Family-friendly vacation advice needed...

[Minnie's Pal]

I think my family is ready for an adventure this summer. Something more than our regular summer beach trip. Any suggestions on a great family-friendly vacation? (No WDW, as we were there last Nov.)

 

[Freyja]

Within US or anywhere in the world?

 

[snarlingcoyote]

How much do you want to spend? Do you want to leave the country? Do you want to get dirty and rough it or live in the lap of luxury? See interesting cultures or unspoiled nature or both? Do something touristy or off the beaten track? What kinds of temperatures do you want? Car trip? Long car trip? No car? Need a car when you're there?

There are so many variables!

 

[shinysparklybubbles]

How old are your kids?

 

[Minnie's Pal]

I think my DH would be more comfortable within the US. (Baby steps... )

My kids are 12, 10 & 4.

By adventure, I mean out of our normal beach/mtns routine, not necessarily off the beaten path. (So I guess a more touristy dest.)

 

[dakcp2001]

How old are your kids? Maybe an adventure to the Grand Canyon or a camping/ white water rafting trip if age appropriate. Rv-ing? National Parks?

I would say camping. Or stay in a cabin. Hike and have campfires.

 

[Freyja]

I think my DH would be more comfortable within the US. (Baby steps... )

My family loved touring Washington DC. So much to see and do for all ages.
We loved our Southern California road trip too (LA, San Diego and Vegas/o.k. not California )

 

[LaraK]

Williamsburg? You can hit Busch Gardens, Water Country USA and the historic district. It's hot as blazes in the summer, but if you're from NC you're probably used to the heat. If you want to, DC is another 3 hours north and Hershey is 3 hours further up the coast.

 

[eduk8r26]

The national parks in Utah. We did Zion and Bryce first, then Arches and Canyonlands. Beautiful scenery and lots to do--backcountry tours, jeep rentals, river rafting.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

Sooo. . .

West Coast there's San Francisco and Northern Cali or Seattle or Los Angeles or Reno/Tahoe.

West, but inland, there's all sorts of neat stuff in New Mexico and Colorado or go further north and you've got Yellowstone and Little Big Horn and such.

There's Texas, which has deserts, mountain climbing, white water rafting, antiquing, big city stuff etc.

Come to NOLA and pass a good time, cher'.

Go to Virginia/DC/Maryland as some PP have mentioned and you'll have several weeks worth of things to do.

In New England, there's Bahstan, there's Maine, there's the White Mountains, the Green Mountains, the Poconos, the Berkshires etc.

Go to NYC and live it up!

Go to Chicago and have a blast.

Seriously, my next vacay that isn't Disney will be New Mexico and Colorado in the summer. My parents used to take us to vacation there in the summers and I haven't been back since I got married in 1990. I miss the Sangre de' Christo mountains and the Rockies. I want to go hiking up in Creede, see the old hiking towns, ride the Durango Silverton rail road. I want to see the Pecos National Monument again and go up into the Holy Ghost Canyon outside of Santa Fe.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Ages?

Most any place.

Last year we did Williamsburg, this year we are going "home" to Florida. Next year will be Disney/Universal somewhere and I am taking a side trip with my oldest to NYC.

On our next "big" vacation agenda--Yosemite and parts of CA. But that is a few years off as it requires airfare for 6 people.

 

[Minnie's Pal]

DC & Grand Canyon both have crossed my mind but I wasn't sure about the 4 yr old with either of those. Any experiences?

We have done NYC before several yrs ago & loved it but want to try something new. Chicago could be an option though...

Not sure I want to go the national park route until my 4 yr old gets a little older.

 

[GingerJay]

I would recommend DC if you can. You can find excellent hotel rates online by shopping around and there's so much you can do for free! Most of the museums do not charge admission and there's even a lot that your youngest would appreciate.

Going in the summer will be HOT! - but it's a great place to travel with families

 

[Freyja]

I would recommend DC if you can. You can find excellent hotel rates online by shopping around and there's so much you can do for free! Most of the museums do not charge admission and there's even a lot that your youngest would appreciate.

