We don't travel much. I posted the question earlier about Mexico. I am scared, to tell you the truth...but my husband has to use his vacation days before the end of the month. I would LOVE to hear recommendations for what to do with a family (12,7,5 year old kids) that isn't horribly expensive....under $2,000-$2,500 perhaps. I was even thinking of going to a place in Colorado called the YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch...but it might be getting too cold up there to do outdoor activities.
I love the outdoors...but my husband wants more exotic/beachy....so PLEASE send us your ideas.
We live in Austin, Texas. There are cruises that leave from Galveston. Has anyone ever done a cruise with the family...especially out of Galveston? What are the Carnival cruises like?
If you can get a last minute deal on Royal Caribbean, do a 7-day cruise but stay away from Carnival. A 3-4 day cruise is bound to have partiers and all the visual stuff that goes along with it. Don't forget to allow for tips. Google "cruise tips" to get an idea.
Otherwise, San Diego is awesome. My son says the weather is in the mid 70's so you can do all kinds of fun beach stuff as well as the amusement stuff.
I second San Diego. We took a trip there with our then 5-year-old last year, and all of us loved it. Tons of kid-friendly activities (the Zoo and Safari Park, Legoland, Sea World, etc), but plenty to appeal to adults as well. The beach towns all along the Pacific Coast Highway are beautiful and fun to hang out in.
Also, now is a wonderful time to go down to the Florida Panhandle - crowds are gone, rates are low and the weather is great as long as there isn't a rogue hurricane. We like the communities along Highway 30-A, which are much more laid back and prettier than places like Destin and Panama City.
Good luck!
I second Destin or any other nearby resort area in the Florida panhandle. Gorgeous beaches and water, no passport hassles. Not as urban as San Diego, more laid-back like Port Aransas (but soooo much prettier). Wide range of accommodations from regular motels to beautiful resorts (like Watercolors) with great golf courses. Like the Texas coast, prices generally go down after Labor Day.
I would be suprised if the YMCA Snow Mountain would have availability on such short notice. I have always been told that place books up a year in advance.
Cruises out of Galveston are GREAT, but as others have said, I would avoid Carnival. They are NOT kid friendly. My husband and I did a carnival cruise without our children and I would NEVER do it again, let alone with kids. Royal Carribean and Disney are much better. But as someone already mentioned, you will need passports so I don't know if that will be an issue for you on such short notice.
Someone already mentioned the Florida panhandle - places like Destin, Orange Beach, Gulf Shores and Seaside are great! San Diego is also great but it is cooler there than you might expect.
Have a great trip!
What about the Hyatt right there by you? The one with the river pool. Have you already done that? It's been a few years but my kids loved it.
Disney just started offering new cruises out of Galveston. I'd look into those! In any case, a cruise is an awesome vacation for the family and everyone will have a blast. All the kids are old enough to go into the kids clubs and meet other kids their age, plus do cool activities. Carnival cruises can be a lot of fun too. As long as it isn't spring break time, it's a good line for a family.
Dont do Carnival, do Disney Cruise out of Galveston. My husband and I took our kids on Carnival cruise, never again. Carnival is not near as nice, the food is terrible and there are alot of drunks on those Carnival boats. Carnival is not a kids cruise. We only do Disney, the two cruises dont cimpare. Disney is our favorite cruise line, we have done Disney three times, its the only way to go. Even if I didnt have kids I would still do Disney Cruise. Carnival is NOT the way to go with kids.
You didn't say how long your vacation is, but there are cruises sailing out of New Orleans and Huston. I wouldn't take any into Mexico, but there are cruises that go to Jamaica and the Grand Caymens.
I don't know how much they are, but you can take the last minute deals and get good bargains. You must have pasports and there isn't enough time to get passports before you go.
Go to cheapcaribbean.com for good resorts that are family friendly. If you find one in Puerto Rico you won't need passports.
Here are cruises that are during the month of September: http://res.cruisedeals.com/travel/cruise/search.rvlx?Dest...
Then there are road trips. The grand canyon and the railroad that goes into the grand canyon from Williams. AZ. Carlsbad caverns in New Mexico.
Lots to choose from. Good luck to you and yours.
We just returned from Seattle Wa. There were 3 of us and we managed to spend about $1500. We rented a car but there is public transportation all over the place, so you could really do with out the car. Aside from the car rental expense, parking is really expensive. We paid $50/night for parking. Gas runs about $4/gallon. There are cable cars and monorails that run through the city.
Things to do: Space needle, science museum (w/butterflies, spiders, and other creatures), glass art museum, Market Place, Japanese Tea Garden, and we went whale watching. We had a 6 year old with us and she had a great time. Even their city library looked wonderful. Oh and took a train ride around the foothills of Mount Rainier.
It is not exotic beach, but we had a good time. You could probably do in $2500, just don't stay at the W like we did, where it is a bit too elite for a 6 year old.
We were there for 6 days.
If you cruise, avoid Carnival - it's a party boat. Royal Caribbean is awesome for families - the camps are amazing! The food is terrific. I'd do the cruise!
Mexico is fine, by the way. The tourist islands are super safe.
I have only heard that Carnival is not as geared towards kids as Disney is. I can't imagine a child not being totally enthralled the whole time. I have heard that with older kids the Royal Caribbean line is really good. They have more activities geared to older kids and not so much Cinderella. I think it comes down to room price and where you are wanting to go.
The cruises I always wanted to go to are these:
As a grown up I'd like to do the east coast and see parts of Canada. Boring for kids.
As a grandmother I think doing the inside passage from the NW coast all the way up to Anchorage would be totally awesome. I think the kids would totally be thrilled to see whales and other sea life that normally don't live in Oklahoma....lol. But that would be something that I would still wait a couple of years before planning.
As a parent figure I'd like to offer these kids the biggest fantasy in the world so we'd most likely do something other than a cruise right now. They're 5 and 8.
I do think that something like Disney resort would be the place they'd enjoy a lot at this age. Something for everyone and still have a lot of fun.
There are beaches in Texas of course but going to Galveston and just staying in a condo would be wonderful. Your own pool, every thing provided from towels to dishes, it's just too nice to pass up in my book. My friend goes there at least twice per year and they just veg out. It's so relaxing and she needs it in her line of work.
I think
What about San Diego? The weather should still be nice and there are plenty of beaches and kid activities in the area.
I would skip a cruise right now, since it's hurricane season. You really run the risk of your trip being cancelled or the ship not being able to stop in certain ports. That happened to my parents a couple years ago and they never did get off the ship during the cruise. I have been on a Carnival cruise and it was fun. You'll find most of the mainstream (not high end) cruise lines are about the same, so you can't go wrong with any of them. Again, I'd just plan on taking a cruise out of Texas at the right time of year.
