Favorite family vacation?

[pocomom]

OK, so dh said he would like to go somewhere else before we go back to disney .... Although it is crazy talk , I realized he probably does get a vote With the kids we have been to Atlantis, loved it but a bank breaker, Ocean City Maryland, Rocky Mountain NP, coastal NC, SC, and GA, Fire Island and of course WDW. All were great, but Disney and Atlantis were our favorites. What were your favorite family vacations so far?

 

[tyniknate]

OK, so dh said he would like to go somewhere else before we go back to disney .... Although it is crazy talk , I realized he probably does get a vote With the kids we have been to Atlantis, loved it but a bank breaker, Ocean City Maryland, Rocky Mountain NP, coastal NC, SC, and GA, Fire Island and of course WDW. All were great, but Disney and Atlantis were our favorites. What were your favorite family vacations so far?

It really depends upon the ages of your children. We love Ocean City and Washington DC on years when we can't get to WDW. Thats the plan this year and the boys are more excited than when we have a Disney trip planned!

 

[Pigeon]

I'm the only one in the family whose favorite vacation is WDW.

The 15 and 12 year old girls and dh all prefer renting a house on a lake in the Adirondacks. I find it very interesting that the kids, who must always be connected with their friends and busy every minute, genuinely enjoy being cut off from that in a cell-phone free, TV free zone.

We go to a lake within striking distance of Lake Placid, where they have an ice skating show and ski jumping contests (on plastic in the summer) which makes for a change from paddling around the lake and relaxing.

 

[ssawka]

Our favorites, next to WDW of course, are cruises. We prefer DCL, but if DH really wants a break from Disney, there are many other great cruise lines to choose from.

 

[leahjade]

We loved the Grand Canyon and Sedona.

 

[robsmom]

Not sure where you are coming from. Cruises have become our favorite in the last few years. Since you are somewhere covered by snow and you have East Coast prior vacations I am going to guess Northeast/Midatlantic There are some that leave from New York, New Jersey and Baltimore that can save you the cost of flying. We loved our week in Williamsburg with a nice mixture of history and the amusement parks.

 

[a742246]

It's just my wife and I our children are all out of the house, our favorite vacations are New York City for weekend trips. For day trips its the Saratoga Springs/Lake George area.

 

[mom0299]

I'm another one who votes for cruises. We love WDW, but have never done a Disney cruise. We usually go on Carnival, but have cruised with Royal Caribbean once. Cruises are great because there is something for everyone. Your food and entertainment on the ship are paid for with the cruise price. Excursions are extra. A cruise ship has something for everyone, no matter what the age.

 

[ThisIsTheYear]

Las Vegas. My Grandparents used to live there so we would visit a lot. They had tons of stuff for kids to do. The last time I was there (2005) I noticed that they unfortunately took down the big water park. I don't know if they have built any new ones. You could also make day visits to the Hoover Dam, Grand Canyon, etc.

 

[drcmk]

Our number one choice is New Mexico--for natural beauty, culture and delicious food.

We've also enjoyed visiting San Diego--lots of family-friendly stuff to do--and Boston. This year we are extending our Boston travels to Maine, Rhode Island and Salem, MA.

 

[RedsDrew]

Kids tend to love Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, TN and also Branson, MO. In addition to kind friendly and family friendly stuff, there are shows the adults would enjoy like past music starts, comedy, etc.

 

[4luv2cdisney]

I'm the only one in the family whose favorite vacation is WDW.

The 15 and 12 year old girls and dh all prefer renting a house on a lake in the Adirondacks. I find it very interesting that the kids, who must always be connected with their friends and busy every minute, genuinely enjoy being cut off from that in a cell-phone free, TV free zone.

We go to a lake within striking distance of Lake Placid, where they have an ice skating show and ski jumping contests (on plastic in the summer) which makes for a change from paddling around the lake and relaxing.

