Neil

Over the last few summers our Northeast based family of four has taken a series of road trip vacations (the national parks of the southwest, Colorado/Wyoming, the Canadian maritime provinces, southern France). This coming August, we would like to stay put in one place for two weeks, focusing more on R&R than touring. Beaches, lakes, or mountains are all possibilities, and we are not limited to our corner of the country. We've been to Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard before, and we would prefer some place new. And some family members have fears of hurricanes that probably rules out the East Coast from North Carolina down to Florida. Otherwise, we are open to any and all suggestions. By the way, our two daughters will be 14 and 11 by then. Thanks.

Patrick

One question. Do you mean you want to stay in one general area for two weeks? Or do you want to maybe rent a cottage or apartment and stay in one specific place for two weeks?

Neil

Looking for one specific place (house, cottage, condo)--no packing and unpacking, no carrying suitcases back and forth to the car every few days. But we would love to be somewhere from which we could take some interesting day trips.

travellyn

This may sound off the wall, but the area around New Braunfels, TX, might fit the bill.

When I was a teenager, our family used to go there for a couple of days at a time, but I would have loved 2 weeks.

There are lots of nearby activities, mostly centered around the Comal River, and New Braunfels' German heritage. We used to love tubing on the river, hiking, getting breakfast from German bakeries, etc. There were also nearby lakes for water skiing.

It's not far from San Antonio, Austin, and the rest of the Texas Hill Country. The Hyatt Hill Country Resort is a popular vacation spot nearby, but the prices seem pretty steep.

cmeyer54

Williamsburg is one idea; Vail Colorado is another, Gull Lake Minnesota has great family resorts. Vail will offer hiking, biking, golf, tennis, horseback riding, rafting, etc. Gull Lake - its about 90 minutes from Minneapolis/St Paul has a gorgeous lake for fishing, boating, tubing, skiing, Pillsbury forest for hiking, golf, tennis, all resorts have beaches and at least one pool. Very relaxing regardless of where you go....In Williamsburg, I'd stay at the Kingsmill Resort, in Vail at the Racquet Club and at Gull Lake, either Maddens, GrandView or Craguns.

mary190244

IMO one of the most beautiful places in the world is Lake of the Woods, located in Western Ontario, Canada www.lakeofthewoods.com. You would definitely want to rent a boat or consider renting a houseboat to stay on. If your girls love the water this could be a great option. The town of Kenora is the main tourist area. It has a great gift shop - The Blue Heron. The town is not as "touristy" looking as most tourist towns. Not a lot of extra things to do here, but if your main focus is R&R in beautiful surroundings, I highly recommend it.

jaye

Hi Neil,
I would look into either Sunriver or Black Butte Ranch in the Central Oregon area. Nearest city is Bend. You would fly into Redmond or Portland. Both are located in one of the most beautiful areas I've visited, especially in the summer. Golf, hiking, boating, swimming, shopping, exploring the high desert, llama farms, white water rafting, fishing, I could go on and on.
Have a great time.

cassidy2002

Wow! You've gotten some great suggestions! May I toss northern Michigan into the ring? You can rent homes on one of the many beautiful lakes: Michigan, Leelanau, Little Traverse, Lake Ann, Little Glen, Big Glen (all on the Leelanau Peninsula, the "little finger" of Michigan). Fomr there you can travel to Petoskey, Traverse City, maybe even an overnight excursion to Mackinac Island, although you could do it in a day as well. In addition to those places that are a little bit of a drive, you can explore the peninsula itself. Glen Arbor, Leland, Empire, and Suttons Bay. There are lighthouses to explore and countryside to roam! You can go to www.leelanau.com to check it out the area.

DawnCt

I don't know if you are all wiling to fly but there are some good deals in the summer. One of our best vacations for our family of six was flying from Ct to SFO. We spent two nights in SFO, onto Muir Woods, Napa Valley, Lake Tahoe, Yosemite, Cambria, San Simeon and Big Sur and then home. We drove 1500 miles in 9 days staying anywhere from 2 to 3 nights in any one location.

panhandle

I would secon Sunriver. Other possiblities in Oregon ....coast trip(beautiful!!)
Southern Oregon has some nice lures as well...Crater Lake,Rogue River rafting,Ashland with Shakespeare theater,and Jacksonville with its great outdoor summer concerts.
Portland has good stuff too...The Gorge,Mt. Hood, Cannon Beach nearby.
Makes want to be there and I am already...LOL
Have fun!

Gardyloo

Oh, hell - once you're headed west, keep going. Big Island.

ethaete

Someplace close to home...

Finger Lakes, NY -- lots of lake cottages with lots of little towns all over. Day trips could include Rochester, Niagra Falls.

Chauttaqua, (sp?) NY -- private community in western NY near Lake Erie. Its on a lake, with lots of activities. I went to a wedding there once and was a great town.

Dreamer2

With two weeks, I'd go as far as possible, since you'll stay put once there. I think I'd opt for either Hawaii, or some coastal resort in England! Cloer to home, perhaps Nova Scotia.

welch

If you've been to Europe recently why not travel to Hawaii? Aside from visiting more than 1 island "road trips" are pretty difficult there! Your kids are at a wonderful age to enjoy the islands (but who isn't!). There is such a huge amount of information on this board, if the idea appeals. If you have friends or a travel agent who knows you and what you like, that's always the best place to start. If you're looking for some really different ideas outside of Hawaii (and if you haven't been to Hawaii, it is different) there are many interesting ones posted here already!

Fodorite018

I have to third the idea of Sunriver. We go there in the summer with extended family and always enjoy it! Hiking, white water rafting, biking, relaxing at one of the pools, an incredible spa, walking on the paths and having deer and squirrels be right next to you...just a few of the things that we enjoy...and there is a lot more that we haven't tried yet.

Binthair

Having done family vacations to the Big Island and Oregon last summer (and many before), I have to say it can be difficult basing yourself out of just one location. The Big Island is just that, and we routinely put 700 to 800 miles per week on the rental car when we visit. We usually stay at two locations on Hawaii. Even on Kauai or Maui you will have location dilemmas. Ditto for Oregon, as Sunriver is a good 4 or 5 hours from Portland depending on traffic. Oregon is a very large state. These are great locations for a vacation, but logistics can still be challenging if you want to base yourself out of one location.

Fodorite018

Sunriver isn't that far from Portland...just did the drive yesterday in fact. Took 3 hours 15 minutes (to the east side of Portland)...and that was going the speed limit and there was snow around Mt. Hood. Just wanted to clarify how long it would take.

k_999_9

I'm no expert on this, but I think August is a little early for prime hurricane season. That's why I think the FL coast might be a good choice and an underrated vacation spot for the summer.

Lots of nice beaches, cheap prices, and no crowds. And if someone says, "It's too hot," my response is that if you're near the beach, it really isn't bad. I've been to FL beaches in Jul and Aug, and it was no worse for temps and humidity than most of the Mid-Atlantic states.

Again, though, if you're paranoid about hurricanes, you may want to check the prime season. I always thought it was fall.

almesq

August/Septemebr is prime hurrican season, and even if no hurricanes, get those heavy thunderstorms very often in late afternoon. Don't last long, but there are much better places to go than Florida in summer.

Neil

Thanks, everyone. Keep those ideas coming.