Family-Friendly Travel

Kids Can Travel has designed a slick site that's easy to navigate and a fun place to browse. There are destination guides you can select from a clickable world map, real-life family vacation photos, and a great "Family Favorites" section, where you narrow your search based on preferences like culture and adventure, or the fact that you're traveling with kids in several age groups. The tips page goes beyond the usual "pack a change of clothes" advice to thoughts on wildlife safaris and how to buy snorkel gear for kids.

Family Travel Forum endeavors to be true to the motto "have kids, still travel." Founded by travel industry professionals, the membership-based site offers a custom travel-planning feature, travel agent resources, tons of useful tips, and links to some other useful sites. Fees start at $3.95/month, but nonmembers can still access the site's "News & Deals" page and message boards (under "Guest Resources" on the right side of the page), or sign up for the free e-newsletter.

Travel + Leisure Family magazine is parent to a site that contains a trip planner and a "Tips, Tales, Advice" section loaded with lists of top picks for everything from the best family eats across the globe to age-appropriate vacations.

Taking the Kids is the column of syndicated travel journalist Eileen Ogintz as well as where her past articles are archived. Ogintz discuss everything from squeezing in romance on family vacations to climbing Mount Kilimanjaro with the little ones, plus daily travel tips and an "Ask Me a Question" feature.

WeJustGotBack.com hosts travel advice from families who have shared their experiences online. You'll find resources or suggestions for everything from trip planning and choosing destinations to "How to Raise a Travel Bug" and "Volunteering in New Orleans." Click on the "Tip Sheets" tab for dozens of helpful articles on money savers, flying with kids, packing, and more. You can also browse photos or read the "Insider Guides," loaded with helpful information for select cities. Been somewhere and want to share with other parents? Create and post your own "Insider Guide." Registration (it's free) is required to access much of the Web site.

Travels With Baby is led by author Shelly Rivoli, a traveling mother of two. The site is an excellent resource for parents of infants and young children, offering reviews of gear and products like car seats and travel beds, as well as gear specifically for air travel and cruises with little ones. The "Trip Planning Resources" section contains links to baby gear rental agencies in the U.S. and abroad, as well as tips and advice on travel with babies and toddlers directly from other parents. Rivoli also maintains a Travels With Baby blog with daily advice for traveling parents.

Fun Time Family Travel is a full-service travel agency specializing in family vacations for parents with children age 6 and under). Destinations range from dude ranches to tropical islands, from all-inclusive resorts to big cities.

Rascals in Paradise offers higher-end family vacation packages around the world. Browse the destinations and packages or just click on the region you're interested in for an itinerary and contact information. Rascals vacations are tailored to be rich cultural experiences-the company claims that "our vacations are classrooms without walls." In addition to what you'd expect from a travel agent, Rascals arranges programs for the children so that you and your spouse can get that much-needed time to yourself and know that your kids are enjoying themselves, too.

Theme Park Insider posts user ratings and reviews of amusement parks around the world. It also has a section with reviews of hotels in and around the parks, and the "Discussion" section features a pretty active message board.

FreewebCentral isn't pretty, but it's super-easy to navigate this comprehensive U.S. amusement park directory. Click on a state on the map for a list of links to amusement parks. Some of the links are "broken," but it's still a valuable resource if you're planning a visit to an amusement park.

Cruises for Families has everything you need to research and book a family cruise vacation all in one place. The one-stop-shopping features include information on discounts and last-minute deals for trips on most major cruise lines, a booking service, up-to-date reviews of kids' programs aboard the ships, and suggestions for traveling with kids from newborns to teens.

CruiseMates is considered by many to be the best go-to site on the Web for comprehensive information about cruising. The independently run site, which bills itself as an "unbiased Internet cruise magazine and guidebook," has extensive "Family Cruising" and "Teens and Kids" sections that contain everything and anything you'd ever need to know, from a cruise Q&A for teens to up-to-the-minute passport requirements for you and your kids.

Tour Guide Mike charges families $21.95 to map out custom itineraries to Walt Disney World based on answers to a pre-trip online questionnaire. The site is maintained by Mike Hewell, who once worked as a Disney World VIP host. Michael's VIPs offers more deluxe service: for $100 an hour, one of Hewell's guides will get you a coveted seat at the most exclusive character breakfasts, and even wait in lines for you.

Walt Disney World 's official site has everything from online vacation package price quotes to tools that help you create and order customized park maps. This link is for the original Disney World in Orlando; if you're interested in heading to Disneyland in California, check out the link below.

Disneyland Resort 's official site is a California version of what's described above.

