small beds. We quickly decided on the Ahorn ACT690. We simply found the feeling of space the most comfortable. There is enough space in this semi-integrated motorhome to spend time with the four of us inside on rainy days. The single beds can be quickly extended into a large family bed with an insert cushion. The spacious garage was also very important to us. There was enough space for highchairs, loungers, double baby carriages etc. and you could load and unload everything stress-free.

Then it was on the road towards the sea. We didn't want a route that was too long for our first time. Our destination was the North Sea in North Holland. That's about 600 km from Speyer. When looking for a campsite, we made sure that there were facilities for children, such as a playground. Our tip: child-friendly sanitary facilities (we didn't know this existed beforehand either. But because you play outside so much and get really dirty, it's very important that the sanitary facilities are also designed for children. It makes everything so much easier.

To keep the motorhome a little more tidy, we used the sanitary facilities at the campsites and not in the motorhome. That would have been possible, of course, but with four people you really have to be careful to keep things tidy. One small disadvantage is that it gets chaotic more quickly in a small space. But I'm convinced that as soon as you're on the road with the camper van more often, you'll work out a better organization system. Of course, we didn't have that for our first camping vacation.

Back to the journey: the good thing about a motorhome is that you can stop anywhere and take a break and are not tied to a motorway service area or rest stop. Because our baby is still breastfeeding, we had to stop more often than planned. But that wasn't too bad for the big one because he could run around in the motorhome or romp around in the back of the bed. We chose a playground for a longer break and had lunch there in the motorhome and spent a bit of time outside in front of the motorhome. Such a relaxed break is not possible when traveling by car. You end up going back to some fast food restaurant or can't really play between cars and trucks. That was also an absolute pro argument for us for vacationing in a motorhome. It made the trip super relaxed.

However, the motorhome we chose only had two seats in the back, which meant that one parent couldn't sit in the back with the children during the journey. I would therefore recommend choosing a motorhome with three seats in the back for longer trips. However, this wasn't a problem for our six-hour trip. With a suitable child seat, the toddler can also sit in the front.

When we arrived at the campsite, we extended the awning, set up the table and our chairs, hung up a string of lights for coziness and were ready in less than 10 minutes. It was easier than on any other vacation because you have your "house" with you on 4 wheels. We had borrowed some camping equipment from friends and family. As we were only there for five days, it was more than enough.

These five days at the campsite were so wonderful. The vacation made us really happy. We spent the whole day together out in nature, away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. You get up in the morning and you're already outside playing while your parents are preparing breakfast. The whole atmosphere on the campsite was also really nice. There is no pressure from errands or leisure time stress. So many other children playing together outside all day. We walked to the sea, played in the waves and only cooked and ate at 9pm in the evening, then another round in the playground and off to bed. There is no other way of traveling where you can spend so much time outdoors and get away from it all. No packing bags or planning excursions. We live in the middle of the city and don't have a garden, so we don't have that at home. We had everything we needed.

For us, this vacation was really better than we had imagined. Everything was so uncomplicated and you need much less than you think. Then you also save yourself some work when packing. You have to plan about a day for packing and unpacking for a motorhome vacation like this. But once everything is packed, you have everything in place. Traveling in a motorhome gives you more freedom and independence than any other way of traveling. Even with two small children, we really enjoyed it and it gave us the feeling of freedom and independence that we had imagined.

We are already looking forward to our next trip.

In addition to the normal packing list for your vacation, we have put together a few things here that we found particularly practical for the children:

And most importantly: take a relaxed approach to everything. Everything will work out somehow with a little spontaneity and composure.