family travel (92)

Saengerfest Park at 2302 Strand in downtown Galveston is a great meeting place for Galveston residents and visitors. George Mitchell and Mitchell Historic Properties developed the small urban park as the centerpiece of its downtown holdings and, while privately owned, the park is open to the public daily, year round. The park is known for its giant chess set, London-style phone booth and a large compass on one corner. With a central location in the heart of the Strand National Historic Landmark

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Are you stuck for ideas on what to do with your kids when half-term starts? Here are some things you could consider doing to keep the little ones busy:

 

‘Frozen’ the pop-up experience

Are your children fans of the popular Disney film Frozen? Then they may enjoy this show. Take your kids on a trip to Arendelle itself and enter a magical ‘Frozen’ winter wonderland. Princesses Elsa and Anna provide musical performances and visitors can dance, sing and play around the stunning frost-inspired decoratio

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Since 9/11 it’s pretty clear that the trend toward the bonding, memory-building kinds of family travel experience  is still strong.

And the Caribbean, with its mix of the sensual and the accessible, is still a perfect place for those tying the knot, again, but who are committed to sharing the event with their children and extended family.

The Caribbean Wedding Association  has been seeing a new kind of love and marriage lately.  Apparently people who are finding love later in life, who’ve done

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According to theatrebreaks.co.uk's recent poll studying UK Theatregoers theatre-going preferences, family-friendly shows such as Wicked, Disney's The Lion King and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory are what we most want to see in London's West End.

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You can see our colourful infographic at http://www.theatrebreaks.co.uk/top-uk-shows-seen-see/

TheatreBreaks.co.uk asked over 3200 UK theatregoers what shows they have enjoyed and what shows they think they would like to

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When I returned my worn out Osprey backpack to the place where I bought it to get it repaired, it never occurred to me that I wouldn't see it again. I casually handed my inanimate traveling companion over the counter to the sales clerk, signed the papers and meandered off to look at more stuff. Little did I know how the Osprey lifetime guarantee would affect me.

I originally bought the bag with my 16-year-old son. We went together and purchased "his-and-mom's" bags (I say that because his was a t

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How One Family Learned to Give Up Electronics and  Love Aruba w/Video

Kim Orlando loves to travel. She should, she's the CEO of travelingmom.com and she especially loves to travel with her family.

When the idea of a family trip to Aruba came up, Orlando knew she wanted to go and, better still, take her family. But, she also knew that she wanted them to experience the  island's beauty, and detach from their electronics: phones, computers and tablets.

Challenging? You bet. Orlando's brood consi

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On March 3, the Holiday Inn Ch-am, located three hours south of Bangkok, held a housewarming party to introduce their recently completed upgrades. Upgrades included sprucing up the Regent pool, changing all beds and bedding to Holiday Inn international standards, and other amenities that complement their seamless hospitality. 

 

The 40-acre resort located on the Gulf of Siam has lush tropical gardens, a wide beach and two large pools.  All the modern, spacious accommodations have a balcony and a

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Loving Travel Almost as Much as Family

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It's a bit startling to learn that our passion for travel is second only to our passion for our families.

I learned this from travel trade sites which often have more interesting things to say than consumer travel publications or sites.

The content on Travel Weekly and, say, Hotelmarketing.com is more readable , more useful  than many  travel consumer sites and publications that stretch for hyperbole when describing blue Caribbean waters or some village in Spain.

So when Hotelmarketing ran its list

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Family Travel: How Safe is Your Child’s Playground? 

Summer time and the traveling’s easy.

And as any traveling family will do, at some point in their journey they’ll just opt to forget the big sights for the day, and  play in a playground.

If they don’t, they should.

Hanging out in playground is a great way to get to know the locals, the scenery and just enjoy each other as a family.

Often I found that a few hours relaxing and picnicking at a playground were more valuable to my family t

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The road warrior, the business traveler, represents a huge 50% or more of a hotel’s revenue, but what we found very interesting is a trend to combine a family vacation with a business trip.

An impressive 67.7 percent of those randomly polled said they combine business travel with family travel, a major shift from just ten years ago when corporations frowned on the practice of mixing business with pleasure.

