San Francisco Weekends Away Starting At $500
With low-cost airlines serving San Francisco and Oakland, northern California has several options for top-value family getaways within a short drive of either airport that feel like deluxe vacations. Visiting...
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Lake Tahoe, California Hotels And Resorts
The shores of Lake Tahoe offer families so many outdoor activities, sports, shopping, restaurants, and scenic vistas that almost any resort will have enough to please 'tweens, teens...
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Santa Barbara Paradise, California Style
Just about anything your family can do outdoors can be relished in Santa Barbara, California's flawless Mediterranean climate. In this wonderful seaside sanctuary known as "America's Riviera," kids can...
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Ghost Towns of the American West
Up for a bit of a scare blended with historical haunts on your next vacation; discover the ghost towns of the Southwest in Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, California, and Utah. Learn about the history...
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Top 10 Family Camps For Family Together Vacations
Family Travel Forum's picks have been compiled from more than a decade of "Top 10 Getaway Winners" to help your family begin their lifelong love of nature. The following options combine...
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Top 10 Disney Vacation Ideas for All Ages
A Disney vacation is what many families dream of and save for. Our guides to the best attractions for all, money-saving tips and strategies to help make your Disney dreams come true
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The Bahia Resort Hotel, San Diego, California
The Bahia Resort in San Diego has all the advantages of its mid-century vintage -– a pick-of-the-litter location on Mission Bay, its own private beach, and lush, mature tropical landscaping that gives...
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Custom Itinerary – Off The Beaten Path Thanksgiving Getaway
Q. Donna C. of Northern California writes that her family with 5 and 6-year-old children is looking for a Thanksgiving getaway within driving distance, that is off the beaten path, relatively quiet,...
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Weekend Adventures with Kids Around the Bay Area
We love San Francisco’s Bay Area and the Monterey Peninsula and return often with our family to sample new hotels, restaurants and the ever-changing scene. Fans who have been leery of attempting...
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Los Angeles Hotels: Westside And Santa Monica
Find out the best places to stay west of Hollywood or near the Pacific Coast beach in this California playland. As you move west across Los Angeles, the real estate values rise and the smog disappears...
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Downtown Los Angeles Hotels And Resorts
Your guide to the personalities and amenities of top value "downtown" hotels in California's largest city.LA's "Downtown" has become one of those commercially rejuvenated neighborhoods that...
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Best Kid-Friendly Hotels In Los Angeles, California
A team of Oyster reporters spent weeks exploring 52 top hotels in and around Los Angeles, including Beverly Hills, Hollywood, and Santa Monica. We slept in the beds, lounged by the pools, ate in the...
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Anaheim – Orange County, California Attractions
With Disneyland and other themeparks, the city of Anaheim in Orange County is a must-stop vacation destination for any family touring souther California. The region also has some great Southern California...
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Ski Mammoth And Enjoy Family Fun At Mammoth Lakes
One of our favorite things about a winter or spring vacation in Mammoth Lakes, California is that it's as fun for skiing and riding families as it is for those who just want to get...
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Reunion Celebration At Renaissance Esmeralda Indian Wells Resort
The Renaissance Esmeralda Indian Wells Resort & Spa was the perfect desert playground for our "Five Generation Family Reunion" celebration. The prestigious desert enclave of Indian...
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LA’s The Grove and Farmer’s Market
One of the best places to take kids in Los Angeles is The Farmer's Market. It is centrally located and really fun, with several food stalls and lots of small souvenir shops. I...
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Great Yosemite Lodging at Cheap Scenic Campsite
School is over and thousands are flocking to Yosemite National Park for summer fun in great lodging. But if you don’t want to deal with crowded camping sites, waiting for a permit or, worse, being...
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Hollywood And Beverly Hills, California Hotels
Family Travel Forum's guide to some of the best kid-friendly lodging in the Hollywood and Beverly Hills neighborhoods of central Los Angeles, California.We love the variety in central Los Angeles...
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Napa Valley Vineyards And Family-Friendly Winery Tours
About an hour to the northeast of San Francisco, and comprised of the towns of Napa, Yountville, Oakville, St. Helena, Rutherford and Calistoga, the 30-mile-long Napa Valley is home to...
