A Multi-Generational Getaway to Charleston, SC
I am always on the lookout for destinations with multi-generational vacation potential. Charleston SC met our expectations
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At the Gilded Age mansions in Newport RI
This is our last day aboard the Norwegian Gem—we return to New York City tomorrow and Newport, famous for its sailing and coastal location as well as these spectacular mansions, is a good way to end the trip
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Bar Harbor ME, Acadia National Park and St. John
Our cruise on the Norwegian Gem takes us to Bar Harbor ME, the beautiful Acadia National Park as well as St. John in New Brunswick, CA
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Do Kids Clubs have a future at resorts and on cruises?
Almost every major resort and cruise line catering to the family market offers extensive children’s programming, but many Millennial families are opting out. What’s the future
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Halifax, Nova Scotia – History and Heroism Combine
Everyone knows about the Titanic, but few have heard about the Halifax Explosion of 1917 that killed 2000 people. Here in Nova Scotia history, tragedy and a beautiful city combine for some incredible stories.
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10 fall festivals for families
There are literally hundreds of Octoberfests around the country this fall — some kid-friendly — but there are also plenty of apple, pumpkin and harvest festivals from which to choose
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Fall is Family Time on Mexico’s Pacific Coast
Fall is family time along Mexico’s Pacific Coast whether you want to take a bike ride around town, practice your Spanish, head to a local festival or relax at an all-inclusive resort
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Antarctica is at the top of the list for adventure travel
An astounding 64 percent of Millennial families took an international vacation in the last year — and Antarctica is at the top of most wish lists
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Getting slimed at Nick Punta Cana Resort
This upscale, all-inclusive 208-suite resort, a partnership of Karisma Hotels & Resorts and Viacom International Media Networks, is the first all-inclusive to have been built as a themed resort from the ground up
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Spa or Slime or Both? Last Day at Nick Punta Cana
The beautiful Vassa Spa at the new Nickelodeon Hotel & Resort in Punta Cana has an 11-step “ritual hydrotherapy “program that comes with a spa treatment, complete with a “spa butler”
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Are Kids’ Clubs passe? At Nick Punta Cana Families Relish Time Together
The just-opened Nickelodeon Hotel & Resort in Punta Cana has a well-appointed kids’ club with cooking lessons, arts and crafts, a wide selection of toys, games (video and board games) and a slide that lands you in a pool of brightly colored plastic balls. But most of the families I’ve met have been keeping their kids with them.
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Families Flocking to New Nickelodeon Hotel and Resort in Dominican Republic
It was a no brainer for his family and three others —10 kids aged 3-9 and eight adults—to choose the brand new Nickelodeon Hotel & Resort in Punta Cana, a partnership of Karisma Hotels & Resorts and Viacom International Media Networks.
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Grapevine TX – not just a place near the airport but family central
Grapevine, TX, 10 minutes from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and in between the two North Texas cities, hosts some 20 million visitors a year, more than half from out of state.
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When your grown-up kids take you for a hike in the mountains
I always suggest parents and grandparents let the kids lead some of the time on vacation, even when they are in grade school. They will take you in unexpected directions
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Take me back to Chicago – for a father-son weekend and the Cubs!
Taking the Kids goes back to where it all began — Chicago — and a father-son weekend with the Cubs playing the Cardinals at Wrigley Field.
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Salzburg Austria Is Not Just for Sound of Music Fans
I think this picturesque city would be a good place to base yourself for several days or a week, though it can get crowded as the city of 150,000 welcomes more than 1.5 million tourists a year
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Aspen/Snowmass in the summer and fall – Affordable for Families
The scenery is beautiful. There are plenty of activities. And you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars for lift tickets to have fun in the summer or fall in Aspen/Snowmass CO.
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Yurts Give Families a Modern Alternative to Camping at YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch
By staying in a yurt at YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch, you can enjoy the outdoors without the annoyances of lurking bears, determined bugs and cumbersome sleeping bags.
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Exploring history and viewing the modern at Disneyland
Walt Disney was tapped out. The construction of Disneyland was taking nearly every penny he had. A kid-friendly, upscale hotel next to a theme park seems like a slam-dunk, but not in the early ’50s
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Food and wine and an angry potato make a grownup family weekend in Aspen/Snowmass
When you’re traveling with grown kids, as we are this weekend, artisanal cocktails can play a key role.
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Snowmass in Summer – cool air and lots of family activities
After an arduous 16 mile hike yesterday, I’m at The Spa at Viceroy Snowmass while an experienced massage therapist ministers to my aching legs and shoulders.
