Kids rule! More resorts and destinations are going out of their way to offer children and their parents adventures and unforgettable experiences. Here’s a sampling:
1. Atlantis Resort, Paradise Island, Bahamas.
This large seaside resort is a wonderland for kids of all ages.
Begin the day swimming with dolphins or interacting with sea lions at Dolphin Cay. Later, slip and slide through the water park, float through the mile-long series of canals, rapids and tunnels aboard an inner tube, or lounge at the beach or one of 11 pools. Don’t miss the newly opened Atlantis Kids Adventure Center. Make time for a culinary adventure, making pottery or creating your own Atlantis pal. Ask about the Kids Stay and Play Free promotion and the Lego Fantasy Camps planned for this summer.
Contact: 1-888-877-7525;
2. Keystone, Colo.
This Rocky Mountain resort is going all out to attract kids and their parents. The latest drawing card is the world’s largest snow fort, which debuts Feb. 19. The expansive play area includes 12-foot walls, a drawbridge, a lookout tower and a dragon. The junior set will also enjoy monthly Kidtopia festivals that include glow-stick parades, disco tubing, glow-bug skate night and mountain barbecues. Parents will be impressed with the Kids Ski Free program that’s available with the purchase of an adult three-day lift ticket and four nights of lodging.
Contact: 1-877-204-7889;
3. Nemacolin Woods Resort, Farmington, Pa.
Sign on for the Family Escape Package and use your $400 credit to enjoy the spa, golf or a range of creative adventures just for kids.
Channel their artistic talents into the Jackson Pollock Experience, in which youths 6 to 16 can don protective coveralls and use a variety of media, from paintball guns to darts, to create their own masterpieces.
Also for families: an eight-lane bowling alley, 65 arcade games, pool tables, an indoor climbing wall, exotic bird habitat and miniature train display.
Contact: 1-800-422-2736;
4. The Osprey, Beaver Creek, Colo.
The most challenging part of skiing with kids is the ground game: Gather all the gear, trudge to the lifts.
That isn’t a problem when you check into this stylish yet comfortable lodge just steps from the chairlift. Kids will also enjoy free hot chocolate and cookies in the afternoon, Wii games, unlimited DVD rentals and kid-sized bathrobes.
Contact: 970-754-7400;
5. Thompson Family Adventures.
You may choose to trek through Tanzania, explore local villages on bikes and cross the savanna on foot.
Perhaps you yearn to learn how to surf in the blue waters of Costa Rica or to explore the cultures of Peru or Panama. No matter your itinerary, you’ll be in the hands of those who know how to carefully craft an unforgettable family holiday.
Thompson was voted the Best Family Adventure Tour Operator by National Geographic for the second year in a row.
Contact: 1-800-262-6255; ——— Lynn O’Rourke Hayes is editor of : lohayes@familytravel.com
