From Disney to San Diego: Tips for choosing a family trip, from a mom who’s been there

“Where should my family and I go on vacation?”

(Blissful sigh.)

That’s one of my favorite questions.

I often see it asked on Facebook, and my heart leaps:

“Ooh, ooh!! I know, I know!!”, I want to shout. (I settle for a frequently-too-long response about all the fabulous places to consider.)

I love helping others plan their vacations almost as much as I love planning our own.

My husband and I haven’t been everywhere with our kids, but we have covered a lot of hot spots.

So, here are my brief(ish) reviews of places your family might like to try — plus a few recommendations if you decide to go.

The great thing about Disney is that it can be fun, honestly, for all ages. The drawback for Disney is that, holy cow, it’s expensive. For most people’s budgets, this is definitely a splurge.

My recommendations:

— Go during the off season. We went in November and January, when it was cooler and much less crowded. If you’re going to spend thousands of dollars, you don’t want to be hot and miserable the whole time.

— If you’re going to do Disney just once as a family, wait until everyone’s tall enough for all the rides. Most Disney rides don’t have height restrictions, but a few do. Some are 40 or 44 inches, but a couple of roller coasters require riders to be 48 inches. The last time we went, my daughter just barely reached 44 inches, which was great for her … but heart-wrenching for my 42.5-inch son. So. Many. Tears.

— Take your time. Multi-day passes to Disney World are much cheaper, per day, than single-day passes. We bought a seven-day pass, which left us plenty of time to explore all the parks without feeling like we needed to be there from open to close. When our kids were tired, we returned to our resort for naps or to hop in the pool, knowing we had plenty of days left. That saved us a lot of stress.

— Save some money, tummy room and calories for Les Halles Boulangerie & Patisserie in the French section of Epcot. Because, 1., Yum., and 2. If you’re going to drag your kids through Epcot while they’d rather be at Magic Kingdom, the promise of sweet treats will at least motivate them to keep going.

We’ve taken one cruise (seven nights on Royal Caribbean), and it was lovely.

Here’s what I’d say about cruises, though — Take a cruise if a cruise-ship vacation sounds appealing to you, not as a means to explore the world.

We had a great time on our trip, but what I was really looking forward to were our ports of call (Honduras, Belize and Mexico), and the reality is that your stops there are so short you don’t get to explore much.

So, if you want to see Belize, fly to Belize and stay there.

If you want to lie by a pool; bask in the sun; and be entertained, well-fed and pampered for days, a cruise is a great option. (Also, the children’s center was so well done, and my kids loved it so much, I had no mommy guilt about dropping them off for a few hours while my husband and I sneaked in a date.)

San Diego is a great option for a family that likes to fill their vacations with activities.

Day 1, zoo. Day 2, safari park. Day 3, Sea World. Day 4, La Jolla. Day 5, the beach and whale watching (seasonally). Day 6, children’s museum and Balboa Park. Day 7, Coronado, Old Town, the naval port … . It’s an excellent vacation, but not ideal for lollygaggers.

The hardest part of Hawaii is getting there. It’s an eight- to nine-hour flight, nonstop, each way. That’s a lot of time to be trapped in a giant tin can with your kids.

Once you’re there, though, wow: Hawaii lives up to its reputation.

You can choose to be in constant motion — scuba, snorkel, surf the waves. Explore volcanoes. Island hop.

Or you can just find a spot on the beach, kick off your sandals, lie back and think, “Ahhhhh, Hawaii.” And then happily do, well, not a darn thing.

As our three-week trip out to Yellowstone National Park approached, I got a little nervous. We’d planned a full week of camping in Yellowstone, and I thought maybe the kids would get bored.

Nope, not once.

(Quick note: They — and I — were sorely unimpressed by Old Faithful. Adjust your expectations.)

Yellowstone is other-worldly. Everywhere you go you see something that’s unlike any place you’ve ever seen before. And that place will be completely unlike the place you’ll see 20 minutes up the road.

Seeing bison thisclose never gets old, and there’s a ton to do in the park. Horseback rides and chuckwagon dinners. Hiking. Fishing. Canoeing.

No boredom allowed.

My recommendations:

— Whether or not you camp (and I recommend that you do), if you’re going to be in Yellowstone for more than 2-3 days, stay in a couple of different places in or around the park. The park is 3,471 square miles. You’ll use up a lot of time driving if you try to use one spot as your base for the whole trip.

— Drive the Beartooth Highway. While not strictly in Yellowstone, it was our favorite part of the trip, rising to above 12,000 feet above sea level. Snowballs in July? We all loved that.

— Give the Grand Tetons their due. Because of the geology of how they were formed, the Tetons essentially rise straight out of the plains, with no foothills. And they’re gorgeous. Drive, hike, take a boat across Jenny Lake. It’s all worth it.

— Download the GyPSy guide for Yellowstone/Grand Tetons before you go. It’s like having your own audio guide as you drive through the parks. We heard all about the history of Yellowstone, explanations for geographic features and recommendations for where we should stop. The narrator was so personable we named him Bob.

This is a great trip … with older kids. We probably took ours too young.

New Orleans is my favorite city anywhere (possibly eclipsed by Rome), and, certainly, we enjoyed our week there.

But as our kids were 4, 6 and 8, we skipped over a few places (like the World War II museum and the old graveyards) that I would have loved to see.

I’d save NOLA for when your kids are in the pre-teen to teenage years when they might have a better appreciation for history and culture.

Also, there’s this: The night life in New Orleans is unbeatable. But you won’t know that unless you can experience it, sans kids. So it’s a great city for a couple’s vacation … or for bringing along a nanny/grandparent who’s willing to watch the kids for an evening or two while you go explore the city after dark.

This is actually our favorite family vacation ever. Or at least Top 3. It’s so hard to pick.

Why was it so great? It’s really two vacations in one.

Gatlinburg, Tenn., sits on the edge of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The park, with all its natural beauty, hiking trails, scenic byway, etc., would be sufficient for its own vacation. (Pro tip: The Junior Ranger programming there is excellent. And free.)

But just next door to Gatlinburg is Pigeon Forge — home to Dollywood, go karts, mini golf and all the trinkets and treats a touristy tourist could love.

So, you spend a day hiking up to Clingman’s Dome in the Smoky Mountains and then the next zooming around on roller coasters. It’s a great balance.

Save it ’til the kids are older. (Yes, Rick Steves may disagree.)

I love Europe. I spent the summer of 2008 camping around the continent. I married a Brit, lived in England for two years and had a baby there. I love Europe.

But my kids … don’t care.

We took them to England because they and their father are British. And, yes, they loved seeing their grandmother and all the places their dad grew up.

But they weren’t blown away by the architecture or history. They didn’t love the British playgrounds more than the ones in San Diego or New Orleans. Or, for that matter, the playgrounds on the far side of Madison.

Europe is expensive. It involves a long flight, exchanging money, jet lag … . It’s a great trip. So don’t waste it on those who don’t know that it’s a big deal.

North America has plenty to see, and Europe’s not going anywhere

Take your kids when they’re teenagers.

If they don’t gasp, upon landing, “I can’t believe we’re in freakin’ Europe!”, they’re too young.