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[jay-ell]

So, we're taking a family vacation this summer.  Actually, we're taking a family road trip.  We're going to be visiting my family in Toledo, OH and we'll be driving from Raleigh, NC.  I'm looking for fun side trips to take with my 3 year old son and my baby daughter (who will be 6 months old in July).  I'm looking for recommendations for side trips in NC, VA, DC, MD, DE, NJ, WV, PA, OH, IN, KY, and TN. 

Special considerations: the three year old does have some sensory issues related to autism and therefore is pretty terrified of anything too loud or too crowded.  This includes (but is not limited to) kiddie rides, train whistles, and bounce houses (the whirring fans bother him).  He loves animals and anything water-related. 

Stuff that's already on the "potentials" list:

Newport Aquarium in Newport, KY
Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH
The National Zoo in Washington, DC (yes, we will stop and see you, Wombat, even if it means I have to be in the same room as frogs to do so.) 

And we're definitely going to Sesame Place in Langhorne, PA, so I would prefer suggestions for things that are not theme parks (since we're already going to one). 

I've already ruled out Hershey Park -- it seems to be geared towards older kids and adults, little P is really too young for it -- and I promised Pedro we wouldn't drag the kids along on any boring history stuff this time, so Colonial Williamsburg and most of the stuff *I* love in DC are out as well. 

Not everything on the list has to be kid-oriented but it should at least be kid-friendly -- no bars, clubs, or fine dining recommendations, please. 

Thanks in advance. 

[wombat]

Well, you've already scooped my recommendation.

But surely there are some history things in DC that aren't boring? Like, um, er...

OK, I just had a better idea - I passed your message on to my friend who both has kids and is a travel editor. I'll let you know if she has any suggestions.

[CortJstr]

There's the Natural Bridge near Roanoke if you're coming up that way. There's also Lurray and Skyline caverns in the western part of VA. I would recommend the Smithsonian Naturalist Center (aka the one nobody has ever heard of) because they let kids actually touch stuff like animal skeletons and stuffed birds and whatnot, but I just checked and kids have to be 10+.

The Baltimore Aquarium is fun. There's one of those kid-friendly learnatoria right by it but I think your kids are too young for that.

[Limmo]

The only state I could make recommendations in is New Jersey, and I find it hard to believe that the Garden State is a "side trip" en route from NC to Ohio, so I'll just wish you a good trip and leave it there.

[wombat]

And you know there are like a million good zoos in Ohio, right?  Everyone knows Cincinnati, but I remember that Toledo was small and nice, and Cleveland had some good stuff.

You don't want to go to the Baltimore aquarium if your son has noise and crowd issues, unfortunately. You might want to try to check out Newport before you go, too. The indoor-ness of an aquarium makes the crowd issues worse than the same density of people at a zoo.

[Carlos del Vaca]

Thirded or fourthed for the National Zoo.

I think one of DC's undiscovered treasures is the National Arboretum.  Metro-convenient it ain't, but if you're driving it's easy enough to get to.
http://www.usna.usda.gov/

[jay-ell]

The only state I could make recommendations in is New Jersey, and I find it hard to believe that the Garden State is a "side trip" en route from NC to Ohio, so I'll just wish you a good trip and leave it there.

Actually, Sesame Place is on the PA/NJ border, so we will be in the area.  We'll be heading up 95 through Philly, most likely.  So hit me with all the NJ sites you can think of.  We're still at the brainstorming stage. 

And you know there are like a million good zoos in Ohio, right?  Everyone knows Cincinnati, but I remember that Toledo was small and nice, and Cleveland had some good stuff.

The Toledo Zoo is a given.  It'm my childhood Zoo, even if they do now have an overpriced cafe in what used to be the Big Cats House.  (I find that beyond gross, BTW.)  It's an extremely nice zoo, and it has grown significantly in the last ten years, adding exhibits even as they improve their existing ones (e.g. the lions now have a natural habitat instead of being locked in cages).  So, yes, I know about the Ohio zoos, but want to avoid letting the trip become too zoo-oriented, if there is such a thing. 

Thirded or fourthed for the National Zoo.

I think one of DC's undiscovered treasures is the National Arboretum.  Metro-convenient it ain't, but if you're driving it's easy enough to get to.
http://www.usna.usda.gov/

We did the Arboretum a few trips ago, and it is lovely.  I don't know how much time we want to spend in DC, but I'll put it on the list. 

