Adventure Starts Here.
Every journey brings you closer to new places, to people you love, to family, and to yourself. Let’s make your next escape unforgettable.
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.
Eileen interviewed on fall deals by New Jersey 101.5 in Trenton.
Eileen interviewed by MarketWatch on “added value” travel deals.
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.
The St Regis underwent a $40 million redesign in 2011 and it shows. They welcome kids and pets with special amenities. The spa is the go to place in town to be pampered –15,000 square feet with 15 treatment rooms. There’s steam and sauna and cold plunge and hot tubs.
until this morning, Zach Lewis hadn’t been fly fishing—a popular Aspen activity. This morning at his first spot on the Roaring Creek River Zach caught a nice sized trout. It was all catch and release, but that’s not what this is about.
“We plan the itinerary so that we can stop like this,” says our captain, Dano Quinn, who has been piloting vessels in Alaska for the last 16 years. “The best of Alaska is the wilderness,” he adds. “Not in the towns and we provide the opportunities for that.”
I’d always wanted to do the famous hike between Crested Butte in Southwest Colorado and Aspen –12.2 miles along the West Maroon trail, crossing the Maroon Pass which is 12,500 feet high. I’d first heard about this hike years ago when we took our kids to Crested Butte, one of my favorite mountain towns to ski.
People are afraid to come to the Springs, locals tell me, saying they think the entire city has burned, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. But the Broadmoor, which has been welcoming families for 19 years, is tranquil and at it should be. So is downtown Colorado Springs, where an outdoor festival is underway.
I’m also glad to be in The Springs as locals call it for another reason—to tell everyone that the Waldo Canyon Wildfire that destroyed more than 300 homes earlier this summer has been completely contained and the city and all of its attractions are open for business.
There’s a reason they call Kauai the garden island. There are all varieties of plants I’ve never seen and whose names I can’t pronounce. They also happen to be very rare—endangered, in fact.
No, it’s not teens gabbing and texting their way through your family vacation. We’re talking chickens — 250 of white-and-black striped hens to be exact — whose Eggmobile is parked just behind one of the guesthouses at the Inn at Valley Farms in Walpole, N.H., where we spent the weekend recently.
I’m a real fan of sleep away camp. I went as a child and all three of my kids went for many years—my son to Camp Nebagamon in Wisconsin and my daughters to Camp Kamaji in Minnesota. My girls worked as counselors there as well, teaching sailing and leading wilderness trips.
Radiator Springs Racers at the new and improved Disney California Adventure Park is one of the most elaborate attractions ever created for a Disney theme park and it is the centerpiece for the new Cars Land here
Long a favorite of families and travelers in New England, Cape Cod offers a diverse range of vacation options and activities. Many families opt to rent a house for a few days, a week, or more.
My interview with the First Lady got me thinking of all the power we have as parents if we let hotels, resorts and restaurants know in no uncertain terms that we don’t want to feed kids a steady diet of chicken fingers, fries and mac and cheese on vacation.
Adventures by Disney — which already offers a multi-day southern California tour—now touts this one-day tour ($199 per person) that includes Hollywood. Beverly Hills and concludes with a stop at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank that aren’t open to the public.
We asked Mrs. Obama how she encourages her family to eat healthier when they travel and what tips she might have for the rest of us…
With such a devoted audience, it’s no wonder Walt Disney World is in the middle of a huge expansion of Fantasyland expected to be completed later this year with more princess meet-and-greets
At the newly revamped Disney California Adventure in Anaheim you can saunter down Buena Vista Street as it might have been when Walt Disney as a young man with a suitcase, $40 and a big dream in the early 1920s. This being Disney, everything has a back story.
This is a good time to visit Disneyland. Not only has the Disneyland Hotel been completely renovated (love the new water playground!) but Disney just unveiled the new Cars Land, based on the movie “Cars,” evening water spectacular and other entertainment at the grand reopening of California Adventure.
Ready to race? Radiator Springs Racers is one of the most elaborate attractions ever created for a Disney theme park as the “Cars” gang gathers to get us ready for the big race.
The sweet smell of steamed Maryland crab seeps from red-brick laid store fronts around every corner, and reminders of the great naval battles of the War of 1812 linger not just in history books, but throughout this intensely American city.
