Family Vacation Ideas

We are a couple in our sixties who take a one week vacation with our 2 adult children, their spouses and 5 children every June. It is early to start planning for next year, but we are starting to think about it and would love some suggestions. In June the kids%26#39; ages will be as follows: boys 12 and 5, girls 10, 7 and 3. We always rent a good sized house so we can stay together. We like to be have a pool or beach readily accessible and we like an area with restaurants and some activities the kids enjoy such as water parks, amusement parks, playgrounds etc. nearby. We don%26#39;t need to be super close to those things, just a reasonable distance. We are not boaters but some of us enjoy fishing from the shore, but that is not a requirement. We live in the Chicago area and would prefer something within one day%26#39;s travel, but we could go a little further and split the driving into 2 days. We have been to spots in WI that we liked, but now we have to go in early June, so we hesitate to go north because the weather and water temp might be too cold. We have been to Lake of the Ozarks, which we enjoyed and this summer we went to Lake Cumberland, KY, which we thought was a little too quiet and remote, though beautiful. We would like to try something new. Any ideas?

Family Vacation Ideas

Have you thought about southwestern Indiana? Santa Claus has the family theme park Holiday World, which has a waterpark inside the main park. Also French Lick is within an hour%26#39;s drive. The hotel there and at West Baden has just been renovated. There is also a casino there. The Patoka Lake is a beautiful place in the area also if you want to enjoy nature. Ferdinand and St. Meinrad are two beautiful small towns with great European influence, especially the religious communities%26#39; buildings. Evansville has a great river front. They opened a new children%26#39;s museum there, although I have not been there. I live in Ferdinand and I would be willing to help you find any information about this part of the state if you would like.

Family Vacation Ideas

Thanks, we%26#39;ll look into that.

The previous poster had very good suggestions!

Since you like amusement parks, here are two other suggestions that are very close to Indiana:

Cincinnati, Ohio

There%26#39;s King%26#39;s Island which has nice roller coasters and a new Nickelodean section, ';The Beach'; Water Park, Coney Island, the Cincinnati Museum Center (which currently has an exhibit of a real pirate ship, but I don%26#39;t know if that will be there in a year), riverboats, Newport Aquarium which is ranked #1 in the Midwest, one of the top zoos in the country, lots of free outdoor concerts and acitivities down by the river, baseball games, fantastic ice cream, and friendly people.

http://www.ohioslargestplayground.com/

www.cincinnatiusa.com

Sandusky, Ohio by Lake Erie

';Cedar Point--The Roller Coaster Capital of the World';

With 69 rides, including 17 world-class roller coasters, four children’s areas, a gigantic waterpark (Soak City), three resort hotels, a year-round indoor waterpark resort, a luxury RV campground with cottages and cabins, two marinas, an entertainment complex (Challenge Park), award-winning live entertainment, gift shops, restaurants and more, it’s

easy to see why Cedar Point amusement park/resort in Sandusky, Ohio, has been voted the “Best Amusement Park in the World” for a record nine consecutive years!

http://www.sanduskyohiocedarpoint.com/

http://www.cedarpoint.com/

If you consider a ';reasonable distance'; to be an hour or less and you like to be in a natural setting, you might want to stay near Brookville, Indiana on Brookville Lake. It%26#39;s only 51 minutes from Brookville to downtown Cincinnati and a little over an hour to King%26#39;s Island.

One year we stayed near a lake in Warren County across from the pioneer village. I liked the fact that there was a lot to do, but the area was very busy when we were there. I like the relaxing setting of the rolling farmland leading to the wooded hills surrounding Brookville Lake. You can rent cabins and also go horseback riding, canoeing, fishing, etc. at the state park there.

Thanks for the suggestions. My daughter-in-law%26#39;s family has a place near Sandusky, so we have been there and we probably went want to head someplace warmer in early June. Maybe the Cincinnati area would be nice. Another place to look into. Thanks again.

You%26#39;re welcome!

I lived in Cincinnati for many years and it should be nice and warm (if not hot!) by early June. I hope you have a great time wherever you go!

Lily

We had an extended family vacation (over 20 of us!) this summer at Beachwalk Resort in Michigan City, Indiana, and we loved it! There are houses of various sizes for rent in the resort, and renters have use of the complex. There is an outdoor pool; a small, private lake with a beach area for swimming and fishing off a dock; sand volleyball; a tennis court; basketball court; a putting green; and a playground all within the resort. A not-too-long walk leads you to the boardwalk to Sheridan Beach on Lake Michigan. Of course, Michigan City provides you with any restaurants or shopping you might desire, including a large outlet shopping center. There is also Washington Park, which hosts concerts during the summer. Plenty of side trips are available, too, such as the lighthouse museum, Indiana Dunes National Park, fishing charters on Lake Michigan, etc. As you can see, I really enjoyed our week there! Search for Beachwalk Resort and you%26#39;ll find plenty of results for house rentals. The issue of early June could factor in as far as the Lake beach goes, but there are plenty of other activities to enjoy.

I just posted some pictures of Brookville Lake taken at a restaurant at the marina. I didn%26#39;t get the golf course in, but it%26#39;s just to the left of my pictures. The restaurant is at the top of a hill. My view was to the south. From the parking lot you can almost see the same distance to the north. It%26#39;s a beautiful spot on a 16 1/2 mile long lake.