"On every trip, try something new; come back knowing you did something you weren't willing to try before," tweeted Wendy Perrin, TripAdvisor's Travel Advocate and a mom of two.
It's a travel motto she shared in our recent family travel Twitter chat (#TL_Chat), and it's one that we'd wholeheartedly retweet. After all, today's best family holidays are thrill rides of adventure, immersive cultural exchanges, and transcendent bonding opportunities with furry new friends. They're opportunities to open -- and blow -- the minds of your offspring, while creating memories they'll want to recount to future generations.
If you can imagine swinging through a canopy of trees in Costa Rica, your youngest child squealing with pleasure right behind you; or seeing your bookish son mesmerized as he wanders the ancient Greek ruins he'd seen only in the pages of his history textbooks; or shearing sheep with a fourth-generation New Zealander farmer, then you've officially outgrown your parents' version of a family-friendly vacation. And these trips are for you.
--Heidi Mitchell
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It's a travel motto she shared in our recent family travel Twitter chat (#TL_Chat), and it's one that we'd wholeheartedly retweet. After all, today's best family holidays are thrill rides of adventure, immersive cultural exchanges, and transcendent bonding opportunities with furry new friends. They're opportunities to open -- and blow -- the minds of your offspring, while creating memories they'll want to recount to future generations.
If you can imagine swinging through a canopy of trees in Costa Rica, your youngest child squealing with pleasure right behind you; or seeing your bookish son mesmerized as he wanders the ancient Greek ruins he'd seen only in the pages of his history textbooks; or shearing sheep with a fourth-generation New Zealander farmer, then you've officially outgrown your parents' version of a family-friendly vacation. And these trips are for you.
--Heidi Mitchell
See All of the Best Family Getaways
More from Travel + Leisure
America's Best Cities for Barbecue
America's Best Towns for July 4th
America's Favorite Beach Towns
Beautiful Beaches to Visit in 2014
The Best Way to Pack a Suitcase