Ideas and reports for families on dining while traveling
Wearing a gray hoodie and sunglasses, a suspicious man was trying to debrief us while also not being noticeable. This was: Accomplice the Show: Greenwich Village.
From the time the Berlin Wall went up in August 1961 till it was torn down in November 1989, thousands of East Berliners made their escape the short distance to the West in the most ingenious ways. At least 2,000 died trying. Today, it’s hard to believe this beautiful city was once divided by an ugly wall.
We are eating dinner on the terrace listening to the ocean, feasting on Caribbean lobster. No we aren’t at a tony restaurant in Jamaica. We are at Serenity on the Beach, one of the 100 private villas in Jamaica managed by Villas by Linda Smith.
John Bartels has no interest in going home. He, his two sisters, and his parents have been spending a vacation week at Half Moon, a Rock Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, that has been setting a high bar for resorts here for more than 50 years
Welcome to river cruising, family style. If you think river cruising is just for seniors, think again. Uniworld, which has been named by CruiseCritic.com as the “best overall river line,” is tripling its family itineraries in 2016
Uniworld Cruises has arranged a special way to see the picturesque city of Bamberg for the families on board—a GPS scavenger hunt organized by the company City Hunters that does such tours in cities across Germany.
The 16 kids aboard Uniworld River Cruise’s special Family Christmas Market sailing in Germany are all members of the clean plate club by the time they are done cooking with Chef Peter Tarnok and Senior Pastry Chef Ciprian Ghiluescu. In fact, most of them have seconds… Lorelei George, 8, licks her plate.
It is eight in the morning and we are a few blocks from the hotel at Tokyo’s famous Tsukiji Fish Market, Japan’ largest. More than 15,000 people work here; international tourists line up in the early hours of the morning for the chance to watch the famous fish auctions,
Frankfurt has one of Germany’s 2500 Christmas Markets and one of the country’s oldest, locals claim, dating back to 1393, though those in Nuremberg dispute that.
Berlin cuisine is a mixture of a lot of cultural styles—the Croco Blue bar has gained its own following for its portfolio of old and rare spirits.
Westin and Le Meridien Hotels have just introduced new family programs, they say, in response to a changing global demand for family travel. Rather than focusing on a kids club, this idea stresses that playing “knows no borders or language barriers but rather inspires kids to explore learn and build relationships.”
For many families, sharing holiday displays, whether at a theme park, a hotel or a nearby neighborhood is an annual tradition that gets everyone away from pre-holiday chores and stress. It’s just these days, you’ll find Santa, elves and millions of lights at the ready long before the Thanksgiving leftovers are gone.
At a time when hotels catered to businessmen, not families, Walt Disney thought there should be a place where families could continue the fun they had in Disneyland. On the same day.
Kids of all ages give high marks to Royal Caribbean’s second Quantum Class ship Anthem of the Seas which will be home-ported year round in Cape Liberty, NJ.
The Museum of History and Industry, now in the historic Naval Reserve Armory at Lake Union Park, boasts the largest heritage organization in Washington State with nearly 4 million artifacts. It is a good place to start any family visit to Seattle.
Ashford Castle, in western Ireland on 350 acres along the shores of Lough Corrib and the River Cong, is famous for its fishing and falconry but if you’re a boy just staying in a bona-fide castle is the real attraction.
We’ve signed on for Seattle’s only chef-led tour of the market with Elizabeth McClure’ new company Eat Seattle Tours. She also does cooking classes in the Market’s Atrium Kitchen, shopping with the students first for ingredients .
It is Friday night in Seattle. But what’s interesting is the Sazerac with its distinctive chandeliers and hip-but-casual vibe and food best described as modern South meets Northwest is in Kimpton’s Monaco Hotel.
There’s shop after shop of kitchen wares—ceramic sake cups, wooden bowls for miso soup, colorful bowls for rice, all varieties of chop sticks and of course hand-made Japanese knives that will be engraved on the spot with your name in Japanese. And everything is a bargain!
If you think a 14-course dinner might be a little much to handle, come sample Chef Kenichiro Ooe’s fare at Kozue on the 40th floor of the Park Hyatt Tokyo with stellar views of the city.
