The Europe Trip Where Anya Learned to Walk

When Anya turned one, it felt like we had all grown a little. This time, I was nearing the end of my maternity leave, while Anthony had just started his parental leave. We decided to use this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take a longer vacation trip as a family.

The weeks leading up to our Europe trip were unexpectedly emotional. We celebrated her first birthday by wrapping up her first charity fundraiser, and I breastfed her for the last time. Then, just days before our flight, NS’s most devastating wildfires in recent history spread close to home. We packed an emergency bag, evacuated with our furbaby, and were reminded how quickly life can change.

Thankfully, we were able to return home the next day and still catch our flight to Frankfurt. We were more than ready for a change of scenery.

This trip had actually been planned long before Anya was born. Years earlier, I had a study tour in Germany and the Netherlands, and always hoped to return one day. Switzerland had my heart. Italy was Anthony's dream. We just never imagined we'd be making the journey with a one-year-old.

We make a pretty good travel team. I'm the dreamer who picks the destination and books the flights. Anthony is the planner. He happily disappears into maps, accommodation reviews, route options, and travel vlogs until every detail falls into place. For this trip, he somehow put in even more effort than usual, making sure every stop would work for a little traveller too.

Arrival in Frankfurt

Our direct flight to Frankfurt already felt easier than our Hawaii adventure the year before, but the trip still got off to a slightly stressful start.

Our gate-checked hiking carrier almost disappeared after landing. Along with a few other passengers, we thought we lost our checked items and spent 2+ hours walking around the airport, being redirected from one desk to another before finally spotting it on the baggage carousel. Thankfully it became just a small footnote in an incredible road trip.

Colmar, France

Our road trip began in Colmar, a fairy-tale town in northeastern France's Alsace region that looked as though someone had painted it into existence. Colourful timber-framed houses, flower boxes spilling over windows, quiet canals, and streets that make you feel like celebrating Christmas in spring. It was the perfect place to recover from jet lag.

After wandering through the famous Little Venice district, we stumbled upon a small local restaurant to end our first day. Three years later, we still talk about that crispy pork knuckle and golden fries. It remains one of our favourite meals from the entire trip.

10 days in Switzerland

After a short recovery stay in Colmar, we drove to Switzerland to officially kick off our road trip.

Zurich surprised us with how naturally old and new lived together. We wandered through the Old Town, visited ETH Zurich where Einstein once studied, and spent far longer than expected exploring the Lindt Home of Chocolate. Of course, Anya had her first taste of chocolates while the giveaway was melting in her tiny hand.

As beautiful as the cities were, it was the mountains that completely stole our hearts.

Stoos, Lucerne, Lungern, Iseltwald, Interlaken, Grindelwald, Spiez, Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, Zermatt... each place felt different, yet somehow connected by the same peaceful rhythm.

Some days we rode mountain trains.

Some days we hiked for hours carrying twenty pounds of toddler, camera gear, snacks, and far too many extra layers.

Whenever the trail allowed, we'd let Anya get down on her feet to explore. She practiced walking on mountain paths, climbed tiny hills with determination, and seemed happiest whenever there were rocks or wildflowers nearby.

Watching her discover the Alps made us slow down enough to notice the little things ourselves. A tiny village where only a handful of families have lived for generations. The sound of cowbells echoing through a valley. We joked that the mountain cows might be the happiest cows in the world. Between the mountains, the cowbells, and the fresh alpine air, we realized how restorative nature can be.

Travelling often means we meet people from different cultural backgrounds, but somehow we always find things in common. One of our Airbnb hosts, whose daughter was also named Anya, shared a lot of information about the area and travel tips as a local that we feel super appreciative. Before we departed, she even gifted us the Swedish-German children's book Anya could not get her hands off during the stay as a keepsake. Those were the moments we brought home with us, the kind of memories that stay long after the trip is over.

One tip if you're visiting Switzerland: don't stop at the cheese. Treat yourself to local Swiss wines paired with prosciutto. Only about 1% of Swiss wine is exported, making it something you'll rarely experience outside the country.

A week in North Italy

Crossing into Italy felt like changing the soundtrack of the trip. Everything became louder, busier, warmer, more colourful, more energetic, and wonderfully down to earth. Milan impressed us with its magnificent shopping streets and cathedral. Cinque Terre gave us our first glimpse of the Mediterranean villages we had admired for years. Florence took us back to the Renaissance with its iconic art, historic architecture, and rich cultural legacy. Verona connected us with Shakespeare through its House of Juliet.

We wandered through churches, museums, local markets, and quiet neighbourhood cafes. Every place had its own personality. We fell in love with neighbourhood pizzerias, then quickly learned that finding parking in historic city centres could become an adventure of its own.

We carried Anya almost everywhere, and strangers regularly stopped to tell us how impressive it was to travel across Europe with a baby on our back, and how lucky she is to see the scale of the world at that young age. They weren't wrong.

Parent Tip: Choosing a hiking carrier instead of a stroller was one of the best decisions we made. It gave Anya a better view of the world, kept her close when cities became crowded, and made navigating old European streets much easier.

The Dolomites were our final reminder that, although we enjoy beautiful cities, mountains will probably always feel more like home. We felt peaceful and steady in the Swiss Alps, whereas the Dolomites felt more inviting with their brighter and stronger colours. The hike was steep and challenging; however, the mountain huts serving beer, tiramisu, and even playgrounds along the trail made every climb more enjoyable.

Wrapping up in Germany

We spent our final days in Germany. Starting with Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria. The drive was beautiful during golden hours, and it was totally worth the long walk in the heat from the parking lots to the castle to see the romantic storybook castle in real life.

Bavaria’s romantic fairy tale did not end there. We moved on to Rothenburg, Germany's best-preserved medieval walled town. More than once, we joked that we had wandered onto the set of a Harry Potter film. Its all-year-round open Christmas shops showed us we don’t have to wait for December to have the holiday spirit.

Discoveries along the way

One thing we loved about driving through Europe was how much happened between destinations.

As a tradition since studying abroad, I mailed a postcard to my parents when I visited a new place. Therefore, looking for hidden post offices and learning about the local mailing rules have been a part of the fun. For example, in Bern, we discovered the "Poster Vault", a century-old storage cellar in the UNESCO-protected Old Town.

As a snowboarder, Anthony stopped at Burton's European headquarters in Innsbruck, Austria. The space is more than a retail shop, but a showroom and a hub for the snowboarding community.

None of these moments were on a bucket list. Yet many of them became our favourite memories.

Anya’s magic moment

On our last day in Germany, we stopped for a traditional German lunch before heading to the airport. While we waited for our Schnitzel, Anya wandered around the restaurant as usual. Then, without any warning, she stood up and took a few tiny steps completely on her own. She laughed, reached for my hand again, and carried on as if nothing remarkable had happened.

That was how Anya learned to walk.

Looking back now, this wasn't simply a trip across Europe. It was the journey where we stopped wondering whether travel with a young child was possible and started believing it could become part of our family life. Seeing the world through Anya's curious little eyes made it feel even bigger than before.