Hidden Treasures to Take Your Kids to See

We love to travel.

Everything about it excites us. Especially the planning portion.

I recently grabbed up the book Frommer's 500 Places to Take Your Kids Before They Grow Up. Searching around this thick book drove me to make up a list of 20+ places maybe you've never heard of and need to go see. It covers places around the world, but for the sake of focus, I stayed to places in the United States.

With our kids at 18 months and 3 years, I don't like thinking of them as having "grown up" but if you don't plan to travel, it will most likely never happen. And there's so much out there to see!

We have a trip to Australia penciled for this next year (Lord willing) so our travel budget is going towards that right now (and I'm hoping we can see some of the Australian sites this book offers).

But I digress. This little list will grow upon more discoveries and also whittle away at every travel opportunity we get.

Alaska: The Call of the Wild
Why the kids will thank you: Bonding with the huskies.  

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Arizona: Ballooning Over Red Rocks
Why they'll thank you: Up, up and away.  

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Colorado: Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
Why they'll thank you: Clinging to the cliff face. 

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Delaware: Water Gap
Why they'll thank you: Gliding through the gap. 

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Florida: Coral Castle
Why they'll thank you: Deciding whether or not this was a hoax. 

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Georgia: Stone Mountain National Park
Why they'll thank you: Getting in touch with Dixie Pride. 

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Hawaii: Mauna Kea Observatory
Why they'll thank you: That monster telescope, that killer view. 

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Kentucky: Mammoth Cave
Why they'll thank you: A whole world underground. 

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Michigan: Mackinac Island
Why they'll thank you: Overtaking a carriage, your bikes will be the fastest thing on the road. 

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Minnesota: Paul Bunyan Statue
Why they'll thank you: A tall man to match the tall tales. 

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Montana: Going to the Sun Road
Why they'll thank you: Straddling the Continental Divide. 

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Nevada: Valley of Fire
Why they'll thank you: Telling stories in stone. 

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North Carolina: Wigwam Motel
Why they'll thank you: Waking up in a teepee. 

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Puerto Rico: Swim with a Million Tiny Lights
Why they'll thank you: Nature's night light. 

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South Dakota: Corn Palace
Why they'll thank you: It's beyond corny. 

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Texas: Dinosaur Valley
Why they'll thank you: Dinosaurs walked here. 

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U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Croix: Salt River Bay
Why they'll thank you: In the footsteps of Columbus. 

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U.S. Virgin Islands, St. John: Snorkeling Trunk Bay
Why they'll thank you: Connecting the dots underwater. 

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Utah: Arches National Park
Why they'll thank you: Waiting for Balanced Rock to topple. 

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Virginia: Assateague Island
Why they'll thank you: Wild horses couldn't drag us away. 

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Washington: San Juan Island Kayaking
Why they'll thank you: Paddling alongside a whale or porpoise. 

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Washington DC: International Spy Museum
Why they'll thank you: Being Bond for an afternoon. 

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Wyoming: Devils Tower
Why the kids will thank you: An icon of the West with mystical power. 

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