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Hiking Crested Butte to Aspen – again – the good, the bad and the better
If I’ve learned one thing from travel—especially with kids—is that you have to take the bad with the good. That’s a good lesson for the kids to learn, along the way, of course. And perhaps there is no better time to remind you of that adage than on an outdoor adventure. We certainly were reminded on the hiking trail.
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Summer in Crested Butte CO – a family vacation haven
Crested Butte bills itself as the Wildflower Capital of Colorado and there is a Wildflower Festival going on with everything from art classes, guided wildflower hikes, photography classes and more.
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Touring the Vatican with kids – hidden gems to explore
Welcome to The Vatican, the world’s smallest sovereign state, established in 1929. It’s the modern version of the papal fiefdom that ruled Rome and much of central Italy before Italy was unified in the mid-19th century
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A Family Culinary Adventure in Merida, Mexico
On a recent trip to Merida, Mexico, Alison Tibaldi booked a hands-on cooking class. It was an immersive experience that offered a window into the local culture in a highly sensorial way.
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One-of-a-Kind Slide Experience at OUE Skyspace LA
OUE Skyspace LA is a new attraction at the heart of Downtown Los Angeles built in the U.S. Bank building–currently the tallest building west of the Mississippi River–and the buzz is booming after its grand opening in June.
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Saving on a family summer beach vacation
A trip to the beach is a perfect summer getaway — and a bargain too. As long as you opt for a destination that’s off-season in summer — like the Caribbean or Arizona — you can have your pick of deals.
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Wizarding World Comes to Life at Universal Hollywood
On a recent visit to “The Entertainment Capital of L.A.,” WWoHP was packed with wizards, witches, muggles and humans alike.
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Tauck’s latest European river boat — extra space for families
I’ve never seen a nicer bathroom onboard a river ship. It’s so spacious! It has a rain shower. And as the MS Joy boasts more suites and fewer guests than other similarly sized vessels, it is a good bet for families.
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Celebrating July 4 with the kids
There are plenty of ways to celebrate, starting with your local parade. When my kids were small and we lived in Evanston, Illinois, that parade was a highlight of the summer
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An Austrian monastery underappreciated by the Hapsburgs
Today, the Benedictine Abbey “Gottweig” may be the most famous symbol of this region—a huge complex at the top of the mountain that houses, besides the gorgeous church, a youth center, inn and one building that was built for the Hapsburgs to stay though they never did and boasting the largest staircase in all of Austria.
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Rained out in Austria? No chance
We’re about an hour northwest of Vienna—a great place for a respite after city touring, The entire area is famous for its abbeys, churches, castles, picturesque villages and hiking and cycling. The best part—It’s not at all crowded!
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Food Tours: A Delicious Way To Explore Cincinnati OH
Nowhere is tradition and innovation more apparent than in the culinary arena of Cincinnati. While this city gets its share of recognition for down-home Cincinnati-style chili, cutting-edge chefs are flocking here like bees to honey.
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Baseball, the Dodgers and the Honorable First Pitch
The particular game that I attended in April was a rivalry game against the San Francisco Giants. This series was tied at 1-1.
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Traveling abroad in an age of terrorism
I didn’t meet anyone onboard during our trip who was nervous about traveling with their kids in Europe this summer, even though we were in Crete, less than 200 miles from where the Egyptair plane went down
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Visit to a Sea Turtle Hospital in Palm Beach County, Florida
More than just a place to observe, the Loggerhead Marinelife Center is a working hospital with the goal of rehabilitating its animal patients. In fact, it’s the preeminent sea turtle hospital in the United States and animals in need of treatment are carefully transported here from around the country.
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To the new, enhanced Disney Springs in Orlando
Book a $125 vintage Amphicar ride for the gang at the new Boathouse Restaurant at the newly imagined Disney Springs, which used to be Downtown Disney before its multi-year transformation.
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Sampling the great foods of Athens
I think the way to a city’s heart—or to understand its culture—is through its food. That’s why in Athens I signed us up for a “Beyond Feta” food tour offered by Context Travel,
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Learning about our presidents from visiting their homes
All around us on a recent sunny Sunday, families were picnicking outdoors, gaping at all of the wild game heads inside and walking on the nature trail at Teddy Roosevelt’s Sagamore Hill home.