Going in the summer will be HOT! - but it's a great place to travel with families

I agree. We got a great rate at the Georgetown Suites and actually ended up spending very little money while we were there.

 

[VAfamily1998]

The national parks in Utah. We did Zion and Bryce first, then Arches and Canyonlands. Beautiful scenery and lots to do--backcountry tours, jeep rentals, river rafting.

We did a cross country roadtrip a few years ago, stopping at many places along the way, and Bryce Canyon was one of my favorite stops! I'd love to go back to Utah again and see some of the other National parks in that area.

Last summer, my family drove to New England (we live in Northern VA). We camped in Acadia National park for a few days, stayed near Boston and went to Plimouth Plantation, walked the Freedom Trail, visited Concord and Lexington, and spent a couple days in a cabin in one of VT's state park, where we sailed on Lake Champlain and visited a lot of "factories" (Cabot Cheese, Ben and Jerry's, Maple syrup farms, etc.)

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

DC & Grand Canyon both have crossed my mind but I wasn't sure about the 4 yr old with either of those. Any experiences?

We have done NYC before several yrs ago & loved it but want to try something new. Chicago could be an option though...

Not sure I want to go the national park route until my 4 yr old gets a little older.

We live near DC and I have a 4yo. He loves the air and space museum and has decided he did not like the dinosaurs. (he calls them scary). But he still likes looking at stuff. The biggest issue is that my son will sometimes get bored. When we go downtown, we do bring an umbrella stroller for him. IT makes me feel like he is safer while using the metro by keeping him restrained from accidentally getting too close to the track and during rush hour--keeping him from getting lost in the shuffle.

But he loves the metro and enjoys walking and running around. We took him to the International Spy Museum and he enjoyed it, but it did require viewing exhibits in a different manner. My DH and he went through quicker than me and the older girls. But they spent more time by the James Bond car than we did.

Some spots that I would like to hit, don't work really well with my son for now--like the Holocaust Museum.

But we have taken him to the monuments--Lincoln in his very BIG chair and all those steps, the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument and WWII. He was truly captivated by WWII. He went when he was 3 and we were careful to remind him of the rules. It is a very quiet respectful place and he would just look at things as he should. No running, no screaming. So keep that in mind. It is not a memorial for a rambunctious child. My son did very very well though. Then when we left, he ran on the mall.

I have also taken him to Mount Vernon (it was a very chilly day and as it turned out, I had children getting ill without me realizing it--so the day did not go as well as planned...but he did fine before it all went down hill with my 10yo getting sick.)

We don't do DC as a vacation though--since we live here. His visits were part of visiting daddy, house hunting, and subsequently moving up here.

If you can ebb and flow between things more appealing to the older folks with things that would appeal to younger, you would do fine.

Meals can be expensive though and we have struggled finding something family friendly on a whim that wasn't fast food or $50pp. One time, we gave up and actually hit a McD's since most every alternative was closed after 3pm on Saturday and a fancy sit down restaurant was not an option. The city can be in some places, more catered to the 8 to 6, M-F work week and that can be a little frustrating. But that is more a testament to our lack of research and poor budgeting.

 

[Freyja]

We did a cross country roadtrip a few years ago, stopping at many places along the way, and Bryce Canyon was one of my favorite stops! I'd love to go back to Utah again and see some of the other National parks in that area.

Last summer, my family drove to New England (we live in Northern VA). We camped in Acadia National park for a few days, stayed near Boston and went to Plimouth Plantation, walked the Freedom Trail, visited Concord and Lexington, and spent a couple days in a cabin in one of VT's state park, where we sailed on Lake Champlain and visited a lot of "factories" (Cabot Cheese, Ben and Jerry's, Maple syrup farms, etc.)

Don´t mean to hijack the thread but I´ve got to ask (since a cross country road trip is very high on our "bucket list"). How long did your trip take?

 

[VAfamily1998]

Ages?

