Where does your family vacation other than WDW?

[DawnM]

We have gone to the following since moving to NC five years ago.

Niagara Falls
Montreal
Washington, D.C.
Wilmington, NC
Charleston, SC
Asheville, NC
Hershey, PA
Pigeon Forge, TN

 

[gibsontrio]

We are military so we have tried to see all we can of the state we live in
grew up in PA so we frequently visit the Jersey shore (my mom has a house there) , Pocono mountains,
NY - The city of course, Niagara falls, skiing, hiking,
We've visited many places down the East coast, Rented houses in Chincotegue Island VA and the CHespeake bay
We LOVE great wolf lodge,
Now that we live in KY we havent found to much to do other than visit the bourbon distilleries.
We are moving to Germany in July so we pretty much are getting ready for a 3 year vacation (aside from deployment time)
We were going to take a Beaches vacation before we leave the states but Disney kept calling me back.........

 

[shefrn1]

we used to go to Myrtle Beach often cause we were (pre-kids) avid golfers....we actually you to own a condo at Legends.....I used to love Myrtle but then we found Hilton Head and ended up buying a TimeShare off of Ebay.....LOVE HILTON HEAD....the beaches are so nice...not a TON of things to do for the kids but enough....lots of playgrounds and a petting zoo...no amusements though (atleast we haven't found them yet)

we're from NJ and live close to the Shore (and no....we're more south so nothing like 'Jersey Shore" the reality show LOL

but we've had the opportunity to vacation all over with our Time share

Hawaii
Grand Canyon
Vegas (<3)
Grand Cayman
Bahamas
Myrtle Beach
Hilton Head
Cape Cod
and a couple of others that I can't think of LOL

Myrtle Beach is actually the one place I would like to go if we don't do Disney. What is there to do entertainment-wise for the kids besides waterpark/beach. Do you mind telling me what hotel you stay at? You live in such a great location close to a lot of things. You are lucky, it is quite a drive from Indy to get anywhere!

they have Broadway by the Beach....like a huge entertainment area with a couple of small amusements, restaurants, Ripley's, MagicQuest (or something like that), mini golf and a ton of shops on a big lake!!! plus they have the only (I think) Hard Rock Cafe Theme Park (although I did here they were filing for bankruptcy....they were empty the day we were there a year after they opened)

 

[lucigo]

We are in Texas so we go to the Gulf Coast every September. We can get a 2BR condo in a resort right on the beach. It has beautiful pools too. Sure it's not the nicest beach... but it works since we can drive there. :

If the gulf coast doesn't have the nicest beaches I don't know who does...

 

[lucigo]

When we aren't counting down to a Disney trip we are counting down to a cruise. My 7-yo has been on 11 cruises. I love that everything is paid for before we get on the boat and I can relax!

 

[growinupdisney]

We go to WDW every year as well as MYRTLE BEACH, SC both vacations are for a week. Every other year we add another Vacation last year was Las Vegas and the time before sking at Snow Shoe, WV. This has been what I have been doing since my DH and I have been married which will be 5 yrs in April. We haven't talked about next year yet maybe Bush Gardens in VA or a cruise.

 

[kkacar]

Living on the gulf coast in NW Florida I have to say, a beach vacation is fun. I agree with PP BEST BEACHES ANYWHERE!!! We love it, but its an every day thing for us. When we are not at Disney (AP holders 2-3 trips a year) we like to go to the mountains. We love Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. We have a great time at Cades Cove and we usually sneak a trip to Dollywood as well.

Other than that we have done the mountains where we are close enough to get to Atlanta and believe it or not there is a lot to do there as well. We tend to do Atlanta around season change, so DD9 and I can do a major shopping trip.

We have done Branson, that was more for hubby; but DD9 and I ended up having a good time as well.

But our weeklong family spring vacation is always Disney. DD9 loves and I figure before to long she will not want to be seen with us in Public so I am getting every bit I can out of it.

kelli

 

[mom2aredhead]

I was trying to kid myself about a month ago as well. Then Disney sent us that dang 40% off code.

I got one too. Its just sitting there. In my e-mail. Torturing me. I think I may have to do something about it.

