Looking for Summer Vacation Ideas

[Northendzone]

We are a family of 4 - will be 12, dughter will be 9 at vacation time. We will go hiking and biking as a family. Hard to golf yet as a family because age of dughter.......we are looking for some vacation ideas for august 2014.

we would like the vacation to be somewhat active (i.e. biking/hiking), near a beach/water, warm temps (last year we went to Kelowna). It would be nice to drive there as well but we are open to flying if need be.

Vacation would be limited to North America

Wife and I have also considered the following spots:

* Mexico - this would be a lazy vacation of lying around mostly, and we are not sure if we want to go there in August
* Chicago - never been, but I wonder if we'd spend a lot of time inside at museums and stuff and the wife and I wonder if it would be more enjoyable for us to go w/o kids
* San Francisco - have read it can be expensive there, also kids don't like seafood very much
* Florida - Disney and Other stops.....this would likely be a very hectic vacation where we are on the go a lot.........
* Penticton - meets much of our criteria, except I am having trouble finiding enough info about biking - other than the Kettle Valley RR (which as I recall is not that smooth in that area)

I'd like to go somewhere in Colorado mostly for the biking (but I'd have to find trails we could ride on as a family as well), but that seems like it is a few more hours in the vehicle than the wife wants to spend.

We have been to Seattle, whitefish, Invermere and Portland was on the radar, until I found out most of the good biking is 1 or more hours away.

[surferguy]

get in car and do the great American road trip. Utah national parks, grand canyon, monument valley, Craters of the moon park...etc.

August might be hot though.

[troutman]

My friends go down to Idaho every summer -

http://www.sandpointonline.com/rec/lakeguide/index.html

http://coeurdalene.org/

http://www.silverwoodthemepark.com/

[GP_Matt]

Go north,
Drive north to Hay River and across to the Nahanni National Park. There should be a lot of biking and hiking opportunities and a chance to see a part of Canada that few get to see.

I have never been myself, but we are planning to head there at the end of June to take advantage of all the daylight.

[Cheese]

Sunshine coast in BC...take a ferry from North Van (Horseshoe Bay) over to the coast...it is spectacular, nice beaches with lots of sand dollars and other sea faring life hanging around...cool area. You can then follow the maps dotted lines and trip over to Comox on the island and drive back down across the island if you have time. If you do that you can make a day trip to Hornby Island which is alo very beautiful.

[GGG]

I would go to Zion National Park in Utah and then hit some of the surrounding areas like Arches, Moab, Bryce Canyon, Capital Reef depending on how much driving you want to do. These are the nicest national parks and so different from the Mountains you see here. Colorado I find a little bit of a let down because its like Banff/Jasper/Glacier but not as nice and without the imposing peaks.

In Zion the Narrows hike is the best day hike I have ever taken. You hike in and out of the Virign river (a creek really at this point) up a canyon until it narrows to where your arms almost touch the wall. A nine year old could do the whole thing without issues. (I took my five year old about 1/4 of the way up before being stopped by sections that were waist deep on me. But a nine year old could do it. Google pictures of it. It is amazing. Also in zion you can go tubing down the Virgin river which is a great way to spend 2 or 3 hours in the hot afternoon Sun. There are also Canyoneering trips available if your kids climb and Rapel you could go yourself or you can hire a guide to take you through. For biking in Zion you can bike the paved parkway through the main canyon which is closed to vehicle traffic in the summer. Only busses on it. It is 25k long and gradually uphill. Some of the shuttle buses have bike racks on them so you can load your bikes on the shuttle take the bus to the end and then cruise down hill for an hour or two through amazing scenery.

Then you head over to Bryce Canyon where the high elevation makes it a lot cooler (28 instead of 35). You do day hikes in the canyon there.

Moab has great biking though I haven't been in a long time and didn't have kids when I went so I don't know how kid friendly the area is.

There is also Arches, Capital Reef, and a few State and other National Parks and Monuments to visit depending on how long and how much driving. The Grand Canyon North Rim is also only about 3-4 hrs away if that is on your list to.

I love this area and it is just so different than what we have here that it makes a great vacation spot instead of going to a place like Colorado which just has not as nice mountains as we have here.

[undercoverbrother]

odd I responded earlier and my post is gone......

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

Moab: hiked the the delicate arch (our kids are 7/9 at the time they did it no worries)

Spoiler!

Durnago: stayed in Purgatory, really cool kids stuff, zip line, alpine slide, also short amazing day trips.

Mesa Verde: WOW, middle of nowhere, but holy crap amazing, my kids loved it

Spoiler!

Great Sand Dunes National Park: cool area, rent sand toboggan

Spoiler!

