I Journey to Spain for two Months at a Time With 2 Toddlers

Once I was in junior excessive, I had a household historical past undertaking. I did not comprehend it then, however that undertaking would spark a lifelong curiosity in my heritage.

In 2018, my spouse (who’s Cuban with Spanish ancestry) and I took a street journey by snow-capped Spanish mountains, assembly new members of the family that I by no means knew existed. Once we met these family, all of us grew shut.

My spouse and I then wished to reconnect with our Spanish heritage in an entire new method. We determined that one of the simplest ways to take action can be to journey to Spain for lengthy stretches, with our toddlers.

For the previous three years, we have spent two-month stints in Europe as a rising household.

At first, we thought long-term journey sounded impractical — and costly

When my daughter was 2 years outdated, she had a 45-minute meltdown on the Miami Worldwide Airport. Whereas we have been resolving a ticketing situation for our child boy, our daughter was throwing a loud tantrum. We endured many side-eyes from soon-to-be passengers (one in all them snapped at us), and ultimately, an airline worker frantically requested us to make it cease.

I assumed we might by no means journey once more, however the thought of an prolonged journey stored lingering in our minds.

On shorter journeys, we pushed by and realized methods that made journey simpler, like utilizing inflatable beds that relaxation on airplane seats, small trinkets to play with, and loads of snacks. With time, we knew we had a shot.

We now keep in Spain for two months at a time

Due to the pliability of freelancing and a few follow in penny pinching, we realized we may journey to Spain for 2 months for about the price of a typical household Disney journey.

A visit to Disney for a household of 4 can value $6,000 to $10,000 per week. An prolonged journey to Spain, I shortly realized, ranged from $4,220 to $4,900 for an house within the central components of main cities.

Once we e book an house for a month or two in Spain, for instance, we get charges a lot decrease than for a shorter journey as a result of Airbnb presents reductions on longer stays.

To get the household to Europe, we acquire airline miles from bank card presents and fly principally without spending a dime.

Whereas on the journey, we depend on public transportation and shift our keep from a “vacationer” expertise to dwelling like an area to proceed saving cash.

This labored for our journeys in 2023, 2024, and 2025.

We lived like locals in Spain

Once we transitioned from visiting to dwelling in Spain, we targeted in town we have been in and the folks round us. We did not eat out for each meal, however cooked conventional dishes with native components.

Our neighbors turned mates, and our children performed at parks with acquainted faces. Finally, these mates invited us to their properties, and we stayed in contact after our journeys.

To discover the nation, we targeted on completely different areas. For instance, in 12 months one we stayed within the Comunidad Valenciana, then on different journeys within the País Vasco and Andalucía.

As soon as we have been in these areas, we targeted primarily on our dwelling base and explored the close by cities on weekend journeys.

Our children have gained quite a bit to date

Our toddlers are actually prepared to attempt completely different meals with out hesitation, regardless of the place we’re. They perceive and use phrases they usually would not hear at dwelling within the US.

As they become old at school, a few of the locations and occasions they study shall be private as a result of they have been there and touched the stones.

My son realized to stroll in Spain and has had all of his birthdays there. Spain additionally turned a base for exploring different international locations because of low cost, brief flights.

Extra households can do that than you’d suppose

Our experiences in Spain have impressed a lot of our family and friends. I am serving to a cousin and a neighbor plan comparable journeys with their kids.

With budgeting and good planning, it is rather more inexpensive than two-week holidays in lots of components of the US.

I am undecided how lengthy we’ll be capable of do prolonged stays like this, however I do know these reminiscences shall be ingrained in our household.

They’ve helped form my youngsters’ lives (our third baby is on the way in which), they usually proceed to encourage us even at dwelling within the US — by cooking Spanish meals, having fun with the current by walks, and lingering over late-night, hourslong dinners.

John Paul Hernandez is a advertising and marketing author for tech corporations. He is based mostly in Florida’s Treasure Coast. Join with him on LinkedIn.