Plan Before You Go!
Pour yourself a cup of coffee or something stronger, take a deep breath, put your feet up, and let your mind wander. Think about where you'd really like to go for vacation. Brainstorm with a pen and paper. Make mental notes. Just visualize the ideal setting for you and yours. Then get the rest of the family's input and try to compromise. (Children are part of the family, too and should have some say in the travel plans. Later, when they whine and complain about the long drive/flight, you can remind them that they agreed.)
Where to Go?
Do you enjoy the mountains? Why not buy some backpacks and camping gear and do some serious hiking? Sleep under the stars and cook on an open fire. If the children are too young for hiking, rent a cabin and retreat to solitude.
If you enjoy the beach, book a hotel that has an indoor pool for those rainy days. Better yet, curb expenses and camp by the coast.
Wild game parks provide wonderful family adventures. You can pet deer and lion cubs, watch bears do tricks for popcorn, and, best of all, some of the animals roam wildly rather than stay locked behind bars. You can view them in their natural habitat from the safety of your car.
For more expensive vacations, you can go with the tried and true: Disneyland or Disney World, Las Vegas (which is becoming more kid-friendly), or the Grand Canyon. http://www.1travel.com lists numerous tips, money savings strategies, and vacation destinations.
Go for It!
Try to incorporate different visits into one trip. One year, we went to Seattle and saw all the sites, including the Space Needle. We visited with my sister-in-law in Mount Vernon and enjoyed many beautiful campgrounds. Next time we're up that way (hopefully this summer), we plan to tour Vancouver, BC as well. On the other side of the continent, you can visit New York, historical Philadelphia, and Long Island in very little time. You could even extend the vacation to tour Washington, D.C. You get the idea.
