Summer Family Vacation Ideas?
 

Ok, need some suggestions. For the last two years we've had great vacations in Destin, FL staying at the Emerald Grande right on the water. Lots of beach, pool, boating, fishing, etc. This year I'm trying to think of something different but equally fun. Criteria:

Relaxing and laid back. No theme parks, no crowds, no waiting in line.

Somewhat self contained. No piling in the car to drive all over the place.

Outdoors and active. We enjoy sports, the beach, swimming, hiking, etc. Nice scenery is a bonus. With that said, we like staying in nice hotels, the wife isn't much of a camper.

Not insanely expensive. Vacation fund for the five of us is $5k.

Kid friendly but not corny. My kids are 4, 7, and 10, none of them would get off on a Disney Cruise or something similarly cliche. We also aren't looking for something where we dump them off at a "kids camp" for 8 hours per day. If I want a real vacation I'll leave them with grandparents and take the wife to Vegas.

As always, I'm sure the brain trust won't disappoint.

Oh yeah, and timing is mid-July.

How many days total? Drive or fly? Max drive distant/days?

Early-Mid July is a tough time because that is the exact time that there is no school sports going on, it's good weather, and there is a holiday thrown in there, so vacation spots are usually busy with people who are over-compensating for the rest of the year.

I have always wanted to rent a big houseboat on Cumberland lake in Tennessee, and just relax, swim, fish, sun bathe. I realize this is somewhat like camping, but these boats are really nice inside and huge unlike a camper.

We like taking our 30' camper to a nice State park, that offers hiking, fishing, bicycling, beach, horse trails, and naturalist programs for a full week and just veg out while reading a book.

There are some nice hotels near the park sometimes, but generally, hotels are jammed with tourists. You could stay at a State Park Lodge....they generally have all the amenities and are close to nature.

I presume you are thinking east coast correct?
Guessing flying a family to the west coast and renting a car would take a big bite out of your budget.
However the central Cali coast can be nice, Moro bay is reasonably priced and stuff to do/see in that area.

Fly or drive, drive no more than 8 hours, 5-6 days.

Timing is a big problem, but my son is on a competitive baseball team that isn't done until 7/4. The lake idea is great, but we'll already be taking a few long weekends to Lake of the Ozarks with our boat.

Go North and your 5K is worth 6K...

You guys have probably spent time in the Rockies, but the summers there are hard to best.

When my Dad lived in Monument, we would vacation out of there: Pikes Peak, Rocky Mountain National Park, etc. It will be crowded, but there are some really neat off the main path places.

I did a quick search on Estes Park, CO for hotels and the rates were reasonable...not off the path but just a quick example.

Fly into LAX, Morro Bay is 4 hour drive north, once you hit Ventura (one hour) the rest of the drive is rather pretty.
Water will be colder that Florida I would presume, huge very nice beach north of town, kayaking in the bay. Wine tasting near by if you are into that sort of thing.

Cancun. It has all that and many of the activities are rather inexpensive. No idea about budget since we haven't check for a few years. 5k may not be doable but worth a shot

Outer Banks of North Carolina. Rent a shack on the beach (waves wash up under your deck at high tide) in or near Kitty Hawk. Do a seafood boil on your back deck, drink beer, play in the ocean, watch the sea turtles hatch/boil late July/Aug, do a dune buggy ride to see the wild horses in Duck, fly stunt kites on the beach with your kids, and on and on.

We do it every year and can't imagine a more relaxing vacation...as busy or sedate as you want. No high rises, no miniature golf...just light houses, sunken ships and sunshine.

Oak Island for us this year...a bit south of the Outer Banks, but very similar.

Five people?
My suggestion would be to travel on the "off-season".
1). Prices will be about half.
This equals more money for better restaurants, treats, and all the side excursions you can handle.

2). Temperatures will be more moderate.
That could be good or bad, depending.
You don't want to do mountain-climbing with kids at the top of AZ summers.

I love CO in the summer, every summer in high school I spent time with family friends in Summit County. We did Breckenridge and Denver a few years ago, unfortunately the national park visits were tempered by forest fires around Colorado Springs.

This actually sounds really fun. Could you give me more info as far as lodging, places to go, etc?

Unfortunately not an option. My kids have summer vacation from mid-May until mid-August. My oldest has baseball until 4th of July, and football normally starts the last week of July. Our window is pretty small, just gotta make the most of it.

VRBO is your friend. Do a search. My wife does the leg-work and we already booked for July. The number of beach-front houses is declining. They were built years ago and shore erosion has reached a point where they can't be re-built once they blow down (hurricane). Costs us about $3500 for beach-front, quite a bit less if you don't mind being on the bay side or across the street.

Here you go: http://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals/usa/north-carolina/coastal/outer-banks

Check out Nags Head, Kill Devil Hills, Kitty Hawk, etc. Also look at Oak Island...a bit further south but we had a blast there two summers ago. We're there July 11-18. If by coincidence, we're there at the same time, a cooler full of Sam Adams and a pot full of crab, corn, sausage and fish await.

Myrtle Beach....affordable and tons of things to do for the kids.

Olympic National Park? How about the San Juans? Can't beat western Washington in July and August!

Check into the Crystal Coast of NC as well.
I live here year round.
Family oriented beaching, etc.
Check Bluewater Realty for vacay rentals.
Not near as crowded as some of the locales listed.

Carter

Nova Scotia, right now your 5grand is worth 6 grand Cdn.
lots of great outdoor stuff, Halifax has lots of stuff that both kids and adults will enjoy together. Beaches, hiking boating etc
Go on the Nova scotia tourism web site and they will send you a free book.
steve

A colleague at work took his family to a dude ranch in Wyoming.

Thanks guys, that gives me some new ideas to think about.