Families with children know that taking a vacation can be difficult and kids aren’t always the best travel companions. After all, how many times can a parent answer “Are we there yet?”? With these vacation ideas, the kids will look forward to the trip and parents will enjoy them also. These are great vacation ideas for families and the memories made will last a lifetime.
If you are the parents of preschoolers or even toddlers, you need to take a trip to Langhorne, Pennsylvania to visit Sesame Place. Home to all of their favorite Sesame Street characters, kids will enjoy visiting the massive climbing structure just as much as they will watching the parade that is complete with dancers, music and the sesame Street characters.
Slides, carousels, and a hot air balloon ride all await the adventurous child (or child within us) in the nearly two dozen rides that are located within this park. Children will be happy to walk along and be greeted by Elmo or one of the other characters that are always happy to meet and greet their guests.
The children and the adults will enjoy Big Bird’s Rambling River and all the other exciting fun in the water park area. Kids find all day fun at the Count’s Splash Castle, a multi-level interactive water play area. This is the largest water play area that the park has ever had.
Following a day of fun at the water park or on the rides, there are plenty of shows to take in and relax for a little while. Elmo Rocks, Abby’s Treasure Hunt and Elmo’s World Live are sure to bring out the musician or actress in each of your little ones. Kids can even get onstage in the Elmo’s World Live show. A tip for your child getting on the show is to sit close to the stage. Being able to do that means arriving at the show early, at least 20 minutes, but if your child is able to appear on stage the wait will be worth it.
If your children are a little old for Sesame Street, take them to Grant’s Farm in St. Louis, Missouri. This is a historical property that is operated by the Anheuser Busch Company but doesn’t revolve around the alcohol that they are famous for, but more around the history of Ulysses S. Grant and the history that abounds here.
Children will absolutely love seeing the beautiful famous Clydesdale horses that are used in so many of the companies’ commercials. These large beautiful horses do not compare to any other horses that they will ever see. They will also enjoy the petting zoo and the exotic bird show. There are more than 900 animals on this land and Anheuser Busch Company supports wildlife preservation and conservation.
Ulysses S. Grant, Civil War General, lived on this land and farmed it for several years. His hand built cabin is still a part of this park. The home is a 2 story 4 room cabin where he and his wife lived after he and a group of friends built it in just three days. History continues in the museum that is nearby that houses several carriages and antique wagons that would have been used at the time Grant lived here.
Children will love the tram ride through the 280 acre wildlife park as well. Adults will enjoy this ride as a welcome retreat from having the children talk about all the fun that they are having here. The best thing about the park is that admission is free but parking is $11 per vehicle.
These sites do not compare to the sights of Disney theme parks and Sea World or Busch Gardens, but they can be fun for the entire family and will make a lasting memory for the family. I have a friend who went to Grant’s Farm last year and her boys asked to go back again so they surely had fun as we all know boys do not usually want to see something that they have already seen. Plan your trip today.
Source: Friend’s recommendations