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Elephant Odyssey at the San Diego Zoo
Elephant Odyssey in the San Diego Zoo is Enormous Fun. Begin a journey through time at the awesome 7.5-acre, multi species natural habitat at the San Diego Zoo. Discover animals that roamed...
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San Diego’s Hyatt Regency Mission Bay Spa & Marina Loves Families
Squeals of playful laughter and contagious giggles fill the air at San Diego's Hyatt Regency Mission Bay Spa and Marina, a convention style hotel where families are very welcome. Overlooking...
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Custom Itinerary: San Diego To Yellowstone By RV
Q. Darlene K. of Poway, California asks for recommended campgrounds to accommodate her 28-foot-long RV on the route between her home and Yellowstone.
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Cheapest Of The Cheap Skiing At Lake Tahoe
Winner of FTF's Top 10 Cheap Ski Getaway award, the Lake Tahoe region remains a great family value for winter and spring during the 2012-13 season. Here are some of our favorite deals. Lake...
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Kids Cook at Sonoma County Summer Cooking Camp
This summer Epicurean youngsters step out of the classroom and into the kitchen at Ramekins, the Sonoma culinary school, event venue and inn. Sonoma Wineries: Family Fun for Every...
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Summer Wednesday Night Market in Santa Rosa, CA
If your gonna be in the San Francisco area this summer the Santa Rosa Wednesday Night Market is a MUST on your to do list. The Wednesday...
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Cali for Real na
(California) All I could see were hundreds of white windmills spinning in the breeze across the mountains, and I knew we weren't in Arizona anymore. Living in Phoenix, a mere five hour drive...
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Lost and Found: Yosemite
I’m flat on my stomach flying at 9,000 feet, legs tight and arms stretched wide. My neck and head are over the edge, and the...
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The Biggest Loser Resorts Focus On Fun Family Weight Loss
The Biggest Loser Resort – Niagara set to open in May, 2012 in Java, New York promises the same supportive, weight loss programs made famous by the reality TV series. Owned...
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Free Lodging, Lift Tix and Air Offers at Snowy Mammoth Mountain California
Savvy skiers and snowboarders have known that Mammoth Mountain offers some of the best and most scenic skiing in the West. It's been a tough start to winter for many mountain...
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Celebrate Bastille Day Around the World
Join Frenchmen and Francophiles around the world in celebrating the mid-summer holiday of Bastille Day, an independence day for millions. Every July 14th, the French celebrate liberté,...
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Star Trekking: Michael Jackson at Madame Tussauds Hollywood
For families living in or visiting Los Angeles or Hollywood, be sure to check out the new Michael Jackson exhibit at the local Madame Tussauds Hollywood. The "Michael Jackson...
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Star Trekker: Justin Bieber Celebrates in Luxe Style with Selena Gomez
A few weeks ago, the “Never Say Never” pop sensation and heartthrob, Justin Bieber turned 17 years of age... and he is growing rather fast. Bieber and Disney star, Selena Gomez,...
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All-American Family Weekend from $269/N
Baseball season is now open and that means plenty of family bonding over this great American pastime. Ballparks across America are welcoming kids of all ages -- while munching on classics like peanuts...
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Custom Itinerary: Ideal One-Month Tour of California with Kids
Q. Alan T. of Perth, Western Australia, is planning a month-long family vacation in California with his young children, and wants suggestions for the ideal itinerary.
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Star Trekker: Justin Bieber Wins NBA Celebrity All-Star
While Hollywood's elite watched, the 60th NBA All-Star Game played out Sunday, February 20, 2011 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California....
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Lights, Camera, Action Sheraton Universal Hotel, Hollywood
Rides and attractions, backlot tours, movie stars and a great hotel. Los Angeles, California's Universal City is sounding good and good value.There's no shortage of star power atop Universal...
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Custom Itinerary: Fun For Teens on a California National Parks Roadtrip
Q. Kiki N. of Farmington, Connecticut is planning a road trip with driving age teens to see California's national parks, and wants advice on their itinerary, costs, hotels, and airfare.
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Michael Jackson Is Disney’s Captain EO
After more than a decade, a classic Disney 3D show has returned to Disney themeparks to thrill a new generation of Michael Jackson and ride fans.Given the resurgent interest in Michael Jackson...
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Scenic Highway 120 thru Groveland to Yosemite
Almost any trip from the San Francisco Bay Area to Yosemite National Park will take you along scenic Highway 120 through the gold rush era town of Groveland and on into the park itself. Almost every...
