Christmas Vacation

[nissangirl74]

For Christmas this year, we are thinking about doing an "experience" instead of a bunch of gifts that often times don't get used. I need some ideas. I'd prefer somewhere warm but I'm open to any suggestions. I looked at Hawaii and it was just WAY too much, even with discounts. Also, as a side note, we've got 3 teenagers that get really grumpy when they're bored. They need stuff to do. Looking to be gone 5-7 days. Thanks in advance!

[Bubba1]

You guys know best what kinda activities they're into, but thinking back on my son's favorite vacations when he was a teen, here are some of his favorites.

Costa Rica: Inexpensive, relaxed, and amazing. Great people there, and American friendly, who gladly accept US dollars.No language issues. We stayed at a little village beach hotel along the Pacific coast recommended by a "connected" friend (long story). But I was amazed by the endless fun things to do in that country. between zip lining in the rainforest, ATV tours, snorkeling, boat tours (which included feeding the howler monkees and crocs, volcano tours, pristine uncrowded beaches with clear water, ideal for snorkeling with the plentiful fishies. I'm still hopelessly addicted to Costa Rican coffee. We all would love to go back there again.

Cruise: Not cheap, but they're not as expensive as they once were. And despite all the horrific press about them recently, the overwhelming majority of them are awesome. We did a 5 day Carnival caribbean cruise and my son loved it. Between all the excursions and on-ship activities, there was literally non-stop stuff to keep him (and mom/dad) amused/entertained.

Amusement Park Road Trip: An advantage living in the northeast, plenty of them around which meant riding literally dozens of different rollercoasters, which he loves to ride. We hit several parks between Philly and Sandusky OH over the course of 5 days (doing it all in an ol' Altima which ran flawlessly/comfiortably even without memory foam...er..I mean "NASA inspired zero gravity" seats). The trip also included a stop at the Cleveland Rock n'Roll Hall of fame He loved that trip enough that he's talked about doing it again.

Disneyworld Orlando: Expensive, but it's tough to beat it for the variety of stuff for both teens and mom/dad, especially if some of them have never been there before. Unlike the Disney in CA, in 5 days you could literally do a different park every day in Florida. There are a lotta packages available out there to make it a little less ridiculously expensive.

Universal Studios Orlando: About the size of 2 of the Disneyworld parks but well worth checking out. They have that Harry Potter village and ride which is amazing by itself. We did 4 days there which was plenty of time to see/do everything and still hang out at the pool. But with 5 days you could add in a day trip or two to some of the cool surrounding area stuff, like the Space Coast, which is not far away, and some nice beaches.

Hope that helps. Enjoy.

[Mr. Music]

If you come to Florida, there's also Busch Gardens in Tampa and Legoland in Winter Haven (which might sound lame but I really enjoyed it when I went). You could go for an air boat ride in the Everglades if you stay somewhere near Disneyworld in Kissimmee. Heading to the Kennedy Space Center in Titusville is a must if you guys are interested in science stuff. There are also great beaches (like Apollo and Playalinda; more here) near the space center. It only takes about two and a half hours to drive from one coast to the other so getting to all these different places wouldn't be bad.

There is all kinds of stuff to do throughout central Florida; your teens won't get bored.

[nissangirl74]

Bump for more input. Please.

[Bubba1]

Bump for more input. Please.

After watching the local news.. if you want "experience", how 'bout Camden NJ?
Think about it.

It's like a real life TV crime drama.

- witness actual drug deals, muggings, prostitute soliticitations and carjackings live!
- it looks much better in winter when sidewalk blood stains, stripped/abandoned cars and dead body chalk outlines are covered by snow.
- their daily murder rate is lower than it's been in years.
- admire stolen cemetery wreaths adorning local crack house doors
- if you close your eyes, the gunfire will sound like fireworks
- visit the famous battleship USS New Jersey before the scavengers figure out how to break in and steal its metal to sell at local scrap yards.
- you could make a side trip to scenic Newark NJ!!!
- stay in of the many one star motels, some featuring hourly rates.

Sorry, just teasing. In all fairness, not all of Camden is bad. Ok carry on....

[PapaSmurf2k3]

Are you looking at staying within the US? Does everyone have passports?