The Planning Strategy Calculator helps you navigate all the reservation rules for things like the aforementioned Princess breakfast, as well as tee times, shows, and other events. Enter your e-mail and address, and you'll get an alert when there's a change in priority seating rules. There are also links to other useful information, like height requirements for rides and even a character location spreadsheet. You can thank us later.

Inn Finder 's search engine allows you to type in the location where you want to stay, then browse through homepages to find inns suiting you and your family.

Virtual Cities has an extensive directory of family-friendly B&Bs and country inns, as well as hotels and vacation rentals. The comprehensive listings include photos, directions, contact information, reviews, age ranges of children, and much more. A particularly helpful feature: scroll to the bottom of the inn's description and you can get a "Print N Go" page that summarizes all the essential information in a one-page document for quick and easy reference.

France 4 Families has everything Francophiles young and old need to plan a bon voyage, including currency and passport information, destination guides, suggestions for kid-friendly day trips, a booking engine for transportation and accommodations, and an extensive list of links to more sites that help you prepare for your trip.

Kids in Spain is geared toward foreign, English-speaking families living in coastal Spain, but there's plenty of useful information for tourists as well. Search for family-friendly beaches, parks, and restaurants, find babysitters, and get a list of important phone numbers and contacts for emergencies. You'll also find basic Spanish phrases and even Spanish children's songs.

Enjoy England , England's official tourism Web site, has a "Family Fun" section that has games, printable activity sheets and reviews for kids, plus an easy-to-navigate map where you can find family-friendly activities according to region and preference. This site is geared toward kids (not just parents looking for kid-friendly activities), so it's a good chance to get your children involved in the planning stages of the vacation.

Ciao Bambino is indispensable for families traveling to England, Spain, France, or Italy with kids of any age, from babies to teens. Either browse the handpicked, carefully screened directory of accommodations, which you can sort by your child's age, or have Ciao Bambino plan a custom vacation for you, in the "Travel Services" section. The company plans vacations at partner properties, stocks your space with toys, snacks, and gear, and even provides you with a mobile phone and puts you in touch with screened babysitters. The "Travel Tips" section includes a comprehensive list of links to other family travel Web sites, plus other helpful resources for planning your trip.

• Bringing the kids doesn't mean your vacation can't be luxurious. ForbesTraveler revealed that upscale family travel is an emerging trend, recently naming the top ten family friendly hotels in the U.S. chosen by travel industry experts and journalists. View the photo slide show for a glimpse of each property.

Family Adventure Magazine carries listings of adventure travel trips across the globe designed just for families. There's also a library of articles, a suggested reading list, and links to outfitters and suppliers for travel gear and sports equipment.

iExplore has won numerous awards for its adventure travel Web site, through which the company organizes tours and publishes travel guides. Here you can find details on hiking, biking, and diving vacations, plus information on safaris and cultural expeditions. A section of the site focuses exclusively on family travel, and includes a trip finder feature, destination and activity information, and community message boards. You can also contact one of the company's family travel specialists.

Thomson Family Adventures , the trip outfitter, specializes in guided family trips to exotic locales from Alaska to Tanzania. Trips are planned for school vacation periods, and free travel insurance is provided. There's also a section devoted to adventure trips for teens.

Wildland Adventures arranges adventure trips for families with kids ranging in age from toddlers to teens, striving to break down barriers between travelers and local cultures to achieve an authentic experience. Trips include African safaris, treks to Machu Picchu, and boat trips to the Galapagos Islands.

ResponsibleTravel.com provides a directory of eco-vacations. The "A taste of volunteering holidays" section helps you find grassroots projects around the world that your family can participate in, such as working with a conservation society tracking sea turtles in Seychelles. A perk: some of the volunteer holidays offer discounts on accommodations and airfare.

The Volunteer Family 's Web site has information on volunteer agencies that welcome families, including Habitat for Humanity, the Global Citizen's Network, and Wilderness Volunteers. Although the site is not specifically a travel site, it has a section devoted to volunteer vacations.

KidsCamps.com has a directory of camps that families can attend together, broken down by geographic region.

The Camping Resource has a comprehensive database of campground listings throughout North America, in addition to gear reviews and price comparisons, packing checklists, RV manufacturer and rental information. Click on "Tips: Family Camping" to be linked to useful articles and tips on camping with your family.

Kampgrounds of America 's Web site has a "Camping with Kids" section that contains trip tips, plus campfire stories and recipes, and packing checklists just for children.

Go Camping America 's "Fun for Kids Pages" are a great way to get kids involved in trip planning and help them learn about camping safety. There are also printable coloring pages, state-by-state fun facts and even kids camping recipes here.

