I’m thinking a nice family vacation to celebrate DH and my anniversary and simultaneous milestone birthdays. Want to invite DS and his girlfriend, DD2, DD3 (and maybe plus ones but none currently) during mid-December-mid-January. Has to coordinate with academic calendar for me and DD2. Thinking somewhere warm (not everyone skis) and would like to not spend a ridiculous amount of money. Worried about Caribbean zika especially with all those young women. Ideally would have active things for some folks and relaxed things for others. Ordinarily I’d think cruises or resorts but I’m really worried about the virus…
Or should we just make everyone come to the house and sit around the fire and play Monopoly? :o
Zika has been reported both on Maui and Oahu. However, those cases were imported, and in our experience, we haven’t encountered any mosquitoes by the ocean. If you want to stay absolutely zika-safe, go to Waikiki.
stay cations are NOT vacations! They are stressful- enforced not going to work… Getting away removes all of the usual distractions and means no unintended work. Staying home involves work- getting away means the sheets and towels are taken care of by someone else, as is cleanup after meals. The house doesn’t get dirty either. Plus, family members spend time with each other instead of their usual free time activities. There are reasons to get away. Spending the money is well worth it! Families like mine in my childhood couldn’t afford vacations. Having a father home from work for the week was NOT fun. Ended up doing maintenance chores…
Ask family members to scout out places they would like to see. Every place has pros and cons. Southern California is a great place to visit. Many different activities depending where you choose. You can choose to spend all of your time in one location or you can spend a few days in different locations within an area. We have gone to the big conference in Anaheim followed by trips north to LA or south to San Diego. Decide if you want a week at a place with day trips or several days in two places.
Are you looking for a rest and relax as opposed to culture? How about Sedona/Phoenix area in Arizona. Beautiful for hiking and some other stuff to do, even if you are there in the rain.
The Mohonk Mountain house looks fantastic, but maybe not somewhere to go if you need 3-4 rooms, at $400/night plus each. Maybe somewhere to go with just your spouse. Also, New York is not too warm during the Dec-Jan timeframe that she’s looking for. Sounds incredible, though.
Chile has no Zika. Check out beaches in La Serena, the mountains, Santiago, or the wine country. The coast mirrors the west coast of North America. Love the city of Valparaiso. It is a good time of year to visit Patagonia. Flights aren’t cheap but places to stay are relative to here. Also it is summer in Australia. A weak Australian dollar makes it relatively inexpensive compared to what it used to be. Also how about SE Asia? Especially Thailand.
Have I mentioned this group is amazing? Thanks for all the great ideas - some look like things DH and I want to do on our own, and some look like good possibilities with the kids. Now I just need to become fabulously wealthy so I can try all of them soon.
