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Families Travel! Penticton with Kids
Joanna Nesbit, a Bellingham-area mom (and fellow travel writer) recently went with her family to Penticton, BC, for three nights. Penticton is about a five hour drive from Bellingham, six and a half from Seattle and about five from Vancouver, BC. “We went over Memorial Day weekend, which is a great time in Canada because it’s not their holiday,†Nesbit says. “Penticton is a beautiful town located on the land bridge that separates Okanogan Lake and Lake Skaha. It’s friendly, easy to navigate, and there are plenty of grocery and restaurant options for visitors.†Nesbit went about her trip in a smart way – she brought her 13-year-old daughter’s friend…
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Families Travel! Amber goes to Parksville BC
Could any trip be more kid friendly? A BC beachside vacation, combined with a tour of a family farm and an artisan cheese factory. Vancouver mom and blogger Amber Strocel and husband Jon recently returned to Parksville, BC with their kids Hannah, age 5, and Jacob, 22 months. Parksville is about 45 minutes north of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, and one of Strocel’s favorite vacation spots (she’s been to the retreat three times now). And after reading over their vacation, I’m jealous! I’m ready to book my stay – read this over, and see if you’re not ready to go, too. Where are you staying? Did you find a family-friendly Parksville, BC, hotel or other Parksville…
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Vacationing on a Seattle Houseboat Rental with Kids
Seattle mom Leah Adams recently took an exciting and unusual staycation. She slept for two nights on a Seattle houseboat with her husband, daughter (10) and son (8). Leah took advantage of a weekend-only special (the houseboat usually rents by the month) and found that a houseboat serves up a rockin’ (and rollin’) family vacation. Q: What did you enjoy about the Seattle houseboat? I loved the cedar paneling (smelled just like I imagined a houseboat would). The efficiency of being in a small space appealed to me. There’s something so lovely about being totally satisfied in a small space, leaving all the extraneous stuff in our house behind. The Lake Union location, near Fremont, was fantastic. Fremont deserves…
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Families Travel! Taking the Kids to Vancouver on Amtrak
Canadian-born Seattle resident Connie Wanklin-Iskra, her husband Matt, son Makhno (almost 3) and daughter Naomi (6 months) decided to enjoy a car-free weekend in Vancouver, BC. So, over the long US Memorial Day weekend, they decided to take the Amtrak train‘s route to Vancouver for a two-day trip. “We wanted to stay longer, but felt we might need a day to recover when we returned,†Wanklin-Iskra says. “Which was definitely the case.†They boarded the Amtrak in Edmonds, Washington at 8:07 a.m. and arrived in Vancouver, BC, almost four hours later. The train was $70 round trip for each adult, half-off for Makhno and free for her daughter (and other children under age 2). Once in Vancouver, it was…
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Families Travel! Harrison Hot Springs with Kids
As you probably remember from last week, we interviewed Sarah Reese, a Washington mom to 11 natural, adopted and step-children. This week, she tells us what she loves about BC’s Harrison Hot Springs Resort and Spa, located 90 minutes east of Vancouver, BC and three hours Northeast of Seattle. First Nations peoples discovered the springs thousands of years ago; The springs have been soothing tourists since 1886, after one of the region’s first resort communities was established. Tell me about how your family of 11 stays at Harrison Hot Springs? The older part of the hotel has the lowest prices. They also have family suites that have two rooms and…