From SFGate.com:
Whether your ideal Mexican vacation is a succession of frosty margaritas delivered to your beach palapa by white-shirted waiters or busing at whim from village to village with your backpacks in the overhead rack, those days are gone once you have children in tow. With a little forethought, though, traveling with kids in Mexico can be a joy for parents and offspring alike. Mexico's reverence for children and its captivating traditions provide a world of fascination for kids, and locals will open up to you like never before, regarding you as a fellow parent rather than a stranger.
Forethought, inevitably, turns to swine flu. Media reports on the waning of the epidemic in Mexico have been just as subdued as reports of the outbreak in Mexico City were overwrought. The fact is, the World Health Organization reports this week that the United States has more than three times as many H1N1 flu cases as Mexico and has now logged more flu-related deaths as well; kids are more at risk of catching the flu in their own schools in September than in Mexico this summer. Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO's director, said during a summit of health ministers and representatives from more than 50 countries in Cancún last week that "Mexico is safe and a beautifully warm, friendly and inviting destination to visit," and declared her intention to do just that.
Here are 10 ways to make the most of a kid-centric trip to Mexico:
Getting ready
1. Involve your kids in planning. Present some of the sights and activities available, and let them pick two or three things that will get top billing on the itinerary. Maybe one is dying to swim with dolphins; another wants to buy silver jewelry; another wants to go parasailing. Make it clear ahead of time that everyone gets to pick their "musts." Then leave plenty of time to follow whims.
2. Match your destination to your family. Mexico's tourist meccas, from Cancún on the Caribbean to Los Cabos in the west, are among Mexico's safest destinations. But less expensive, less crowded and more authentic destinations are equally safe, such as Loreto, Zihuatanejo, Mérida, and central highland towns such as San Miguel de Allende or Guanajuato. Unless you're married to sun, sand and all-inclusive convenience, don't be afraid to venture beyond the obvious. Rafting river rapids in Veracruz, taking language lessons in Cuernavaca, watching weavers at work around Oaxaca or kayaking along the Costa Maya might better fit your children's style.
3. Hotels are just one option. It's tempting to settle into an all-inclusive resort, with its kid-pleasing buffets and organized activities. But if you lock yourself away from the outside world — except for the overpriced day tours — you might as well be in San Diego. To break out of the package experience without breaking the bank, consider renting a house or a condo, where you can spread out and cook some of your own meals. Or rent a couple of rooms in a small, family-owned hotel. Many kids are often just as enchanted with the parrot in the courtyard, a hammock to swing in and the owner's kids to play with as they are with organized crafts or movie nights in a resort.
4. Prepare kids for what they'll see. The colorful dress, strange wildlife, exuberant music, and foreign language make Mexico an exotic place, especially for children visiting for the first time. But make sure they know that life in Mexico is also different from home in less picturesque ways. Mangy stray dogs, for example, can be deeply disturbing to children, as can the impoverished living conditions in many craft villages. Whole animal carcasses hanging from hooks in the otherwise delightful markets can be downright horrifying. Make sure kids know what to expect — and perhaps take the opportunity to educate them on the realities of the world.
5. Pack your arsenal. You've already got the routine down — snacks, favorite books and toys for younger kids, electronic devices for older ones (bring extra batteries). Also bring pencils, stickers or small toys to give the children that you meet. A portable snapshot printer will allow you to give local children a copy of that photo you just snapped. When choosing snacks, know that yogurt, fruit and sometimes cheese will be confiscated at the border, but cereal bars, crackers and nuts travel well. And pack a stash of zip-top baggies and a roll of toilet paper; they will come in handy in ways you've never thought of.
While you're there
6. Don't try to fight the short attention span. If you want to visit a cathedral, make sure a stop at the playground or a piñata store is part of the excursion. Don't try to make a seven-hour road trip in one day; it just isn't worth it. Resign yourself to abbreviated museum visits (but don't avoid them altogether). Unless you're staying entirely in one city, consider spending the extra money to fly into one city and returning home from your last destination to eliminate one drive or bus ride.
7. New tastes are best in small doses. Kids are notoriously wary of new foods. Major tourist areas are well supplied with familiar chain restaurants, but you can do better. Many local restaurants that serve local fare for more adventurous adult palates also offer hamburgers (hamburguesas), roast chicken (pollo asado) and french fries (papas fritas). Breakfast is easy; American-style breakfasts, yogurt and cereal are ubiquitous. Italian food is popular in Mexico, so pizza or spaghetti are an option. Introduce kids to Mexican food gradually — maybe try a quesadilla instead of a grilled cheese sandwich — and preferably not when they're famished at the end of a long and tiring day. Don't let them get overly hungry (see No. 5). For kids with delicate stomachs, yogurt, cereal bars (available in every mercado) and licuados (cousin to a smoothie) are good bets. And the predominance of fresh-squeezed juice will be a sweet treat for kids accustomed to frozen concentrate at home.
8. Go where Mexicans go. Mexico has a multitude of theme parks, zoos and other attractions designed with kids in mind. Tourist favorites like Xcaret, Xel-há and Chankanaab National Park on the Riviera Maya do include local culture, wildlife and underwater worlds as part of the package, but for Mexico unfiltered, go where Mexican families go. Instead of Chankanaab, which is beautiful but rather manicured and overpriced, try the Punta Sur Ecological Park, a vast complex of dunes, mangroves, lagoons, reefs, and beaches with dozens of protected animal species, including crocodiles that you can spot from an observation tower. Go to public beaches popular with local families, such as Playa Tortugas in Cancún or Las Gatas in Zihuatanejo, instead of sequestered hotel beaches. Most Mexican cities have a Casa de la Cultura ("House of Culture") offering a variety of events and classes, many for children and teens; while oriented toward locals, visitors are quite welcome. Shop for snacks (or groceries, if you have a kitchen) at the mercado. And by all means, hang out at the zócalo, or main square, the fulcrum of life in every Mexican city and town.
9. Culture is OK. Kids are often delighted by ruins, whether it's the multitude of iguanas and other local wildlife, or the awe-inspiring architecture and pyramids to climb to top-of-the-world views; the key is to stay only as long as it's fun. One of the most kid-friendly is Tulum, standing on an ocean bluff and small enough to cover in about an hour. Just get there at opening time, before the tour buses arrive. Uxmal, tranquil, uncrowded and elaborately carved, is a better choice than Chichén Itzá, for all its fame. Even museums can be captivating, with their mummified kings, jade-encrusted skulls and replica Maya temples. The mask collection of the Rufino Tamayo Prehispanic Art Museum in Oaxaca and La Casa del Arte Popular Mexicano in Cancún, with its toy room and a chapel scene populated by expressive life-size wax figures modeled after real people throughout Mexico, are just a two of many museums suited for kids.
10. Encourage kids to habla español. At one end of the spectrum, your whole vacation could revolve around attending a Spanish language school that offers lessons in the mornings and activities in the afternoon; most also offer stays with local families to bolster the learning process. At the other end, encourage kids to exchange a "Buenos días" (morning) or "Buenas tardes" (afternoon) with local people, who are profligate with their greetings. As a middle ground, let your kids summon the waiter at the end of a meal and request the check ("La cuenta, por favor"), which will never come until you ask, or ask another child his or her name ("Cómo te llamas?"). A little goes a long way toward connecting with the people you meet and giving your child a feel for another culture.
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