One study actually suggested that business travelers filed 80% more medical claims than

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Traveling With Teens and the Birth of Empathy

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The birth of empathy between siblings is a beautiful thing to witness.  One of the many unexpected joys of living abroad is watching the way such a powerful experience changes your children.  For the better.  Kids who travel together, learn to rely on each other in a deeper way than life in suburban America demands.

When we left for Italy, Katie and Matt were fifteen and eleven.  At that time they were attending different schools, played different sports, had different sets of friends, and had de

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There’s no event that most families look forward to more than their annual summer escapes together.

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Perhaps it’s downtime at a glorious beach paradise.  Or maybe a trip to a big city, taking in the exciting sites.  Even some adventure travel, with lots of wonderful activities in the great outdoors to savor.

However, for my wife Sue and I, summer vacations weren’t experiences that inspired warm Kodachrome memories.  Our kids may have had a blast, but for the two adults on the team, the vibe that su

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Figuring out a way to get my kids to learn how to ski exhausted me.

 

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It was mainly the tedious, multi-faceted preparation/research process that freaked me out, like deciding on a destination that was easily accessible from my home in northern New Jersey.  And choosing a resort that was appealing, well-reviewed, and as parent-friendly as it was kid-friendly.  And making sure that other activities were available to keep my 14 year-old son (Eddie) and 11 year-old daughter (Lee) occupied after their

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Best Costa Rica Fall Family Vacation Ideas

Family-travel-to-Costa-Ria.jpg?width=192November means autumn school breaks and Thanksgiving week in the USA. It’s time for your fall family vacation.

This year, be ahead of the learning curve and visit one of the world’s largest “outdoor classrooms” in the sun and tropics of Costa Rica. Imagine discovering animals and plants that you have never seen before with your family... a terrific bonding experience and good school report material too! Costa Rica is one of the safest countries in Central America, and a main reason the nation is

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After school wrapped up in June, my family (me, my wife Sue, our 15 year-old son Eddie, and our 11-year-old daughter Lee) began scouting locations for our summer vacation.

 

We established three key criteria to follow in the choosing of our destination.  It needed to...

 

1.  Offer easy access to a combination of fun as well as relaxing activities.

2.  Be a top-rated, well-established resort facility in a beautiful location.

3.  Be situated within a three-hour drive of our northern New Jersey abode.

 

W

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Looking for a family-friendly summer vacation destination?

Travel-Excellence-family-travel.jpg?width=199Family travel is changing as the demographics of families change around the world. No longer are there only 2-parent 2-child families. Traveling families today could be single moms or dads with one or more children, multi-generational families, families with two dads or two moms, and more. According to recent travel industry research, 80% of families want to try new destinations and 75% want to make sure that destination is easy to reach.

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photoAs I started to plan our family’s big summer road trip yesterday, I recognised a giddy sensation I hadn’t felt in a while: it was the happy feeling I get whenever travel plans begin to take shape. Budget constraints mean this year’s trip will involve driving rather than flying – but with the spectacular Pacific Northwest in our backyard, this is no hardship. Our family includes two children, aged 6 and 3, plus dog and cat (both of whom will thankfully be staying behind).

Roadtripping has become
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The entire country arguably could be considered one hugCosta Rica is a big outdoor classroom. Boys with spider monkey at Playa Nicuesa. outdoor classroom – filled to the brim with amazing nature and exciting adventure. For this reason, Costa Rica has become one of the top family vacation destinations in the world.

All in one small country you can find warm tropical weather, beautiful beaches along two oceans (Pacific and Caribbean), rainforest, cloud forest, volcanoes, rivers, and fascinating wildlife that is actually "in the wild."

For families looking for a safe, educationa

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 Angkor Wat is one of the most beautiful and fascinating places on the planet. Made by the Khmer kings in a process that lasts almost 4 centuries, this magnificent area has been abandoned and hidden by the forest. Re-discovered by a French man about 150 years ago, Angkor Wat is ready to become one of the most visited archaeological and artistic sites on the planet.
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Kids love Angkor Wat
We booked a family adventure tour  with ACTIVETRAVEL CAMBODIA (ATC), a member of ACTIVETRAVEL ASIA. ATA has sever
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