Tag: Midwest

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50 State Series

Family travel in Wisconsin

biker-statue-in-sparta-wisconsin-courtesy-mykl-roventine-on-flickr-ccEvery Tuesday 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 starting with the end, so our first state for the series was Wyoming and now we’re moving on to….Wisconsin!

The Badger State tourism folks aren’t on Twitter or Facebook yet (so you Wisconsin-ites might want to give ’em a nudge!) but I did find the Madison, Wisconsin tourism office on Twitter at @Visit_Madison.

The waterpark-heavy Wisconsin Dells are on Twitter – @WisDells – and cheeseheads can rejoice because so is the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board with @WisCheese.

Racine and the Wisconsin Dells are on Facebook.

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

Twitter Travel Tips for Wisconsin

From Tom Pearson via @tom_pearson on Twitter  —  “Peninsula State Park, Door County….easy hikes, observation tower, golf, bike/scooter rentals – good times.  Scroll down this Door County site to see [October] Fall Festival – BIG weekend up there. You gotta check out Al Johnson’s Swedish rest. in Sister Bay – grass roof with goats on it to keep it in check. Major tourist attraction. Also [The Cherry Train on Washington Island] – ferry ride over, cool train tour + [at the end of tour, for the adults] a shot of angostura bitters at the Prohibition-cheating Nelsen’s Hall.”

From @WisCheese via Twitter  —  “[Dairy to visit] Babcock is a favorite – Delicious fresh cheese you can watch being made and famous ice cream! https://foodsci.wisc.edu/store.”

From Kathy and Travis Nelson via @EngagingIreland and @Kathy_SixEight on Twitter  —  “This page has lots of family fun ideas in & near the Mad City of Madison. Has anyone mentioned Circus World Museum in Baraboo (my hometown?) [Nope, but I found it. Thanks, Kathy.] “

From Ellen at @neithernor on Twitter  —  “Jelly Belly Factory in Pleasant Prairie; Paul Bunyan’s restaurant in Minocqua; can’t go wrong w/ Milwaukee Public Museum.”

From Rob Gardner via @LocalFamily on Twitter  —  “Go to Monroe WI [in Green County] about hour from Madison. The whole town’s great; watch them make cheese at Roth Käse.”

From Jeanine Barone via @JCreatureTravel on Twitter  —  “I love Door County; perfect for bicycling on quiet roads. This site has family fun section: https://www.doorcounty.com/plan/ideas/family-fun.aspx.”

From the Wisconsin Dells via @WisDells on Twitter  —  “Activities that are always a hit are WI Deer Park or Timbavati Wildlife Park at Storybook Gardens. Kids can pet & feed the animals. [Here’s a list of Dells animal-related attractions.]  On Jun 20, 2009: Waterslide-athon at Noah’s Ark Waterpark benefits Ronald McDonald House Charities®. Kids help other kids.”

Facebook Travel Tips for Wisconsin

I didn’t really get much feedback on Facebook for this state (other than the same Dells links that I listed above.)

From the BootsnAll Travel Network:  Family-Themed Day Trips Around Milwaukee

Thanks so much for the contributions – the next state in the series is West Virginia.

Send your “Wild and Wonderful” highlights to @SheilaS on Twitter or my Facebook page (tell me you’re a 50 state-er if you want to friend me.)

Yes, I know how to search for family travel ideas on a destination or attraction Web site, but a tweet or Facebook recommendation is a much more engaging and public way to spread the word.

My purpose for this series is not only to highlight worthy kid-friendly vacation destinations in all 50 states, but by using Twitter and Facebook to also encourage tourism organizations to learn more about connecting with their visitors using social media and online networks.

Please add your own Wisconsin suggestions in the comments below, if we’ve missed anything. Thanks!

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Blog USA Video Posts

Kansas Underground Salt Museum: the tornadoes can’t get you here

Hutchinson Kansas Underground Salt Museum, Salt Queen photo (courtesy KUSM)You won’t believe what’s going on 650 feet underneath those Kansas wheat fields (about the height of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis from top to bottom.)

It only takes 70 seconds going straight down an elevator shaft to see one of the 8 Wonders of Kansas.

A mining museum  —  the Kansas Underground Salt Museum in Hutchinson, Kansas.

A working salt mine  —  although museum visitors are not anywhere near any blasting or ongoing work.

And Batman costumes  —  because at a constant 68 degrees and 45% relative humidity in 325 feet of solid salt, the already-mined sections are a perfect home for the Underground Vaults and Storage company’s long-term records and artifact storage, including a bizarre variety of Hollywood’s goodies and film masters.

Continue reading “Kansas Underground Salt Museum: the tornadoes can’t get you here”
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50 State Series

Family travel in Ohio

Parade the Circle citizen's event in Cleveland Ohio (courtesy Kind of Bruin at Flickr CC)Every Tuesday (or Wednesday if Twitter crashes, which it did late yesterday as I was compiling this post) until we run out of states, I plan to post about family-friendly vacation ideas, attractions and events in each one of the US states, taking input mostly from Twitter and Facebook.

