fun family vacations – Family Travel Blog

Every Tuesday (this week we’re a day late – sorry!) until we run out of states, I plan to post about family-friendly travel ideas, attractions and events in each one of the US states, taking input mostly from Twitter and Facebook.

We’re going in alphabetical order but started with the end, so our first state for the series was Wyoming, then we investigated Wisconsin , West Virginia , Washington and now we’re moving on to….Virginia!

These guys are HOPPIN’ online — you can find their state tourism organization on Twitter at @VisitVirginia plus @VATourismPR, and here is the Virginia travel and tourism Facebook page.

Their state parks folks are on Twitter at @VAStateParks. There is also a Virginia tourism YouTube channel, the Virginia Flickr pool and a whole site for Virginia Green Travel.

When I asked for ideas, here’s what came in….

Twitter Travel Tips for Virginia

From Dwight Silverman via @dsilverman on Twitter — [Virginia Beach’s] Capt. George’s Seafood Buffet is good for kids. Huge amounts of good food; my sister calls it “Capt. Gorge”. She lives in VA Beach.

From Nancy Schretter via @KidTravel on Twitter — Virginia’s my home state. Two of my favorite VA parks for families are Lake Anna and Smith Mountain Lake. They’re fabulous!

From Jenna Schnuer via @JennaSchnuer on Twitter — Here’s one of my favorites – and definitely a great family travel spot. Link is to my WorldHum piece about [the Clinch Mountain’s Carter Family Fold dance hall, with old-time country and bluegrass music] The Most Joyous Place in the World.

From @jayne52 on Twitter — My favorite place: Arlington National Cemetery, so moving, & historical Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Kennedy gravesite esp. at holidays.

From Char Polanosky via @charpolanosky on Twitter — Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, Great Wolf Lodge, Water Country USA make for a great family vacation in VA.

New York City discovery: Bryant Park Reading Room

I love stumbling upon unexpected discoveries.

While in New York to cover a Condé Nast Traveler event, I spent a little time in Bryant Park, near Times Square and just behind the New York Public Library. After picking up sandwich from the ‘wichcraft food concessionaire, I walked over to find a spot to sit and eat, and found this outdoor library under the trees.

Sponsored by HSBC Bank and supported by the New York library system, there are both adult and children’s reading areas, with magazine racks and books to page through while you enjoy pleasant park surroundings.

It is near the 42nd Street/Avenue of the Americas corner and is open 11 am – 7 pm daily, weather permitting. You don’t need a card; the only requirement is to stay within the designated reading area to use the materials.

Apparently this “open air library” (or some form of one) has historic origins. From the Bryant Park Web site:

“The original Reading Room began in August of 1935 as a public response to the Depression Era job losses in New York. Many people did not have anywhere to go during the day, and no prospects for jobs. The New York Public Library opened the ‘Open Air Library’ to give these out-of-work businessmen and intellectuals a place to go where they did not need money, a valid address, a library card, or any identification to enjoy the reading materials.”

What a nice discovery in an already impressive park, and what a break it would provide harried families traveling with kids who would like to get away from the Times Square cacophony.