We are going up this summer and will spend a couple nights at the youth hostel near Klamath. It's family oriented. You can check it out at www.norcalhostels.org. They have private rooms for families, and it is right in the park. My kids have often enjoyed hostels because there tend to be other families and kids around - free entertainment and away from TV!

A place we love to stop at is Praire Creek Redwood State Park. It is about an hour north of Eureka. You drive to the beach and walk up through the fern canyon. Our son loves it. We then have a picnic while watching the elk on the the beach.

We've spent a lot of time up in Redwood National Park. The best way to see it is by camping there. Other than camping, your choice for lodging is either standard motels which are right on the highway or expensive B&Bs and luxury inns which are probably not what you need.

If you don't want to camp, I'll suggest another option which hasn't been mentionned. There is a town called Gasquet on Hwy 199 just outside Jedidiah Smith State Park. There are several motels here and you're right near some of the finest Redwood groves. But, you are also on the Smith River which offers a number of swimming holes and floating and tubing options through the redwoods that your kids would probably love. We've camped at the park a number of times and this is our favorite area.

Besides Jedidiah Smith, the best redwood groves are in Prairie Creek State Park and the Tall Trees Grove in Orick. Prairie Creek has a great campground on the beach. This is also where Fern Canyon is which is a must see.

Although the redwoods south of Eureka are also wonderful, I don't think you need to head down that far. There's plenty to see in the National Park itself. Other than a possible visit to Ferndale, I would also avoid Eureka and Arcata. You have great coastal towns on the Oregon Coast that probably offer more to see.

I'm not knocking these towns. We have spent a lot of great times in them. Our son lives in the Arcata area. But, for tourists from Oregon, there's not that much reason to go there.

I hope this helps and whatever you do, have a great trip.

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