That is hysterical! It seems my girls just love staying in hotels. It doesn't matter to them if we ever venture out and do anything else. BUT, they still have their cell phones, Ipods, and a TV!

That being said, my husband is a "doer". He is up at the crack of dawn ready to go somewhere....every day. Ugh! Doesn't want to sit still for long. We get mad at him for waking us up, so he slips on his shoes and leaves the room every morning for a few hours. We have funny stories from every trip about him meeting random people and making friends while the rest of us are back in the room sleeping or getting ready!

Anyway, I am anxiously awaiting more trip ideas. I would love to get the heck out of here for Spring Break, but Disney isn't offering any discounts and I can't come up with any other ideas. There is literally no where else any of us all want to go. Sigh.

 

[rella's fan]

What about Disneyland? Me and my daughter got sick of Disney World and started going to Disneyland and it's a nice change. We took the train to L.A. and did the Grove and Hollywood stuff, and we also took a one day bus trip to San Diego and went to the zoo. It's kind of weird because we're a lot closer to Florida but it's cheaper for us to go to California.

 

[SC Minnie]

We love to cruise as well. We've sailed DCL, Royal Carribean, and Princess. We love the parks but if DD18 (and even when she was younger) got to choose it would be a cruise. We can go things together as a family but also do our own thing.

We went to an all inclusive in Mexico last summer for a wedding. It was the first time for us at an all inclusive but loved it.

 

[mitchwebb]

West Coaster

Favorites (excluding WDW &Disneyland) Yosemite,Tahoe, Hawaii or any beach

 

[cjnix29]

Northern Michigan!! Sleeping Bear Dunes (rated by GMA as the most beautiful place in America), Mackinac Island, loads of fantastic coastal towns, great beaches. We love it for a vacation. You can rent a house, or a condo. Great restaurants. Fantastic! Even when we didn't live in Michigan, we would go there on vacation.

 

[lisaross]

Not sure where you live,

but we loved a cruise - we also went to Niagra Falls which was lots of fun.....Lake George -

OK, so dh said he would like to go somewhere else before we go back to disney .... Although it is crazy talk , I realized he probably does get a vote With the kids we have been to Atlantis, loved it but a bank breaker, Ocean City Maryland, Rocky Mountain NP, coastal NC, SC, and GA, Fire Island and of course WDW. All were great, but Disney and Atlantis were our favorites. What were your favorite family vacations so far?

 

[eliza61]

OK, so dh said he would like to go somewhere else before we go back to disney .... Although it is crazy talk , I realized he probably does get a vote With the kids we have been to Atlantis, loved it but a bank breaker, Ocean City Maryland, Rocky Mountain NP, coastal NC, SC, and GA, Fire Island and of course WDW. All were great, but Disney and Atlantis were our favorites. What were your favorite family vacations so far?

LOL.
Aaah pocomom, the great thing about that is you do recognize that there is whole world out there!!!

We're city folk in my family, one of our favorite places to go is Washington DC. Dh and I love, loved,loved Vegas.

Of course we love Walt disney but since my kids love swimming and water activities our favorite has to be St Thomas and St Johns.

We're off to London/Paris this year. first time with the kids so that will be interesting

 

[GrnMtnMan]

With the kids we have been to Atlantis, loved it but a bank breaker

Just as there are ways to do Disney for less money, there are ways to do Atlantis for less. I can help with that, if you're interested.

On to your question: we spend quite a bit of time in Hilton Head, at the in-laws. Very family friendly, and sort-of the opposite of Disney, without sacrificing convenience. Feels almost like going to mountain lake, but you're on the beach. Activities are low-key, like biking, nature trails, and sand castles....there's no go-kart tracks, ferris wheels, water parks, boardwalks, and only a few mini-golf places.

 

[2mom]

The past two years we have gone to Estes park at the base of the Rockies great fly fishing, hiking and tons of other stuff to do. The town is beautiful and fun to walk around.