Welcome to the traditional Japanese Riokan. There are these hotels all around Japan, some in the mountains, which offer the chance to try the Japanese hot springs baths called onseng
Kyoto is famous for its Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. This morning, we’re cycling a 14-mile loop with Kyoto Cycling Tour Project with stops at the Golden Pavilion and Ryoanji Temple with its world-famous rock garden – two of the city’s and Japan’s top tourist attractions.
The ship staff had warned that navigating on your own in Japan is different than elsewhere. Very few locals speak English and signs are only in Japanese. I understand now why in the U.S. Japanese tourists always move in a group with a guide.
Visit Orlando’s magical dining month, which starts August 24 and continues throughout September and highlights many restaurants offering prix fixe dinners for $33. (Ready to share with your junior foodie?)
Like other cruise lines, Princess offers specialty restaurants on board for which you pay an extra fee.
Like on other cruise lines, the specialty restaurants offer an enhanced experience.
Until I came aboard in Yokohama, I hadn’t thought much about the cruise experience being educational but here, with more than 1000 Japanese passengers, we westerners are getting a lesson in Japanese culture and food.
It is eight in the morning and we are at Tokyo’s famous Tsukiji Fish Market, Japan’ largest. More than 15,000 people work here; international tourists line up in the early hours of the morning for the chance to watch the famous auctions of the fish, including the tuna.
The Mizuki Spa at the Conrad Tokyo is the largest spa of its kind in Tokyo and boasts Tokyo’s only true Hinoki bath. Treatments are inspired by the moon and the water.
Jake and Tobey Bill, ages 12 and 13 from Weston CT, went on a “Safari In Style” tour of Tanzania with the tour operator Abercrombie & Kent. They had heard great things about Africa and watched a few PBS specials about it, but nothing prepared them for what them saw and experienced in this amazing place.
The 91-year-old had chosen the Windstar Star Legend, a 212-passenger ship for a cruise with her 17-year-old grandson— one of three yachts without the line’s famous sails that the company has recently acquired from Seabourn
Sixteen-year-old Enesi Domi shares his daily diary from a youth service experience in the Dominican Republic with the community service organization Rustic Pathways. This is the second of two installments. More than 5000 youths will go on Rustic Pathways service trips this year.
Welcome to Daigon Alley. No, this is not at Universal Studios Orlando. It’s here in Edinburgh, where JK Rowling famously wrote the first book in a coffee shop.
Of course, Gleneagles is known for golf — it is home to three of Scotland’s best championship courses and it is where the 2014 Ryder Cup was played. But today, only 30 percent of guests play golf — and some of them may be kids taking lessons.
What is vacation without good food and Gleneagles Hotel certainly delivers. It is home to Andrew Fairlie, chef of Scotland’s only two Michelin-starred restaurant. But the other restaurants offer something special as well—maybe trying Scottish food for the first time.
Gleneagles is known for golf—it is home to three of Scotland’s best championship courses but today, only 30 per cent of guests play golf and Gleneagles is a kid-friendly resort that draws families from the United Kingdom as well as the United States back year after year
Of the 204 passengers, there are 117 who have sailed Windstar, some as many as 11 times. While you may think of this as a cruise line for adults, I’ve been thinking of this as a way for grown and mostly grown kids to connect with parents and grandparents, sharing new experiences.
Three Chimneys Restaurant and six-room inn is on an out of the way stretch of road on the Isle of Skye where you brake for sheep crossing the road and the fish you eat for lunch might have been caught that morning, the lettuce just harvested.
We are on an eight-day Gaelic Explorer Windstar Cruise on a yacht with just 212 passengers can go to smaller ports. Windstar, known for its sailing yachts, has added three more yachts from Seabourn—these without sails–that after a $12 million refurbishment have joined the fleet.
The great food at Ashford Castle in Ireland is inspired by Lord Ardilaun, a scion of the Guinness family, who insisted on only the freshest and most varied of local produce, a tradition continued by new executive chef Philippe Farineau
Will Hide, a London journalist, jokes that locals say Chicken tikka masala should be Britain’s national dish. Indian food—especially “takeaway” is so popular. Vacations, of course, are a great time to try new cuisines and when in London, that means Indian food (actually mostly Bangladeshi).