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Free Travel Fun In San Francisco
San Francisco, the beautiful City by the Bay, may demand top dollar at hotels and restaurants but lots of free fun activities can make your vacation a bargain. California is a dream destination...
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Discover San Francisco & Wine Country Through Restaurants
With over 100 years of experience, the France-based Michelin Red Guide gives readers confidence in the dining and hotel choices they honor.If you are planning a trip to San Francisco or if you...
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Irvine California’s Family-Friendly City of Diverse Delights
Make yourselves comfortable at the family-friendly Hyatt Regency Irvine (17900 Jamboree Road , 949/975-1234) centrally located in California’s...
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Picture Perfect Family Getaway in Marina del Rey
The whole family will catch the wave of excitement in Marina del Rey. Close to LAX, Venice Beach, Santa Monica and Hollywood, it’s the perfect year round base for families who...
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San Diego Is Great For Family Reunions
Beach house rentals at top coastal resorts, such as picturesque southern California, make planning and enjoying a small family reunion easy and fun.Thinking about a famiy reunion at the beach?...
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Hyatt Regency Orange County, California’s 2010 Summer of Fun for Families
Welcome to the Hyatt Regency Orange County, California’s “2010 Summer of Fun” for Families Pack up and ship out for an...
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Spas For New And Expecting Mothers
Day spas and resorts are cuddling about-to-be moms, new moms, new babies and --sometimes -- new dads, with celebratory packages.A number of spas offer treatments made especially for expecting mothers,...
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Pre-Schoolers Love San Francisco, California
San Francisco is an urban paradise when it comes to family-friendly activities. Toddlers can take in the sights, enjoy the great outdoors and maybe learn something, too.The spirit of family fun...
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Hot Springs Hike
My trip to the hot springs near Apple Valley, CA. was amazing! We first drove for a few hours, from Palomar College in San Marcos, CA. It was an ESO (environmental) club trip. My professor and friend...
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Beachside Serenity in San Simeon, California
There is a place on earth which one is sure must only exist in fairy tales. Complete with a castle and many fabled stories of what happened behind its gates, it is truly a remarkable location. ...
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Joshua Tree National Park Adventure
“I am in this world to change the world.” – Muriel Rukeyser These are the words plastered on the shirt I received in the mail from Claremont Graduate University after traveling...
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Go West, Young Man (v.2)
"You ready?," I barked out as I opened the rear driver's side door and tossed the case of RedBull and carton of Camel Lights on the creamy leather seats. "Hell yeah!," my cousin responded, hanging...
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Kid-Friendly Restaurants In San Francisco
Looking for a good family restaurant in San Francisco? Something both grownups and kids can enjoy? Read on for Family Travel Forum reader favorites. San Francisco, California is a diner's town...
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Mom, 3 Kids, 5 Days – Los Angeles To Vancouver Family Road Trip
Follow my advice on how to avoid a bumpy ride -- or should we say mom's worst nightmare ever? -- on a roadtrip from Los Angeles through Oregon, Washington state and Vancouver.
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Newport Beach, California Soothes Little Souls
Stay in pretty Newport Beach, California and enjoy the best of both worlds -- with Disneyland nearby and beautiful beaches right beneath your feet. Southern California's picturesque Newport Beach,...
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Sea Kayaking In Baja California
Like remote places, but don't like giving up modern comforts? This reviewer heads to a Mexican wilderness retreat for kayaking and exploring marine life in Baja California. If the thought...
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Yosemite: Almost Sleeping with Coyotes
“It’s another thirty-five miles t’the valley floor,” the Yosemite National Park gate keeper drawled. Free of Fresno, the drive up to this point took us past hazy, crushed-velvet...
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Custom Itinerary – Driving the Pacific Coast Highway and Visiting Yosemite National Park
Q. Amelia M. of Van Nuys, California writes: My family of four, including myself, my 73-year-old mother and two sons (ages 11 and 22) want to drive the PCH from Southern California, and visit Yosemite....
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Custom Itinerary – San Diego for Families
Q. Sheila S. of Norwalk, Ohio needs information: "My husband and I and our 8 and 11-year-olds want to go to San Diego in January. We need information on family attractions and want to know if it is worth...
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