Family Vacation Ideas other than WDW????

[Kaler131]

Hi all!

I am trying to find ideas for a family vacation other than WDW.... I know, but we have been to WDW every year for the past 10 or so years and I am trying to branch out.... Does anyone have any good sugguestions for me??
My kids are 15 (girl) and 12,9, & 6 (boys). This past June we did a week at WDW and a week at other Orlando parks....so we are trying to find somewhere else (besides a cruise...we are doing that in Nov) that is NOT Orlando. As hard as it's going to be for me I need to give Orlando a rest!!

Thanks for any help/sugguestions that you can offer!!

 

[Darcy03231]

How about a Dude Ranch?

 

[JKSWonder]

How far or how expensive did you want to go?

I definitely want to go to the Beaches resort in Turks and Caicos. I also want to take my kids to Hershey Park in PA (haven't been since I was little).

 

[daleswife]

What about Gatlinburg TN? Or Williamsburg VA? Both are fun. Lots to do. Good luck....

 

[jen2207]

I'm guessing from your love of Cleveland sports you must be from Ohio. How about a Michigan vacation, sports teams aside, there is a lot of family vacationing in Michigan - Grand Beach area.

Or in Wisconsin we head to Door County or Wisconsin Dells too.

Last year for spring break we went to Cubs Spring Training in Arizona - GREAT TRIP!! So maybe a baseball training camp area - can see a game or two, stay at a resort with a great pool or water park, etc. But Arizona is not ideal for summer months.

A beach vacation in Hilton Head is always nice too.

 

[polkadotsuitcase]

I just took my two sons (ages 9 and 11) to Atlanta's new aquarium (and of course World of Coca Cola) and then Stone Mountain. They loved it all. Your boys would love the SkyWalk -- family ropes courses. Really fun.

Or what about Williamsburg? Outer Banks?

Have fun!

 

[cuppycake]

Having lived on the East coast most of my life, we LOVE Williamsburg, Va....Washington, DC., Hershey Park, pa (together with a trip to Gettysburg??).

Are you roller coaster junkies? How about a roller coaster tour week...going to a few different amusement parks near there...Kennywood/Hershey/etc etc.?

Now that we're in the midwest, we're starting to think about things more out this way and out west. What about a ski trip to CO? A National Parks tour in the west? California beach trip?

OOOOH! Nassau? I've seen some good deals advertised for Atlantis lately.

I think you're going to LOVE your cruise...that is what I was going to suggest before I read that you wanted something else. You might even love it enough to plan another one to a different place!!

 

[mom2travel]

Beaches resorts are fun - our kids liked the all-inclusive aspect. We went to Turks & Caicos a few years ago (they were 11 and almost 7 at the time). They have some great deals on their website now

A ball-park tour integrated with city stuff might appeal to all (Chicago/NY/Boston/Philadelphia+Baltimore+DC)

Smoky mountains/Asheville area for a few days for outdoor adventure then to Atlanta or Savannah or one of the NC/SC/GA beaches

Grand Canyon

Our kids (DS14 and DD9.5) are interested in going to Canada - Victoria/Vancouver, maybe Banff (sp?); or Alaska. California appeals to them too
They always love anything beach - so the Caribbean jumps out too

 

[Kaler131]

Thanks for the great ideas everyone....you guys rock!! I would LOVE to do a ballpark tour....but I think my sister would be the only one who would want to go with me on that (maybe my husband too!)

 

[Louiepipbgeeco]

Our kids (DS14 and DD9.5) are interested in going to Canada - Victoria/Vancouver, maybe Banff (sp?); or Alaska. (This was supposed to be a quote from someone elses' but It did not work-this is what I could do with the edit screen)

Canada, eh?? I might have some experience here. LOL
As a native of Canada-I can honestly say it is breathtaking. Victoria/Vancouver and Banff are quite a distance from me, but I have visited and they are definitely a great vacation destination!
I have also heard from friends that Beaches is a wonderful trip.
Good luck
Enjoy

 

[AnnaS]

Williamsburg, VA, a dude ranch or a cruise - just three places at the top of my head that we would go in a heartbeat.

