Need a DSLR for going on vacation?

So far, thinking Nikon or Canon. I've heard a 35mm f1.8 lens is a great lens to have, but I know nothing about lenses. WIth this lens, I'd get a Nikon D5100. The Canon I'm looking at is the T2i, I see Canon makes a f1.4 and f2.0 in 35mm, but not the f1.8 I have no clue what the difference is.so, what do I buy and which lens? Canon, Nikon, something else?

Added (1). I would also have the 18-55 kit lens

Just get a Nikno D3100 w/ an 18-55 or a Rebel T3 w/ an 18-55. Having a 35 as your only lens would be very limiting.

The 35mm f1.8 is a nice, sharp lens, that can be just what you want some of the time. The 18-55mm IS or VR will work well for you more of the time, so I would skip considering the 35mm for now. A Nikon 18-105mm VR or Canon 15-85mm IS would give you more versatility, and would have very good quality, if your budget can handle it. A tripod is good to have. You should not skimp too much on quality, but of course cost, weight, and bulk matter. The Slik Sprint Mini II is a minimally adequate tripod that will fit in a small day pack.

People usually say a 50mm len's is great! To help you understand the "f.1.4" stuff on the lenses and such, I suggest you look at videos on YouTube that help you understand what Aperture is. Aperture is an IMPORTANT thing to learn about when having a DSLR. Along with Aperture comes ISO and shutter speed. If you don't know what this is, I suggest you learn about them, because a DSLR won't be used to it's full ability if you know what these 3 things are. In DSLRs, it really depends on the person behind the camera to know what he/she is doing. The cameras don't give you spectacular results all the time. It's up to you as the photographer to know what you're doing and how to use the DSLR to it's full ability.

Okay, now that that's said! I personally would get the Canon. Their quality is great! I've watched a review on the comparison of tthe Nikon D5100 and the Canon EOS Rebel T3i (just a step above T2i, not much of a difference).In the review, it compared pictures of the two camera. In my opinion, the Canon's pictures were better. (And I believe this was on auto mode). The Nikon's pictures looked too exposed. Everything looked bland.

Here's the review I watched:

Also, another thing, the Canon is better if you are looking for good video quality. The Canon. Not Nikon.So, I would say the Canon.

Hope I helped! And good luck!
-Isaiah

I would suggest to buy Nikon D3100 with the kit lens i.e 18-55mm also if you want a telephoto lens than also can consider Nikon 55-300mm lens