Best Family Vacation?

Disney was the best family vacation we ever took
BUT it's best to wait until they are old enough to enjoy it. 19 months old they won't remember it.

The beach...always the beach!

Relaxing for us and FUN for the kids!

We rented a beach house in Maine 2 summers ago (in July). We moved here from Alaska so the Maine beaches were perfect to me. Our 6 year old son loved playing at the beach and so did our almost 1 year old daughter. We went to Acadia Nat'l Park and hiked. We left the kids w grandparents and went to galleries/antique stores one day. We ate LOTS of lobster. It was very beautiful and peaceful. I loved it. We have also enjoyed going to Disney World but it was so expensive and our 6 year old was in a mood that day and refused to ride many rides. It was hot and veeeery crowded. After the fireworks at night it was past their bedtimes and everyone was cranky.

We have always loved Cape Cod and Block Island, RI - we do a summer vacation to Block Island every year and the kids always look forward to it. Lots of beach time!

We've done Disney, and we've been to Myrtle Beach. Lots of fun too!

But by far was the Disney cruise we went on this past Feb - it was PHENOMENAL. Pricey, but definitely worth it. The kids (ages 17, 16, and 4) all had a blast, the teens thought it was the greatest thing they had ever done, and my daughter is still talking about it now. I can't say enough about it - the service was exceptional and there was something to keep everyone happy. We got to spend a day on Disney's private island in the Bahamas. And everything, including meals, is included and it's all you can eat, so no cooking or clean-up! I can't say enough about it and I can't wait to do it again!

Pigeon Forge, TN. My dd were 5 and almost 6 and we had people from 2 to 71. We rented a 12 bedroom 12 bath cabin (obviously they have 1 bedroom cabins and everything in between). We had teenagers with us too.

There is plenty to do. Some familiar some new. We took the kids including the 2 year old white water rafting. Ours was more like drifting with a few bumps but still loads of fun. We visited the smokies - a very nice hike. At the look out you can actually see 3 states I believe. We also did some horse bike riding, cable car ride to the top of a mountain and shopped at the outlet mall which has my favorite children's apparel -naartjie. There 's putt putt, ice cream, most cabins are linked to swimming pools. It's is 360 degrees of spectacular views. My dd loves this place more than Disney world which was also great.

We went to a number of places as a family (my parents, siblings and our children) and found that nothing compares to Destin,FL. We absolutely love it. We have the best time there. Our kids are 6 and 3. The memories with them in Destin are amazing.

I also live in VA and this past summer we had a great vacation at Hungry Mother State Park. I would think most of the other state parks would be similar. There was a lake with a beach so we could let our 3 year old play without constantly being knocked over by waves like she is at the ocean.
We went hiking and went out on a paddle boat. My husband tried to take her fishing but she lost interest quickly when they didn't catch anything right away. Our dog was allowed to stay in the cabin and hike on the trails. I had never vacationed at a state park before but we had a blast and will do it again.

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Well, in August we went to Columbus, OH for a weekend. We went to COSI, a great science center, Eaton Mall, Polaris Mall, and just looking around the city. We didn't stay in a hotel because I have an aunt that lives down there. It was really fun. I would totally recommend it.

Disneyworld is ALWAYS my favorite vacation! Especially if you can go at non-peak time, when it's not as stressful dealing with large crowds.

We also enjoy any kind of waterpark resort. We been to several, but my favorite for kids is Great Wolf Lodge, they have a number of those in various cities, with plenty of enough for kids big and small. Good food and desserts too. We've stayed at the one in Wisconsin Dells.

Have you ever been to the Delaware shore? It's about a 3 hour drive from Fairfax. Awesome for kids - particularly Bethany Beach. There's a cute little boardwalk with all the shops and snowcones, etc., but it's not nearly as crazy as someplace like Ocean City. Feel free to PM me if you want more info. My husband grew up there and his parents still live there. In fact, we just got home today after spending the long weekend there. With this awesome weather my kids actually swam in the ocean!!

We took our 2 year old to Sesame Place in Langhorne, PA this summer. She LOVED it!!!!!! It's a fantastic amusement park for kids ages1-12 but really caters to the 2-8 crowd. Most of the rides are designed for 36 inches tall minimum (I believe. Their website does give the height restrictions) and at that height the kids must go on the ride with a parent but taller kids (maybe 42 inches) can go on alone. There are water rides, splash parks, a sand area, lazy river, and a whole ton of dry rides and dry play areas. There are lots of spots to sit down and relax for a bit or put your kid on a chaise lounge and let them nap or you can rent a cabana. The park is perfect size for kids that age. There's a parade, characters walking around for photo ops, and a character meal you can take the kids to. There are even restaurants in the park that will cater to any food allergies your kid has. At the character lunch I let them know ahead of time that my daughter has a food allergy and they were FANTASTIC about accommodating her. They corresponded with me several times before we got to the park and just really went above and beyond. I can't say enough about it. Our daughter just loved the park!!! We'll go back again next year! It was so nice that she was able to go on every ride and be able to enjoy herself. www.sesameplace.com

at that age...definitely beach. not necessarily ocean, cuz then you have to deal with crowds and waves. we stayed outside Columbus IN when my kids were little. There was a children's museum...think easy. 19 mos is too little for much, they won't remember. Start saving tho for the big ones-we loved Disney, Hawaii, Moab, Yellowstone, Seattle/Oregon, Chicago, and DC