Social media distorts reality. We know this, and yet every time I’m watching a gorgeous woman tote around her toddler(s) in stunning far-flung locations I wonder if I’m doing this whole thing wrong, the mundane day-to-day in the suburbs filled with same-old, same-old. I’ve watched countless videos encouraging moms to backpack solo with their kids or take the babies to the Maldives because you deserve a break too, mama! And I can feel myself deflate. (Yes, I’ve deleted all the apps from my phone. Somehow I still manage to waste time on them.)
I know plenty of people solo parent all the time, and of course, plenty of parents don’t have or don’t want a partner with them at all, so all of my worrying about whether or not we’ll have a good time seems trivial against the bigger picture. But the truth is, when my friend called and told me her daughter had a double ear infection and wouldn’t be coming with us on our trip last weekend, I totally panicked.
I hemmed and hawed for hours, going back and forth about whether or not to go, texting family and friends and deleting them, until finally it was time to pack the car and leave, so we left.
Reliving the glory days on Williams’ track.
I don’t have advice for this beyond: I’m glad I did it, and also glad I had previously chosen a toddler-friendly destination in the Berkshires, staying at the lovely Williams Inn (c/o) in Williamstown. I hadn’t been to Williams since NESCAC championships circa 2013 and didn’t recognize this verdant, sleepy college campus running around with a toddler, so it felt new to me.
A low-key Berkshires itinerary for going solo
“The Berkshires” can mean 3-4 different places, each about an hour from one another, so to clarify: We went to the very top of the Berkshires, at Williamstown/North Adams. That’s an hour away from Amherst/Northampton (more college towns), and another hour away from Lenox (where Tanglewood is.) Each of these places can take 1-3 days to explore, or more, if you want to keep it low key, but don’t make the mistake of thinking you can go to a Tanglewood concert while staying in Williamstown, at least with a toddler.
Here’s what we did:
- Wandered around campus, playing tag and hide-and-seek
- Explored the tiny college town, popping in and out of cute shops
- Hiked Sheep’s Hill and caught frogs in the pond
- Went on a scavenger hunt in the Clark Museum for different animals
- Listened to live music at the Williams Inn and played board games while waiting for dinner to open
- Had a delicious dinner at The Barn at the Williams Inn (c/o), including an unreal bread appetizer that my toddler is still asking about
- Biked around the Williams track to get the wiggles out
- Played on a local playground
- Spent a whole day at MASS MoCA banging drums in the music room and doing crafts in the Kidspace
As you can see, this is suuuuper low key. If I had been with another adult I probably would have pushed harder to do more hiking and less hanging. It also rained the entire time, which made a lot of my original outdoorsy plans (hiking Mt. Greylock, a few swimming holes, visiting a farm, etc.) more difficult to execute. I’m all for suiting up and going out but this was torrential rain. My toddler summed it up nicely: “I don’t want to wear my rain boots anymore. I want the sun to come out.”
The smart packing strategy to make going easy
I am proud of myself for going, but also for packing “light” for the first time since having a kid. I only had…four bags? *Takes sweeping bow* Consolidating all of the stuff was made easier by the fact we only went for a few days. Here’s what I packed:
- I brought a giant duffle backpack that I could haul with all of our clothes, including rain gear.
- A medium boat n’ tote for going to restaurants/quick outings from the hotel that contain wipes, an extra change of clothes, our own set of utensils, and a bib.
- This mini-backpack for our hike. (Link is similar; ours is sold out.)
- These animal/matching cards remain the MVPs of waiting for our food at restaurants.
- No-mess coloring for the car and hotel room.
- The inflatable bed and Slumberpod. I’m thinking of testing out bumpers next time, though, since we had a room with 2 Queens.
- At the last minute, I threw in the balance bike and helmet which I left in the car the entire time and just pulled it out when we wanted to explore campus. I’m so glad I brought this!
I wish I had brought a sketchbook of my own and some coloring for the museums. The staff at the Clark gave us one to use, which really engaged my toddler and made them excited to “do some art.”
Thanks for being here.
Catching frogs at Sheep’s Hill in Williamstown.
I got so intimidated traveling alone with my toddler, but it wasn’t that much different from our regular outings out and about. I only work part-time so we often explore local gardens, hiking trails, parks, and museums with friends. I think my toddler really appreciated the special mommy time, too, as our routine changes a lot during the summer with trips and camp instead of the predictability of school.
I’m not sure I’m ready to roll up to Paris by myself with a toddler, but a low-key weekend getaway? Yeah. I’m already thinking about where we’ll go next. Unlearning years of travel needing to be go-go-go, see every major site in 24 hours has been a journey. One that my toddler has helped a lot with. Instead of rushing around to see everything at the MASS MoCA, for example, we ended up doing only one or two exhibits that drew us in with sound or color.
What a refreshing way to experience art, following what resonates the most with you, and leaving the rest. I’m more of an antiquities girlie—I don’t think I took a single art history class besides survey with art before 1800—but I loved seeing weird, wacky contemporary art like this piece through my toddler’s eyes.
Here’s to stepping outside your comfort zone,
Kayla
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This post was originally published on Travel with Toddlers. Subscribe for more real-talk travel advice, toddler-friendly itineraries, and tried-and-true gear recommendations.