Guest Ranches of North America 's main feature is a search engine that helps you find a ranch that suits your needs by entering information on location, activities (like children's programs), price range, and month of travel you're interested in. A useful feature here: next to each selection is a number letting you know how many ranches are in that category-giving you an idea of how much variety you'll have in your selection.

Ranchweb.com , a site run by author Gene Kilgore, lists worldwide resources for dude ranch, cattle ranch, and fly fishing vacations searchable by criteria as detailed as whether there are air strips on the property and what sort of yoga classes are offered. For a comprehensive list of dude ranch vacations with children's programs, click on "Ranch Programs" and then "Children's Programs".

Family Education has a carefully edited list of farms offering family-friendly vacations.

The Maine Farm Vacation Bed and Breakfast Association list farms in the Pinetree State including a llama farm, organic farms, and vegetable farms.

Student.com 's travel pages include teen travel reviews, discussion forums, and travel diaries written by teens. Registered users (it's free) can post their own travel diaries. Click on the "Links" tab for several useful links for teen and budget travel.

The Independent Traveler is a thorough travel resource site that has an article chock full of great tips for traveling with teens, plus links to lots of family travel resources.

Grand Travel specializes exclusively in vacation tours specifically for grandparents and their grandchildren. They run about 10 trips each year to domestic and international destinations, including Kenya, the Galapagos Islands, and U.S. national parks. You can look at the daily itineraries for each tour on their site.

Elderhostel , a not-for-profit educational travel group, specializes in trips for adults over 55, and offers more than 150 intergenerational trips among its programs (enter "intergenerational" into the search engine at the upper right of the homepage). Options range from one-day excursions with toddlers to the Atlanta Children's Museum to week-long ski vacations in Sundance, Utah, with teenagers. All can be booked online.

The Sierra Club offers "Just for Grandparents and Grandkids" trips to do with kids that include light hiking and family-style meals. Enter "Grandparents" into the search tool to find these types of trips.

Generations Touring Company offers guided trips for kids, parents, and grandparents in any combination. The easy-to-navigate site lists tours categorized as either "journeys" or "adventures" (which require more physical stamina). Tours run the gamut-from "Baseball's Sacred Grounds" tour in the United States to exotic locales like Vietnam and Peru. If you have a group of 10 or more, you will be assigned a SAGE (a private tour guide). There are FAQ pages geared to both adults and kids on the site, as well as videos detailing the tours.

The U.S. Department of State site contains the latest information about passport requirements for minors, application fees, foreign entry requirements, and processing times.

Family on Board is an online retailer specializing in all manner of travel gear for families, from safety items like car seats that pack into easy-rolling luggage cases to travel games and portable DVD players. There's also a page of links to other helpful family travel Web sites.

The Jet with Kids site is dedicated to helping make air travel easy for families. You'll find lists of air travel tips, travel gear reviews, and a great links page with resources for information on everything from birth certificates to travel insurance.

BabyCenter 's travel section is a one-stop shop where you can find answers to all of your questions about traveling with little ones, from when your child is old enough to fly to where the best baby-friendly destinations are. You'll find checklists of questions to ask the airlines, money-saving travel tips, message boards, polls, you name it.

Jet Set Babies ships supplies like diapers, baby food, infant formula, and even blankets and nightlights to locations around the world. The company confirms receipt of the order and lets you know where your package is stored and how to retrieve it once you arrive at your destination.

Go-Baby stands out from other sites because of its thorough selection of car seats, strollers, and health and safety gear that work especially well for traveling families. There's even an assortment of pet-travel products for your other baby, plus useful advice and information on subjects like major airline policies regarding children and airports with areas for kids to play.

The New Parents Guide has a state-by-state directory of baby equipment rental companies, as well as information on companies in Canada, Mexico, Europe, South Africa, and more.

Zooglobble , written by father and music aficionado Stefan Shepherd, has developed a loyal following among parents who want to enjoy music along with their kids instead of just tolerating it. Look here for fun suggestions for music for your trip.

Mom'sMinivan.com offers countless creative idea for keeping kids busy in the car, from games you've probably thought of yourself (the license plate game) to more unique suggestions, like renting/downloading classic radio broadcasts. There are also suggestions for entertaining babies and toddlers on the road, and articles written by moms on topics like traveling with kids with disabilities and flying tips.

Travelhacker is a blog created in October, 2007 that has already amassed a sizable chunk of travel editorial content. This page outlines 27 free games to play with kids on road trips; most games require nothing more than creativity, memory, and car widows to look out of.