I've used almost all of the travel websites at one time or another. I don't have a preference for one over the other, but I'm usually not looking for a whole package, just a flight & rental car at the most.
Here are some things I found on my search for ideas:
We Go Places! - This looks like and AWESOME Resource! I've bookmarked it myself.
I live in a vacation area not far from you-The Berkshire Hills in Western Mass, which I have to admit is absolutely beautiful this time of year.
Its probably 4 or 5 hours from you I would guess-- Its mostly geared toward the art and/or nature crowd that escape from the cities to come here.
Theater, Music, Dance, tons of galleries, museums in great settings, antiquing --that type of stuff is everywhere-- or all sorts of fishing , hiking, kayaking etc in very nice natural settings or just quaint New England scenery if that be something that interests you.
Its a great place to relax and unwind.(thats why I live here!)
Im not exactly sure what young'uns are into, but plenty of people bring them here, Its a very family oriented place
If you have any questions -ask away, I'll do the best I can
We're going to the White Mountains of NH. We've rented a 2 bedroom cabin for 3 nights, that's just near Mt. Washington, etc. We're going to Santa's Village, the Flume, and all that stuff. My favorite outing we have planned is a guided tour up Mt. Washington and a tour of the observatory that's up there. (The world record for the highest gusts of wind were measured on Mt. W. - it was 231 mph! It's a place known for extremes in tempretures, too - from -47F degrees below to 72F degrees warm - very interesting place!)
The really cool thing about this, as far as I'm concerned is HOW we made the decision. I printed off a bunch of y'alls' ideas and brought them down to Hubby to take a look-see. Kristopher was in the room and got interested in the print outs and the conversation. He got really excited about the attractions at the White Mts, and said, "Why can't we go here? I want to go here! Please?!" - Well... Okay! Decision made! Since he helped with that, I've had him help with planning the trip, from mapping out the drive to the packing. This will be his first vacation - and he's really into it - and so am I - I think it will be a great time of fun and learning for us!
He got really excited about the attractions at the White Mts, and said, "Why can't we go here? I want to go here! Please?!" - Well... Okay! Decision made! Since he helped with that, I've had him help with planning the trip, from mapping out the drive to the packing. This will be his first vacation - and he's really into it - and so am I - I think it will be a great time of fun and learning for us!
Too cool! My folks never let me decide NUTHIN when I was 5!
I took a look at the link you gave. Great looking place.
We went on family vacations every year while I was growing up and even still get together for a few days or a week every once in a while now that we're all grown. Those are THE BEST memories - even the fights in the back seat of the car and the arguments about WHEN to stop for potty breaks. Especially the, "Are we there yet?" and "You WILL go into this park and you WILL have fun!!! Do you hear me???" Which, of course, lead to the "Are we having fun yet?" questions once inside the park.
Y'all are gonna have a blast and this is one of those memories Kristopher will remember forever. "I remember when I got to help plan our family vacation with y'all!" (OK, he probably won't use "y'all", but you get the idea )
We DO want to see pics and hear all about it when y'all get back! Have a blast!!!
Sounds great, Chas! We drove up Mt. Washington last year. (Couldn't afford the bus or train, which would have been much nicer!) I hadn't been up since I was a kid. Even my cinical teenager said, "Whoa!" And now he wants to HIKE it. Mom has said okay, but only if we don't have to hike back down!
Find that place near Santa's that serves do-it-yourself ice cream sundaes, too. A little pricier than other places, but worth the fun!
Enjoy fine dining in beautifully restored antique Victorian and Art Deco rail cars as the North Country rolls by. The 2 to 2-1/2-hour ride takes you along the Pemigewasset River. Lighting alongside the tracks lets you enjoy the scenery after dark. The fixed-price menu offers a choice of chicken, red meat, or seafood (call ahead for other options).
Oh yeah, Sushi, they're not kidding about the road. Toward the top (you know, the really steep parts) it's just a gravel road, and graded. And cars PASS each other on that thing! Yeah, it took my breath away. And it wasn't just 'cuz of the view.
But it is way cool to drive up and see the trees get smaller and gnarlier, then disappear altogether as you get above tree line. I even found some wild blueberries at one of our stops.
Some of the most severe weather in the world is on the top of Mt. Washington, so they have a weather observatory up there. Last August when we were there, it was thick with fog, and chilly. Back at the bottom, it was sunny and hot.
