2019 Summer Vacation Reviews: where did you go, recommendations, don’t s

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We also did Disney World, June 28-July 6. First time with kids.

Do again: stay at contemporary, rent a car, avoid monorail, boats and buses, plan, plan, plan, run into random friend, have a fun dinner, be flexible but still plan, start early/rope drop! no more than 1 sit down meal a day, pack easy breakfasts, use a stroller in the summer (a double! Gasp!), pay for convenience (IE fireworks parties)

Do less: afternoon touring (in July), dinner shows (Hoop Dee Doo wasn’t our favorite), walking (ha!j

Do more: evening touring (will be easier when kids are older, 3 and 7 this trip, done at 7:30 if 3yo didn’t nap), Epcot, variety for breakfast, coffee plan (coffee was hard to find if we were already touring!), use the pool, downtime, drink water

Oh and skip Disney Springs, we went there on a nonpark day on a whim coming back from Kennedy Space Center, and the food was good, probably better than any other spots at Disney, but parking and the wait for a quick service place were nuts, and the prices were even higher than park/resort food for equivalent.

[Anonymous]

Amelia Island...nice and simple beach vacation. The ocean is perfect temperature for swimming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In London right now during their third (??) heat wave of the summer. Do not recommend London during a heat wave, but normally this time in August it is really pleasant or even actually cool, so putting that down to bad luck. When we got here last week we went down to Devon and it was lovely -- wish we were still there given the heat radiating off the sidewalks and buildings here. The upside of the heat, though, is my kid did not even whine during our visit to the British Library, which has to be the best air-conditioned museum in the city, and not a place that would normally hold her interest.

We were in London from 8/13-8/23 and we had that lovely, fall-like weather. Low humidity, low to mid 70s, partly sunny. Gorgeous! It did rain once or twice but not all day. We visited Highclere Castle since I am a Downton Abbey fan, Windsor Castle, Stonehenge, Oxford as well as all of the London sights. The exchange rate is awesome right now. I wonder how Brexit will change it.

[Anonymous]

Multi day rafting trip on the Salmon River in Idaho. It was super family friendly With other kids to play with. The rafting company assigned on guide to hang with the kids and play games, do crafts etc when we were in camp. Adults got to hang out and have a beer or two.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Multi day rafting trip on the Salmon River in Idaho. It was super family friendly With other kids to play with. The rafting company assigned on guide to hang with the kids and play games, do crafts etc when we were in camp. Adults got to hang out and have a beer or two.

Can you share the company name? This sounds amazing!

[Anonymous]

Costa Rica. Highly recommend going during the low/rainy season. We got great deals on hotels and excursions, and literally the only day that the rain upended our plans was yesterday when we arrived at our last stop in San Jose and had planned to spend the afternoon lounging at the pool before packing.

[Anonymous]

10 days in Belize with ages 1,3 and 12. Had a private island and then spent a few days in the jungle. Highly recommend it!

[Anonymous]

Scotland in mid August, just me and my 17 year old. Yes, I'd recommend it for adults or older kids.

We were in Edinburgh during Fringe and while we enjoyed it, I wouldn't have wanted to be there with young kids. We really enjoyed some of the shows and the Tattoo, also climbed Arthur's seat and saw the castle. We did some day trips to Stirling and Falkirk.


We also spent some time in Inverness with some day trips there. I didn't want to rent a car, but the only way to see some of the things I wanted to see (Isle of Skye) are by car or tour bus. I found a private (just my son and I) tour and our guide was fabulous. I would highly recommend him. https://www.thehebrideanexplorer.com/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Multi day rafting trip on the Salmon River in Idaho. It was super family friendly With other kids to play with. The rafting company assigned on guide to hang with the kids and play games, do crafts etc when we were in camp. Adults got to hang out and have a beer or two.

Can you share the company name? This sounds amazing!

Row Adventures - The Family Magic Trip. It was very special and I highly recommend. You must be somewhat outdoorsy to really enjoy it though. I think the best parts were - other kids to play with, people from all over the country and really truly being away from everything in a spectacular setting.

https://www.rowadventures.com/family-magic-rafting-trip

[Anonymous]

I mentioned on another thread that we took a small ship cruise in Alaska with Alaskan Dream Cruises. We took their family-friendly itinerary with DH and I, our two kids, and my parents.

It was truly a trip of a lifetime. Wonderful hikes, wildlife, scenery all on a comfortable ship with a casual atmosphere and delicious wine list. There were some times the kids had their own activities, but we also had a lot of family time. We learned a lot and enjoyed ourselves immensely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Multi day rafting trip on the Salmon River in Idaho. It was super family friendly With other kids to play with. The rafting company assigned on guide to hang with the kids and play games, do crafts etc when we were in camp. Adults got to hang out and have a beer or two.

Can you share the company name? This sounds amazing!

Row Adventures - The Family Magic Trip. It was very special and I highly recommend. You must be somewhat outdoorsy to really enjoy it though. I think the best parts were - other kids to play with, people from all over the country and really truly being away from everything in a spectacular setting.

https://www.rowadventures.com/family-magic-rafting-trip

We looked into doing this but it's so far away. Did you combine it with anything else? How did you get to/from the starting point?

[Anonymous]

1. LA/Santa Barbara in June: YES, I’d highly recommend! SB, in particular, was amazing.

2. Martha’s Vineyard in July: It was very, very hot (over 100, which is exceedingly rare for the Vineyard), so it was quite uncomfortable, especially since AC is a rarity there. Having said that, I can see the appeal, and would like to go back.

3. Islesboro, ME in August: Beautiful, but not sure I’d recommend. Beaches are just a rocky coastline, mosquitoes and ticks are common, and not much on the island, so things to do are limited. It was nice to get some R&R, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Costa Rica. Highly recommend going during the low/rainy season. We got great deals on hotels and excursions, and literally the only day that the rain upended our plans was yesterday when we arrived at our last stop in San Jose and had planned to spend the afternoon lounging at the pool before packing.

I second Costa Rica. We stayed in Guanacaste which barely gets rain in the rainy season. We stayed at all inclusive which was not crowded in August and planned day trips every day. Literally one of the best vacations we have ever done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Costa Rica. Highly recommend going during the low/rainy season. We got great deals on hotels and excursions, and literally the only day that the rain upended our plans was yesterday when we arrived at our last stop in San Jose and had planned to spend the afternoon lounging at the pool before packing.

I second Costa Rica. We stayed in Guanacaste which barely gets rain in the rainy season. We stayed at all inclusive which was not crowded in August and planned day trips every day. Literally one of the best vacations we have ever done.

Do you mind sharing which all inclusive you stayed at?
Thanks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Multi day rafting trip on the Salmon River in Idaho. It was super family friendly With other kids to play with. The rafting company assigned on guide to hang with the kids and play games, do crafts etc when we were in camp. Adults got to hang out and have a beer or two.

Can you share the company name? This sounds amazing!

Row Adventures - The Family Magic Trip. It was very special and I highly recommend. You must be somewhat outdoorsy to really enjoy it though. I think the best parts were - other kids to play with, people from all over the country and really truly being away from everything in a spectacular setting.

https://www.rowadventures.com/family-magic-rafting-trip

We looked into doing this but it's so far away. Did you combine it with anything else? How did you get to/from the starting point?

We visited family in Portland, did some sightseeing in Oregon, and then drove 5 hours to Idaho. We flew out of Spokane which is a two hour drive. I'm glad we extended our trip because it is a bit far.