The winter has been a harsh one for us Melbournians this year and therefore it is time for us to get away from the cold and say hello to some sunshine.  My dad works in the hotel industry, so growing up in resort lifestyle was a bonus for me.  Jaz and I love resort holidays because we both can switch off and actually have some “us” time – though and now with Harvey it is “family” time.

Why Fiji?

• For the total cost of the trip, we found that Fiji offers much better value than staying in Australia to places such as Hamilton Island, Port Douglas etc.
• Only 4-5 hours travel time
• It’s a beautiful pacific island and the weather pretty much guaranteed to be perfect during our trip
• I used to live in Fiji so I feel comfortable bringing Harvey along

Any cons?

• Food and service is still much better in Asia – particularly Thailand

Packing for the trip – Beach holidays

Harvey was super excited and running around since I picked him up after childcare. He definitely knew we were about to do something exciting.  There were suitcases around the living room and mumma was running around packing the last bits and pieces.

Here are the things we packed:

1. Clothes- self-explanatory 
2. Food – whilst there is a reasonable variety of food at the resort, both Jaz & I did struggle with the quality of food in Fiji. We also didn’t want to be spending too much money on junk food.  So I decided to pack us some relatively healthy snacks.  I normally don’t even pack food in our check-in luggage when we travelling.  However, since we have Harvey, we have always have food including formula etc. so would have to declare our food anyhow.  I just tried to make sure that the things I packed were allowed through customs.
3. Sun Protection & Medical Kit
4. Sterilizer – Well we don’t need to sterilize Harvey’s bottles any more – but I just feel it is cleaner to chuck the washed bottles into the sterilizer as we won’t be having a dishwasher in our room.  Oh by the way when I say bottles – I meant a normal straw bottles.  Harvey has weaned off his bottle since he was about 10 months old.

Packing For Activities Ideas for Toddler (Café/Plane/Holidays)

Although Fiji is only 4-5 hours away, from the time we get to the airport and touch down to our final designation – the trip is probably about 8 hours in total.  If you want to have peace and quiet during the waiting time, I would suggest you prepare some kind of activities for your Toddler.  We have always tried to avoid giving Harvey technology such as an iPad etc., and we would rather spend time playing games and being more sociable with him.

 

Click here for activity ideas for toddlers (Café/Plane/Holidays)

Trip on the Plane

The airline gave us an extra seat between us, which was great.  Our flight was an 11pm flight and we were hoping Harvey to go to sleep nicely.  Harvey was tired and definitely ready to sleep, however as he is a tummy sleeper it was hard for him to get comfortable.  He woke up 3-4 times and was grumpy because he was uncomfortable. Luckily towards the end he managed to sleep for a couple of hours until we landed stayed asleep until half way through customs.

Our Fiji Daily Routine (No time acquired as we were on Fiji Time)

• Wake up

• Breakfast overlooking the ocean

• Hit the Pool and beach

  

  

  

• Back to the room to shower

• Lunch / ice-cream

• Nap time for Harvey (~2.5-3 hours) = Free time for Mumma and Daddy

• Or just free time for Mumma

• Go to the playground

• Get ready for dinner

• Dinner & Entertainment

  

  

  

• Bed

We were also able to slot in a few massages, a romantic dinner (while Harvey was babysat by a lovely Fijian Lady) and some water activities.

It was a relaxing holiday and we all really enjoyed ourselves.  Even though Harvey won’t remember this trip, we feel that he has definitely absorbed the culture and experienced the different environment.  We believe that travelling is so important and especially at a young age as it will contribute to their development.  The first three years are the most crucial years in a childs life, where the brain is absorbing so much information before it starts to prune itself as a child gets older (Brain Development – Zero to Three).

The Thompson family can’t wait for our next resort holiday 🙂