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.
Miami is Fine for a Family Getaway
Creators Syndicate | Epoch Times||by Candyce H. StapenCategories: Adventures, Beaches, City and Cultural Vacations, College Age & Adult, Destinations, Family, Featured News, Grade-Schoolers Ages 6-9, Historic, Multigenerational, Southern United States Destinations, Teens Ages 13-17, Tweens Ages 10-12, United States DestinationsWhat’s the key to a Miami Beach area family vacation? Pair shore time with off-the-beach fun. Try a zip line adventure, explore museums, learn about the city’s iconic architecture and allow plenty of time to romp through parks and along the sands. It’s easy to engage toddlers, teens and multigenerational families. A bonus: Most outdoor attractions are free.
My son and I started our morning 25 feet in the air at Treetop Trekking Miami. We pushed through a canopy of palm trees and live oaks as we inched along a tightrope, swayed across a plank bridge and glided on a zip line. Conquering those challenges on the mid-level course felt satisfying. Adrenaline-seekers can up their thrills by tackling obstacles up to 55 feet above the ground. Kids 5 years and older gain confidence by climbing ropes and balancing on logs strung a few feet off the ground. (Tip: Protect your hands by wearing the gloves provided for the adult courses or bring your own.)
Located in Biscayne Bay, Treetop Trekking Miami shares Jungle Island (aka Watson Island) with the Jungle Island attraction, an 18-acre animal-themed park where parrots roost on perches and flamingoes dot the pond. Add an animal encounter to get close to lemurs, sloths and capybaras. The nearby Miami Children’s Museum, stocked with hands-on exhibits, is especially interesting for young kids.
We based ourselves at the Hilton Bentley Miami South Beach, a family-friendly oceanfront hotel with a pool in a neighborhoodlike area. The relatively quiet location meant less beach bustle and more space than at other sites. On a toes-in-the-sea walk, we stopped to photograph several of the city’s whimsical lifeguard towers created by noted architect William Lane.
Another stroll took us along the Beachwalk, a paved oceanfront pedestrian-only pathway, toward South Pointe Park. This local favorite comes with impressive views of the ships in port plus Tobias Rehberger’s playful sculpture of an asymmetrical lighthouse. Along the way, we were lucky enough to see a manatee and her baby swimming by.
We lunched at Big Pink, two blocks from the Hilton. Even fussy eaters find something to like, from pancakes to salads, wraps, burgers and sandwiches. And the portions are huge.
Another day, we mixed beach time near Lummus Park on Ocean Drive with city strolls. The 10-block park offers playgrounds, volleyball courts, bathrooms and Muscle Beach, known for its exercise bars, ropes and great people-watching. Don’t miss the Beach Patrol Headquarters, a 1934 structure with the sleek lines of a ship and porthole windows. We learned more about the architectural style at the nearby Art Deco Museum and Welcome Center, operated by the Miami Design Preservation League, which offers art deco walking tours.
Then we took to the streets. South Beach shines with one of the world’s largest collections of art deco buildings. We admired structures with curves, streamlined shapes and geometric forms. We paused for lunch at the News Cafe with its 1932 Packard parked out front. The eatery serves good salads, sandwiches, pizza and wraps.
Architecture enthusiasts take note: The first Open House Miami, a free festival, takes place March 1-2, 2024. Affiliated with Open House Worldwide, the festival showcases the city’s architecture through workshops, performances and behind-the-scenes tours of the Hard Rock Stadium, the Frost Science Museum and other sites.
A lesser-known museum, Artechouse, is a gem. The interactive facility showcases the work of Zach Lieberman and collaborators who use computer coding to create experiential art. Lieberman’s video of cubes, flowers and landscapes morphing into one another that’s projected onto three walls sets the tone. We felt immersed in the art.
Other exhibits literally incorporated us. When we moved our arms, the spiral squiggle on the computer screen mimicked our movements, and when we spoke into a megaphone, the screen changed colors based on the pitch of our voices. Art-lovers of all ages and tech-savvy teens can ponder if this is the future of art.
Sampling Miami’s various ethnic cuisines is a must, especially with always-hungry teens. At Donna Mare, an Italian restaurant, we devoured the excellent spaghetti with seafood and the upside-down apple pie. Along with sushi and sashimi, the Japanese restaurant Blue Ribbon Sushi features tasty duck fried rice and salmon with teriyaki sauce. For Greek fare, Santorini by Georgios at our hotel serves delicious grilled octopus, branzino and baklava.
With young kids who eat early, it’s a good idea to come during happy hour for deals on gyros, empanadas and adult drinks. For Cuban cuisine, we headed to Havana 1957, known for its signature roast chicken and pork sandwiches. We chose the Espanola Way location for its outdoor tables on the lively pedestrian street.
Most people don’t think of Miami as a family destination, but with beaches, adventures, museums, plenty of parks and good food, it had everything we needed for our getaway. Now we can’t wait to return.
When You Go
Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau: www.miamiandbeaches.com
Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority: miamibeachvca.com
Hilton Bentley Miami South Beach: www.hilton.com/en/hotels/miabmhf-hilton-bentley-miami-south-beach
Treetop Trekking Miami: miamitreetoptrekking.com
Jungle Island: jungleisland.com
Miami Children’s Museum: miamichildrensmuseum.org
Big Pink: mylesrestaurantgroup.com/big-pink
Art Deco Museum and Welcome Center: www.mdpl.org
News Cafe: www.newscafesouthbeach.com
Open House Miami: www.openhousemia.org
Artechouse: www.artechouse.com/location/miami
Donna Mare Trattoria: www.donnamare.com
Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill: www.eatblueribbonmiami.com
antorini by Georgios: www.santorinibygeorgios.com
Havana 1957: www.havana1957.com
Our Family Alaska Cruise
Royal Caribbean||by Candyce H. StapenCategories: Adventures, Cruises, Cruises & Resorts, Cruising, Family, Featured News, United States Destinations, Western United States DestinationsOn our family Alaska cruise, we stood on the deck staring in amazement at the sheer size of Hubbard Glacier — a cool icy blue in the sunlight — which stretched for miles and was backed by gloriously snowcapped mountain peaks. After dreaming of this moment for months, cruising past this dazzling sight on our first full day onboard Royal Caribbean’s Radiance of the Seas® reinforced that our family Alaska cruise was the best choice for us.
