Mom of teen and tween DDs...ok so the money is no object is throwing me (into very exotic places I've never been to) but I can highly recommend Yosemite, Zion, Bryce, and Acadia National Parks. Grand Canyon if going to the bottom (and must be the right time of year).
Also, I second New Zealand! DH and I did a month there for our honeymoon. It was pre-Lord of the Rings hype, but I'm sure it's still just as fantastic.
Ok here is something expensive and awesome: We took a Tauck tour. Tauck has a line called Tauck Bridges which is for parents and kids over 8 y.o. (or grandparents). So basically, the kids are old enough that you are not dealing with toddler meltdowns or cooing over little Johnny's kiddie-made experience--no "Larla can't make it up the steps--too tired/too far/too hot". Lots of teens and everyone is nice. Check them out!
With Tauck Bridges, we went to Italy (Rome/Pompeii/Sorrento/Capri but there are others) because we love the ancient history, but I didn't want to plan anything because I was planned out, and didn't want to argue with DH about turning right or left. The tour was fantastic--enough ancient Roman history and Catholic/Vatican stuff to get the kids' interest up, enough food and fun and local life to keep everyone entertained; hotels were awesome and Tauck is known for choosing great hotels.
Finally, we have friends who do this expensive tour company...BackRoads tours? Some PP help me with the name here. It's part biking, part other stuff. They went to Costa Rica and they said it was the best trip of their lives. They were just blown out by it, and they have had some plumb experiences in their lives so it really must have been an amazing tour.
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