recommended vacation for family w/ 3 young kids and some $

[huggytree]

Last year we took our first family vacation...7 days at Disney Florida...went well..very well...

this year were going back to Florida...3 days Disney, 1 day Sea World, 1 Day other theme park(i forgot), 1.5 days at the Ocean(beach)

next week were going to Mamoth cave, Kentucky for a 4 day mini vacation (work is slow)


kids are 5,3,1

any suggestions for 2010 Huggytree vacation?

Im not doing Florida again.

Thought about California and doing Disney there for 2 days, Giant Sequoas , ocean, Hippie & Transvestite watching

too young for cruises....thought about Hawaii, but for little kids?

Travel agent hasnt helped (she's fired for next year)

[Dan Furman]

Disney Cruise (they aren't too young for that, I'm guessing)

[Steve B]

This year we're going to a family YMCA camp for the third year in a row. It's kind of like the anti Disney experience. The one we go to is in the Ozarks in MO (Trout Lodge). We did Disney once and I hope to never have to go back again.

[Evan]

I haven't been active here this summer due to all my continuing education/work, and also trips.

Just last month I was in Anaheim, CA staying right by Disneyland. Mickey is expensive, but it's definitely worth it. There are two parks, the original Disneyland, and California Adventure. The later has all of the exciting rides and such, but each park is really a full day of activities.

Another theme park, local, and nearby, is Knottsberry Farm. They're pretty nice, and they have a water park which can be nice for the kids. I actually went to the water park this year with some of my college friends attending this conference. It was a great experience.

Now off to New York City in late August, San Francisco in early September, then Baltimore and Denver in November. Phew!

[huggytree]

thought about the Disney cruise...i got a CD from Disney about it...not impressed...yea the kids would love it, but id be bored to death...i dont mind the vacations being 60-70% about the kids, but i want 30%+ to be about me too!!....i want to enjoy myself...does Disney cruises have a topless deck?

anyways...yea the California thing sounds like a contender for next year....Disney CA, Redwoods and Ocean

Steve....I really hate camping and cottages......i did that as a kid and loved it though..simple and fun....it was a thrill to have a lake cottage with a floating platform 20' off shore....we'd pack up the dog and 2 cats and 1/2 the kitchen pots/pans...drive for 6 hours (are we there yet)...my dad made us sit in the bed of the truck where we all got sick from exhaust fumes...the dog once got sprayed by a skunk.....camp fires, marshmalows......slow pace...............i loved it then, but it drives me crazy now...i want to go,go,go....not sit....everytime i have gone camping we end up next to loud people who whooop and hollar until midnight or 1 am....had police show up MANY times....usually they turn the radio back up after the cops go....cops hauled away someone once....gone to many national parks...same experience....always 1 or 2 loud families....i dont mind whispering and playing cards till midnight....but im talking about kids screaming and adults whooping it up....i like to sleep at 9-10pm and get up at 5 am

i told my wife im never camping again...were going to Mammoth caves national park in 5 days....were staying at a hotel outside the park....we picked the most expensive one because people are a better class and keep quite at night...cheap hotels=white trash in my experience...

any other go,go,go type vacations recomendations????

[Dan Furman]

thought about the Disney cruise...i got a CD from Disney about it...not impressed...yea the kids would love it, but id be bored to death...i dont mind the vacations being 60-70% about the kids, but i want 30%+ to be about me too!!....i want to enjoy myself...does Disney cruises have a topless deck?

I recall a commercial for Disney cruises that basically advertised the fact that mom and dad can have plenty of non-kid time. Essentially along the lines of "we'll watch the kids while you ####" :)

[huggytree]

and thats not what we want...we dont want our kids babysitted on vacation...we want do to things w/ them....other than sitting next to the pool i didnt see anything id want to do...its 110% for kids.......if it had a topless upper deck like some cruise lines i could spend a day there.

