Always A Good Idea?

My favourite holiday destination is New York, no question. If I had to choose one place to visit for the rest of my life that would be it. I love the atmosphere, that there's so much to do and it's constantly changing as well as the residential feel you get from a city filled with tourists. In an ideal world I'd go for months at a time and maybe one day I will but as is I will settle for 5 day weeks as and when I can.

We very recently decided to book a last minute trip for next month and it's the first time we're taking the kids along with us. I'm beyond excited having only ever visited during the winter months as it will be a totally different trip in the summer but the decision met some very divided opinions as to whether or not it's a child friendly holiday. If New York is always a good idea then how could anyone suggest that it might not be right for the whole family?

Now I do understand where they're coming from to a point. We had considered taking the kids away to New York earlier this year but were worried about the flight and the sleeping arrangements however when we were away in May their behaviour was impeccable and suddenly a whole new world of family travel seemed possible. I've experienced reactions from 'oh I wouldn't take my children' and 'I wouldn't have wanted to go to New York when I was 10' to 'you're selfish for taking them somewhere just because you want to go'. My guess in most of these situations is that these people have either never been themselves or only experienced a very small element of what is on offer because there really is so much that I think my children will enjoy.

I am not a 'beach holiday person', I don't want to spend thousands of pounds to sit by a pool but that's a very popular choice so I understand why if that was yours you might think I'm out of my mind for wanting to walk around a city all day but that's what I enjoy. I love America and if this trip goes well I'd like to explore more of it with my kids. People take babies halfway across the world on insanely long haul flights, that's my idea of hell but I would commend them for it and wish them luck, I wouldn't tell them it was a terrible idea or suggest that they were putting their child through an unecessary ordeal! They want to travel as a family and they have the confidence to do it, brilliant!

New York is not just shopping , there are parks everywhere, museums, candy cafes, a boating lake that I'm very excited will not be frozen over this time, bikes to ride around Central Park, carousels, ball games, TWO zoos, the Coney Island fun fair, boat trips around Manhattan, the two huge toy stores have now closed which I'm super disappointed about because I always dreamed I'd take them one day but hey, I'm taking them now before anything else shuts down! Don't get me wrong we're going because I want to go.. if that makes me selfish I'll take it but the comments I've received (predominantly in real life, we're not talking internet trolls here) have made me even more determined to make this our best family holiday yet.

I think the thing is that New York (and by extension any city break) is not for everyone. If you like to come home feeling relaxed and refreshed you might want to look elsewhere but my kids are excited to visit somewhere I've talked about for years. The little one is looking forward to the landmarks and the hotel pool (of course) and the eldest is 90% in it for the American candy but I will be the most excited of all and that enthusiasm will push my tolerance and patience to an all time high. I will be able to deal with any melt down that comes my way (she hopes) because we'll be in my favourite place in the world and I'll be sharing it with my favourite people. For me New York IS always a good idea, I understand why it might not be for you but just let me have it and prepare your 'told you so's' for when i come back and tell you what a terrible idea it was making my 4 year olds first flight an 8 hour trip across the pond..

Oh and if you still aren't convinced look at this idyllic family home movie by Love Taza..

A very realistic glimpse at what our holiday will definitely be like ;)