Trip Ideas By Activity
There are so many ways to vacation with your children.
City explorations, museum sleepovers, condo-style rentals, road trips, mountain and lake cabins, beaches, cruises, and all-inclusive vacations stretch budgets. Resorts run the gamut from moderate to pricey. Staying midweek or during shoulder season saves money.
Dream trips—African safaris, Galapagos treks, polar bear watches—deliver the thrill of wildlife encounters but at a hefty price. Farmstays, state and national parks, and hikes through Costa Rican rain forests let you enjoy animal encounters at a fraction of the cost.
Time travel fascinates kids. At living history parks, march with the militia and meet pioneers. In Europe, tour centuries-old castles, climb atop medieval walls, and stroll streets laced with 18th-century buildings. Go back millions of years to the dinosaur era. Satisfy your kids’ curiosity by going on a dinosaur dig, walking in dinosaur footprints, and ogling fossils of these fierce critters in museums.
Build sandcastles at the beach, canoe and fish at a lake, get tossed, twirled, and dropped on rollercoasters at an amusement, ski downhill, or snowshoe through snowy woods.
Stay overnight, for a few days, or a week. Plan carefully, allow for spontaneity, know that things will go awry, and maintain your sense of humor. Have fun.
Auberge Resorts CollectionLuxe Beat Magazine
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Candyce H. Stapen2021-07-25 11:45:232021-07-26 17:03:15New Children’s Program at Malliouhana
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Candyce H. Stapen2021-07-18 09:27:082021-07-20 11:32:36Take a Luxury Family Vacation in AnguillaActivities
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A Luxury Family Vacation in Anguilla
LUXE BEAT Magazine||by Candyce H. StapenCategories: Beach Resorts, Beaches, Best Family Resorts, Caribbean, Bahamas & Bermuda Destinations, Cruises & Resorts, Family, Featured NewsThe planning began six months earlier when the COVID-19 vaccines rolled out. We chose Anguilla for its world-class beaches, noteworthy restaurants, and intelligent approach to pandemic containment, one that earned the island a Level 1 classification from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the lowest possible risk level for COVID-19.
We sought a villa big enough to give five adults and two toddlers space together and apart. Along with privacy, we craved a few hotel amenities. Houses at resorts came with crowded beaches, and stand-alone homes lacked services. Long Bay Villas, a cluster of three Mediterranean-style residences overlooking a quiet beach, offered seclusion and staff. We pooled our resources and booked Sand, a 6,500 square-foot stunner with five bedrooms. The three master bedrooms eliminated squabbles over who gets the diva digs, and the toddlers gleefully slept in a cozy bunk-bedded room.
We worked jigsaw puzzles and raced trucks with 4-year-old James and two-year-old Charlotte in the living area, played gin rummy at the dining table, and planned our day while sipping coffee on the deck with its pool, hot tub, and expansive views of the turquoise sea. A concierge assisted us with restaurant reservations and outings, and a housekeeper kept the unit spotless, washing our dirty laundry every day.
Did I mention the butler? Each Long Bay Villa comes with eight hours of daily, complimentary butler service. The management thoughtfully staffed Sand with two butlers in case we needed help with the young kids. Each morning we awakened to complimentary croissants, fruit, juice, and coffee served by Yann and Roberto, who broke out in a wide grin when anyone requested scrambled eggs.
After a long day of travel to Anguilla, we looked forward to a chef-cooked dinner at the property since no one had the energy to go out. The butlers also pre-stocked our fridge, so we didn’t have to race to a grocery store for milk and morning essentials. The butlers served us hors d’oeuvres, followed by a tasty, three-course meal cooked by Chef Marlon. The butlers washed the dishes too. We quickly acclimated to such pampering, splitting our time between exploring the island and savoring the villa.
One morning we swam at Meads Bay, a long swath of sugar-soft sand and calm waters, before lunching at Leon’s, Malliouhana’s beachside eatery. We especially liked the blackened mahi and the crispy sweet potato fries. James and Charlotte munched crispy chicken fingers before taking their first shots at billiards under their dad’s tutelage.
A day outing to Prickly Pear combined two of our family’s favorite things—boat rides and good food. First, we moored at Little Bay, a marine park with a thumbnail of a beach bookended by cliffs. We snorkeled along the rocks, catching sight of lobsters and schools of rainbow-colored fish, and took turns holding James and Charlotte as they giggled and splashed in the sea.
