Spending time with family is very important and weekend family getaways is a great way to have some family bonding time. Family weekend getaways allow you to spend precious time with the people you love, create memorable moments and enjoy in pleasant surroundings. So if you’re planning to take a break from the routine and treat your family for a weekend getaway, here are some great ideas for recharging the family batteries that won’t cost you a fortune. These family getaways have something for everyone.
Weekend Getaways For Families
Weekend Family Getaways | (c) Photo By Washingtonian
Family Trip To The Next Town
When was the last time you went on a family trip over to the next town? Probably not recently, but this might be your next best idea for a weekend family getaway. This is specially great if you’re on a tight budget for a trip too far. Look for a town that is over 60 minutes away from where you live that has cheap family friendly hotels and attractions you and your family can enjoy. You are bound to come across festivals, activities and workshops that helps at the local parks. Take a walk around the city center, visit natural attractions such as parks, lakes or hiking trails, and make the most of local museums and cultural centers. Also take the kids to theaters, arcades and playgrounds. If possible, choose a town that nobody in the family has visited. This will be new experience for both kids and adults.
Take A Road Trip
If you have kids who are a little older and can stand being inside a car for more than a couple of hours, road trips are a great way to spend time with family. Better yet, it’s probably one of the cheapest and best weekend family getaways you can enjoy. Road trips can be done over a couple of days with a stopover to sleep in a roadside motel or even a campground. You can even do a road trip that starts in the morning and coming back in the same day evening. Remember if you have little kids, take in account younger ones do better with lots of stops to see attractions. Older kids should be just fine with a video game or a good book to read. To make such family getaways even more fun, let the kids choose the destination by giving them a few choices before heading out on the road. Also, get them involved by helping you pack snacks and games to bring along.
Camping
We all know that camping is the traditional travel choice for the weekend, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make it an interesting family activity. Search for nearby camping grounds such as natural parks or amusement parks. Heading to a national park for a family camping weekend may be even better as they usually offer their share of entertainment within the park limits. Camping itself can be the entertainment for the family weekend as families can gather around a bonfire for ghost stories, search for pine cones, go hiking or swimming. Most campgrounds now have some sort of entertainment room or area where they feature everything from a playground to arcade games to a swimming pool.
Weekend Horseback Getaway
Horseback riding can be enjoyed by both adults and children, which makes it a perfect weekend getaway for families. So a trip to a ranch with horses is probably a great idea. Find yourself with your family in a cast open prairie land, rugged hills and cattle fences. Visitors can expect places like these to show you a simpler way of life – nature as far as the eye can see, skies full of stars and porch swings. You can enjoy nature hikes, bird watching, fishing and making smores over a campfire. Of course, horses are the main draw.
As you can see, great family getaways doesn’t have to cost a fortune or a plane ride across the ocean. It’s just a matter of doing something with your family to spend time with them. Do you have any suggestions for weekend family getaways?
My name is Salika Jay, and I'd like to welcome you to my travel blog! Ever since I was a kid, I loved traveling the world. I started this blog to share my journeys around the world and everything travel.
Great tips! I’m planning to take more advantage of weekend getaways this year, too! Often times a quick escape from your normal routine does wonders for the soul…and it doesn’t require a ton of time or money!
Jess @UsedYorkCity recently posted..Buffalo Exchange Offers New Yorkers Clean Closets + Cash
I can’t agree with you more about how a quick escape does wonders to our mind.
Those are all great ideas and can be so meaningful to families. We took lots of trips like that when I was growing up, especially road trips, and I still love to do them today.
Cathy Sweeney recently posted..Surfing in Munich
Road trips is one of the fun things to do as a family that doesn’t involve too much planning.
I love the idea of trip to ranch with horses.
Factory Wheels and Rims recently posted..Factory OE 19" Ford Mustang Brembo Wheel
Love these tips considering the weekends are the only times we can spend as a family being working parents and with the kids in school. We’re lucky enough to live in Southern California where there are many attractions and beautiful towns within a driving distance. We love road trips and it really does feel wonderful to getaway. Sorry not too much into camping though :) We also love exploring our home city for daytrips – museums, the beach, the park.
Mary {The World Is A Book} recently posted..A Year of Travel Memories and Adventures in 2012
Camping is not for every family I guess :) But you sure are lucky there are many places of interest to see within Southern California.
Great ideas! One thing that I like about traveling is that I don’t have all the household chores distracting me from focusing on my family. You’re right that you don’t need to travel far in order to accomplish this. When we lived in Texas, there was a nice series of books called “Daytrips from _______” (Austin, Houston, Dallas) as well as an Austin TV showed called “The Daytripper” that had wonderful ideas for quick getaways.
Michele @ Malaysian Meanders recently posted..Best of 2012: Highlights from the Year
Can’t agree with you more about household chores not distracting family time when traveling.
Your trip on traveling to the next town is really important. All too often we neglect what’s near us in favor of faraway places.
Aleah | SolitaryWanderer.com recently posted..Travels of 2012—Bittersweet Memories of my Solo Backpacking Trip in Europe
Many of us forget about traveling to the next town when thinking about a family getaway. In this case what matters is spending time together and not the distance.