My Family Travels | Latest Articles
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This Missouri Waterfront Hangout Is The Perfect Place To Kick Back By The Lake

Lake days are better when you have a relaxed spot to settle in and enjoy the view. This Missouri waterfront hangout brings together lakeside scenery, casual food, drinks, live...

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More Than 150 Classic Games Make This New Jersey Boardwalk Arcade A Retro Playground

Ready to level up your boardwalk plans? This New Jersey arcade makes it dangerously easy to turn “one quick game” into...

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Georgia’s Oldest Restaurant Has Been Serving Southern Food Since 1916

Fried chicken and Greek classics share the same menu under a roof that has been standing since 1916. I had driven through this Georgia town before, but pulling over for lunch turned...

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This Welcoming Indiana Country Diner Has The Most Incredible Homemade Breakfast In The State

The gas gauge says stop. Your stomach says stay. That is how a quick fuel break turns into breakfast in Indiana. The coffee...

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This Custom Virginia Carriage Ride Might Be The Most Charming Mountain Escape Around

Carriage rides are usually associated with cities, clip-clopping through historic districts while tourists snap photos. This one is different.

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This Vaulted Three-Story Virginia Horse Supply Store Is a Wonderland for Riders and Equestrian Enthusiasts

Equestrian enthusiasts know that finding the right gear can be a challenge. But this vaulted three-story Virginia horse supply store makes the search a pleasure.

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This Tiny Texas Town Has A Historic Downtown You Can Explore Without Fighting Tourist Crowds

A historic downtown without the crowds. That is the appeal of this tiny Texas town. The brick buildings are still standing,...

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A 1920s South Carolina Hotel Came Back From Years of Decline, Along With Stories of a Ghost Who Never Left

Piano music drifted through a South Carolina hotel lobby while people wandered in after dinner with shopping bags and tired feet. Twelve stories of 1925 brickwork rose above the...

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This Ohio Factory Once Made Ammunition for Two World Wars Before Sitting Abandoned for Decades

A giant letter P painted near the top of an old brick tower pokes above the treeline like a signature nobody bothered to erase. The tower made ammunition for two world wars, then...

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This Weekend-Only Buffet In Indiana Refuses To Tone Down The Spice For Anyone

There is always one person who asks, “Is it actually spicy?” Here, that question has a very simple answer. Yes. That is...

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This Enormous Minnesota Country Store Is So Big You Could Lose An Entire Afternoon Inside

Losing track of time doesn't usually happen at a grocery store. This one manages it easily, swallowing entire afternoons without anyone noticing the clock.

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This Oklahoma Hobby Shop Keeps Model Railroaders Browsing Aisles Packed With HO And O Scale Trains

Some of the best stops in Oklahoma look like nothing at all from the parking lot. You pull up expecting a quick errand, walk through the door, and suddenly an hour has vanished...

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A Pennsylvania Iron Village Ran for More Than a Century, and Its Furnace, Mansion and Workers’ Homes Still Survive

Stone buildings lining a quiet road look like they have been waiting for someone to notice them. Wandering down a quiet road in Pennsylvania led to a place where iron was made...

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Thousands Gather At This Friday-Night Indiana Amish Market For A Unique Old-World Auction

Someone is buying a buggy. Someone else is bidding on a chicken. Someone nearby just bought something they cannot identify. Nobody...

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Seven West Virginia Steakhouses Where Regulars Swear The Cut Is Worth The Long Drive

Some of the finest meals in West Virginia hide in places you would never expect, tucked into small towns and quiet corners far from the highway. There is something magical about...

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9 Secret Alabama Sandwich Joints That Feel Like Highly Guarded Local Knowledge Only

“What do you get here?” Wrong question. A regular already knows. That is the fun of these Alabama sandwich spots. The best...

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Eat Your Way Through the Most Authentic Puerto Rican Menu in Alabama

The smell gets there first. Before the door. Before the menu. Before the person inside even decides what to order.

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One of America’s Oldest Roads Winds Through a Forgotten Corner of Virginia

Few roads in America can claim the kind of history this one carries. It has been traveled for centuries, first by Native Americans, then by settlers, and eventually by stagecoaches...

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A South Carolina Textile Mill Burned Down Decades Ago, but Its Stone Ruins and Massive Dam Still Remain

Water folding over a long stone dam, scattering into white shoals, sounds like distant applause from the riverbank above. A plain county park in South Carolina turned out to hold...

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This Pennsylvania Town Was a Rail Hub with 1,000 Residents Now Only Stone Foundations Survive

Moss, ferns, and a low rectangle of stacked stone half swallowed by roots are what wait at the end of a trail in Pennsylvania. The forest never opens up into something obvious...

