This was the first beach vacation of Sofia, I waited until she was past the 6 months mark because I wanted her to enjoy the beach, ocean, pool, and everything. As before 6 months I kept her off the sun, off sunscreen, etc. By 7 months (when we traveled to Rivera Nayarit) she could enjoy it all.
It was more challenging because she was already eating solids, had started a month prior, so she was still in the introductory phase (read my choosing a baby friendly resort tips here where you can see why we chose our resort and why we loved it so much) but it was totally doable because we chose a good resort (read my feeding a baby while traveling tips here).
So I would definitely recommend traveling to a beach destination after the 6 months mark, because although we were super careful of sun exposure (not during peak hours, limited time, always shaded otherwise, and keep hydration going), so we had a blast!
With this said, Rivera Nayarit was the perfect area to go to for a first beach vacation with a baby. It was close enough to Los Angeles (3/4h plane ride) and only 2h time difference (which is still a slight change, but nothing too crazy). So I would also recommend going somewhere close for a first beach vacation. If you are in the USA, check this Mexican destination, it is so worth it!
The area also was VERY kid friendly, and safe. So that is also something to think about. I absolutely loved that everyone around us was a family, so they were not annoyed that we had a baby, but also it was not too crazy packed because we choose when to go strategically: When schools had just started, late August! Totally recommendable too, because we had the hotel to ourselves, and rates were cheaper (flights & accommodation).
Since it was so close and with so little time difference, we decided to stay for a long weekend: 4 nights, from Thursday to Monday. This was a perfect short escape location! And since we did not go for a very long time, we stayed at the resort the majority of the time, enjoying everything we could do (a lot) and mainly relaxing and enjoying each other's company (our main goal of this vacation, you can read my tips to relax with a baby on vacation here)
Touristic things to do in the area:
- Puerto Vallarta
- Marietas Islands
- Sayulita
- Caletas
- La Tovara Nature Reserve
Popular activities to do:
- Snorkle
- Whale Watching
- Off roading
- Swim with dolphins
- Golf
I would recommend this getaway as a relaxation escape. Perfect for families as they have tons of kid-friendly activities and facilities. Definitely worth checking our resort, linked below.
Our All Inclusive 5 star resort was: Grand Velas Rivera Nayarit Resort
They had airport transportation (not included, but they coordinated everything)
100% Recommendable.