For other vacations, we did California (Disney/SanDiego) April last year, and we spend lots of time at the Jersey Shore. The real Jersey Shore. Not where the idiots from MTV are.

We were considering a Disney cruise this year. Or even (the horror!) Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas with the Dreamworks characters. Both are expensive for the time of year we are able to go - I can plan a WDW trip that is much more affordable. And the time in the car to get to the OBX or Myrtle Beach is a dealbreaker for me - been there done that with my family when I was a kid, which led me to establish my rule - 6 hours drive max, or a plane, or we don't go.

But, like you said, who am I kidding. I have a 40% discount code and a kid that will be off from school for 2 days in late September, and I haven't been to Food & Wine in a few years.

 

[Rylee]

We live in Central New York.

Besides WDW...

Toronto
Cape Cod
Adirondack Mountains
NYC
Niagara Falls
Cape May, NJ
Boston
Hershey Park
Washington DC
Gulf Coast, FL
Myrtle Beach
Ocean City, MD

 

[MinnieGi]

Hilton Head!!! That is our summer spot while WDW is our winter spot.

If you want something different but still with that Disney feel how about a Disney Cruise!!! Cruising is sooooo much fun and great for a family. You get exotic places, beaches, Disney entertainment, parties, water fun etc...

 

[Chee Chick]

I love beach vacations along the Florida Panhandle! Seaside is my absolute favorite spot.

 

[mrsr2ro]

If the gulf coast doesn't have the nicest beaches I don't know who does...

I'm talking about the Texas gulf coast -- have you been? It's nothing like the FL side.

 

[worker33]

One big cold weather trip and one warm weather....

We have to have our trip north every year (North from CT)...white mountains of NH for skiing. stay in a great family resort, nightly entertainment for the kids. Indoor/outdoor pools and hottubs. Outdoor stay open and heated all year round...for swimming and hottubbing in the snow.

-Carribbean cruise
-Atlantis- Bahamas
-California (at Disney California Lodge)

 

[kkacar]

I love beach vacations along the Florida Panhandle! Seaside is my absolute favorite spot.

Absolute perfect place for a vacation or a place to call home!

kelli

 

[Akmayeli]

I'm talking about the Texas gulf coast -- have you been? It's nothing like the FL side.

Agreed. I won't even let my kids in the water past their knees. It's nasty, but they still love it. Lol.

 

[amym2]

Yep. When all is said and done, I can think of a million places that I would love to go. All of them fit into the "we can definitely do that when the kids are older and will appreciate it more" category. I just had this same conversation with my brother the other night. We were in agreement that the vacation will go much more smoothly if the kids are as excited as I am about the destination. Plenty of time to plan "big kid" trips later...But, here's to hoping that they still want to go to WDW even then.

And in the meantime betweeen Disney trips, day trips to Indy and/or Chicago, and weekends in the summer at the lake will work just fine.

Absolutely- ditto this! Our kids are now 7 and 9 and I can sense the day approaching when they'd rather go to Cedar Point than Disney (they are roller coaster fanatics). Thus I just booked a WDW this September- one more time before DS turns 10.

We're in Indiana also and there are so many great places to visit nearby. Have you done St. Louis? Chicago? Cincinnati? Dayton? All of those places have great kid-friendly activities. But none of them are Disney.

 

[amym2]

Oh, and we've moved a lot and have family all over, so we have been all sorts of places... Boston, Sesame Place in PA (great for little ones), Outer Banks, San Diego, San Antonio, Dallas/Ft Worth, Washington DC, etc. We love to travel and our kids have a great time, but the only place they really remember is WDW (and DLR).

 

[Becc1]

We take lots of mini trips to visit relatives or friends for long weekends but our main vacation spot besides Disney is always the beach. We always used to do Ocean City MD because it's only a 2 hour drive but now we prefer to go to Ocean City, NJ.

 

[babydoll]

A Disney Cruise is a GREAT way to still feel the magic but it offers a different experience with the stops at various locations. Kids always love the beach activities. My main reason for doing a Disney cruise as opposed to other offerings is my sense of security with Disney. I KNOW they put the safety and security of my family above the $$. My husband and I did some excursions on other vacations before kids and were in some pretty scary situations.