Travel Tips

Window Seat or Aisle Seat: Single Parent Family Vacations

Peter Greenberg Worldwide
Locations in this article:  Los Angeles, CA New York City, NY Orlando, FL

EVERYONE’S IN THE WATER

Wilderness at the Smokies in Sevierville, Tennesse is a single parent’s paradise. The resort has two outdoor waterparks, an indoor waterpark and an indoor dry park. Your kids will have plenty to keep them busy while you take a breather. Otherwise, you can jump in the water with your kids and share some quality bonding time. The waterpark features

A 150-foot-long body and tube slides, a multi-level play structure with a 500 gallon dumping bucket and a huge activity pool. The resort is soon to open the Cyclone Racer, a four lane, high-speed waterslide that turns guests into hydro-powered drag racers. The new Wilderness Adventure Forest features rock climbing, laser tag, rope bridges and much more. If getting wet is not your thing, leave them to splash, play and ride the water slides while you shop at the Black Bear Boutique or enjoy a soak at the Magnolia Grove Hot Spa, an indoor/outdoor, 1,000 sq. foot hot tub.

SUN-BEACHED

Just 50 miles south of Los Angeles is The Inn at Laguna Beach. The property is conveniently located steps away from the kid-centric town of Laguna Beach and offers unparalleled access to the main beach and activities on and near the ocean like tide pooling, paddle boarding and sand castle building. The property has a great family friendly pool and offers guests direct access from several of the guest rooms. Easy for single parents who don’t want to carry bags back and forth from the pool. A fun new initiative is that the property recently announced a partnership with Las Brisas. You can order your dinner from this iconic restaurant and enjoy your meal on the property of the Inn from your room or the rooftop bar. Tired of staying in? You and your kids can stroll the streets of Laguna which are full of art galleries, shops and restaurants.  Rates start at $249 per night October through April.

Make New Friends

For something really fun and different check out the The Single Parents Travel Club. The club is UK based but has members from all over the world, including the US. Members organize trips of all lengths, budgets them and then post them on the site to see if other members want to go. It’s a way for single parents who want to travel to connect with other like minded parents. A member shared with me that last summer she and her kids traveled to New York city with two families, then met up with two other families at a villa they shared in Orlando.  She and her family have also traveled to Turkey, Egypt, a self-catering villa in Spain. They’ve enjoyed camping holidays, rented cottages, short breaks in youth hostels and activity centers in the UK.  The best part is the opportunity for parents to have some adult company. For the children, they not only get to meet other kids from around the world, they enjoy being part of a group where being with only one parent is the norm.

For more single parent travel ideas, check out:

By Kerri Zane for PeterGreenberg.com. Kerri Zane is a family travel expert and author of It Takes All 5: A Single Mom’s Guide to Finding the REAL One, on sale now. For more advice on health, parenting or Kerri’s exclusive MomEscapes visit her at KerriZane.com.

 

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