Hello there,

I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for places I could take my family (inc a toddler) for a late august trip to the US? Requirements are : Not baking hot, not city centre, kid friendly, good food, a mix of sights and nature/open space would be good. Not needing a car would be ideal (if unrealistic). I'm imagining a large hotel with good facilities, from which we could make excursions to points of interest quite easily but where we would also be happy to stay on site. Any ideas would be appreciated!

"Not baking hot" pretty much eliminates the entire southern half of the United States in late August. Plus that is prime hurricane season for the coastal regions, from Texas to Florida and up the east coast at least to Virginia.

What kind of things do you want to see? History? Nature? Do you just have one toddler child or will you need to entertain an older child? How many days?

How about a lakeside family resort in New England? For many years we enjoyed Purity Springs resort in NH; other well-regarded ones that I know of include the Tyler Place, the Inn at East Hill Farm, Mountain Top Inn ...

You probably need a car to get there, but there might be a way to go by bus from airport to the nearest town and then by taxi or hired car to the site (ask the resort if it is possible).

You could fly from Boston to Provincetown Mass, on the tip of Cape Cod, and then take a taxi (or the shuttle) to your hotel on the beach.

Or go by bus from Boston to a ferry port and then by ferry to an island: Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, or Block Island.

I am guessing from your screen name and past posts that you live in London. So I would stick to eastern US - that is about as far as I would like to fly with a toddler. And first make she s/he has passport.

Admittedly biased since I live there, but I would consider Boston area. I know you said not city-center, but in US public transportation outside of city centers is not very good. Compared to London, Boston feels very small. It has nice green space, history, good food. You could use it as a base - there are a couple of nice sandy beaches that you can take a train to.

You could then spend second half perhaps on Cape Cod, parts of Rhode Island - although I think you would be happier with a car at any beach location.

Niagara Falls can be fun with kids... a mix of nature and tourist with some peoplemovers, tour busses and lots to see... but you do have to cross over the US Canada border to maximize the experience... for the hotel, perhaps the Great Wolf Lodge, a family hotel with water park... with a car, you could side trip to Toronto...

Thanks for the replies. This would be for one week, and just the one child. Would California wine country be too hot late aug-early Sept?

I think wine country is still pretty hot in late August. You can find out actual high and low temperatures each day here:

http://www.wunderground.com/history/

If you are willing to go across the country maybe something totally different from anything in Europe would be nice. Hyatt resorts are usually large, family friendly and very nice and located in great, scenic locations. I was looking at the Hyatt site myself recently for some ideas and came across this resort located between Santa Fe and Albuquerque, New Mexico (I haven't been here but am giving it serious consideration):

http://tamaya.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/

I think the weather that time of the year would be delightful in that location. Warm days and cool nights and close enough to Santa Fe to take advantage of city offerings if you are so inclined. Check out the Hyatt site for other locations that might be of interest. Perhaps a ski area in Colorado? Marriott would be another resort to check out.

I meant to add that Scottsdale, Arizona has huge, wonderful full-service resorts with fantastic pools but unfortunately August/September is still baking hot. It's a dry heat, of course, but 100 degrees is still 100 degrees.

One of your main problems is -- unless you are in a city centre, touring by public transport will be difficult to impossible depending on exactly where.

Places that work for weather and transport would be San Francisco, Seattle, Boston -- but all are major cities.

Napa/Sonoma is not an area one could visit for a week w/o renting a car. You could Stay in San Francisco and take a guided day tour to wine country.

But another option - not in the States but fits your requirements -- Maybe Victoria and Vancouver British Columbia. Or some combo of Seattle/Victoria/Vancouver.

Thanks for the tips. SF and the Hyatt resorts do seem to be sensible ideas. But I think given the time we are travelling I may have to rethink our plans. Thanks for the advice!

If you fly to Boston, then to Martha's Vineyard, you will find there is public transportation around the island, nice beaches, plenty of dining opportunities.