Non Disney vacation

[adisneymama]

Not sure if I have posted this in the right place or not, but here goes. We are looking to take a vacation preferably over 4th of July although those dates are flexible. We have a 4 yo DD and want something family oriented. We also don't want to spend a lot of money as we are going to WDW at the end of Sept. We live in Houston and don't mind driving, or flying to a destination is also fine. Any suggestions?

 

[indigoxtreme]

Will you go for the entire week and what type of things are your looking for? A quiet restful vacation? The maybe a nice beach. Another option would be Chattanooga TN. Rock City, Ruby Falls, Aquarium, Imax etc. The Chattanooga Clarion has a good package and you can add nights on etc. We did this with our 4 yr old DGD last yr and she loved it. Depends on the amount of time as it will be a long drive for you.

 

[adisneymama]

We can go for a week or just a few days. Doesn't matter. Just want to get away. Don't want a "beach" only vacation as we can do that anytime we want. We like to cruise or maybe some type of all inclusive that has more than just the beach. DH is a golfer and I'm sure would love to play at least once.

 

[molly2004]

Have you thought of going to the Schlitterbahn? Or Sea World San Antonio?

 

[adisneymama]

I wouldn't mind doing Sea World, but am unsure what else there is to do. Do you know of anything else there that would interest a 4 you and a 38 yo
DH! LOL

 

[Hoosier Mom]

How about fly to Niagara Falls. I think there's a Great Wolf Lodge there with family packages. I've been to Niagara a couple times. Once was just a day trip, but it was a blast. We did the Maid of the Mist boat ride and ate lunch in the Skylon tower (revolving restaurant). Fun!

Or one of our favorites is the Bavarian Inn in Frankenmuth Michigan. You could probably fly into Lansing and get a rental car. That is a cute little german town with quaint shops, black forest coo coo clocks, a glockenspiel, great fried chicken, and the hotel boasts of 5 pools and indoor miniature golf. I think the site is www.bavarianinn.com Also there's Bronners Christmas store there that is the size of 8 football fields (I think). It's huge.

Here in Indiana, there's a fun park for little ones. It's Holiday World and its located in Santa Claus Indiana. It has about 3 coasters, and lots of kid friendly rides, and a great water park. Also all soft drinks are free and the food is reasonably priced. You could get two day tickets and stay over night. I think the closest airport might be Evansville, IN or Louisville KY. I think Louisville would be about 1 hour drive from the park. Also they have free sunscreen stations in the water park.

Have fun planning!

 

[molly2004]

The Schlitterbahn is new Braunfels, 30 minutes from San Antonio where Sea World is. So you visit San Anton, the alamo, the schlitterbahn, and seaworld. Lots to do.

 

[Tanya90210]

San antonio also has the riverwalk... really beautiful... went there when I was teenager...

 

[Ella's Mom]

I would love to go to San Antonio and Schlitterbahn. If you haven't been to San Antonio, I would definitely go there, especially since you live in Texas. Driving would save you a lot of money on airfare.

 

[laceemouse]

We just got back from San Antonio and had a great time! There is tons to do! Some of our other favorites are Branson, Williamsburg, and Gatlinburg. I would not travel real far or spend a lot of money with a child that young though. We are new to Texas, our next trip will be Hot Spring, AR.

 

[dbarker]

I recommend San Antonio. There is so much to do there w/o spending a whole lot. When we do non-WDW vacations, we go to SA. We stay at the KOA in a Kabin. It is so nice and peaceful. Last time, we got a two-room Kabin. That extra room was so nice.