On our next "big" vacation agenda--Yosemite and parts of CA. But that is a few years off as it requires airfare for 6 people.

Do a road trip!
We live in Northern VA, and have 6 of us too! Summer of 2008 (yeah, with the $4+ gas prices!) we did a roadtrip to CA. At the time, our kids were 8, 6, 4, and 2. We stopped tons of places on the way out and back, and while in Ca spent a week in San Diego (family lives there) and then another week going to Yosemite, Sequoia, etc. Best vacation of my entire life!

 

[VAfamily1998]

Don´t mean to hijack the thread but I´ve got to ask (since a cross country road trip is very high on our "bucket list"). How long did your trip take?

We took a full month. Dh wasn't able to get a full month off work, so he just did the driving across and back with us...our schedule was like this

Day 1: Drive from Nothern VA to the smoky mountain, Tn
Day 2: Smoky mountains
Day 3: Depart Smoky Mountains, drive towards Arkansas, stop at Blanchard Springs Caverns in Ozark national Forest for a tour of the Caverns, stay overnight in Little Rock, AR
Day 4: Drive to Oklahoma City. We did stop at a Route 66 museum we saw on the way, but that was an unplanned stop. Overnight in OKC
Day 5: Drive through the TX pan handle and to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Overnight in Santa Fe
Day 6: In the morning visit Loretto Chapel in Santa Fe, Afternoon visit Petroglyph National Monument in Albequerque. Evening drive to Roswell. Didn't arrive in Roswell 'till around 9 pm or so? Overnight in Roswell
Day 7: Morning visit to the UFO museum in Roswell. After lunch drove to White Sands National Monument. Slid down the Sand dunes (able to rent sleds at the visitors center!). Got some dinner (wasn't too much in the area, I think we ended up at Applebee's?) then back to enjoy the Sand Dunes at night (open 'till about 9 pm during the summer, I think?) Spent night in Las Cruces, NM (didn't arrive at our hotel 'till late!)
Day 8 Drove to Tucson AZ, visited Saguaro national Park. Spent night in Tucson.
Day 9 spent a little bit more time in Saguaro Nationa Park (from what I remember, it was kind of split in 2 different sides?) then drove to San Diego. I think we arrived in San Diego around 5 pm or so.

We spent one day in San Diego (Legoland) and then Dh flew home to VA. Kids and I stayed in San Diego with family for a week

Next week kids and I went to Sequoia national Park (2 days), Yosemite National Park (2 days) and then a couple days in Orange County.

Dh flew in to meet us again (plane arrived late at night in San Diego) and we spent that night in a hotel in Riverside, CA.
Can't remember what day I'm at now so I'll start over at 1

Day 1: Drove out to Las Vegas area. Visited Hoover Dam and took Dam tour. Spent night in las Vegas since there isn't that much else around there. We didn't do a lot of Las Vegas since we had small kids but we did go down to the Bellagio to see the water fountain show when it was still fairly early at night. Had Crepes for dinner at Paris...

Day 2: Drove to Bryce Canyon. Spent day visiting Bryce Canyon. Spent night in hotel nearby (can't remember the name of the city)
Day 3: drove towards Salt lake City, stopping at Cedar Breaks along the way. Arrived in Salt lake city late afternoon/early evening. Drove by the Great Salt Lake and let the kids go in for a quick swim, but honestly it was kind of gross water . It was mostly just so they could say they've done it....
Day 4: Drove to Wyoming. Stopped at Fossil Butte National Monument. Spent night in Cheyenne
Day 5: Drove to Mt. Rushmore. Visited Mt. Rushmore and saw laser show at Crazy Horse. Arrived in Hotel in Cedar Rapids VERY late at night (midnight?)
Day 6: Whole day of driving. I think we left around 9 am. Drove rest of the way through South Dakota (stopped at Corn Palace), through MN and into Wisconsin. Arrived at hotel in Madison close to midnight.
Day 7: Drove to Chicago and visited with my brother there and his wife
Day 8: Chicago with brother and wife
Day 9: Drove from Chicago to Lexington KY. No planned stops but along the way saw signs for Fair Oaks Dairy adventure in Indiana and ended up spending several hours there. Spent night in Lexington KY
Day 10: Drove home to Nothern VA!

