We are excerpting more great content derived from our One-Stop Summer Planning Expo; this time with a view toward planning a great family vacation. (Of course, in a typical case of “physician, heal thyself,” we still need to plan our own vacation… reason we hope to soon heed what we write ourselves…
   

 

Some of our favorite, expert tips on Family Vacation Planning… All from Suzanne Rowan Kelleher, the Editor-in-Chief of the family travel website WeJustGotBack.com. According to Suzanne, there is still plenty of time to orchestrate a great vacation for this summer, and the following nuggets will enable you to do so cost-efficiently, and with assurance that your lodgings will be prove to be as family friendly as you had hoped, once you arrive.

• Seize upon “preschool promotions:” If you aren’t yet in a lifestage where vacations are dictated by a school calendar, take advantage of the special deals many resorts create to drive those non-peak weeks. (Two of Suzanne’s favorites in the northeast, Tyler Place in Vermont, and Winnetu Oceanside Resort on Martha’s Vineyard, both have such “preschooler promos”).
• Leverage meta booking sites for airfare deals: Sites like Kayak.com and Sidestep.com search hundreds of travel sites at once to give you comprehensive results on lowest fares.
• Think outside the Saturday-to-Saturday flight pattern: On popular leisure routes (NY to Orlando, for instance), airfares often drop a lot when you shift to a weekday, so play with your dates if you can to explore options.
• For the west coast bound: Bear in mind that schools out west tend to hold summer vacation between mid-May and mid-August. Thus, travel there during late August (when west coast kids are back in school) and you can save in dollars and crowds.

 
   
Gauging the Kid-Friendly Quotient:

As you research possible destinations, here are 5 good questions to pose to determine just how high the family factor will be once you get there. (Use these as a litmus test, whether each is equally important to you or not):

• What percentage of your clientele is made up of families? (The higher the percentage, the higher the chance that the property understands what families want and need).
• Do you offer any special packages or pricing discounts aimed at families? (A few possibilities: packages that bundles the room rate with tickets to a nearby attraction, discounts on adjoining rooms, even the good old “kids eat free” deal). Ask assertively enough and a hotel might even put one together for you.
• Will our room have a small fridge and/or microwave? (And if not, can they be set up? At what extra charge)? These items are becoming standard features in more and more hotels.
• Does the hotel’s restaurant offer a child’s menu? (Whether your kids dine off of it or not, this one is a very good bellweather).
• How much extra would it cost to get a roll-away cot in our room? (A true family-friendly hotel will charge nothing).

Happy travels… and explore more great ideas at WeJustGotBack.com
 

   
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