Next, the boat dropped us at Prickly Pear, an uninhabited Anguillan cay with sparkling white sands, chaise lounges, and Prickly Pear Restaurant. Don’t be fooled by its beach shack vibe or the lack of a menu. We sat at the picnic tables and waited. Soon a server appeared with platters of delicious local fare served family-style—grilled mahi-mahi, chicken, BBQ ribs, shrimp, grilled whole lobsters, and crayfish, plus bowls of rice and peas, salad, coleslaw, and sautéed potatoes. We stuffed ourselves, then swam before heading back to the villa for showers and naps (adults too).
One night we timed drinks and dinner at the Four Seasons Resort Anguilla to correspond with the sunset. From the beach and from Salt, the sunsets are spectacular.
Because a recent storm had washed away a portion of Long Bay’s small beach, we hung out at sister property Santosha’s wide sands, a three-minute ride away by butler-driven golf cart. The beach staff provided towels, set up shade umbrellas, and served us cold drinks. Most of the time, we had the beautiful cove to ourselves.
Since James and Charlotte ate dinner early, the butlers picked up food from restaurants for the kids and the adults who stayed with them while the rest of us dined out.
The most important service provided by Long Bay Villas took place before we arrived. At our request and for no extra charge, the property erected a sturdy enclosure around the pool and hot tub that prevented James and Charlotte from entering by themselves. Although someone always watched the kids, the extra safety measure allowed us to relax.
The last night we enjoyed a chef-cooked dinner on a private beach, complete with the aroma of grilled lobster, the crackle of a bonfire as we roasted marshmallows for s’mores. The sky popped with so many stars that the toddlers—and all of us–felt transported to an enchanted setting.
Warning: Some Vacation Rentals Don’t Include Access to Property Amenities
Frommers.com||by Candyce H. StapenCategories: Cruises & Resorts, Family Travel Tips, More Lodging, Rent a House, Condo, Villa, What to Plan NowSo you’ve scored a great deal on a resort condo or villa on Vrbo, Airbnb, HomeToGo, or a similar website?
Don’t take it for granted that you’ll be allowed to use all the hotel’s facilities.
You might not.
Rental-by-owner agencies open up a wide variety of lodgings to vacationers, often at prices lower than if reserved through the resort. Owners also benefit because the listing companies’ cut of bookings is less than the percentage pocketed by resorts when they handle the booking directly.
But as travelers migrate to rental-by-owner sites, resorts control fewer rooms in their own inventory, and it becomes harder to entice groups to come for large weddings and meetings. To combat that problem, many condo properties allow full access to facilities only to guests booked directly by the resort’s head office.
That could mean vacationers who rented through a unit owner are banned from the tennis courts, pools, golf course, or other amenities the guest might have assumed were included. Or those overnighters could be restricted to using amenities at inconvenient hours.
Some owners might omit those details about resort policy when they advertise their units—and you should take the omission as a potential red flag.
Conscientious condo owners state the activity restrictions up front, so if the full use of facilities is not addressed in the property description, take it upon yourself to ask.
To know what you may access, read the unit’s write-up and the guest reviews carefully. Ask the owner to list the activities and facilities that are complimentary, which ones require a fee, and which ones you may not use.
If the owners don’t know, suggest they consult the Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions (CC&Rs) or rules of the governing homeowners’ association (HOA). Usually, renters are automatically assigned use of amenities when they lease a unit, but some properties explicitly forbid extending the privilege to outsiders, and that’s what you’ll need to check for.
Some owners get around resort rules by naming renters as “family and friends,” which on some properties is enough to extend full privileges for the duration of the stay.
What happens if the resort locks you out of the facilities once you have arrived?
Without written assurances that you were supposed to gain access to the amenities, you won’t have much recourse anywhere. If you’re just a guest, battling with management is likely to be futile.
If you previously received promises in writing that you would be allowed free use of the amenities, then you might have a refund case with the website that facilitated the rental transaction. If you never had confirmation of those benefits, you may be out of luck.
Airbnb advises customers to contact the unit owner to resolve the dispute, and if that doesn’t work, you might be eligible for a refund under the website’s Guest Refund Policy. Vrbo’s stance is less generous, suggesting it’s more concerned with “uninhabitable” lodgings than with missing amenities; if you get no solution from the owner, Vrbo advises, you can always write a negative review.
Beyond that, you can try disputing the charge with your credit card company, showing the documentation that proves you were promised something you didn’t receive—but that tactic is likely to fail if you decide to use the unit for the duration of your reservation anyway.
So it’s up to you to find out what’s included before you book. Get the inclusions in writing first, or you may find yourself excluded once you arrive.
