Kid-friendly vacations with young children might sound like an oxymoron, but they should be somewhere in between super fun and exciting and then wanting to pull your hair out. The best kid-friendly vacations have something for everyone, including stimulation and downtime for all. Luckily, there are so many spots in the United States that are a quick flight or car ride away to enjoy and explore for the whole family. As you plan your future kid-friendly vacations, bookmark your favorites for the future.
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Grand Canyon, Arizona
The Grand Canyon is truly a grand place, magnificent beauty with miles of endless, breathtaking views, there is plenty for everyone in the family to do, making this a favorite of the kid-friendly vacations. Grand Canyon is a naturally formed canyon thats natural glory is the distinguished layered bands of red rock that reveal millions of years of geological history. The Grand Canyon National Park is vast in its size of 277 miles and a mile deep at various locations. The landscape provides abundant views and the history provides the perfect outdoor location for kids to learn and explore.
Visit the South Rim year-round, which is open 24 hours a day, or the North Rim, which is a bit higher in elevation, more remote, and also closed for part of the year. Summer thunderstorms are abuandant and treat to watch, but they can be dangerous, so make sure safety is a top priority if you happen to find yourself in the midst of one. More than just scenery, the Grand Canyon is also home to diverse rock formations and an abundance of fossils from the Paleozoic Era 525-270 million years ago. Being able to add a mix of mini-history or science lessons is an added benefit of kid-friendly vacations.
Fun Fact: You can book a mule ride to view the Grand Canyon as you have never seen it before. Just plan in advance, as the mule rides book up over a year out!
Whether you want to stay in a hotel or camp, there are campsites (tent and RV camping available), as well as many lodging options outside and inside the park. Visit the famous Skywalk, which consists of a horseshoe-shaped glass floor with a steel frame that projects about 70 feet over the Grand Canyon. The Skywalk sits on the reservation of the Hualapai Tribe, which is typically closed from the public, but they do offer the Skywalk and lodging inside their reservation for a chance to experience life on Native American tribal lands.
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Joshua Tree, California
Joshua Tree is a magical place for adults and kids alike. It is remote enough to feel like you are in the middle of nowhere and to be able to see the night sky full of stars. At the same time, it is also close enough to modern conveniences. Even if you are camping, there is a grocery store within a short driving distance, which is key for kid-friendly vacations. Joshua Tree is unique, as two desert ecosystems come together- the Mojave and Colorado deserts. This creates an amazing variety of plants, animals, and even a diverse weather system that has brought strong winds and rains that have shaped the land.
Fun Fact: The Joshua tree is a member of the Agave family, and a recent DNA study led to the separation of that formerly huge family of plants into 40 distinct plant families. Because of these studies, Joshua trees now have the more accurate Agave family designation.
First, there are vast spaces to roam and explore, so your children will be equally dirty and tired at the end of each day. Between the jagged edges of the trees and colorful sunsets, Joshua Tree to a child is something straight out of a Dr. Suess book. Kid-friendly vacations should be equal parts stuff for the kiddos and adults alike. Both kids and adults will be enthralled with the landscape that Joshua Tree has to offer. From camping under the stars, bird watching, horseback riding, and various hiking and nature trails to choose from, you and your kids will have to prioritize what to do first.
One of the most spectacular parts of Joshua Tree is the chance to stargaze like you never have before. Most of us live in urban and suburban areas where the city lights and pollution wash out the light of the stars. At Joshua Tree National Park, there are some of the darkest night skies in California. This allows you and your kids to admire the Milky Way, and you can use this time as a mini-lesson to teach your children about constellations and how our ancestors used the stars to guide them on journeys across the lands before kid-friendly vacations were even a thing.
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Niagara Falls, New York
Niagara Falls is the one place you will need to be fully decked out in your rain gear, regardless of the weather. Kids love the rain, and they will love being able to wear their rain boots and a poncho even on the sunniest day at Niagara Falls. It’s one of our favorite kid-friendly vacations because it is one of the most famous waterfalls in the world, as a group of three waterfalls comes together to form Niagara Falls. Plus, Niagara Falls is a city full of fun to explore, more than just the breathtaking waterfall, so this is one of those kid-friendly vacations that is more than one destination.
Fun Fact: Niagara Falls can produce over 4 million kilowatts of electricity per year, which is shared by the United States and Canada at their respective plants to power homes and businesses.
