A huge menu at Flathead Lake Lodge in Montana
What should we today? that’s the biggest decision a guest must make with nearly two dozen activities—including those just for kids and for teens.
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Flathead Lake Lodge copes well with Covid Summer
At Flathead Lake Lodge, rather than 125 people spread out in 22 cozy log cabins and the main lodge, there are 83, including 30 kids
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A mind game: fly-fishing in Yellowstone National Park
Fly fishing in Yellowstone is a big deal. If I could have only one fishing license in the world it would be here at Yellowstone National Park,” says Almond, who traded an executive career to become a fly fishing guide.
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A different kind of camping – Under Canvas
This is camping Under Canvas style, modeled after the traditional safari experience and especially welcome this Pandemic summer when everyone is anxious to enjoy the outdoors but may not want the work of camping, sleeping on the ground or sharing communal bathrooms.
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Big Geyser, Little Geyser – social distancing at Yellowstone NP
We’re at Yellowstone National Park but we’re not at Old Faithful. We’re a few miles away at Lone Star Geyser that required a little over a two-mile hike—really a mellow walk along a beautiful steam.
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Destinations | Families & Groups | Getting There | Lodging | Pandemic Family Travel | Parks & Outdoors | Taking the Kids Blogs
A look at summer travel under COVID rules
We’re talking about the havoc the COVID-19 Pandemic has wreaked on in lives. That includes, of course, any travel plans we might have had for this summer.
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As Orlando Reopens, Safety First at Theme Parks
Just to enter, you’ll need an advance reservation, temperature screening and a mask. Welcome to the New Normal as Orlando begins to open in this Pandemic Summer.
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On the Road – Covid Summer 2020: 1st stop Jackson Hole; it’s cold, rainy and tourists and businesses are coming back
ckson, of course, is the gateway to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. This time of year, the town should be buzzing with tourists, including many from overseas. Summer is high season—typically.
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Backyard Vacations | Destinations | Families & Groups | Pandemic Family Travel | Parks & Outdoors | Taking the Kids Blogs
Rocky Mountain Towns are Reopening for Adventurers
As long as you are willing to wear masks and social distance, you will find mountain towns have fine-tuned their lodging, restaurants, and guided adventures so that you can get outdoors and enjoy yourselves this summer—safely.
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On a road trip to South Dakota’s Black Hills and Badlands
This summer, it seems, road trips are expected to be particularly popular — if families opt to leave home at all. That’s why throughout the summer, we’ll spotlight some classic American road trips — like to South Dakota’s Black Hills and Badlands.
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Heading outdoors any way you want this summer
Families, it seems, think camping can be the antidote they seek — and a way to get out of town safely, according to a new COVID-19 edition of the North American Camping Report, sponsored by Kampgrounds of America.
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Summer travel, or not, in the new normal
What’s a family to do? If families get away at all, they are likely to drive and stay closer to home, suggests Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association
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Getting moms and daughters out of their comfort zones
When Steff Keene wanted to backpack for the first time, she didn’t turn to adventure-loving friends for advice like college students might. She turned to mom.
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Why Greece is the Destination for Skip-Gen Vacations
Isn’t this the best possible gift for the young ones! Grandparents today are healthy, active and available. Combining their stories and their unconditional love with the young children’s curiosity connects the kids with their past and their roots
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Thinking about adventures past and to come — in Alaska
Nearly a year later, stuck at home, trips canceled in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, I smile thinking about that stellar day and the rest of last summer’s trip to Alaska
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To Golden Gate Park for its big birthday
They called the area the Great Sand Wastes, but even those who believed in the project could never have imagined what Golden Gate Park would become
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Thinking about the great outdoors
As for Doc, he retired and opted for a second career where people meet him with big smiles on their faces, some having waited more than a year to meet him
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To Philadelphia and celebrating women during women’s history month
For 2020, Philadelphia has officially changed the city’s “City of Brotherly Love” moniker to the “City of Sisterly Love,” acknowledging that women of color were not fully enfranchised until the 1965 Voting Rights Act
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Snow graffiti? Who knew? The kids program at Vista Verde Ranch
All you need is some snow and spray bottles with food coloring—blue, yellow, green, red, purple…
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Back to Vista Verde Ranch – snowmobiles and more fun in the snow
Welcome to Vista Verde Ranch near the tiny Colorado town of Clark and about a 40-minute drive from Steamboat Springs-and a world away from the busy ski town where you have to jockey on the slopes for a place to sit at lunch time.