Yes, I know how to search for travel ideas on a destination or attraction Web site, but a tweet or a Facebook Wall recommendation is a much more engaging and public way to spread the word.

Please don’t email suggestions to me; that’s nice but it is one-to-one communication. Tweet me and/or Facebook me, so that all of our networks can see what’s cool about your state.

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, Virginia, Vermont, Utah, Texas, Tennessee, South Dakota, South Carolina, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Oklahoma and now we’re moving on to….Ohio!

Their state tourism organization is on Twitter at @DiscoverOhio, plus there’s @OhioStateParks and state tourism e-info coordinator Roger Barker is @Roger_OHTourism.  Additionally, they have an Ohio Flickr Group for photo-sharing, an Ohio YouTube channel and here’s the Ohio Tourism Facebook page.

You know what’s really great? The links for all of those social media sites are clearly displayed on their main Ohio tourism Web site.  That is rather rare, unfortunately – so many state Web sites give no indication that they’re on social media, or the links are buried somewhere.

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

Twitter Travel Tips for Ohio

***  From deef217 via @deef217 on Twitter  –  In Oct there is a very cool large farm outside Wooster which has an extreme corn maze and hay rides and fab pumpkins/decorations.  [Also] Neil Armstrong Air and Space Museum in Wapakoneta. See the moon rocks! Better fam friendly prices…go to a minor leage baseball game in Akron or Columbus. Cheap yet fab seats & kid giveaways often! How about a day of canoeing at Mohican State Park? Many fun memories as a kid!

***  From decillis via @decillis on Twitter  —  A trip to Ohio is not complete unless you’ve stopped in Columbus for Jeni’s Ice Creams (see @jenisicecreams.)

***  From Hancock County CVB (Convention and Visitor’s Bureau) via @VisitFindlay on Twitter  —  Mazza Museum at Univ. of #Findlay is world’s first teaching museum for children’s book illustrations. Awesome tours & activities! Northwest Ohio Railroad Preservation does weekly and theme train rides on antique trains. Kaleidoscope Xmas Tree Farm boasts sleigh rides, live reindeer and super-fun people late Nov thru Xmas (fun people are available all year round, of course.) @artpartnership (The Arts Partnership) hosts KidsFest in July – draws families from many states for massive quantities of kid fun, freebies and activities. Findlay is visited by 30+ hot air balloons annually for #Balloonfest (w/ car & bike show, outdoor movies & balloon competitions.) How many costumed wiener dogs can you handle? National Dachshund Races in Findlay Sept 26-27. New this year – dog parade. Major cute!

***  From Craig via @Craigorama on Twitter  —  Take a canal boat ride on the Miami Erie Canal in Piqua, Ohio – Piqua Historical Area.

***  From Travels With Children via @minnemom on Twitter  — Columbus Zoo is nice. The Works in Newark is nice museum but not crazy-busy. We liked it. Driving part of the Old National Road and seeing the S bridges and Y bridge was exciting for our family. The Boonshoft Museum in Dayton has one of the most affordable museum memberships I’ve seen, with excellent reciprocity benefits. Columbus COSI (Center of Science and Industry) is great for families. We spent an entire day there. Good for all ages of kids.

Continue reading “Family travel in Ohio”

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USA

Teensy treasures at the Toy and Miniature Museum

The Toy and Miniature Museum of Kansas City is a little misleading; it seems like the perfect place to take the kids, but in many ways it’s better for adults and older children.

It’s not that there aren’t zillions of neat toys, trains, dolls, dollhouses, Teddy bears, marbles and other treasures – there are indeed, but the vast majority are beautiful antiques that are protected behind display cases.

It’s a “look but don’t touch” sort of place, which  was fine with me but might be a disappointment for very young people (I’d take the little ones to one of the museum workshops or special events so they can get hands onto crafts and learning projects.)

Spread across two floors of the 1911 Tureman Mansion in Kansas City, Missouri is an incredibly comprehensive collection of every wondrous toy imaginable.

I’ve been a sucker for detailed dollhouses since my own parents took me as a child to see the amazing Queen Mary’s dollhouse in the UK.

The first floor of the Toy and Miniature Museum has all sorts of dollhouses with lovely delicate period furnishings, plus a big section of toy trains, planes, cars and Noah’s Arks.

The Miniatures Gallery has beautifully-lighted tiny art miniatures to inspect, most to 1/12 scale; I loved the tiny dancing skeletons and eensy furniture.

(I am working very hard not to use the word “Lilliputian” in this blog post. I know that “eensy” is not a word; this is a time when it is fun to be an editor-free blogger….)

The highlight of the second floor galleries is probably the Marble Games and Gallery.  I don’t even know how to play marbles, but the colors and swirling patterns in the glassware have always appealed to me. These were gorgeous and their lighted displays showed them to perfection.