Caves and mountains, the best trips in the summer.
We're busy doing laundry and packing, as we're leaving Friday morning. Every morning Kristopher has asked me, "Are we on vacation yet? Is it Friday?" I feel for the guy - as a kid, it seems like f-o-r-e-v-e-r for stuff like that to happen. For Hubby and I, it seems like it's coming up too soon - there's too much to do!
We have three sure things - Santa's Village, Clark's Trading Post and water slide, and the tour up Mt. Washington. The last thing is more for us grown-ups. We're doing the bus tour thing, with a tour of the observatory. I've climbed Mt. Washington a couple of times - it's not an easy trip, but it's worth it - it's one of those things you will never forget. It's really quite safe - just stay on the paths. We were just checking the weather, so that we could pick the day with the best visibility - right now it's got a windchill of 36 degrees - in August!
So, we'll let you know how it goes - it won't be soon enough or long enough!
First off, I had no idea that travel with two small children could be so much.... work. There was no rest to be had during the trip, other than when THEY were sleeping. But we made sure the days were packed enough so that they slept well at night!
We stayed in Twin Mt, NH, at The Patio Motor Court. It used to be owned by my sister and brother-in-law, so I knew what the cabins would be like, etc. It had just changed owners recently and the new owner is really sprucing the place up. These types of motor courts are a dime a dozen in the White Mts - like stepping back in time to the 1950's or 60's. We had a nice little 2-bedroom cabin that was only $79/night. Can't beat that price! And it had everything - coffee maker, toaster, microwave oven, stove top, fridge, etc, that you'd need. All we had to bring was the food!
We started out on Friday at Six Gun City, because they have a water slide park. Friday was the nicest and warmest day, so it was a good choice. They even had a water slide just right for Andreas, who is now 18 months old. The kids enjoyed many of the other rides and attractions there. It's not a very pc place, as you'll see little kids running around with cap guns, cork guns, and all that - which didn't bother me - but that's not something you'll probably see at Disney, ya know...
On Saturday, we decided to go to Santa's Village - it was huge. The bill to get thru the gate was also huge - it was $74, with Andreas being free! I don't see how families can afford those prices! Anyhow, the boys had a blast and got to do a lot - but I couldn't get Kristopher to sit on Santa's lap - "I'll see him at the mall later." Too funny.
There was an absolute downpour all day Sunday. It was miserable. So, we went for a ride to The Balsams, which was great from the front. The funny thing is that we accidentally entered through the delivery enterance, and ended up at the back of the resort. It was a dump. The front, if you look at the pictures on the web site, looks very majestic - just breathtaking. We walked around a little and went into one of the gift shops - to find they sold Cats In The Cradle Soap, which is made by our neighbour! LOL! The interesting thing about that part of NH is that it's so close to the Canadian boarder that the signs were in French and English. That's not something you'll see very often in NH - I remember seeing it a lot in Maine, but not NH.
The Balsams is also located in Dixville Notch, which is the first town in the nation to voice it's choice for President, both in the primary and general elections. This means that they have to close the polls just minutes after midnight on election days. Since there's less than 30 residents in the town, that's not a real problem, because the residents of the town can easily meet at the polls (which is at - you guessed it - The Balsams) to cast their vote and then the polls close immediately and the results are reported. Kinda neat.
Sunday night we took the boys bowling. Even the baby got to bowl and he beat his big brother by 5 points. The bowling ally had a ramp that Andreas could use. We set the ball up on the ramp and Andreas just had to push it - something he did with great gusto, once he figured out the relationship of the ball to the pins. He loved it!
On Monday, we hiked The Flume - Andreas rode in backpack on Hubby's back. Kristopher was a great hiker - he really enjoyed the outing. I'd been there several times, but still felt like I was seeing for the first time. There's nothing like it. It's just the most beautiful place. In a selfish way, I wished that it wasn't so commercial - it was a busy day, and not the type of setting where you could admire the moss on the trees or whatever. Some people just seemed to be in a big hurry to get from one part to the next. If you check out the link that I posted, make sure you look at the photos of the Flume in the winter - brrrrrrrrr!
From there, we went to Cannon Mt and went up the mt in an aerial tram. It was 46 degrees at the top of the mt, and we were in the clouds, which meant it like walking through a mist the whole time. The top of the mountain was interesting - the rocks, trees, plants - looked different. We didn't spend a lot of time at the top - it was too cold and wet for the kids. It felt like November up there! We also visited the ski museum at the base of Cannon, which is free and a very nice museum - lots of information and great displays.