Not only were my husband and I awestruck by Alaska’s natural wonders, but so were Alissa, our teen daughter, and Matt, our college-age son. We bonded over dog sledding, flightseeing and whale spotting and enjoyed discussing the day’s events over dinner every night. In my experience, engaging teenagers on a family vacation is much more complicated than pleasing younger kids, and we were thrilled that this vacation succeeded in holding their interest each day and producing lively family conversations each evening.
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Miami’s Wynwood Sizzles With Street Art
Creators Syndicate||by Candyce H. StapenCategories: City and Cultural Vacations, Destinations, Family, Featured News, Southern United States Destinations, United States DestinationsMiami’s Wynwood Arts District, a 50-block world of intriguing, fantastical, humorous and puzzling pieces by established artists and newbies to spray paint, shouldn’t be missed. More than 330 murals emblazon storefronts, fences, doors and walls, transforming the neighborhood into one of the largest open-air art museums in the United States.
We strolled by a nipple-headed baby anchoring a piece containing giant false teeth and an eerie skull. What did artist Hiero Vago mean? We couldn’t possibly tell, but the baby’s image stayed with us, as did an alligator by Miguel Angel Sanchez, aka SATURNO. Gold chains drip from the monster-size critter’s teeth, and a bejeweled cape covers its back, which supports a teapot spewing red smoke. A new take on the Florida critter as opportunistic or a snarky comment about seaside doyennes or something else? Whatever it is, the image fascinated us.
Not everything felt mysterious, however. The lush green leaves in Adele Renault’s hyper-realistic “Birds of Paradise” floated sensuously against a building.
Visitors don’t need a guide to see the street art in Wynwood, but it’s wise to book one. Some people drive through the 50-block neighborhood snapping photos and others stroll, but either mode provides only a thumbnail sketch of the area and the art. Plus, traffic can be tricky.
The best way to understand the works is on a guided tour. A walking expedition wasn’t for us — too much humidity and too little ground covered. To see and learn the most about the pieces and the painters in an hour, we opted for a small group (four-person) guided golf-cart experience. Ivory (@Ivorytour), part of Wynwood Art Walk, zipped the cart down streets, around parking lots, through alleys, and up to construction sites to show us iconic murals and new ones, all the while providing excellent information on the artists, the works and the area.
At one point, Ivory paused our tour in front of a comic-book-style kissing couple by Dean Stockton, a.k.a. D*Face, the perfect place to grab your sweetie and pose for a selfie.
Be aware that change is the nature of street art. At night, a muralist might come along and paint over a piece or add their take to it, changing the composition.
Wynwood, a thriving garment and factory district in the 1920s, declined as businesses moved elsewhere by the 1970s. In the late 1980s local artists purchased an abandoned bakery and turned it into working studios. More artists followed. In 2009, Tony Goldman, developer and arts patron, debuted Wynwood Walls, a gated enclave of street murals that anchors the Wynwood Arts District. Wynwood Walls showcases noted and up-and-coming artists in its outdoor spaces and indoor galleries.
Kenny Scharf’s vivid collage of red, blue and yellow cartoonish shapes and Shepard Fairey’s refreshed mural that added Goldman to a pastiche of Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela were among the many engaging works. Fairey painted “Hope,” the well-known portrait of Barack Obama for his 2012 campaign.
Like the art, Wynwood continues to evolve. In 2014 the neighborhood featured 60 murals. Now, more than five times that amount adorn the streets, and more change is coming. Among the companies open or are soon to open in the area are OAK Row Equities, Fisher Bros., Kushner Group, Goldman Group, and Lennar. Some murals have been lost, but according to the Wynwood Business Improvement District, the new buildings will house more murals. The WBID expects the mural count to jump to 400 to 500 in the next two to three years.
Inspired? Consider creating your own mural. Both Wynwood Art Walk and Wynwood Murals offer hands-on sessions in mural spray-painting. Be sure to wear a mask as the cans might contain VOC (volatile organic compounds) that smell bad and are potentially harmful to breathe.
No one lives by art alone. At Zak the Baker, a kosher bakery and cafe with a modern twist, we devoured wonderful rugalach and bread. Dutch artists Jeroen Koolhaas and Dre Urhahn painted the vivid green, orange, blue, purple and pink striped mural that makes the cafe unmistakable. Zak’s also serves salads, soups and sandwiches. Crave Mexican fare? Head to Coyo Taco.
Easy to reach, the Wynwood Arts District is north of downtown Miami and west of Miami Beach. We drove less than 5 miles (about 25 minutes) from our base at the Kimpton Hotel Palomar South Beach.
When You Go
Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau: www.miamiandthebeaches.com
Wynwood Art Walk: www.wynwoodartwalk.com
Wynwood Walls: www.thewynwoodwalls.com
Wynwood Business Improvement District: www.wynwoodmiami.com
Zak the Baker: www.zakthebaker.com
Coyo Taco: www.coyo-taco.com
Kimpton Hotel Palomar South Beach: www.hotelpalomar-southbeach.com