I have a short list of travel posts this week, not because there was any shortage in great stuff, but because I had a little health scare that landed me in the emergency room.  I’ve spent a rather low key week as I’ve been nursing myself back to health, and so I just haven’t had the typical online time that I usually do.  Still, I think you’ll find plenty to like from these posts:
The Vacation Gals entreat the airlines and the FAA not to allow lap children.  The fares are cheap these days, but the costs add up.  Still, …read more

I’ve used many a Lonely Planet Guide when researching travel, so when they offered to send me the new edition of their Travel With Children, I was eager to give it a read.  While a non-parent myself, I’ve had occasion to travel with some small fry, and after working for 20+ years as a Flight Attendant (and I’m not telling you how many years that + represents), I’ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly about kids on planes.
So I settled in for a good read.
Unfortunately, I didn’t make it past more than a handful before I began …read more

I’ll be heading off to Las Vegas tomorrow, and exploring the family-friendly side of Sin City.  While the city once promoted itself as a family-friendly destination, it has long since abandoned that idea, and has had great success (and fun) with “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.”
With so many families wishing to vacation close to home this year, and often trying to find a destination that keeps both adults and kids satisfied, Las Vegas seems to be cropping up as destination that’s starting to appeal to families once again.
Las Vegas offers bargains galore, on food and accommodations, has shows …read more

How much do I love my iPhone apps?  Enough to try out most every iPhone travel app that comes along!
Check out Family Car Games, created by a family of four to help your family pass the time with instructions for 100 different games.  You can play the games in the car, on a long flight, or while waiting at the airport.  Or waiting anywhere for that matter.
I downloaded the app ($1.99) to check it out.  And hey – I like games, too!  There seemed to be a nice variety, hitting on a number of different themes, from words games …read more

Summer is a time of road trips, and when the nice folks at Reader’s Digest asked me to review what I think is the ultimate road trip book, Off the Beaten Path, I was very excited to do so.  I received the book last month, and have been able to spend a fun few weeks leafing through it, trying to locate the promised hidden gems, and comparing what I think is off the beaten path with what they do.
First of all, this is both a coffee table book, oversized and full of beautiful photos, as well as a practical …read more

I love offbeat and quirky kinds of places – for just the reasons that they are offbeat and quirky.  I’ve even been known to drive out of my way to see the “biggest,” “smallest,” “world’s only,” “oldest” thing or whatever.
Lucy the Elephant, a couple miles south of Atlantic City in Margate, New Jersey, is one of those quirky attractions that I’ve heard a lot about, but haven’t managed to see yet.
Lucy is a six story, 90 ton elephant made of wood and tin sheeting, and was erected in 1881 to attract tourism and development to the south Atlantic City …read more

Looking for a way to combine family travel with a little educational and cultural experience as well?
There are a number of cities that can fill those specifications, blending lots of fun things to do with a quality cultural experience.  If you can’t enjoy spending time in these US locations (in alphabetical order), you’re just not trying to have a good vacation!
Here are my Top 7 cities for educational and cultural family travel:

Boston:  History tops the chart in this city, with the Freedom Trail, a number of historical sites like Bunker Hill, museums, Harvard, MIT (and lots of other great …read more

When you travel all the time, it becomes easy to take the whole process for granted.  Instead of being excited about heading off to the airport for a flight, you complain about having to go on “one more trip.”
It’s easy to understand how you feel when you’re traveling for business, but when it’s finally time to take the family on a vacation, it’s time to get your mind in a different space and make it fun for everyone.  Especially for the kids — who can all too easily pick up on any negative travel vibe.
Whether you’re traveling with the …read more

Traveling can frequently be difficult, but traveling with toddlers can always be difficult.  From managing the little one’s time to managing their “stuff,” there are added tasks to juggle when you have children with you.
Bringing a stroller with you when you travel allows you to get kids through the airport with minimum fuss.  It can keep the kids in one place and most allow you to stow a bit of “stuff” on it as well.
But since strollers frequently don’t fit in airplane overheads (depends on the specific aircraft and stroller type), and even if they do, they take up …read more

Well, not just ice any more. . . .  It’s more like Stonehenge, and sled dog teams, and other animals and scenic depictions. 
That’s what happens when you turn professional ice-sculptors loose on a huge block of ice. 
You can see the process, as well as the results, at the World Ice Art Championships in Fairbanks Alaska, February 27th ““ March 25th.   
The process all starts the same way, with large square blocks of solid ice.  The results are as varied as they are spectacular, and represent the efforts of over 100 sculptors from around the world.  By March 10th, all competition will …read more