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Under the Devil’s Thumb, a guest ranch for XC, snowshoe and spa lovers
We see that giant snow-covered thumb as we are getting a Nordic classic ski lesson at Devil’s Thumb Ranch, a four-season resort on 6,500 pristine acres about 75 miles west of Denver and 15 miles from Winter Park and its famous downhill slope
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Tweens Spill on Skiing in Vail and Beaver Creek
Local kids in Vail Valley say there’s so much to love about the area. Hear directly from kids themselves about their favorite ski runs, off slope activities and more!
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Fun in the snow off the slopes
Spring also is a great time to come to the slopes with plenty of sunshine, warmer temperatures and late season deals
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Taking the Kids — on spring break
Spring break is such a good time to get away. Hopefully, your kids will have that same week off. And you may find it easier to escape for a week or a long weekend than in the middle of the summer when everyone wants to get away
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To a special Jamaican villa
The experience, of course, is entirely different, as I discovered. Think being on a mega cruise ship with morning-till-night activities vs. your own private yacht with a staff to cater to every whim
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The right kind of family condo found! The Antlers at Vail
The condos here range from one to four bedrooms but they all are unique—the one bedroom we have, for example, has a separate alcove with two bunk beds—perfect for a young family.
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Jamaican Villas with solid family ties
Adam’s Stewart’s family is now so big—seven siblings and 13 grandchildren—they spread out between two villas in Jamaica
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In Jamaica, the story of Martha Brae and the Rio Mateberion
During the plantation and slavery era, the river was used to connect the sugar plantations in Trelawny to the port town of Falmouth–long bamboo rafts were used to float the sugar and other crops to the harbor and ocean-going vessels bound for Europe
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On an annual old girlfriends’ getaway – to a fab villa in Jamaica with our own butler and chef
Welcome to Sundown Villa in Discovery Bay, Jamaica right on the ocean. This five-bedroom house adjacent to another two-story four bedroom house, is owned by Gordon “Butch” Stewart, the founder and chairman of Sandals Resorts International.
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Family fun central in winter at YMCA of the Rockies, Estes Park CO
Named “Best Family Resort in America” by USA Today’s Reader’s Choice Awards, YMCA of the Rockies is Family Reunion Central
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A New Adventure: Re-Learning How to Scuba Dive in Belize
I had been to Belize once before on a venture grant from Colorado College six years ago when I last went scuba diving
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Morgan’s Wonderland: An ‘Ultra-Accessible’ facility for people with special challenges
Morgan’s Wonderland is the very first theme park of its kind. The park has welcomed more than 1.6 million guests from all 50 states and 73 countries in its first decade
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Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railroad
Eileen interviews Walt Disney World’s Imagineering Creative Director Kevin Rafferty, who is overseeing the development of Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railroad, opening March 2020.
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Taking the Kids to see the best and brightest holiday lights
Make it an early gift for the kids to get away for a pre-holiday weekend, reveling in the holiday lights and festivities
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Maine State Parks – perfect places for outdoor winter fun
Maine State Parks are perfect places for outdoor winter fun for families, whatever your ages or ability at winter sports.
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Taking the Kids RVing
The secret to this unusual road trip bliss: A 36-foot rented RV where the kids can be safely strapped in seatbelts but still able to play games at the table between them
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Explore Mural Art in Aruba
It’s tempting to spend your entire holiday splashing in the warm turquoise water but there’s much to do in Aruba beyond the beach
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How I got the “money shot” in Custer State Park
After some explicit can’t miss instruction I went to the road, dodged an occasional car, fended off a few mountain lions, and took this photo that may not win me an award, but is definitely the coolest night photo I’ve ever taken
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To Belize for sun, sand and adventure
Belize boasts more than 500 species of fish and marine life. The water is so clear you can see the reef, sea turtles, rays and more from a kayak too
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On an RV trip or any trip, you always forget something you need
We toured part of Utah and Colorado in a new Winnebago Boldt that was equipped with most everything — and I did bring things we’ve used everyday
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10 ways to savor fall — before it’s gone
When was the last time you spent a day biking or hiking with the kids, crunching leaves under your feet and seeing who can spot the most colorful leaves? It’s not too late for fall foliage
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Families love their RVs – it’s all about togetherness and outdoors
“A hotel isn’t the same,” added Zach Dubey. “We get to be outside more,” cooking together, sitting around a fire. (Here, we rent a fire pit for $20 for our stay, plus wood.)
