In Mexico, a Spa for the Whole Family
Where are the kids while the parents are at the spa? There are two options: the Barcy Kids Club, where kids get to partake in activities like pool sports and crafts, or the Barcelo Kids Spa.
Anything related to family travel
 
			Where are the kids while the parents are at the spa? There are two options: the Barcy Kids Club, where kids get to partake in activities like pool sports and crafts, or the Barcelo Kids Spa.
 
			This resort is dedicated to protecting the sea turtle eggs laid upon its 1.25 miles of glistening beach during sea turtle nesting season from May through October, and guests of all ages are encouraged to participate in the release of the juvenile turtles when they hatch.
 
			This is Mayan land, we are told, and there is a lot of mysticism around here. So much mysticism that the superstitious-minded believe the world will be ending December 21, 2012. It doesn’t feel like the world is ending at Barceló, though…
 
			Fall is a great time to visit Washington, D.C. Hotel rates are down as much as half, and the summer humidity has disappeared, along with the crowds. No wonder it’s Travelzoo’s featured destination right now.
 
			America may lack royalty, but Mount Vernon, the regal estate of our first president, is a must for families taking in the history of our nation’s capital.
 
			Take a fall weekend to explore a smaller city or region near your home and you’ll be amazed at what you find; especially if you let the kids lead the way. Honestly, before I got there, I wondered what Sioux Falls S.D. would have to offer a traveling family.
 
			I didn’t want a hotel that was just a place to sleep. I didn’t want a hotel that was just convenient to the train station. I wanted a hotel that would be part of the experience—a big part of the experience. We were staying in Rome just one night and it was my birthday.
 
			When I visited Disneyland earlier this summer, moms and dads were busy filming the princess transformation on their iPads and smartphones. “It never gets old for them” said manager Joanna Pisanski
 
			My family decided to end our stay in the Big Apple with a trip to see the Statue of Liberty. Let me tell you, the “Summer Evenings” Cruise out to the Statue of Liberty was the highlight of our whole trip.
 
			As summer draws to a close, we all like to think back on this year’s family travels. And why not reminisce on the sweet break we had? This summer I had an experience to last a lifetime. This summer, I got to travel to two large cities: Boston and New York.
 
			Yet again, an airline—this time United—lost an unaccompanied minor who was supposed to be escorted to her connecting flight earlier this summer. Some advice on how to minimize the chances of this happening to your child…
 
			A villa or condo makes vacationing with kids — no matter what their ages — so much easier. Remember that the kitchen is always open and in some cases you have a staff all to yourself. And you don’t have to share the pool with strangers.
 
			What surprised me most about Boston was how history and the modern city were combined. There was a colonial age church between a coffee shop and a bank, cemeteries hidden between buildings …
 
			My nieces from Arkansas recently visited Boston and New York with on a two week road trip with their parents. The girls used CityPASSes to visit top attractions and museums in New York and Boston.
 
			In 2007, The Fresh Air Fund decided to team up with the Department of Tourism of the Cayman Islands and go international with children ages 7-12. Massou Traore was one of 10 lucky few to come on this trip.
 
			The skies are blue, the air is clear and there is no evidence of fire where tourists would go. “Some people watching TV thought the whole city burned up,” one local told me. “Some people thought the entire state burned,” said another in Crested Butte. Fortunately, Colorado’s fire-impacted areas represent less than 1 percent of the state’s 23 million acres of public land.
 
			I love that Elitch Gardens has such a history dating back to 1890. It opened with a zoo, summer stock and a ballroom. The carousel, which took craftsmen three years to carve by hand, has been here since 1928 and still operates today; The Ferris Wheel was erected in 1936 and still operates.
 
			What’s left? Biking, of course. Locals are huge mountain bikers so we’ve at least got to give it a shot. We opt for the Rio Grande Trail—a rail to trail favorite of locals for running, hiking, walking and of course biking.
 
			ACES, as the environmental center is known, offers a variety of winter and summer activities for families from custom hikes (a bargain at $40 an hour) to a free birds of prey program we dropped in on in the afternoon meeting the resident horned owl and golden eagle…
 
			Al Palazzo is a bit disappointed that the kids are more interested in shopping and gondola rides than Great Sites but he’s glad everyone is having a good time and more importantly, he’s not navigating the family and all their bags from city to city.