After spending a week visiting our relatives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, my family and I boarded a plane to California before going back to our home state of Alabama. Sight-seeing California was a much anticipated experience for all of us, and we were very eager to finally arrive. After landing on the LAX runway, we grabbed our bags and were taken to our rental car, a Dodge Charger. Immediately we drove to San Luis Obispo where we stayed the night at the world famous Madonna Inn.
Following a wonderful night’s stay in the charming two-story “Sky Loft” room in the Madonna, we drove to San Simeon which is home of the beautiful Hearst Castle. This magnificent estate, originally owned by William Hearst, contains several buildings, ranging from 2,600 to 60,000 square feet each. Each building contains several rooms with antique pieces of brilliantly created artwork and upholstery, and the entire estate itself is clearly designed for entertainment. Two swimming pools, one indoor and one outdoor, sit on this extravagant piece of property. The outdoor pool is constructed with pillars, statues, and fountains, and the indoor pool draws every tourist’s attention to its partially golden bottom. My family and I were fortunate to take a two hour tour of this magnificent estate, and we left in complete awe of the splendid Hearst Castle.
We eventually drove to Santa Monica, ate a delicious dinner, and went to a hotel for a good night’s rest in order to be prepared for the exciting day that would follow in Los Angeles.
Once awakened by our anxiousness, we set out for our day in the middle of Los Angeles. Upon entering the heart and soul of the big California city, we found ourselves driving along the famous Hollywood Boulevard. After finding a decently priced parking garage, we began our exploration and were amazed by what we found. The boulevard sidewalks were busy with locals quickly walking by and tourists taking time to point out each significant mark by taking multiple pictures. My family and I first noticed the beautiful Chinese Theater and later were surrounded by people dressed as celebrities. While my mother spent a few minutes getting her picture taken with “Marilyn Monroe” and “Elvis”, I glanced towards my feet, finding myself standing on someone’s name.
I had discovered the Sidewalk of the Stars with its hundreds of stars lining the sidewalks on both sides of the boulevard. We quickly began snapping pictures of our favorite actors and singers. Finishing our little self-guided tour of the sidewalk, we hopped on a tour bus which took us to the most popular landmarks in the Los Angeles area. The Beverly Hill’s sign, several famous buildings and statues, Paramount Pictures, and a distant view of the hillside Hollywood sign were included in the informative and incredibly interesting tour.
Our next step involved visiting the Guinness and Celebrity Wax museums both of which provided amazement and lots of laughs. Concluding our day with shopping and eating, we were very fortunate to see an actual celebrity in person- Christina Aguilera. Christina was filming part of a video on the side of Hollywood Boulevard, and my family and I were given the chance to hear her sing and take several pictures from the balcony.
On the plane ride back to our home in Alabama, my family and I were disappointed to leave such a remarkable city. However, we were able to bring back pictures, souvenirs, and most importantly, memories of our once in a lifetime family trip.
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Grt place to visit.. This place is located after entering the Ranthambore National Park.. However, to visit this place u can evn get your own vehicle…
John, glad you liked the story. This park is in Ohio where the weather can be unpredictable! It’s warmest between late April and November, but even April has the risk of some snow. If you’re camping with kids, the safest bet is June to August, because it’s warmer and there’s little rain. Enjoy your trip.
Hey Maggie, I really appreciate your innovative traveling ideas. You have covered so many adventurous places. Waiting for some new destinations. Please keep posting.
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It’s truly magical being there. I love the art this country offers. Their wall arts and crafts are just lovely.
Hi Maggie,
You always share to the world with something new and different destinations. Thank you so much for sharing.
The history of Cuhahoga valley national park seems interesting and must be a new experience when we observe scenes of National park from their scenic campgrounds.
which season do you think is the best time to visit this national park?
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Wow, what a nice article. Makes you feel like you should pack up and go immediately. It seems Linblad runs a good operation and trips are kid friendly. Is there a list of particular dates that are family friendly or are there kid activities year round on board the boats. Any other advice on travling with kids to Ecuador and Galapagos would be really welcome.
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Hello Michael, glad to hear your family is interested in a dude ranch holiday.
