10 Favorite Family Fun Vacation Destinations

While we have always taken a family vacation I haven't been that great at making sure we explore many different places.  Once we found a place we enjoyed (like Disney) we often booked trip after trip to the same spot.  In recent years I have been trying to branch out.. here are 10 of our favorite family vacation destinations so far.

1.  Walt Disney World!-- If you read our blog regularly you'll know that we are all  huge Disney fans.  In fact we used to go to WDW every 2 years without fail... I'm shocked to realize it's been 5 years since our last trip!

2.  Orlando, Florida-- Besides Disney there is so much to see and do in Orlando that I almost felt like I could use up all 10 favorite family destinations with just Orlando attractions!  My family loves it there.  For quite some time on the off years we weren't visiting Disney we'd fly to Orlando and stay at the Nickelodeon hotel and explore the rest of the city.

Attending a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Dinner at Nickelodeon hotel 

 Universal Studios

Sea World

Medieval Time Dinner Show

Kayaking or floating in one of the natural springs around Orlando

Visiting Legoland (just a short drive away)

3.  Myrtle Beach-- We found a fantastic hotel right on the beach with a water park inside and my boys were content to sit by the pool and the ocean most days.  There was so much to see and do though that we spent each evening exploring such wonderful attractions like The Ripley's Aquarium, Go-karting, the Pirate's Voyage Dinner show, mini golf, and more.

4.  Tampa/ Gulf Coast Beaches-- Yes, I know this is in Florida also; what can I say we just love the state and all it has to offer.  We had a wonderful trip to Indian shores beach and enjoyed many family attractions in and around Tampa and up and down the gulf coast.

The beach

Lowery Park Zoo

Clearwater Aquarium

Busch Gardens

The Chihuli and Dali museums

Deep sea fishing/ Bay fishing/ pirate excursions

Florida Aquarium

Weeki Wachee Springs

5.  Hershey, Pennsylvania-- While I'm not sure there would be enough in the area for an entire week's vacation Hershey is a fun area to visit.  My boys enjoyed the rides at Hershey park, making their own candy bards, exploring limestone caverns, touring the car museum, and looking at the neat Hershey themed things in and around this small town.

6.  New Hampshire-- When the boys were smaller we used to travel closer to home and really enjoyed exploring New Hampshire.  We checked out Storyland, Santa's Village, 6 Gun City, the Polar Caves, and Water Country.  There are so many family friendly things to see and do in New Hampshire that it makes a great family destination any time of the year.

7. Sesame Place-- When my boys were small we took the trip to Sesame Place just about every year.  With parades, character dinners/ meet and greets, rides fit for families and lots of stage shows my kids were enthralled with the place.  A huge hit for any families with kids that watch Sesame Street-- mine actually did not watch Sesame Street until about 3 weeks before our trip and then I turned it on each day.

8.  Nashville, Tennessee-- My husband was sent to Tennessee to fix a problem with one of their plants and the boys and I tagged along for the ride.  We were able to time it so that we had a couple of days in the country music capital and we had a fantastic time.  We toured the Gaylord Opryland hotel, saw the Athena Parthenon in centennial park, explored the Adventure Science Center,  checked out the waterslides at Nashville Shores, and hardly made a dent in all the city had to offer.

9.  Cape Cod, Massachusetts-- Having grown up in New England so many of my own family vacations took place on the Cape.  I had fond memories of walking the beach, exploring little beachy shops, biking the trails, and eating ice cream while enjoying big bands playing on the town greens.  This is something I've always wanted to share with my boys.  Touring the Cape Cod potato chip factory, taking a whale watching tour, spending the day at Water Wizz (a fun water park just off the cape), etc.

10. Wilmington, North Carolina-- We had/have family that live in the area and I can remember visiting Wilmington every couple of years myself as a child with my whole family.  This was one destination I was trilled to share with my boys.  Aside from the beach there is a lot of fun things to see and do in and around Wilmington.  The Cape Fear Sperentarium, the North Carolina Aquarium, the boardwalk, touring the Battleship... just to name a few.

Where is your favorite family vacation destination??

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