Travel ideas and reports for families and groups, including multigenerational families
Condo or hotel? When kids—even grown ones—are part of the equation, I’ll opt for a condo every time. None of us want to eat out every meal or pay high mark-ups for every drink. I like the space to spread out too. That’s why I’m so glad for the Montaneros, a Wyndham Vacation Rentals condo at Lionshead in Vail.
It is pitch black and I am riding a bike through the Sonoran desert. Of course my bike has a light and I’m on a paved trail—a golf cart trail, actually at the expansive (some 1300 acres at the Boulders Resort in Scottsdale known for the distinctive giant boulders that look like snowmen made out of granite and have been here for millions of years.
Forget mac and cheese, unless it is homemade with local cheese. Forget chili, unless it’s vegetarian or made with local grass-fed beef. The kids — and you — have your choice of free-range chicken, homemade soups, pizza baked in a wood-fired oven and quinoa salad, not to mention artisanal beers and spirits.
These days, not only do we want more room to spread out (think two rooms, two bathrooms, two TVS) but we want the experience to be fun. And we don’t want it to cost a bundle either. Did I mention that Disney has just unrolled free Wi-Fi at all of its resorts?
None of us want to wait until summer for some fun in the sun. We all could use some rest and relaxation right about now, whether your family’s idea of vacation heaven is a bluebird sunny day on a ski slope, a blue-sky sunny day on a beach or a hiking trail.
Wherever you are this winter or wherever you’re planning to go for spring break (check out our ideas for Spring Break 2013, take time to visit a museum exhibit that would especially interest your family.
Jetlagged, hungry, and in need of a bed, we found our way to our hotel for the night — Chateau de Goville–an old manor in the Norman countryside. I kept saying the château would be Downton Abbey-esque, but it wasn’t until we settled into our room and found a plaque on the wall stating that the Duchess of the Estate had lived (and died!) in this very room nearly seventy years ago that we really felt the chateau’s history.
When you are after an adult’s getaway, you don’t want a lot of kids around to either spoil your tranquility or make you feel guilty. If you wanted to be with kids, you would have brought your own.
Snowbasin is more than just a mountain to me, it’s my home. I have many sweet memories of my life on skis here. Like when I first got onto a pair of skis at the age of three.
In the summer this working ranch, which has welcomed guests since 1919, is famous for its family riding programs and kids’ programs that guarantee families a memorable vacation. There is a herd of 175 horses, but no more than 100 or so guests, and families return year after year.