Great Family Resorts for Fall Foliage Fun Around North America
Frommers.com||by Candyce H. StapenCategories: Best Family Resorts, Cruises & Resorts, Destinations, Family Travel Tips, Featured News, Historic, Lake, Mountain, and Ski Resorts, Midwest United States Destinations, More Lodging, Northeast United States Destinations, Southern United States Destinations, United States Destinations, Western United States DestinationsFamilies who crave autumn leaf-peeping don’t have to resign themselves to piling into cramped cars for fall road trips. They can just stay in comfort at a full-service hotel that happens to be rooted in the middle of the action.
At the lakefront, riverside, mountain-view, and ridgetop resorts detailed here, you and your kids can hike, bike, and horseback ride through dappled woods or admire the views from front porch rocking chairs. For parents with kids in tow, we’ve carefully chosen properties that are near plenty of other fall fun, too, including zip lines, mountain coasters, drive-through covered bridges, and pumpkin picking.
Trapp Family Lodge, Vermont
At Trapp Family Lodge, in Stowe, explore 2,600 acres of meadows and woods in a picture-postcard Vermont landscape of hillsides made magical by red sugar maples and russet oaks. On naturalist-led outings, meet the shaggy-haired Scottish Highland cattle, hike easy or steep terrain, or learn to navigate by compass. The 35 miles of mountain biking trails make the property a good choice for active teens—wobbly learners feel less tense on the 15 miles of single-track paths. The resort, owned by descendants of Maria and Baron von Trapp, the founders whose story inspired “The Sound of Music,” shows its Austrian roots. The wooden buildings have gables and overhanging eaves and, one of the restaurants, the Bierhall, serves von Trapp-brewed lager, schnitzel, bratwurst, and big pretzels (plus chicken fingers and burgers, too—this is a family that knows a lot about small children).
Options: 96 hotel rooms, 118 guest houses
Big Cedar Lodge, Missouri
Big Cedar Lodge, ten miles south of Branson, mixes Ozark Mountain scenery with a resort that’s tricked out almost like an amusement park. Developed by Johnny Morris, founder of Bass Pro Shops, the 4,600-acre resort hugs Table Rock Lake, a massive 43,000-acre reservoir known for bass fishing, boating, and brilliant fall ribbons of yellow, orange, and reddish-brown hickory and oak trees. Take in the vistas from Top of the Rock, a high bluff whose attractions include a golf cart trail past waterfalls and through caves. Drive go-karts, play laser tag, go bowling, and climb a rock wall at Fun Mountain, a 50,000-square foot active adventure center that’s part of the property. Nearby, you can explore the nature preserve at Dogwood Canyon (pictured above) by hiking, horseback riding, and biking, and during Cedar Fest, the annual fall celebration (mid-September through October), tackle a 3,700-square foot maze, cruise the lake, and pick pumpkins to decorate.
Options: 363 units, 139 rooms, 197 cabins and camping-style units.
Fairmont Le Château Montebello, Montebello, Canada
Situated between Montréal and Ottawa, the luxury Fairmont Le Château Montebello is set on 300 acres of woods along the banks of the Ottawa River. Constructed of 10,000 giant cedar logs, the star-shaped building reigns as the world’s largest log cabin. The resort exudes a north woods ambiance, but one with finesse. Immerse yourself in the landscape, which in autumn is ablaze with fiery red and yellow birches, oaks, and maples, by walking the 5-kilometer (3-mile) trail encompassing the property, zipping into town on an electric bike, and pedaling the area’s extensive mountain bike trails. Allow time for kids to splash in the 75-foot indoor pool, Canada’s largest, and end the evening by making s’mores at a campfire. At nearby Parc Omega nature park, spot black bears, wolves, moose, deer, and other animals native to Canada as you drive a 9-mile route.
Options: 210 rooms
Wintergreen Resort, Virginia
Wintergreen Resort, a ski resort in the winter, comprises multiple properties on nearly 11,000 acres in the Blue Ridge Mountains. In autumn, the surrounding slopes pop with a dazzling mix of golden poplars, red maples, and reddish-brown oaks. The 30 miles of resort hiking trails include several easy and moderate paths through woods to streams, waterfalls, and scenic overlooks of cascading mountain peaks. Play tennis with your kids on indoor and outdoor courts and swim in outdoor and indoor heated pools. The chairlift opens out of season for Columbus Day weekend so visitors can take in panoramic vistas of the trees. To enjoy those views from your lodging, make sure to reserve a condo along Blue Ridge Drive that faces the mountains.The units at Wintergreen are individually owned so they vary in décor, so to get the most updated ones, request a platinum- or gold-rated property. The valley supports plenty of family-friendly craft breweries that serve inexpensive food. Our favorites include Scratch Kitchen at Brewing Tree Beer Company and the Devils Backbone Brewing Company.