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Arches and Canyonlands National Parks – Spectacular Utah attractions!
It’s easy to see why Arches National Park, just 5 miles north of Moab Utah, is the world’s largest concentration of natural sandstone arches — over 2,000 throughout the park’s more than 76,000 acres.
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Why they call it an adventure! On the road in an RV for the first time
The 40 million people in the United States who RV camp regularly sure would be laughing at us newbies. But this is a first, and an adventure for us and whenever you step out of your comfort zone, you’ve got to figure there will be some bumps along the way. That’s why they call it an adventure! Duh.
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Continuing the discussion about climate change
Zoos, aquariums and science museums can also be excellent places to explore this important topic and start a dialog with kids — even young ones — about what they might do to be good environmental stewards
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Celebrating Halloween throughout October
If you thought you had weeks left to get those costumes ready, think again. That’s because Halloween is now celebrated — big time — from theme parks to zoos, children’s museums to hotels and resorts all October long
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Connect With Nature Right Outside Of Atlanta in Sandy Springs, Georgia
Sandy Springs GA is a destination within a destination. It’s also a place where you can unwind, relax and go offline for several hours at a time
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A family vacation in Turkey
People are first amazed by Turkey’s warm hospitable atmosphere, pristine beaches, nice weather, affordability, and the family-friendly resorts are difficult to beat
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Bringing home the Halibut in Alaska
I’m still dubious when we put the baited and weighted hooks in the ocean. They go down 200 feet but immediately one person gets a bite… then another… and another
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They call it “fishing,” not “catching” – it was one of those days even in Alaska
There is a reason they call it fishing — not catching — even on the Kenai, one of the best rivers in Alaska
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Peace, Solitude, Activity, Yums, more — at Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge
We’ve canoed and hiked a mile through the forest and canoed some more across Addison Lake where the salmon are spawning, thinking we might see a bear snacking along the shore
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Solving a 150-million-year-old Mystery in the Wyoming dirt
By studying fossils of dinosaurs, scientists not only can figure out what these ancient creatures looked like 150 million years ago, but how they moved, what they ate and how they died
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Digging for Dinosaurs – “A Girl Can Be a Princess and a Scientist”
When she was little, Victoria Egerton’s teachers didn’t know what to make of her and her fascination with geology and science.
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Unraveling a 150-year-old mystery
This is what scientists have dubbed “The Jurassic Mile,” for in these rocks is one of the most significant and exciting dinosaur finds in North America dating back 150 million years
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Rescued bear cubs and recuperating raptors in Sitka
Even if you are lucky enough to see a bear or a Bald Eagle in the wild in Alaska, you won’t get nearly as close as you can in Sitka
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Take grandma zip lining? Shore excursions in Alaska
there are lots of options from the popular Lumberjack Show in Ketchikan to gold panning in Juneau, the White Pass scenic railroad in Skagway, a rainforest bicycle tour, rock climbing,
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The never in a billion years cruise in Alaska
Karon Greenfield never had any interest in cruising. “Never in a billion years,” said Mrs. Greenfield, who is from near Cleveland, Ohio
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To a different kind of water park
Molly Brown, like others of her era, came to Glenwood Springs, about 40 miles north of Aspen and a three-hour drive from Denver, for the clean mountain air and to “take the waters” at the famous mineral Glenwood Hot Springs
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Teaching Kids About the Power of Nature
As the Earth warms, many of the most beloved natural wonders are beginning to disappear. That means it is more important than ever that families show kids just how powerful and wonderful nature can be
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Camping Hacks for Newbies
If you haven’t had a chance to unplug and get the kids outdoors this summer…the time is now!