Since your kids are older and, hopefully, everyone in the family rides, you have lots of options. The Dude Ranchers Association is a really helpful resource in sorting through the many types of ranch vacations. For example, you can go here: https://duderanch.org/by-activity-amenity and search for ‘Advanced Rides’ and “Cattle Drives’ and that would get you some real working ranches that would have more of the lifestyle you seem to be looking for. One of our authors recommends the Hideout in Shell, Wyoming for this type of trip.
Looking for a real ranch experience with horseback riding (lots of it) and time in the open air with my son (15) and daughter (12) and my wife (49). I am 62. We live in NJ, my children have been sheltered but I grew up in a small coal mining town in Pennsylvania. I want my children to see another side of life.
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Great destinations for First Night and New Year’s Eve! Check out our favourite ones in Europe: https://tapsy.blog/?s=new+year%27s+eve
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Of course, you can do travel freely and easily through these two countries yourself, but I enjoyed having the trip curated for me, including well-chosen local guides, comfortable transportation on call and some superb private tours, such as a Khmer cooking class or historic walking tour of Saigon, with flexibility in the itinerary for our group of five to follow their own paths, such as making an emotional detour to the moving Genocide Museum housed in the old S-21 jail in Phnom Penh.
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I enjoyed reading your Italian family vacation story, and thank you so much for these tips. This surely gonna help us achieve a stress-free vacation in Italy. Great blog!
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For Richard re: dual citizenship US-Nicaragua… can I use the same to travel back to Nicaragua with the same Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) since wife is staying back in Nicaragua to keep eyes on the house.
Hi Richard, In our travel experience, this type of document should work well for your travels, but if your wife is available, it can’t hurt to download the sample forms we have online and also have her fill out and notarize one for your trip with your child. The agency responsible in your case will be the carrier — we assume an airline — and if they can make a note in your travel record that they have approved the Nicaraguan documents you should be fine on both departing and entering.
Safe Travels!
Wow, great!!! it could be a great fun out there.
very informative article Travel forums provide first hand experience and advice to travelers and are a great source of information and travel tips.
As a signal parent, your life, world, actions are based on your childs well fair. Not your happiness or anything that has to do with you.
It should list where they are going, the dates that they are allowed to go and grant your permission for that trip. You want to include your address and phone number and probably the contact info for the adult traveling as well.
The grand archways and the paintings of Lord Krishna and his cows are a visual treat. Wander through areas opened for tourists and you shall witness the impressive aura and architecture of the Royal state of Rajasthan.
Thanks for Sharing
Hello guys my wife and I have dual citizenship US-Nicaragua, I’m planning to travel to the US with our son also dual citizenship for 3 weeks, with a Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) from Nicaragua, can I use the same to travel back to Nicaragua with the same Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) since wife is staying back in Nicaragua to keep eyes on the house.
Congratulations to the winners! A question to all the professional travelers here, how are you planning the route ant the places to see while visiting a new country? As for me I just google the most touristic and popular places. It works mostly, but there were a few times when I realized that I have seen only some the places this country or city is famous for, and that’s sad. On my last trip to Armenia, I decided to take a tour and it was quite productive. It’s much more informative when somebody is telling you history and some interesting facts. If someone wants to save their time – make sure to ask them to help if you’ll ever be there.
Curitiba é uma lugar lindo, além de ser considerada uma das melhores cidades para se morar em Brasil.
Realmente a muito o que conhecer por lá, como também diversas outras belezas do nosso brasil.
Principalmente as praias do Brasil que são muito procurada por inúmeros turistas internacionais e nacionais.
As Praias do Litoral Paulista, divididos entre Praias do Litoral Norte e Litoral Sul.
As mais conhecidas são as Praias de Ubatuba com mais de 100 belas praias no litoral norte paulista.
Já no litoral sul, a região mais procurada são as Praias de Guarujá, a região conta com 23 praias de pura beleza e preservação ambiental.
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Was an honour and pleasure to host you both in the Maori Whakata/Welcome to Wanaka. Welcome back anytime to this wonderful part of the world.
Kia Kaha/Stay strong
[http://www.wanahaka.co.nz]