J

Looking to you experts on where to take family of 4 for 1 week that won't cost a second mortage. Kids aged--early teens! Would prefer no more than 10 hr. drive from Ohio. Open to all kinds of suggestions, we're adventerous but not monetarily wealthy!

lisa

Where in Ohio?
Here's a cool spot we once stayed at in West Virginia:
http://www.pipestemresort.com/accommodations.html
We stayed at the lodge accessible by aerial tram. It was exciting. Went white water rafting, too. This is a state park, so relatively inexpensive.
You could easily spend a few days there.

gc

Well,

Montreal's about 12.5 hours from Columbus. 60 cents on the dollar is tough to beat!

sue

How about Wildwood New Jersey? I don't know where in Ohio you are from or how long of a drive.

Brian Kilgore

Come to Canada, visit Niagara Falls, go to Toronto, visit African Lion Safari and Canada's Wonderland, try some different food, compare the Canadian Wendy's, McDonald's, and Burger King to the US versions (kids like this kind of research) and then try Harvey's. Depending on where you are in Ohio, come into Canada at Detroit / Windsor (you can stop at Greenfield Vilalge and henrry Ford Museum in Dearborn) or Buffalo / Niagara Falls / Fort Erie.

For US tourists, the low value of the Canadian dollar makes the trip very affordable.
BAK

lmsa_mc

Kentucky!
We're from Cincinnati and love to go to Kentucky. You could stay in some of the state park lodges, explore Mammoth Cave, visit the Kentucky Horse Park, stop at the Newport Aquarium, see living history at Boonesborough, or be amazed by the Moonbow at Cumberland Falls. My kids really liked the factory tour of the Toyota plant in Georgetown and Frankfort is a beautiful town with a great Kentucky history museum, the most beautiful Capital building I've seen and you can stand by Daniel Boone's grave overlooking the river in a cemetery full of history.

I know I sound like a real fan, but that' because I am! I think Kentucky is one of the most underrated vacation spots east of the Mississippi.

Cheryl

A few days in Niagara Falls and a few in Toronto would make for a great vacation with teens. You're money goes a lot further in Canada and hotel rates in Niagara Falls are very inexpensive.

xxx

A dude ranch would be a good vacation for a family with teens. Most of them are all inclusive and have tons of activities planned for everyone.

Mom

How about Washington, DC? Your kids are at a perfect age for it. After 4 or so days in DC you could drive to Virginia Beach for a few days of beach action. We took this trip with our kids and it was a hit.

Merilee

I spent yesterday exploring a couple of lovely towns in the Catskill Mountains region...at the Marketplace in Mt. Tremper you can see the world's largest kaleidoscope and a show...they also have on exhibit the most incredibly artistic kaleidoscopes...next door to that there is a restaurant called The Spotted Dog, which was once a firehouse and the booths are made from some of the fire trucks...a short distance from there is Phoenicia, where you can go tubing on the Esopus Creek or rappelling and mountain climbing at the Sundance Tower...there are also many places in the area where you can rent a canoe, jet ski, kayak, or bicycles...there are many state parks that offer swimming and hiking trails...for the more adventurous there's hang gliding...there are also numerous historical sites and wineries in the area...two dude ranches (all inclusive) in the area are Pinegrove and Rocking Horse...there are also lots of affordable accomodations...post back if you want specific names of motels and restaurants.

Loredana

I took my 12 year old niece and 14 year old nephew to the Catskills and they loved it. We stayed at the Phoenicia Hotel on Main Street and it was clean and affordable. There's a great Italian restaurant/pizzeria right across the street from it, but I can't remember the name right now. I took them hiking, biking, tubing, and rappelling. The rappelling is done right in town by a man who lives right there at the sight. He's very nice and helpful. We also went to Woodstock and walked around looking at all the shops. Lots of stores there would appeal to teenagers. We also ate at the restaurant in Catskill Corners that was once a firehouse. As a treat, I took them to eat at a b&b restaurant named La Duchesse Anne. Great ambience and good food. It's not far to travel to the Rhinebeck area from here. There are lots of historical mansions there. There's a diner on 9G called The Palace that serves you enormous amounts of inexpensive but good food. The Eveready Diner in Hyde Park is a fun 50's style place to eat. I have also been to Rocking Horse Ranch when I was a girl scout leader and it's perfect for a family vacation.

Jane

Agree with Brian and others, did the Toronto (CNtower) and Niagara Falls (Maid of the Mist and Journey Behind the Falls) with the teenagers (two 14yo boys, had a blast, have a sunset dinner at the Skylon ($40 CA minimum per person) The boys were impressed with the currency exchange, which was ok. I gave a $1000 US and got $1470 CA. We looked at it like our hotel and dinners were free. We made it from just north of Dayton to Toronto via Detroit in 10hrs.