The gift shop was OK, but the surprising number of generic “Made in China” toys was rather disappointing. I thought, for example, that I’d see a lot more variety of locally-made Moon Marbles.

I recommend a trip to this museum if you’re in Kansas City, even if – or especially if – you are an adult.

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Tips

Travel with kids to Iowa

Iowa State Marble Magnets (courtesy bubblecup.etsy.com on Flickr’s Creative Commons)

(This is a guest post by new blogger Jessica O’Riley at the Iowa Tourism Office – give some travel love to the Midwest!)

With a 6-year-old and a 3-year-old at home, family-friendly attractions are high on my list of vacation locations. Luckily, our home state of Iowa is filled with many options that don’t break the bank.

Some suggestions for you:

National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque: The new “Venom” exhibit features colorful and venomous creatures including spiders, jellyfish, bugs, scorpions, poison dart frogs, snakes, lizards and fish. Visitors can zoom in on the animals with a special camera and crawl through a rattlesnake exhibit that gets them a “prey’s-eye view” of a rattlesnake. Wildlife eco cruises run through October.

Phelps Youth Pavilion in Waterloo:  The Waterloo Center for the Arts launches a world of wonder, discovery and learning. Kids can “ride” a tractor through a Grant Wood painting, travel back in time with a time machine, perform on stage and learn about creativity in other cultures.

This just opened in early April and we visited during the second weekend. My kids spent about three hours exploring the museum – especially enjoying the dress up and stage area – and I actually had to tear them away from the exhibits when it was time to leave.

Dress-up play, Phelps Youth Pavilion, Waterloo, Iowa (courtesy Jessica O’Riley)

King’s Pointe Resort in Storm Lake: Cutting-edge water slide technology takes this water park to a whole new level. At the top of the Discovery Plunge slide, riders can select one of eight adventure themes – including storms, sea creatures, hot air balloons and sharks – and experience it on their descent, complete with sights and sounds.

Honey Creek Resort State Park in Centerville: Iowa’s first destination state park is set to open this September. When completed, the park will include a 100+ room lodge, outdoor patio, indoor water park, conference center, 18-hole golf course and outdoor recreational opportunities along the shores of Lake Rathbun.

Matchstick Marvels in Gladbrook: Local resident and artist Pat Acton has glued more than three million matchsticks together to create detailed works of art ranging from the U.S. Capitol to Pinocchio. His version of [Harry Potter’s] Hogwarts was purchased by a museum in Spain. Ripley’s Believe it or Not has also purchased several of his models. He is currently working on Minas Tirith from the Lord of the Rings; it should be completed in 2009.

Fun City in Burlington: This ultra family-friendly destination includes an indoor/outdoor water park, 24 lanes of bowling, electric indoor go-karts, arcade, laser tag, restaurants and a hotel all under one roof. We visited in February 2007 so just did the indoor water park. There are lots of slides for little kids, a dump bucket and even a climbing wall. My son especially enjoyed the indoor go-karts as he was tall enough to drive his own. They also have two-seater carts so those not tall enough to drive on their own can ride with Mom or Dad. The kids have been talking about going back since we left. We’re heading back down yet this summer to do the outdoor water park.

Having the hotel connected makes it easy to take a break from all the activities and rest. You’ll want to make time to get away to visit Burlington’s most famous landmark – Snake Alley, dubbed “The Crookedest Street in the World” according to Ripley’s Believe it or Not.

Water park play at Fun City, Burlington, Iowa (courtesy Jessica O’Riley)

Ice Cream Capital of the World, aka LeMars: More ice cream is made in LeMars by a single company (Wells Dairy, makers of Blue Bunny ice cream) than anywhere else in the world.

And it’s never too early for ice cream – early morning visitors to the 1920s-themed ice cream parlor can enjoy cinnamon rolls topped with icing made from melted ice cream.

Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad in Boone: This tourist line railroad travels 15-miles round trip through the beautiful Des Moines River Valley and crosses two great bridges. Special kid-friendly rides include a Day out with Thomas (September), pumpkin express (October) and Santa Express (December). Santa Express riders, encouraged to wear their pajamas, are served hot chocolate and cookies and receive a silver bell.

We took our son to the Day out with Thomas before our daughter was born and he really enjoyed it. In addition to the train ride, they had inflatables, a large Thomas the Train set for kids to play with and photo opportunities with Thomas.

Our Iowa-based guest poster, Jessica O’Riley.

Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center in Sioux City: Experience a day soldiering with explorers Lewis & Clark. This one-of-a-kind interactive museum includes twelve-foot-tall murals, twice-lifesize bronze monuments to the captains and their dogs, keelboat theater and interpretive displays.

(Thanks very much to Jessica and the Iowa Tourism Office for sharing family-friendly Iowa insights and photos.)

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