Four Corners: didn't think it was worth it, went becuase our family from the states wanted to stand in 4 states at once, it is in the middle of nowhere.

[undercoverbrother]

OK I get it there are two threads.....

You Fata'd yourself.

[Northendzone]

I'd love to go to Moab/Durango and some of the other places in Colorado; however, that is more time driving than the wife wants to spend.

vancovuer Island is a possibility.

LA would also be a possibility, but we would have to fly and then rent bikes or something.....

We had the fortune of goign to San Diego a few years back, I loved it - mexican food was great.

We also went to Sandpoint, CDI and Silverwood two summers ago - that vacation was a bust as the kids did not really like the rides at Silverwood, and the lineups at both the waterpark and theme park are horrible.......I like Sandpoint though - two fantastic resturants there - mexican and pizza......

[burn_baby_burn]

I think anyone who hits a Disney park during summer vacation is mentally insane. Huge crowds and long line ups don't seem appealing to me on a vacation.

[photon]

Palm Springs is a place we've gone a couple of times, though August might be too hot.

EDIT:

Originally Posted by burn_baby_burn

I think anyone who hits a Disney park during summer vacation is mentally insane. Huge crowds and long line ups don't seem appealing to me on a vacation.

This!

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by photon

Palm Springs is a place we've gone a couple of times, though August might be too hot.

EDIT:



This!

We went to Palm Springs on spring, to visit my inlaws. I didn't think there was a lot to do beyond golf. If you are going to go that far south, there are much better places to go, IMO.

[troutman]

Lake Tahoe:

http://mountainbiketahoe.org/

[Northendzone]

we went to disney at christmas one year - hard to imagine the lineups being any worse in august......

love to go to tahoe to go biking - but likely to far for the wife......i think i need to go on my own vacation.....

[surferguy]

if you do decide to hit up Vancouver Island, head north of Campbell river to the top of the Island. It is quite majestic and unspoiled. Crowds are minimal. I got married in a small resort called Telegraph Cove so I am a bit biased. That said I found it a very interesting place to explore. Cant wait to go back.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

we went to disney at christmas one year - hard to imagine the lineups being any worse in august......

love to go to tahoe to go biking - but likely to far for the wife......i think i need to go on my own vacation.....

What is too far? I drive everywhere with long days so I have everyone trained to put up with it but I find that if you are going on a two week vacation having a first day of 15hrs and a last day of 15hrs in the car to be okay. You just suck it up for the two long days and make sure that the rest of the days don't have much driving time. The key is to leave at about 4 am. Then everyone else can sleep for the first 4 hrs or so of the drive and take some breaks that aren't just gas stations.

The other option if driving 10 plus hours is out is to fly and drive but to me that is way more work. For most places in the Western US you can fly into Denver, Vegas, San Fran, or LA and rent a car and drive 3 hrs to where you would want to go. For example it is about 3.5hrs from San Fran to Lake Tahoe.

[EverfresH15]

Go to the Shuswap

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by GGG

What is too far? I drive everywhere with long days so I have everyone trained to put up with it but I find that if you are going on a two week vacation having a first day of 15hrs and a last day of 15hrs in the car to be okay. You just suck it up for the two long days and make sure that the rest of the days don't have much driving time. The key is to leave at about 4 am. Then everyone else can sleep for the first 4 hrs or so of the drive and take some breaks that aren't just gas stations.

.

Agreed, some of the most enjoyable times on vacation is in the vehicle. We have family chats and discussions.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by GGG

The other option if driving 10 plus hours is out is to fly and drive but to me that is way more work. For most places in the Western US you can fly into Denver, Vegas, San Fran, or LA and rent a car and drive 3 hrs to where you would want to go. For example it is about 3.5hrs from San Fran to Lake Tahoe.

Fly to Reno - close to Lake Tahoe.

[macker]

If it is a vacation for kids with the idea of quick bike escapes for you at various points it is hard to beat Northern California. For you : Monterey hosts Sea Otter Classic yearly, Santa Cruz demonstration forest, Mount Tam, Marin County. For the kids : Six Flags, Waterworld, Jelly Belly. For the wife : Sonoma, Napa Valley. Then lure them East in search of Gold to Sutters Mill knowing that this takes you to Auburn, CA soon after the endurance capital of the world and an awesome trail network that hosts the Western States yearly. You will love this area and the kids will love panning for Gold. Tell your wife Tahoe is next up where she can shop around and you can hit the trails and the kids will want to be at the beach. You can keep going to Reno and past the numerous gold mines of Nevada before hitting the Salt Flats of Utah where the land speed records have been set and you will want to strive to get out of the area as quick as you can also. If you are driving you can do most of the above easily if you have a couple of weeks but if you are flying in it likely is too many side trips. Northern California is awesome though.