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A Maryland Italian Restaurant Serving The Best Homemade Meatballs Made From Scratch

Meatballs are simple food. But simple does not mean easy. The right ratio of meat to breadcrumbs, the right seasoning, and...

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A California Company Burned Through a Redwood Forest for Just Three Years, and Its Four Stone Kilns Still Remain

Rusted stone towers rising between redwoods are easy to miss from a coastal highway. The turnoff comes up fast, and most drivers pass it without a second glance.

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The Reuben At This Oklahoma Deli Stacks High Enough To Justify The Drive Across The State

Some of the best meals in Oklahoma hide behind plain brick storefronts in strip centers you would drive past a hundred times without blinking. That was my exact mistake with this...

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An 1801 South Carolina Brick Factory Closed in 1960, Yet Its Kiln Tunnels Are Still There

Four brick domes in South Carolina are easy to drive past without a second glance. I did not expect to spend an entire afternoon staring at them, but that is exactly what happened.

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Seven West Virginia Swimming Holes Where Cold Mountain Water Still Beats Any Public Pool

There's a certain thrill that comes from turning down an unmarked road in West Virginia and finding cold, clear water waiting between the rocks. Nothing about a chlorinated public...

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One Oregon Restaurant Has Been Serving Oysters at the Same Location for More Than a Century

A century in the same spot means generations of the same family likely walked through these doors before you ever did. Oysters...

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10 Oklahoma Places That Still Look Almost Exactly Like They Did In Century-Old Photos

Some of the best stops in Oklahoma don't announce themselves. You pull off a two-lane road expecting nothing more than a leg stretch, and instead you're standing in front of sandstone...

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Every Spring This West Virginia Hillside Erupts With Wild Ramps Folks Drive Hours To Dig

There's a scent that drifts through the mountain air each spring, sharp and sweet all at once, and folks in West Virginia know exactly what it means. Somewhere on a shady hillside,...

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Texas Has A Buffet Inside A Historic Downtown Building Where You Can Fill Your Plate With Country Favorites

A buffet with character is hard to find. A buffet inside a historic downtown building with character is even harder. This Texas...

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An Afternoon At This Tulsa Glass Studio Ends With A Hand-Blown Ornament You Made Yourself

There is a low brick building tucked inside an Oklahoma city park where the air hums with furnaces and the floor is scattered with tiny flecks of colored glass. From the parking...

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Way Up In The West Virginia Mountains, A Lonely Fire Tower Opens Onto Five Rolling Counties

Somewhere high in the West Virginia mountains, an old wooden tower still stands watch over miles of quiet forest. It once belonged to lonely lookouts who scanned the ridges for...

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Locals Swear These 7 West Virginia Roadside Ice Cream Stands Still Beat Any Chain For A Summer Cone

Somewhere along a winding West Virginia backroad, past the gas stations and the church signs, there's a little stand where the soft serve tastes better than anything a chain could...

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This Maryland Festival Brings A Medieval World Of Jousting, Knights, And Magic To Life In 2026

There is a stretch of Maryland woodland that spends most of the year quietly minding its own business, and then, right as the summer heat starts loosening its grip, it wakes up...

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This Missouri Country Store Is Packed With Bulk Foods, Fresh Produce, And Discounted Groceries

A grocery cart can get surprisingly ambitious in a place like this. This Missouri country store combines bulk foods, fresh produce, pantry staples, and discounted groceries in...

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These Oklahoma Floating Cabins Let You Step Off The Porch Straight Into The Lake

I thought I knew what a lake cabin meant until I stood on a deck in southern Oklahoma and realized the water was directly beneath my feet, not somewhere down a hill. There was...

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Seven West Virginia Bakeries Where The Pepperoni Rolls Come Out Warm All Day Long

There's a certain magic to walking into a small West Virginia bakery and catching that first whiff of warm dough and spicy pepperoni. It's the kind of comfort food that ties whole...

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This New Missouri Cafe Serves Breakfast Beside An Urban Garden In A Former 1890s Blacksmith Shop

A breakfast stop gets a lot more interesting when the building once had horses and carriages passing straight through it. This...

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This Texas Café Serves Cheesecake So Good People Drive Across the Whole State for a Slice

A slice of cheesecake that makes people drive across the state. That is a bold claim. But this Texas café backs it up. The...

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This Missouri Ghost Town Still Has A Battlefield, Historic Buildings, And A House Pierced By A Cannonball

Talk about a house with a story to tell. This old Missouri town still has one with cannonball holes in the walls, and that is only the beginning.