Hrmph! Just remember, if you accidentally make a 3000 mile wrong left turn onto Interstate 40 then Limmo and I can help you.

Otherwise, my answer stays the same as his.

You know, the interstate works both ways.  If you ever decide to come into civilized company, let me know and I'll make some recommendations for you guys.   

[wombat]

Well, the advice of my travel editor friend with children was mostly "When kids are that little, going any place special is just totally wasted on them. They should rent a house on a lake and sit there for two weeks."

But we both thought of Chincoteague as a possibility. You know, with the wild ponies? It's probably pretty peaceful if you don't go when the pony swim is happening. I have actually never been there but it has been recommended to me more than once, at least twice by people who took children with them. (I've never gone because the thrill of wild ponies didn't sound like it would counteract the lack of a wide selection of restaurants.)

She also begs you to reconsider Cedar Point if noise and crowds are a problem.

[jay-ell]

Cedar Point is on the list only in the event that my brother wants to take his kids and meet us there.  I don't relish the idea of paying $45 each for us to take the boy to Camp Snoopy. 

My best friend has a family reunion every year in Chincoteague.  I'll ask her about it, thanks for the suggestion. 

[wombat]

I also asked her about Cort's suggestion of the caves and she says she took her oldest son to Luray when he was 3 and he thought it was cool. I would have thought that three was too young to get what was interesting about a cave, but at Luray they have this rock pipe organ that she mentioned - I guess that made an impression on him at the time although of course he doesn't remember it now.

She also says that actually the same son loved Hershey Park when he was 2, and that it's not nearly as crazy as Cedar Point.

By the way, are you sure you want to rule out bars and clubs? I was reading lately about a club in DC that has a regular event where you bring your little kids along.

[AugustWest]

The Newport aquarium is supposed to be very good.  My kids have been, I haven't.

Mammoth Cave wouldn't be terribly far off your route, although your kids might be too young to appreciate it.  I highly recommend visiting sometime, as it is a natural wonder almost on the scale of the Grand Canyon (not nearly as spectacular, but 367 miles of interconnected cave passages is pretty darn impressive...)

Also, the Natural Bridge / Red River Gorge area is beautiful and has several beautiful stone arches.  Most require some hiking, but the biggest ("Natural Bridge") is pretty easily accessible.  Also, there's a chairlift.

Driving through the hoss country around Lexington can be fun -- it's very pretty.  Some hoss farms offer tours, but I'm not sure which. 

Just south of Lexington, near Harrodsburg, there's the wonderful restored community of Shakertown -- one of the largest Shaker settlements anywhere (and founded in part by a couple of my ancestors (or distant cousins, at least)).  Harrodsburg also has Old Fort Harrod, the site of the earliest settlement in Kentucky.  It's an old log fort with a bunch of log houses and some re-enactors.  Fort Boonesboro is also very similar and is right off of I-75, so that might be more convenient if you're interested in that sort of thing.

Just a few thoughts...

[jay-ell]

The Natural Bridge State Resort in KY sounds right up our alley.  We were thinking of taking the kids on a hiking trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains some other time, but seeing the NBSR would allow us to do it on this trip (instead of a short weekend jaunt) and would help break up the return trip a little.  It's on the list, thanks. 

The other natural bridge in VA that Cort was talking about -- what's that like?  I'm dubious about the caves, because they seem, well, boring to me.  But I might just be uninformed, seeing as how I've never spelunked.  Not even a little bit. 

P.S.  If anyone wants to see what we're considering laid out on a map, check out the Google Map I made. 

[CortJstr]

I went to the bridge once and there was like one other car there. I remember there being a little wax museum nearby but other than that it's pretty hazy.

Oh, and the Skyline Drive is really pretty and has lots of good hiking and picnic areas.

But you probably want to come up 95 and for some reason I keep suggesting stuff that's on 81. Uh, I think there's some hideously boring civil war stuff off of 95. If crippling lameness is your thing.

[jay-ell]

Well, usually I am really into crippling lameness but I promised Pedro we'd do some fun stuff this time. 

[theinevitable]

Uh, I think there's some hideously boring civil war stuff off of 95. If crippling lameness is your thing.

Hey, sounds to me like a great time to teach your kids about the War before carpetbagger history teachers get a hold of them.


have I ever told you guys about the time my high-school girlfriend asked me, "just to make sure," whether the Union or the Confederates won the Civil War?