The oldest of American state parks is definitely a must for kid-friendly vacations. Adults and children alike will be in awe of the thunderous beauty that is Niagara Falls, and the surrounding city to explore. Luckily, the waterfall is not the only thing to do while visiting Niagara Falls, there is also an aquarium to visit, hiking trails, fireworks, and the illumination of the falls at night. Whether you choose to view the falls by observation deck or by boat via the famous Maid of the Mist, just make sure you are ready to get wet and enjoy the kid squeals of delight at the amazing falls.
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Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico
Carlsbad Caverns is located in the Chihuahuan Desert in Southern New Mexico, which is home to over 100 caves hidden beneath the surface. This is one of the kid-friendly vacations that will also be a bit of a history and science lesson. The caves were formed when sulfuric acid dissolved into the surrounding limestone, which created stunning rock formations jutting down from the ceilings of the caves. You can climb into and tour the caves to get a glimpse of the underground worlds that have been preserved beneath the desert.
The caverns themselves are truly breathtaking, but one of the real treats is being able to watch up to one million bats (during migration season) fly out of the caves for dinner eat night. If bats are not your thing, definitely skip this part, but your kids will get a kick out of watching the bats fly high over their head in search of insects for their dinner! Kid-friendly vacations have highlight activities for the kids that they will never forget, and watching the bats in their native habit is an experience no one will forget.
Fun Fact: Bats are the only flying mammal! They have live births (no eggs), nurse their babies, and have hair instead of fur.
Depending on the ages of your children and the amount of activity you wish to partake in, you can choose to hike the steep mile plus paved trail entering the cave’s Natural Entrance or you can take the elevator directly in the Big Room trail. Give your child the chance to become a junior park ranger and learn about the natural wonders of the park and how you can help preserve them for the future. They can earn an official junior ranger badge, once they complete various requirements (age-based), the perfect addition for kid-friendly vacations!
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Not only is Yellowstone National Park the first national park in the United States, it might be the first in the world. With over a million visitors a year, Yellowstone’s Old Faithful geyser is the geothermal phenomenon that millions get a kick out of. Although Old Faithful is not the tallest or largest geyser in the park, it is the most consistent. Since 2000, it has erupted every 44 minutes to 2 hours, which accounts for its namesake. Old Faithful may be one of the most sought-after sites in the park, but they are over 10,000 hydrothermal features located in the park, and more than 500 are geysers.
Exploring the many thermal basins of Yellowstone is a popular activity, the wildlife, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, and even snow showing and skiing options in the winter are not to be overlooked. The geysers definitely make this one of our favorite kid-friendly vacations, but after the thrill of the geysers, there is still much to explore. Swimming holes made from the hot springs make the perfect temperature water for the whole family to enjoy, not to mention the soothing benefits of natural mineral water.
Mud volcano, despite its sulfur smell, will also be a hit with the kiddos. The constant boiling mud will enthrall kids. A short walk away is Dragon’s Mouth Spring, a pool adjacent to the cave, which spews steam from its mouth, rumbling as water comes out of the cave opening. It’s just like a dragon spewing fire, hence the name and a delight for the kids to take in – an experience that makes this a top priority of kid-friendly vacations.
Fun Fact: When on the roads, keep your eyes peeled for “Bison jams.” Yellowstone is infamous for its bison herds. It is the only place in the United States where bison have occupied continuously since prehistoric times.
Yellowstone is full of wonder and awe for the young and old alike. Sure, the kids may get a kick out of the bison, but even you will be amazed at how close you can get to them and snap some pictures. Enjoy the bath-like water temperatures at the hot springs and the soothing sounds of nature all around you. No matter how you take in Yellowstone, it will surely be a family hit and a favorite of the kid-friendly vacations.
Kid-friendly vacations don’t have to be just for the kids, these national and state parks are equally fun and invigorating for you as well. Planning ahead, trying out new things from tent camping to traveling in an RV to your destination opens up a whole new world within these parks. At the end of the day, you don’t need to plan every second of your day. The best part about these kid-friendly vacations is the number of things they can explore on their own, just by being in a brand new environment.
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Other Kid-Friendly Vacations to check out: 20 Kid Travel Friendly Destinations To Visit Before Your Child Turns 10
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Sources: Wikipedia.org, nationalparkservice.com
Picture Credits: nationalparkservice.com, unsplash.com
