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Best Family Vacation Destinations

Whether you choose to go away for one night, one week or one month there is a perfect vacation destination just for your family. The best choice will depend on how much you want to spend so check out these ideas to get you started.


Beach

The seaside or beach is a very popular vacation destination for families. It is always a hit with the kids and offers the opportunity for a time of relaxation. The beach itself offers plenty of entertainment and enjoyment so not much more is needed.

Don't forget the beach toys for littlies, sunscreen, hats, swimmers, beach chairs, sunglasses, beach umbrella or shade, beach ball, kite and a good book. Check out Family Games Treasurehouse for a range of great ideas for beach games.


Mountains

A vacation destination in the mountains can provide a refreshing, well-earned change of pace for the family. There is an abundance of things to do and see in the mountains throughout the whole year. Activities range from sky lifts, walking and hiking trails, canoeing, fishing, white water rafting, tubing, bicycling, horse-back riding, camping and picnicking, to name a few. The surrounding towns also offer their own unique experiences and attractions as well including arts and crafts, concerts, festivals, historical attractions and museums. National Park rangers often run educational programs which can add to the interest of the area.


Snow/skiing

Going to the snow may be a once in a lifetime experience for those who don't have the pleasure of living in that particular winter climate. Have your children ever built a snowman, skied down a mountain, gone tobogganing or had a snowball fight? Click here for some fun things you can do to make sure your children have the time of their lives.

As a winter family vacation destination, the snowfields can be a wonderful, memory-filled experience. However, it can also be a disaster if you are not properly prepared. I can remember our first family vacation to the snow when our three oldest children were only very young (I think they were 4, 2 and 1 at the time). They hated it! They were so cold that I think we lasted a whole twenty minutes before piling pack into the car and heading back to the motel. Not much fun when all the kids are crying! Click here for great tips on packing for a winter holiday to the snow and click here for family vacation meal plans. Something hot and hearty sounds good to me!


River or Creek Camping

This would be our favourite type of fun, family vacation destination. My children love to set up their tents in a grassy paddock by a river and then spend all their time riding down the rapids on inner tubes or swimming. Of course, no camping is complete without a camp fire to toast marshmallows in. Here are some things you must do on a camping vacation...

  • Take lots of sweet treats for midnight feasts
  • Make a camp fire and toast marshmallows on long sticks
  • Tell stories and sing songs around the camp fire
  • Go to tyre yards and grab some large inner tubes (see if they'll give you any tractor tyres) otherwise large car tyres are fun
  • Make hot chocolate or billy tea over the fire
  • Go fishing
  • Bring along the cricket set and play french cricket
  • Throw a frisbee or kick a football
  • Go spotlighting at night for animals hiding in trees


Hiking/Backpacking

Many companies offer hiking vacations, either self guided or in a group with experienced guides. Accommodation can take the form of inns or Bed and Breakfast's. Or you can do it yourself (so much cheaper). Local tourist information centres will often have maps of state forests or national parks which show hiking trails and overnight camping areas. As a vacation destination, you can choose anywhere in the world!


Farmstay

How would you like to truly experience the great outdoors? A farmstay vacation destination will open your eyes to a whole new way of living – that's if you've lived in the city all your life. Allow your children the opportunity of feeding baby calves and goats, petting lambs and foals, collecting eggs for breakfast (do they even know where they come from?), helping to clean out the barns. There is so much to do on a farm to keep everyone busy all day!


Themed vacations

Try this novel idea for a memory-making vacation. Choose a theme and travel from one destination to another, following that theme.Here are some ideas to get you started.

  • If you are a golfing family then plan your vacation going from one golf course to the next.
  • You might be into some other sport like BMX. Find out where those sporting fields or tracks are and plan your vacation visiting them.
  • A fishing vacation would take you to all the great fishing spots in an area.
  • If museums (or art galleries) are your thing then plan a museum or art gallery trail.
  • Choose a letter of the alphabet, like "T" and travel to all the towns starting with that letter.
  • If history excites you then follow an historical trail. For example, follow Johnny Appleseed's journey or the underground railway (during the slave era in the US) or follow the bushranger trails if you live in Australia.
  • Try a fossicking vacation. Travel to areas where you can go gold panning or dig for gemstones like sapphires, ruby and quartz. This is a fantastic vacation for families with young children, especially boys but make sure you take plenty of changes of clothes. The kids will get exceedingly dirty.


Cruise

I wouldn't class this as a budget-friendly vacation destination but it sure would be a great vacation experience. Many cruise ships offer special deals for families with children paying at a reduced rate. Plus, they offer great family activities such as water slides, rock walls, age specific programs, mini golf, ice skating rinks, not to mention the land excursions. This would be a fantastic vacation for the family especially if the children are beyond the baby stage.


City

A family vacation to the city can be an exciting adventure for those who live in the country. There is so much to see and do in the city and so much to learn. There is an abundance of museums, art galleries, theme parks and more! See the page on fun things to do on your family vacation for some great experiences in the city.


Tropical Island

Imagine beautiful sunsets, lying on the beach all day, diving, wind surfing, snorkeling on the reefs, and yachting. A tropical island makes an idyllic vacation destination and is something we often dream about but may never actually think is possible to do. When we think of a tropical island we usually think of the Greek Islands or Hawaii or Jamaica or somewhere else totally beyond the budget of the average family. However, look along the coast of where you live. You may be surprised to find a small tropical island not too far away.


Tour around your state or country

Are you able to take several weeks off to go touring? About four years ago my family and I spent 11 weeks touring the states of Victoria and Tasmania in Australia and had the time of our lives. Then about two years ago we spent 6 weeks touring the Great Outback of Australia. The first time, we camped in our 3 tents (there are 9 of us) for several weeks and the second time we borrowed a friend's pop top campervan which slept 6 of us while our oldest 3 slept in a tent. We were so grateful that on both occasions we didn't experience too much wet weather – just the odd day or two. It would be a very rewarding experience to be able to travel around your state or country (if it's small enough) and get to know more about the wonderful place where you live.

Well, my friend, I hope you've been inspired by this list of best family vacation destinations and can now add a few more suggestions to your own list of family vacation ideas. I trust you are now enthused to try something a little bit different for your next fun family vacation.

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