Then, we started heading home. After we got home, you could hear a collective sigh of relief from all four of us - the baby seemed to be the most thrilled to be home, just buzzing around, getting into his favorite things - very cute. And Kristopher started asking when we'd go to a water park again. As for me, I'm still doing laundry and unpacking! (And catching up on sleep!)
I think you're thinking of Story Land, in Glen, NH - that's the park that's next door to Heritage. The sad thing is that Heritage is closing it's doors this year because it's not very popular - probably because it's educational! This is their last season. We went to Story Land in early June - the boys had a blast! It was the baby's first time to anything like that and before we even got thru the gate, he was jumping for joy in the stroller - it was like, he didn't know WHAT it was, but he KNEW it was for HIM!
Recommended Posts
coolchef
chas
if you don't mind tourist trap have you thought of the old ochard beach area.
plenty of things for the little ones to do..funtown/splashtown in near by saco
plenty of beautilful sand beaches
close to portland etc
where ever you go have fun!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Belle
How Fun, Chas!
I've used almost all of the travel websites at one time or another. I don't have a preference for one over the other, but I'm usually not looking for a whole package, just a flight & rental car at the most.
Here are some things I found on my search for ideas:
We Go Places! - This looks like and AWESOME Resource! I've bookmarked it myself.
Whale Tale Family Vacation Package
Storyland
Link to comment
Share on other sites
mstar1
I live in a vacation area not far from you-The Berkshire Hills in Western Mass, which I have to admit is absolutely beautiful this time of year.
Its probably 4 or 5 hours from you I would guess-- Its mostly geared toward the art and/or nature crowd that escape from the cities to come here.
Theater, Music, Dance, tons of galleries, museums in great settings, antiquing --that type of stuff is everywhere-- or all sorts of fishing , hiking, kayaking etc in very nice natural settings or just quaint New England scenery if that be something that interests you.
Its a great place to relax and unwind.(thats why I live here!)
Im not exactly sure what young'uns are into, but plenty of people bring them here, Its a very family oriented place
If you have any questions -ask away, I'll do the best I can
Edited by mstar1Link to comment
Share on other sites
ChasUFarley
Okay, here's what we ended up with...
We're going to the White Mountains of NH. We've rented a 2 bedroom cabin for 3 nights, that's just near Mt. Washington, etc. We're going to Santa's Village, the Flume, and all that stuff. My favorite outing we have planned is a guided tour up Mt. Washington and a tour of the observatory that's up there. (The world record for the highest gusts of wind were measured on Mt. W. - it was 231 mph! It's a place known for extremes in tempretures, too - from -47F degrees below to 72F degrees warm - very interesting place!)
The really cool thing about this, as far as I'm concerned is HOW we made the decision. I printed off a bunch of y'alls' ideas and brought them down to Hubby to take a look-see. Kristopher was in the room and got interested in the print outs and the conversation. He got really excited about the attractions at the White Mts, and said, "Why can't we go here? I want to go here! Please?!" - Well... Okay! Decision made! Since he helped with that, I've had him help with planning the trip, from mapping out the drive to the packing. This will be his first vacation - and he's really into it - and so am I - I think it will be a great time of fun and learning for us!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Shellon
Link to comment
Share on other sites
dmiller
Too cool! My folks never let me decide NUTHIN when I was 5!
I took a look at the link you gave. Great looking place.
Have fun!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Linda Z
Sounds like great fun, Chas! Please give us your full report when you get back.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
GeorgeStGeorge
Is "Santa's Village" an amusement park? We had one by that name in the Chicago area years ago...
George
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Belle
AWESOME, CHAS!!!!
We went on family vacations every year while I was growing up and even still get together for a few days or a week every once in a while now that we're all grown. Those are THE BEST memories - even the fights in the back seat of the car and the arguments about WHEN to stop for potty breaks.
Especially the, "Are we there yet?" and "You WILL go into this park and you WILL have fun!!! Do you hear me???" Which, of course, lead to the "Are we having fun yet?" questions once inside the park. 
Y'all are gonna have a blast and this is one of those memories Kristopher will remember forever. "I remember when I got to help plan our family vacation with y'all!" (OK, he probably won't use "y'all", but you get the idea
)
We DO want to see pics and hear all about it when y'all get back! Have a blast!!!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Sushi
Not to mention, you can see THIS!
