Family friendly destinations in America

[Mummabear1010]

Hey! We are thinking of travelling to America for a holiday next year. It will be myself my husband and 3 children aged 13,12&4. We’ve decided against New York this time and don’t really fancy Disney land. Has anyone any family friendly destinations within the states to visit? We’ll be looking for some sightseeing but also somewhere we can chill. Thank you!

New Yorker here. Try Boston. It's a lovely, smaller city, very manageable, and has lots of things to see and do with the kids. It's also a very easy flight from the UK.

I know we're not everyone's cup of tea, but why did you rule out NYC?

Things To Do In Boston

Edited to add that while I'm in NY, I have lots of family in the Boston area and am up there pretty frequently. My kids also went to uni there, and I'm happy to answer any questions as well as I can.

That’s great thank you! I did think of Boston so will look into it!

The reason we have ruled out NYC this time is because we are already planning to visit in a couple of years for a special birthday so wanted somewhere different for next year!

off to research Boston 🥰

California was great when our DC were 10 and 13. We did a road trip from San Francisco to LA and then on to Grand Canyon.

We really liked San Diego. We stayed in the Mission Bay area just outside the city. Gorgeous white beaches, long boardwalk, small old style fair, lot of seafood & Mexican food. La Jolla is lovely just up the coast for beach again and wildlife. We went into the city to explore, went to a baseball game, paddle boarding, day at Seaworld, day inland to old mining area. We did a week there and a week in San Francisco hopping on internal flights (cheap) as we'd driven Highway 1 SF to LA a few years before. Or if you like outdoor activities combine SF with Lake Tahoe which is stunning.

What time of year? The climate varies a lot by State and season.

Boston is a great option, Museum of Science, Freedom Trail, Duck Boat tours, Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum, MofFA, Harvard, Aquarium, Public Gardens…

If you want to just chill as well, consider getting an Airbnb on Revere Beach. There are a load of new apartment buildings that are attached to the Blue Line (underground/train) which goes directly to the city center and across the road from a huge sandy beach.

Chicago? Super child friendly, great culture and sightseeing and go in summer and you have all the beaches on lake michigan for chilling.

The non Disney bits of Florida? The gulf coast/busch gardens if kids want one theme park. Or the Gold Coast with the space center. Or Miami with the Keys and the Everglades.

Yosemite or Yellowstone national parks.

The Grand Canyon/ Las Vegas.

Dollywood.

Niagara.

Cape Cod/Martha's Vineyard.

We went to San Diego / LA last year and had a great time. Love San Diego. We didn't do Disney in LA but we did do a day at Universal and it was brilliant.

Some great ideas already!

I’ll add:

New Orleans
Utah - Mighty 5 national parks
Tennessee - Nashville, Memphis
Pacific Northwest - Oregon, Washington - could go up into BC potentially

I came on to say Boston too! A few days there followed by Cape Cod and/Martha's Vineyard is wonderful- we had a magical fortnight doing this as a multi-generational family group.

Agree with pp who suggested Boston. I also highly recommend combining it with some time in Maine which is an incredibly beautiful place for a holiday.

I also suggest Boston as above, and stretching out into New England - Cape Cod is gorgeous, could go into Vermont for the Ben and Jerries factory (might be a winner with the kids) - Kennebunkport in Maine is a lovely coastal town and there are some lovely places in Connecticut….

Or indeed the other side - Las Vegas, the Geand Canyon - road trip round Sacramento, San Francisco down to Yosemite National Park….I loved Yosemite.

I don’t agree with their politics at all but I do love the actual country there’s lots of great places.

Did a family holiday to San Fran last year. Fabulous for families. Alcatraz, Star Wars studio, Palace of Fine Art, Napa, Pier 39, Golden Gate, China Town so much to do , lots of places to eat cheaply and very easy public transport. Up to Marin county for a bit of country side
and beaches. It was an amazing trip.

Thank you so much for all the suggestions! I really like the look of San Diego too! I was planning October time but we can be flexible for good weather