We went to Rocking Horse Ranch once many years ago when the kids were younger and they loved it. We parked our car for the week and everything was there - almost like cruising.

 

[Familycircus]

How about South Dakota, Mt Rushmore and Blackhills area?
We are in the middle of planning a trip there and I cannot believe how many things are there and so much to do.

 

[hanutedmansionmomma]

my kids (15/11) are asking for a Wash DC trip, ala Night at the Museum and National Treasure.

Boston is a very cool trip - follow the Freedom Trail!

Niagara Falls is really neat if you haven't been there, ride the Maid of the Mist up to the Falls.

Disney has some other adventure vacations don't they? Thought I saw on the website somewhere...

Oh yeah, and my town Kansas City! We are getting a Schlitterbahn water park, have a Great Wolf Lodge, theme parks, or come see a Royals Game.

Have fun!!!!!!!!

 

[bellebuzzntink]

We like seeing things on our vacations, and one of the best we took was to Washington DC, Williamsburg/Jamestown, Baltimore, Pennsylvania Dutch Country. It was 5 years ago and the kids talk about it as being their favorite trip (aside from WDW!)

Last summer we had a trip planned to Canada - fly into Calgary, rent a car and meander our way to Vancouver. I was really looking forward to this, but we had to cancel.

What I'd like to do is start planning trips around National Parks. It's so interesting going to see the different parts of the country.

 

[Dismom55]

I am in the process of planning a camping trip for the family for next summer. We are from Ohio, but about 3 hour drive from Lake Erie, hubby loves to fish and especially likes the party boats. He has been such a sport about going to Disney I decided we need to do something that he really will enjoy. I enjoy camping too, so it is a win win situation. We will even be close enough that we can go to Cedar Point one day and do some other touring around in the area. In our case it will also be hubby's birthday, so it sort of takes care of getting him a present. (very hard to buy for this one).

Anyway, camping no matter where you decide to go in the USA can be a great experience and can incorporate lots of activities too!

We like to tent, but you can rent stuff too!

 

[DISNEYNV]

What about Disneyland? Your kids seem to be the perfect age for a Cali trip and the experience is nothing like Disneyworld! There is also so much to do out there besides Land...just a thought. But if you want to stay away from the Disney thing and do something compelely different how about Bush Gardens Williamsburg. It is a great park, clean and they even have an onsite hotel now and there are many other attractions and historic things for the kids to see and do. We used to go there as a child and I loved it. Also Gaitlandburg if you are the outdoorsey type. There are many great places to camp and out door activities like rafting, horseback riding and fishing, etc. We took a real steam engine train ride and went to a park up on a hill that you had to get on a ski lift to get to...awesome when I was a teen!

 

[DISNEYNV]

How far or how expensive did you want to go?

I definitely want to go to the Beaches resort in Turks and Caicos. I also want to take my kids to Hershey Park in PA (haven't been since I was little).

Just to let you know that Hershey is still one of the great parks in PA! We love taking our kids there just to visit Chocolate World. If you have small children Dutch Wonderland and Knoebels are nice as well...clean, friendly, family oriented!!!

 

[mrstomrice]

I think a national park would be nice for your kids ages. You could look into Adventures by Disney...they will likely give you an awesome experience. San Francisco was a fun trip for DH and I too. It would be great to spend your $ in America imho

 

[lisaann1170]

Great ideas here! I'm lovin' this!

I see two others have mentioned Beaches resort on Turks & Caicos. That's high on my list of go-to places. Maybe next year for us...?!

I didn't notice if anyone suggested San Diego. We took a family trip there last year and loved it. The zoo, Sea World, beaches, Legoland, battleship, and food (for DH!) were all a hit.

Happy planning!

P.S. I'm a cruise fan, too! We've never gone as a family, only as a couple. That's on my list of vacations to do as a family, too.

 

[star sweeper]

Some of my favorites when I was a kid, besides Disney:

1. Williamsburg, VA and Washington, D.C.
2. Trip from Denver, CO to Durango, CO to Grand Canyon to Phoenix, AZ
3. Amelia Island (near Jacksonville, FL)
4. San Diego, CA