(click on number 5's pic)
Edited by SushiLink to comment
Share on other sites
shazdancer
Yeah, GeorgeSt., it's an amusement park.
Sounds great, Chas! We drove up Mt. Washington last year. (Couldn't afford the bus or train, which would have been much nicer!) I hadn't been up since I was a kid. Even my cinical teenager said, "Whoa!" And now he wants to HIKE it. Mom has said okay, but only if we don't have to hike back down!
Find that place near Santa's that serves do-it-yourself ice cream sundaes, too. A little pricier than other places, but worth the fun!
Have a blast,
Shaz
Link to comment
Share on other sites
SafariVista
Looks like you're going to have a fun filled time~
:)
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Tom Strange
Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway
Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway is now open for the summer season. The tramway is open daily from 9am to 5pm.
Enjoy views of 4 states and even Canada! At the summit are walking paths, observation deck and cafeteria.
The Cafe Lafayette Dinner Train
Enjoy fine dining in beautifully restored antique Victorian and Art Deco rail cars as the North Country rolls by. The 2 to 2-1/2-hour ride takes you along the Pemigewasset River. Lighting alongside the tracks lets you enjoy the scenery after dark. The fixed-price menu offers a choice of chicken, red meat, or seafood (call ahead for other options).
If I was your kid I'd want to do these!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
shazdancer
Oh yeah, Sushi, they're not kidding about the road. Toward the top (you know, the really steep parts) it's just a gravel road, and graded. And cars PASS each other on that thing! Yeah, it took my breath away. And it wasn't just 'cuz of the view.
But it is way cool to drive up and see the trees get smaller and gnarlier, then disappear altogether as you get above tree line. I even found some wild blueberries at one of our stops.
Some of the most severe weather in the world is on the top of Mt. Washington, so they have a weather observatory up there. Last August when we were there, it was thick with fog, and chilly. Back at the bottom, it was sunny and hot.
Caves and mountains, the best trips in the summer.
Regards,
Shaz
Link to comment
Share on other sites
ChasUFarley
We're busy doing laundry and packing, as we're leaving Friday morning. Every morning Kristopher has asked me, "Are we on vacation yet? Is it Friday?" I feel for the guy - as a kid, it seems like f-o-r-e-v-e-r for stuff like that to happen. For Hubby and I, it seems like it's coming up too soon - there's too much to do!
We have three sure things - Santa's Village, Clark's Trading Post and water slide, and the tour up Mt. Washington. The last thing is more for us grown-ups. We're doing the bus tour thing, with a tour of the observatory. I've climbed Mt. Washington a couple of times - it's not an easy trip, but it's worth it - it's one of those things you will never forget. It's really quite safe - just stay on the paths. We were just checking the weather, so that we could pick the day with the best visibility - right now it's got a windchill of 36 degrees - in August!
So, we'll let you know how it goes - it won't be soon enough or long enough!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Tom Strange
Heck I'd come along to carry your bags just to get out of this heat!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
socks
Go!!! Have fun!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
coolchef
chas
while you at clarks {are there still bears there?}
be sure to stop by the flume
have a great time
Link to comment
Share on other sites
ChasUFarley
We're back!
What a long, strange trip it was...
First off, I had no idea that travel with two small children could be so much.... work. There was no rest to be had during the trip, other than when THEY were sleeping. But we made sure the days were packed enough so that they slept well at night!
We stayed in Twin Mt, NH, at The Patio Motor Court. It used to be owned by my sister and brother-in-law, so I knew what the cabins would be like, etc. It had just changed owners recently and the new owner is really sprucing the place up. These types of motor courts are a dime a dozen in the White Mts - like stepping back in time to the 1950's or 60's. We had a nice little 2-bedroom cabin that was only $79/night. Can't beat that price! And it had everything - coffee maker, toaster, microwave oven, stove top, fridge, etc, that you'd need. All we had to bring was the food!
We started out on Friday at Six Gun City, because they have a water slide park. Friday was the nicest and warmest day, so it was a good choice. They even had a water slide just right for Andreas, who is now 18 months old. The kids enjoyed many of the other rides and attractions there. It's not a very pc place, as you'll see little kids running around with cap guns, cork guns, and all that - which didn't bother me - but that's not something you'll probably see at Disney, ya know...