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Visiting Turkey, briefly, in a year of travel warnings
Although the US State Department has warned about travel in parts of Turkey, we are far away from the unrest and terror threats in the tiny village of Sirince not far from the famous ruins of Ephesus
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Off the beaten cruise tourism track on Italy’s Amalfi Coast
Every day, Maria Grazia, 80, walks thousands of steep stone steps to and from her home in Minuta, a tiny hamlet high above the Amalfi Coast in southwestern Italy that is among the oldest towns here, dating back before medieval times.
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Truffle Hunting in Tuscany – Day 2 of Carnival Vista Med Cruise
We’re on a shore excursion in Tuscany off the Carnival Vista cruise ship, which is sailing the Mediterranean this summer. We’re with experienced truffle hunters Salvatore Cucchiara, a retired policeman, and his son Massimo
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To Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Welcome to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited national park in the country with nearly 10 million visitors a year — twice what the Grand Canyon gets.
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Last Cuba port call – historic Santiago de Cuba and pirates of the Caribbean
Historic Santiago de Cuba is home to revolutions, gave birth to Cuban leaders Jose Marti and Fidel Castro and was the scene of Teddy Roosevelt’s famous charge up San Juan Hill.
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Second port call in Cuba – beautiful French-inspired Cienfuegos
If Cuba had a Paris, Lonely Planet Cuba says, Cienfuegos would be it as it’s arranged around a spectacular natural bay (there are charter sailboats in the harbor and I can only imagine a lot more once Americans discover this place).
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TO CUBA ON THE FIRST AMERICAN SHIP TO SAIL HERE IN NEARLY 60 YEARS
I’ve learned first hand that encouraging kids to be global citizens, to be comfortable outside their own comfort zones, helps them navigate unfamiliar and difficult turf in their lives as they grow up.
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In Havana, meeting people who are starting private businesses
Gilberto Valladares Reina has always been a barber—and a dreamer. That’s not always been easy in Cuba, where the government controlled so many aspects of your life.
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Into Havana on a “people-to-people” tour from the first American cruise ship in 58 years
Cubans lined the Havana shoreline, cheering loudly as the ship sailed in. Those on board lined the decks cheering, waving Cuban and American flags as Adonia, became the first American ship to enter Havana Harbor in 58 years
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How kids like making history on first American cruise to Cuba
The Russell kids had spent the last two weeks in the Dominican Republic where they joined in volunteer activities that ranged from wrapping chocolate bars at a women’s collective to helping to lay cement floors for several families.
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Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lights Up for Evening Adventure
Soaring lights dance across the evening sky at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando, but it’s no longer just soft lights illuminating the closed park while the animals play.
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On an adventure closer to home this summer
Will we be safe? Everywhere I go people have the same question about travel this spring and summer. So what’s a travel-loving family to do this summer?
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10 Family Pleasing activities in Edinburgh, Scotland
Check out Daigon Alley! Not at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando or Hollywood, but in Victoria Street in Edinburgh, Scotland, where J.K. Rowling famously wrote the first Harry Potter book while seated in a local coffee shop.
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National Parks Week is the time to introduce your kids to the outdoors
Throughout National Parks Week, many parks will also host Every Kid in a Park events, which encourages fourth-grade students to visit national parks and other public lands by offering a free annual pass.
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10 TIPS FOR FIRST TRIP TO DISNEY FROM A DISNEY EXPERT
Congratulations! You’re taking your first trip to Walt Disney World. Now comes the hard part— the planning! Everyone has advice—different advice, of course. There’s so much research out there you feel overwhelmed and maybe intimidated.
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Learning the consequences of war at five great war museums
Stand on the “bridge” of the USS Enterprise, the aircraft carrier that was so critical to the Allied efforts in the Pacific. Walk through “Green Hell” in Guadalcanal,
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In Albuquerque: an historic Inn and Organic Farm
Check out the peacocks! Smell the lavender! Tonight we’re at the family- owned Los Poblanos Historic Inn & Organic Farm in Albuquerque, which was established in 1934.
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New Mexico – Land of Enchanted Cuisine
Certainly you can eat well in New Mexico no matter what your budget. Do you want green or red chiles?
If you want both, that’s “Christmas.” -
Green Chile Cheesburgers and Bubbling Hot Springs
It’s a risk as well as an adventure – stopping for a green chile cheeseburger lunch (a New Mexico specialty) at a grocery store/gas station along the state’s Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail.
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When someone in the family has special challenges
Adaptive sports programs are about much more than the activities themselves, Disabled Sports USA, has some 124 chapters across 42 states, including 75 at ski resorts
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Five favorite urban parks for families to visit this spring
Urban parks have lots to offer visiting families — not the least of which is the chance to meet local families, or the chance to learn more about the city at a local museum.