[Aaron Hats]

I'll put a plug in for my town, North Conway, NH and the greater Mt. Washington Valley. For places to stay you have your choice of campgrounds, motels, hotels, B&B's and historic inns. For eating you have just about every kind and price of cuisine you can image. For activities, you can shop in mom & pop boutiques or name brand outlets, there's the scenic railway, hiking, swimming, canoeing, easy walks to scenic waterfalls, ride the Ziprider, Story Land, Six Gun City, horseback riding, mountain biking, gondola rides or go up Mt. Washington, home of the world's worst weather.

New Hampshire Chamber of Commerce | North Conway Lodging Jackson NH Village Vacation Tourism Mt. Washington Valley (http://mtwashingtonvalley.org/)

Enjoy your stay.

[Blessed]

Hubby and I honeymooned in the Colorado Springs area - there was a lot of neat stuff to do there - we rented a cabin - It was one of those things where these people owned a cabin and let an agency rent it out during certain times of the year - it saved us a ton of money, was 45 minutes off of the highway and was a mile away from our closest neighbor, we could cook in the cabin, hike around the cabin and enjoyed some time in the hot tub - our cabin was pretty secluded and was set up for a couple or two to enjoy but the agency had several other cabins that were closer to the things to do and were more family oriented.

Our favorite outing was the whitewater rafting trip - we spent a day and half doing that. The full day was an 18 and older trip (because of the rapids) but the half day was designed for families and they let kids go on that one too. I can't remember what the age limit was but we had a couple of kids on our raft that day.

[Evan]

if it had a topless upper deck like some cruise lines i could spend a day there.

Those aren't family cruises.

Though the Disney ones, I remember seeing before on the Travel Channel. It's not boring babysitting, they have a ton of different activities for them to do. For you, there are lots of other activities, cruise ships are a lot more than just "pools". Some have casinos, many shops, restaurants, and other activities. Of course it depends on the cruise ship.

If you're looking for something busy, SoCal may be your best bet. The beach is right there, and you can drive to vineyards, Hollywood, Disney, etc., etc. There are so many things to do, you won't have free time!

[Ad-Vice_Man]

Niagara Falls, (the canadian side) is cool. Not too hot in the summer. plenty of family activities in the day, casino for the adults at night. Good restaurants,

[huggytree]

i dont like relaxing..i like doing....

i think id like the adult cruise ships...going to see the pyramids of mexico would be cool..but its not for kids until they are teens...

My wife is happy w/ everything and doesnt need much...she even said the Disney ships look boring...Disney also does vacation packages to all over the world...we may look into them if profits are up even more next year...

I think were going to like the Mammoth cave thing this weekend...were going to Dinoland also..life size dinosaurs and sandboxes full of bones to dig up...perfect for 3 & 5 year olds.....well see how 2-3 hour cave tours go...i suspect ill hear 'i gotta go potty' from both of them....we may take a boat tour into the cave also..

[Dan Furman]

if it had a topless upper deck like some cruise lines i could spend a day there.

I'll bring the beer.

[Steve B]

We just got back from our 3rd year at the place I wrote about earlier. The "YMCA" part of it keeps it very family oriented (no alcohol, no noise after 10pm etc.). It wasn't really camping because there was a lodge and cafeteria - it's like a decent motel without a phone or TV. Lots of activities to keep you as busy as you want - and all interacting with your kids. My 11 year old said he liked it better than DisneyWorld.

It still might not be for you, but I wanted to clarify it wasn't really camping - which I also refuse to do. This kind of gives you the best of both worlds.

[billbenson]

Go to machu picchu an abandanded Mayan settlement way in the mountains of Peru. Kids would probably get a kick out of the gondolas in the mountains. There is a lot of culture to see there. Even if its not your thing, wandering around Lima bar hopping is interesting as an adult. Plenty of "topless decks" if that's what you want.

A little further south is Viña del Mar, Chile. It's the mirror image of Monterey CA. Similar beaches, big cliffs at the beach, water to cold to swim in (like CA). It's in the middle of the wine country, so its very much like Napa CA in that aspect. Adult entertainment like Casinos and the other things you mentioned. It's very safe as well. People are very nice.

Neither of those are really kid spots, but there might be enough stuff to keep the kids entertained unless all they want is Disney.