On Saturday, we decided to go to Santa's Village - it was huge. The bill to get thru the gate was also huge - it was $74, with Andreas being free! I don't see how families can afford those prices! Anyhow, the boys had a blast and got to do a lot - but I couldn't get Kristopher to sit on Santa's lap - "I'll see him at the mall later." Too funny.
There was an absolute downpour all day Sunday. It was miserable. So, we went for a ride to The Balsams, which was great from the front. The funny thing is that we accidentally entered through the delivery enterance, and ended up at the back of the resort. It was a dump. The front, if you look at the pictures on the web site, looks very majestic - just breathtaking. We walked around a little and went into one of the gift shops - to find they sold Cats In The Cradle Soap, which is made by our neighbour! LOL! The interesting thing about that part of NH is that it's so close to the Canadian boarder that the signs were in French and English. That's not something you'll see very often in NH - I remember seeing it a lot in Maine, but not NH.
The Balsams is also located in Dixville Notch, which is the first town in the nation to voice it's choice for President, both in the primary and general elections. This means that they have to close the polls just minutes after midnight on election days. Since there's less than 30 residents in the town, that's not a real problem, because the residents of the town can easily meet at the polls (which is at - you guessed it - The Balsams) to cast their vote and then the polls close immediately and the results are reported. Kinda neat.
Sunday night we took the boys bowling. Even the baby got to bowl and he beat his big brother by 5 points. The bowling ally had a ramp that Andreas could use. We set the ball up on the ramp and Andreas just had to push it - something he did with great gusto, once he figured out the relationship of the ball to the pins. He loved it!
On Monday, we hiked The Flume - Andreas rode in backpack on Hubby's back. Kristopher was a great hiker - he really enjoyed the outing. I'd been there several times, but still felt like I was seeing for the first time. There's nothing like it. It's just the most beautiful place. In a selfish way, I wished that it wasn't so commercial - it was a busy day, and not the type of setting where you could admire the moss on the trees or whatever. Some people just seemed to be in a big hurry to get from one part to the next. If you check out the link that I posted, make sure you look at the photos of the Flume in the winter - brrrrrrrrr!
From there, we went to Cannon Mt and went up the mt in an aerial tram. It was 46 degrees at the top of the mt, and we were in the clouds, which meant it like walking through a mist the whole time. The top of the mountain was interesting - the rocks, trees, plants - looked different. We didn't spend a lot of time at the top - it was too cold and wet for the kids. It felt like November up there! We also visited the ski museum at the base of Cannon, which is free and a very nice museum - lots of information and great displays.
Then, we started heading home. After we got home, you could hear a collective sigh of relief from all four of us - the baby seemed to be the most thrilled to be home, just buzzing around, getting into his favorite things - very cute. And Kristopher started asking when we'd go to a water park again. As for me, I'm still doing laundry and unpacking! (And catching up on sleep!)
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Shellon
Welcome home!
Ha, yeah, traveling with kids.........yikes.
Glad you all had a nice time and glad you're home.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
coolchef
welcome home!
sounds like you had a great if tiering time! i used to go back to work to rest up from a vacation
i have been to all of the places that you wrote of
i loved to take the kids to santas village
next it will be the grandkids when they are a little older!
right next door to the village is the heritage did you go there? great place
were there still bears at clarks? glad you all had fun
Link to comment
Share on other sites
ChasUFarley
Chef --
I think you're thinking of Story Land, in Glen, NH - that's the park that's next door to Heritage. The sad thing is that Heritage is closing it's doors this year because it's not very popular - probably because it's educational! This is their last season. We went to Story Land in early June - the boys had a blast! It was the baby's first time to anything like that and before we even got thru the gate, he was jumping for joy in the stroller - it was like, he didn't know WHAT it was, but he KNEW it was for HIM!
Here's the pic of us at Story Land... all of us!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
coolchef
chaz you'r right nex to story land
damn to bad it's closing! it was nice
my kids liked it even at an early age
glad you had a good time
chaz you'r right nex to story land
damn to bad it's closing! it was nice
my kids liked it even at an early age
glad you had a good time
ps nice pic! you are a wonderful looking family!
visit us in rumford/rangely sometime
you are not far and we could show you a good time
you are always welcome
Link to comment
Share on other sites
ChasUFarley
Thanks Chef - that's the family - me, hubby, Andreas (the baby), and Kristopher (5 years old)....
We turned that place on its ear that day - they're still recovering! LOL! :)
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.