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Travel Ideas!

Explore our unique Travel Ideas to create your own crazy family adventures! We search out the odd, the fun, the unusual, and the very best vacation ideas so you can theme your next vacation.

Travel ideas are posted a few times a year. Check back or enjoy browsing our extensive archives for other great ideas. 

In-A-Day activities

Paso Robles Wine Adventure

10/21/2014

2 Comments

 
Years ago, all anyone ever talked about when looking into wine weekends was Napa, Napa, Napa. Not so much anymore. There are so many new possibilites of wineries to explore. Temecula is one, Sonoma is another, but don't forget about Paso Robles. We didn't forget and ended up enjoying a lovely, long weekend among the vineyards and restaurants in that area.

Having two couples, we decided a bed and breakfast might be a good option. That way we had a common area to hang in, breakfast included, and the personal touch of feeling like we were part of the area as opposed to hotel guests. We chose the Orchard Farm Bed and Breakfast.  This, in my opinion, was the caveat of our weekend. We booked the Fireplace suite and the Country room suite. It turns out, by booking both rooms, we had our own little "house" in Paso Robles with the benefit of an amazing, fresh, and foodie-worthy breakfast every morning. It even included a cheese plate and bottle of wine when we checked in. If you are heading to Paso Robles, I highly recommend you check this place out!


Then, we took a service called My Wine Driver.  This company meets you at your hotel or Bed and Breakfast and takes you IN YOUR CAR, around to the wineries you want to see. The big benefit is the cost. Our driver was both friendly and knowledgeable about where she needed to go.

There are way too many wineries to recommend one over another, it is a matter of taste. But I would say that you can get a great experience if you check the wineries around you and call the place you will stay to ask their opinion based on the type of wines you like. Some are commercial and busy and others are small personal wineries. I always recommend scheduling a winery that serves lunch mid-way through your touring and always bringing lots of ice water on hand for between each winery. We tried to drink one bottle of water in between each stop and that worked well for us.

Some of my favorite places were:
Halter Ranch- Very friendly staff, lovely grass area to enjoy out front of the tasting area.

Villicana- They not only make wine, but they also make brandy which is on their tastings list. Also a nice, friendly staff.

2 Comments

Shark Dive

10/7/2014

5 Comments

 
Picture
 As a person that is deathly afraid of sharks--and I am not just talking that I am fearful of them when I dive in the ocean, I get that creepy feeling a shark is following me and hear the Jaw's theme song in my head when I swim in lakes--So if you are like me, fearful of sharks, this is one of those adventures that will either help you overcome fear or solidify it. 

  I decided to try and overcome my fear by diving in a shark tank at the Epcot center of Disneyworld. Very cool experience. But let's be realistic, I was diving with Disney. They let us know, before we dove, that the sharks were very well fed and that they were Disney sharks so, of course, they were friendly and would not attack. I chose to believe this bit of humor and did the dive. Honestly, this was a lot of fun.  I may have had a false sense of calm thinking that the Disney dive-masters would not put us in a situation where all of the cherub-faced kids pressing their noses to the tank from the glass would end up with a horror photo of me becoming lunch. The dive itself was amazing! I highly suggest this adventure for a family activity. First, they give you a quick briefing with your small group (they only take a few divers per day). Then, you enter the water and swim around with the sharks and other sea life while waving at the kids gathered around the glass. This might be one of the more expensive activities in Florida, but if you are a diver, this is worth every penny.


For those looking to be in the actual ocean, there are a few diving companies that cater specifically to shark-cage dives. One such tour is the Shark Diver in California and Mexico. Now, this is the real deal. Out in the ocean and no pre-feeding of  the sharks to make sure that the sharks are so full you do not look appetizing to them. I love the fact that they are shark conservationist and do not just do shark dives. They claim you can see up-close Great Whites or Tiger Sharks if that is what you are looking for.  For me, I will stick with Disney for a while.

Check out Epcot shark dive for a chance to dive with Disney. 
or
http://www.sharkdiver.com/
 for a chance at the real deal.

5 Comments

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