Foo - Family Vacation Ideas

We are a family of 4. The kids are 10 and 12. We do not want to go back to Disney. So far, we are looking at 7 days in Mexico. The wife and I went last year and loved it. We want to keep it under 4K.
Does anyone have any Vacation spots they just love that not many people know about?
Thanks

La Paz. Before they get too Americanized.

Moab.

Barbados.
Costa Rica.
Puerto Rico.
The Keys.

Hiking, Camping, bike touring.

Road trip from Glacier NP to Banff NP and back.

Road trip from Glacier NP to Banff NP and back.

Great idea! Let's go. :)

before it gets too hot-in may!

wild west driving trip that skirts southern new mexico & arizona:

carlsbad caverns, nm
white sand dunes at white sands national monument, nm
silver city, nw
aliens in roswell, nm
geronimo country at chiricahua national monument, az
nearby ghost towns by cochise stronghold memorial park, az
fort bowie, az
quintessential wild west history at tombstone, az
mining at bisbee, az
kitt peak observatory, az
giant cacti at saguaro national park, az

or any mix of national parks/monuments in the southern utah/four corners area:
-zion, canyonlands, arches, capitol reef, bryce canyon, natural bridges, mesa verde, hovenweep
the area is too beautiful to be missed.

Buy a Wagon Queen Family Truckster and take the family cross country.

Great idea! Let's go. :)

Take me with you....I promise not to stare too much.

Puerto Rico? that's where my kids wanna go.

Mexico is cool. I went to Cozumel when I was around that age and loved it, though almost everyone knows about it (look into SCUBA certs, if your family is into that kinda thing). Some places in Hawai'i are quite un-touristy, though I'm not sure how much plane tickets run these days. My sister frequently rents out a beach house (from Jack Johnson's brother, btw) for two weeks on the North Shore of Oahu and they just chill there and hang out. They love it, and just ride bikes where they need to go...

Are you looking for action packed fun or lounging around and taking it in??

Great ideas.

I like to kick back and relax, the wife wants to stay on the go always and the kids are somewhere in the middle. My son and I would love to go with Joe and Shad, but my wife and daughter would prefer the Mall of America which we still haven't thrown out yet. The kids liked snorkeling a lot when we went on a cruize. My wife likes to jog but not so much the bike. She fell a lot as a kid and can't get over it.
The resort in Mexico seems idea, I just hate to spend that much and never really leave the resort. We went to 2-3 ruins and shopping last year, I think the kids would get bored with the excursions though.
Keep the ideas going. I've already been looking into a few of them. I found a dude ranch in Texas that may be fun. I have never been to one though.

Texas is damn not in the summer. If I were dude ranching it, I would head to Montana or Colorado or Wyoming. A close friend of mine and his wife spent a week here http://www.sixtythree.com/ and loved it.

Our last 2 were a week camping in southern UT across the national parks there, Apr 09, and ~10 days in Costa Rica in summer 08. CR pushed your price limit, Utah did not. I would guess 80% of our CR cost was airfare.

Take me with you....I promise not to stare too much.

But, you're supposed to stare at the scenery when you travel. :p

South Missouri - Rent a lake house/condo on Table Rock or Lake of the Ozarks and/or take a canoe trip down the Current River.

These were my absolute favorite childhood vacations and we'll be doing them ourselves in a couple of years once my kids are a little stronger in the swimming department.

eta - I just noticed you live in Arkasas so maybe these are a little too close to home? I highly recommend them though!

Come to wild & wonderful WV. Hiking, camping, rafting, biking, climbing, 4-wheeling, fishing, boating ... http://www.wv.gov/travel/Pages/default.aspx

Puerto Rico? that's where my kids wanna go.

Orly? :thumb:

Born and raised in the place... but I usually recommend people to get a Caribbean cruise. You can fly to PR, spend some time there, then get on ship and visit nearby islands.

But, you're supposed to stare at the scenery when you travel. :p

then you ride in front :innocent:

Puerto Rico? that's where my kids wanna go.

I loved it there.....especially the snorkeling and el Yunque.

Road trip from Glacier NP to Banff NP and back.

Don't turn back at Banff, keep going to Jasper.

South Missouri - Rent a lake house/condo on Table Rock or Lake of the Ozarks and/or take a canoe trip down the Current River.

These were my absolute favorite childhood vacations and we'll be doing them ourselves in a couple of years once my kids are a little stronger in the swimming department.

eta - I just noticed you live in Arkasas so maybe these are a little too close to home? I highly recommend them though!

Dad worked at Table Rock Dam when I was little. I grew up camping at State Parks and love them. We have been to Branson area a lot. We are looking at other options right now. We lived in St. Louis a couple of years and we spent a 2 week vacation just traveling around the state camping. It was great.

Costa Rica is somewhere I have always wanted to go. Maybe I'll do that with just the wife to keep the cost down a little. But we are taking the kids this time.

Puerto Rico? that's where my kids wanna go.

I have a cousin from Puerto Rico. Maybe we will see if they will go with us. He has me a little scared of it though. He has a few friends that have been killed there and one of the main reasons he left. But he also talks about going back a lot.

I have a cousin from Puerto Rico. Maybe we will see if they will go with us. He has me a little scared of it though. He has a few friends that have been killed there and one of the main reasons he left. But he also talks about going back a lot.

Murders there are usually drug/jealousy related. I don't remember tourists being killed. I would avoid San Juan Hotels tho, just because it's a city like any other, busy, noisy, overcrowded, etc. Beachfront hotel complexes are the way to go.

Exercise caution when hanging around with your cousin, just sayin' :thumb:

North Carolina shore, Nags Head or Kitty Hawk area. See and walk the sand dune where the Wright Bros flew the plane, take the salt marsh tour, drive over the bridge to Roanoke Island and see worlds longest running outdoor theater of the Lost Colony (http://www.thelostcolony.org/), play a different minature golf course each day, climb the two nearest lighthouses, see the wild horses north of Duck, attend murder mystery dinner at a local hotel, take the ghost walk. Lots to do while laying back, almost all beachfront is single family homes or two story, so no big condo shadow on the beach.

Non-Disney FL destinations:

St. Augustine (http://www.romanceliveshere.com/?engine=Google&keyword=staugustinehotel) - Nice Spanish beachfront town with a local government dedicated to promote tourism. With Family, get hotel room. Couples in romantic getaway, get studio-like suite above one of the pubs/restaurants.

Clearwater (http://www.visitclearwaterflorida.com/) - The nicest beach I've seen in the state so far.

Moab? the desert? wutz fun there?

Imagine being able to be magically whisked away to.... Delaware!

Hi, I'm in ... Delaware!

Probably more rustic than you're looking for, and perhaps more expensive (I don't know), but my friend's lodge in Panama is an intimate tropical paradise!

http://thejunglelodge.com/

I hear rafting on the Cahulawassee River can be interesting.

^^not sure this qualifies as family fun but ned beatty is the resident expert...

Take me with you....I promise not to stare too much.

Take me with you....I promise I will stare! and try to steal you away from Joe!.....if only for a moment! ;0)