Eileen lends her expertise for this Foxnews.com report: Must-have beach items for kids and families
We’re on our way to a very special celebration in the wilderness — Camp Denali’s 60th anniversary, which has brought back one of its founders and many who have helped make this small, 18-cabin enclave one of the most iconic National Park lodges anywhere.
Juneau, the state capitol and only accessible by plane or boat, gets over 950,000 tourists annually, the vast number on big cruise ships. They are missing a lot, spending just a few hours here.
Of the more than 12 million kids meals served last year at Disney Parks and Resorts in the U.S., parents stuck with the healthier options six out of 10 times. Now Disney will enhance these efforts by further reducing sodium in kids’ meals and introducing new well-balanced kids’ breakfast meals.
I understand why the Native Tlingits called glaciers “white thunder.” We see harbor seals lounging on chunks of blue ice in the water. The glacier looks like blue cotton candy with chocolate sprinkles.
Mornings like this make you realize why you can’t compare this Alaska cruise with just 60-plus passengers to a giant cruise ship with thousands. Rather than docking in ports, we’ve anchored in a cove here in Southeast Alaska precisely so we can go off for a morning paddle
No waiting for buses, navigating crowded parking lots or walking more than you or your kids can take. Hall whisks you around Walt Disney World in a private car that he parks exactly where you want to be.
“We plan the itinerary so that we can stop like this,” says our captain, Dano Quinn, who has been piloting vessels in Alaska for the last 16 years.
Did I mention this father and child are Bald Eagles and we are listening to their conversation from kayaks in spectacular Saginaw Bay on Kuiu Island in Southeast Alaska?
We are cruising around Prince of Wales Island in Southeast Alaska aboard the InnerSea Discoveries Wilderness Discoverer when we spy humpback whales. So cool! Two are off the bow of the ship!
This morning kayaking near the entrance to the Dry Pass, we see giant red sea stars, anemones and the biggest clams I’ve ever see – Gasper Clams (so-called because they squirt water out of their shells). We learn make these clams make for great bear snacks.
As any parent knows, when kids are involved, unforeseen circumstances can materialize at the drop of a hat. Illness can sideline the entire family, resulting in financial losses such as costs for airfare, tickets to attractions and other non-refundable deposits.
Migis Lodge in Maine is a small resort too—just 35 cottages—at most, 150 guests.We could all use a place like that this summer to get unplugged with the kids, if only for a few days. There’s no glitz or glam, just old-fashioned family time.
What people also don’t realize is that hiking here is far different than hiking in Yosemite or Yellowstone or most other places. There are no defined trails, and no trail signs. You either need to be experienced in the backcountry and know how to use a compass and map or be fortunate enough to be hiking with someone like Brian McCormick who has been guiding visitors for years.
Wood showed us a film after dinner of the building of “Camp” as they call it—hauling logs with a World War II surplus jeep, sawing huge trees with hand saws, giving climbers who successfully summited the largest mountain in North America (20,320 feet!) a free spaghetti dinner.
Maybe this July 4th you’ll be home marching or watching a local parade. Maybe you’ll be visiting the relatives and cheering on nieces and nephews as they march. Maybe you’ll be celebrating some place new, joining in special and unique celebrations.
They said the views from the ridge at the top of the Tiga Trail are spectacular. We ask can we do a “moderate-slash-strenuous” hike (translation: slower). Everyone laughs and the six of us in our family—three nursing bad knees—head off with the naturalists
We’ve already seen a huge Grizzly munching on a ground squirrel, four Dall sheep, Caribou, a moose and two recently born calves, a red fox …and we’d only been in Denali National Park a few hours.
That trip was three summers ago and since Mel left for college, we’ve shared adventures but she’s gone off much more often on her own—as it should be. I’m glad we made it to paradise when we did.
If the kids balk when you get to the front of the line, walk away. Tell your child there’s always next year.
In my new book The Kid’s Guide to New York City, I do my best to make sightseeing in the Big Apple fun for kids as well as parents, with plenty of tips from local (play soccer in the park!) and visiting kids (try roasted nuts from a vendor! )
Browse through a selection of travel ideas for cities, countries, and unique regions that offer memorable experiences for every type of traveler.
Escape to the outdoors where lush parks, scenic trails, and serene natural retreats provide the space to relax, recharge, and experience the world in its purest form.
Every destination has its own flavor. Let the food take you on a journey through local traditions, and unforgettable meals.