It’s not that I need to be treated like a VIP. I just want to de-stress experience as much as possible—especially with kids. That means not having to wait to be served breakfast or a snack or paying through the nose for food the kids won’t eat.
In Britain these days, one young local explained, tea “is for a special occasion—like a birthday. Maybe it’s going to see your first West End Play—say Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
The kids want to stay right where they are because they’re having way too much fun at the expansive Explorer Island pool-water play area at the New Four Seasons Orlando at Walt Disney World,
Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, is a city webbed with narrow cobblestone streets, opening onto squares of medieval cathedrals and monasteries overlooking the Rio Tejo. With its yellow trams, open parks, 1930s cafés, and ghostly spirit, Lisbon is a city that has plenty to offer every member of the family.
Like one in four American couples getting married this year, according to research by TheKnot.com, my daughter, Reggie Yemma, and her new husband, Dan Foldes, opted for a destination wedding
As Father’s Day coincides with the start of the summer vacation season, I figured there’s no better time to offer some suggestions to up dad’s fun quotient on vacation, which is a much better idea than yet another Father’s Day tie, or an IOU, accompanied by a charming kid’s drawing.
In Puerto Vallarta, all-inclusives account for 80 percent of the hotels and they are especially popular with families in Mexico and the Caribbean. They’re certainly upping their game to appeal to families.
Giovanni Arredondo holds up two huge Pargos—a kind of snapper—that had just been caught this morning, more than enough to feed the 10 of us.
Puerto Vallarta is known for its galleries and its food but it is probably known more as a cruise ship stop and for those visiting the all-inclusive resorts.
We’re in Puerto Vallarta, which is increasingly known for its food and happens to have some 500 taco stands open into the early hours of the night—each one with a specialty that locals come to savor. Every ingredient comes from within a 20 mile radius.
Once we land, I talk the rental car lady and my Dad into getting us a cool Mustang to ride around in instead of this family looking car they had for us. My dad tells me I have rental car swag.
After seeing London’s great sites, it’s a joy to explore Britain’s famous Cotswolds towns, which are just about a two-hour train trip from London’s Paddington Station — ideal for a day or a weekend when you’ve had enough of the city, as fun as it is.
A high school junior and scholar in the A Better Chance program writes about a weekend of snowboarding fun and bonding time with his housemates in Bolton Valley, VT.
Welcome to Telluride Ski Resort, about an hour from Montrose and 2.5 hours from Durango (both of which have regional airports) in Southwest Colorado with just 2500 year-round residents who happily live in a box canyon 8750 feet above sea level. Yes you feel that altitude.
We’re hiking the famous Batteries to Bluffs trail in San Francisco’s Presidio, a national park unlike any other, which takes us up and down steps along the western Pacific shoreline, past historic gun batteries, rewarding us with a spectacular view of the Golden Gate Bridge. Wow!
Coconut Bay Beach Resort & Spa in St. Lucia offers Splash, a wing where the kids club is housed and visitors delight in being young and taking part in family-friendly activities and Harmony, Coconut Bay’s adults-only wing.
Award winning San Francisco chef Traci Des Jardins wishes American restaurants would take a page—a menu page—from their counterparts in other parts of the world. “The United States is one of the only places in the world that has special meals for kids,” she said. “We are conditioned to teach kids to eat differently than we do and that is a mistake.”
“I love it here,” said Martha Kramer, enjoying an early dinner with her two kids, including one with special needs. She could have gone to the first rate restaurant downstairs Manzanita with her husband and his business colleagues, she said, “But this is more relaxing.”
This program at $295 is less than an all day private lesson. The women are grouped according to their ability, no more to four to a group. They might end up with a private coach all day. The day includes a lift ticket, the latest demo equipment and at the end of the day, champagne and canapés during a “tech talk” about equipment. Considering that a lift ticket is over $100 and demo equipment $70, this is a bargain.
We’re not in England though it feels like it. We’re in suburban St. Louis at the locally owned Cheshire, celebrating its 50th anniversary.