 

[Freyja]

We took a full month. Dh wasn't able to get a full month off work, so he just did the driving across and back with us...our schedule was like this

Day 1: Drive from Nothern VA to the smoky mountain, Tn
Day 2: Smoky mountains
Day 3: Depart Smoky Mountains, drive towards Arkansas, stop at Blanchard Springs Caverns in Ozark national Forest for a tour of the Caverns, stay overnight in Little Rock, AR
Day 4: Drive to Oklahoma City. We did stop at a Route 66 museum we saw on the way, but that was an unplanned stop. Overnight in OKC
Day 5: Drive through the TX pan handle and to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Overnight in Santa Fe
Day 6: In the morning visit Loretto Chapel in Santa Fe, Afternoon visit Petroglyph National Monument in Albequerque. Evening drive to Roswell. Didn't arrive in Roswell 'till around 9 pm or so? Overnight in Roswell
Day 7: Morning visit to the UFO museum in Roswell. After lunch drove to White Sands National Monument. Slid down the Sand dunes (able to rent sleds at the visitors center!). Got some dinner (wasn't too much in the area, I think we ended up at Applebee's?) then back to enjoy the Sand Dunes at night (open 'till about 9 pm during the summer, I think?) Spent night in Las Cruces, NM (didn't arrive at our hotel 'till late!)
Day 8 Drove to Tucson AZ, visited Saguaro national Park. Spent night in Tucson.
Day 9 spent a little bit more time in Saguaro Nationa Park (from what I remember, it was kind of split in 2 different sides?) then drove to San Diego. I think we arrived in San Diego around 5 pm or so.

We spent one day in San Diego (Legoland) and then Dh flew home to VA. Kids and I stayed in San Diego with family for a week

Next week kids and I went to Sequoia national Park (2 days), Yosemite National Park (2 days) and then a couple days in Orange County.

Dh flew in to meet us again (plane arrived late at night in San Diego) and we spent that night in a hotel in Riverside, CA.
Can't remember what day I'm at now so I'll start over at 1

Day 1: Drove out to Las Vegas area. Visited Hoover Dam and took Dam tour. Spent night in las Vegas since there isn't that much else around there. We didn't do a lot of Las Vegas since we had small kids but we did go down to the Bellagio to see the water fountain show when it was still fairly early at night. Had Crepes for dinner at Paris...

Day 2: Drove to Bryce Canyon. Spent day visiting Bryce Canyon. Spent night in hotel nearby (can't remember the name of the city)
Day 3: drove towards Salt lake City, stopping at Cedar Breaks along the way. Arrived in Salt lake city late afternoon/early evening. Drove by the Great Salt Lake and let the kids go in for a quick swim, but honestly it was kind of gross water . It was mostly just so they could say they've done it....
Day 4: Drove to Wyoming. Stopped at Fossil Butte National Monument. Spent night in Cheyenne
Day 5: Drove to Mt. Rushmore. Visited Mt. Rushmore and saw laser show at Crazy Horse. Arrived in Hotel in Cedar Rapids VERY late at night (midnight?)
Day 6: Whole day of driving. I think we left around 9 am. Drove rest of the way through South Dakota (stopped at Corn Palace), through MN and into Wisconsin. Arrived at hotel in Madison close to midnight.
Day 7: Drove to Chicago and visited with my brother there and his wife
Day 8: Chicago with brother and wife
Day 9: Drove from Chicago to Lexington KY. No planned stops but along the way saw signs for Fair Oaks Dairy adventure in Indiana and ended up spending several hours there. Spent night in Lexington KY
Day 10: Drove home to Nothern VA!

Wow. What an amazing trip! Thanks for sharing your route! I really hope we´ll be able to to this some day. Would love to spend a bit longer though. Hopefully around 6 weeks.