Options: 174 units, including 57 studio lodge rooms, 103 condos, and 14 houses
Spring Creek Ranch, Wyoming
Perched on a nearly 1,000-foot-high butte, Spring Creek Ranch, in Jackson Hole, gives you easy access to two iconic national parks: Grand Teton, nearby, and Yellowstone, 57 miles north. Many of the accommodations have spectacular views of the Teton Mountains (pictured above), edged by aspens the color of spun gold in fall. Because Spring Creek Ranch, a casually upscale property, doubles as a wildlife sanctuary, you might also see moose, elk, or mule deer moseying by your back door. Naturalists lead property hikes and day-long tours of the Grand Teton National Park, where yellow cottonwoods line the creeks in fall and bison and elk graze. On the ranch’s astronomy nights (book ahead), the evening sky unfurls through high-powered telescopes in a spray of stars, planets, and galaxies.
Options: 80 units from studios to five-bedroom villas.
Mirror Lake Inn Resort & Spa, New York
In Lake Placid, the Mirror Lake Inn Resort & Spa is situated on the waterfront in the heart of the Adirondack region’s Olympic venues. The hotel’s décor, a mix of leather couches, wood paneling, fireplaces, and twig headboards in some rooms, evokes an upmarket country lodge. To savor the mountains’ quilt of bright red maples and yellow elms and poplars, it’s hard to beat the relaxation of admiring the views from the lawn’s Adirondack chairs, walking the 2.7-mile path into Lake Placid, and riding the nearby Cloudsplitter Gondola to the top of Whiteface Mountain. But you can go wilder if you like by zig-zagging down the twists of Mount Van Hoevenberg’s Cliffside Coaster; its rails parallel the 1980 Olympic bobsled track. Kids may like to start the morning by downing a stack of the resort’s acclaimed Adirondack flapjacks served with hot maple syrup.
Options: 130 rooms
Cacapon Resort State Park, West Virginia
Cacapon Resort State Park, in Berkeley Springs, is affordable but high-quality. The 6,000-acre park on the slopes of Cacapon Mountain comes with moderately priced resort activities and lodging. Take advantage of the low golf fees and the mild autumns to practice drives and tee shots on the 18-hole Robert Trent Jones-designed course. Kids’ golf clubs can be rented. Anyone can fish in the lake (a West Virginia fishing license is required, but not hard to get), horseback ride through the woods, and hike or mountain bike some of the 23 miles of trails that wind past thickets of yellow and red maples and golden needled pines. Rooms in the newest lodge, completed in 2021, have flat-screen televisions, Wi-Fi, and comfortable furnishings. Consider an outing to soak in the historic mineral waters of Berkeley Springs, where George Washington reputedly enjoyed the healing waters.
Options: 13 heated year-round cabins, 124 rooms in the new lodge
Omni Bedford Springs, Pennsylvania
A National Historic Landmark, the Omni Bedford Springs covers 2,200 acres in southern central Pennsylvania. Although guests no longer plunge into the mineral springs that drew the wealthy for more than a century, they can soak in curative treatments at the resort’s spa. Some 25 miles of walking and biking trails wind through woods of red, golden brown, yellow, and orange maples, oaks, and hickory trees. The resort’s guided hikes, Segway tours, and horseback rides lead them through the scenery. For brilliant foliage in the surrounding countryside, drive through some of Bedford County’s 14 covered bridges (pictured above; download the route guide from the Bedford County Visitors Bureau). Rock on the front porch or sit around a fire pit with your family in the evening, enjoying the crisp fall air.
Options: 216 rooms
Grand Geneva Resort, Wisconsin
A popular Midwestern getaway between Milwaukee and Chicago, Grand Geneva Resort and Spa, in Lake Geneva, features all the destination resort must-haves—golf, tennis, spa, pools—plus activities that can make a memorable fall vacation for families. Play disc golf at the Adventure Center, saddle up at the stables (little ones can ride ponies), and go on a haunted hayride to see friendly spooks as you savor the property’s ribbons of red, yellow, and gold maples, birches, and poplars. For sweeping views of the foliage, take a scenic cruise of nearby lake (Lake Geneva Cruise Line is pictured above), stroll part of the 21-mile shoreside path, and glide through the treetops on a zip line. If your kids crave more than a pool, head to Moose Mountain Falls, the indoor waterpark (in summer, it spreads outdoors, too) at neighboring Timber Ridge Lodge, where kids float on a current-driven river, splash in pools, and twist down slides. Indoor waterparks are a specialty in Wisconsin, and you don’t have to be a hotel guest there to buy a ticket for the day.
Options: 355 rooms, 29 studio to three-bedroom villas