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One Of Oklahoma’s Coolest Free Stargazing Experiences Comes With A Telescope

You do not need your own telescope to get a closer look at the night sky. This Oklahoma observatory gives visitors a chance to join public observing nights and see stars, planets,...

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One Of America’s Largest Open-Air Markets Is Hiding In Plain Sight In New Jersey

Some shopping trips start with a list. This one can end with just about anything. New Jersey is home to a sprawling open-air...

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Six West Virginia Covered Bridges You Can Still Rattle Across In Your Own Car

There's something magical about rolling your car onto old wooden planks and hearing them rumble beneath your tires. Across West Virginia, a handful of covered bridges have survived...

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This Charming New Jersey Diner Serves Up Comfort Food Near A Gorgeous Lake

There is something wonderfully satisfying about finding a good diner when you are hungry and nowhere near ready for a fancy meal.

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This Authentic Amish Buggy Tour Might Be Indiana’s Most Unexpected Cultural Adventure

You get in a buggy expecting a ride. You get out with a completely different idea of what “slow” means. Indiana has an...

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This Indiana Fiber Farm Has Fluffy Angora Rabbits and Alpacas Waiting to Meet You

The alpacas look soft. The llamas look judgmental. The rabbits look like they were assembled from clouds. That is basically the...

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Pick A Steak From The Butcher Case And Have The Kitchen Cook It For Dinner At This Missouri Market

Choosing dinner usually happens from a menu. Here, it starts at the butcher case. This Missouri market lets you pick out the...

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This Texas Canyon Is One Of The Best Places To Spot Wild Bison Roaming This Fall

Bison once roamed across Texas in the millions. Now, seeing one in the wild feels like a glimpse of the past. This canyon offers...

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Oklahoma Has A Mediterranean Deli So Authentic It Feels Like A Hidden European Market

A quick deli run can turn into a mini food adventure when the shelves are packed with flavors from across the Mediterranean. This...

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The Massive Oregon Market Locals Treat Like Their Best-Kept Comfort Food Secret

Comfort food secrets don't usually come this large, spanning enough space to make finding a favorite dish feel like an actual search.

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A Missouri Italian Restaurant Serving House-Made Meatballs With Pomodoro Sauce

Some Italian dishes never need much introduction. A plate of tender meatballs with rich pomodoro sauce is one of them, and this Missouri restaurant gives the classic combination...

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This Former Missouri Gravel Mine Now Has Six Lakes And The State’s Largest Natural Sand Beach

It is hard to guess this peaceful Missouri park started with heavy mining equipment and gravel pits. Decades of excavation...

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This New Jersey Restaurant Makes Choosing Between Pizza And Pasta Nearly Impossible

Pizza or pasta? Ah, the kind of difficult decision we can happily live with. This New Jersey restaurant gives hungry diners...

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This New Hampshire Farm Produces Some Of The Most Delicious Farm-Fresh Pork In The Region

Buying pork from a grocery store is convenient, but it rarely compares to the real thing. This New Hampshire farm has built a reputation on producing some of the most delicious...

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This New Jersey Kayak Trip Takes You Deep Into The Mysterious Pine Barrens

Traffic noise disappears pretty quickly once the paddle hits the water. This New Jersey adventure sends kayakers and canoeists...

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Maryland Has a Tiny Cabin Village Where 14 One of a Kind Hideaways Turn a Mountain Weekend Into a Real Escape

Some getaways are about doing more. Others are about doing less, and doing it somewhere beautiful. This Maryland cabin village...

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One Oregon Cafe Makes So Many Pie Flavors, Choosing One Is The Hard Part

Deciding on dessert usually takes seconds. Here, that choice suddenly becomes the hardest part of the whole visit. Rows of...

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One Of New Hampshire’s Finest Historic Escapes Comes With Hundreds Of Acres Of Meadows And Shaded Trails

Some historic sites feel like museums, roped off and untouchable. This New Hampshire escape is different. It spreads across hundreds...

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This Little West Virginia Breakfast Counter Serves A Croissant Egg Sandwich Folks Follow The Crowd For

Some of the best breakfasts in West Virginia hide in the smallest towns, waiting for a hungry traveler to wander in by accident. Picture a buttery croissant cradling a perfectly...

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Step Into A World Of Comics And Collectibles At This New Jersey Shop

Just one comic. Famous last words. Shelves full of colorful covers can turn a quick browse into a full-blown treasure hunt...

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An Ohio Farm Still Has the Stone Home, Canal Boat and Indian Agency That Once Connected Two Eras of the Frontier

Corn fields open up and a tall brick farmhouse sits on a rise, looking like it has been waiting for company. The road narrows on a bright weekday morning in Ohio, and a quick history...

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