Hoping for your child to embrace that whole “one with nature” thing?
Trade screen time for sit-by-the-stream time at these idyllic resorts and experiences ideal for young families.
Holy Smokies
Anakeesta in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, may very well be the coolest adventure park your kids have seen.
This mountaintop experience in the Smokies has endless hits for budding outdoorsmen: the Treetop Skywalk, where you’ll walk in the forest’s canopy on suspended bridges, two mountain coasters, an observation tower that’s also the home base for a botanical garden with walking trails, and much more.
Cap things off with a meal at Clifftop with cinematic views of Mount Le Conte, the highest point on the Tennessee side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Once you leave Anakeesta, the national park is nearby — try the stroller-accessible Gatlinburg Trail.
Also close: WildSide for kid-appropriate mountain biking and zip lining. Recover at Park Vista (from $109 a night), where every room has a balcony.
Sporting chances
Nature buffs will swoon for a stay at the Preserve Sporting Club & Resort in Richmond, Rhode Island (from $499 a night). Activities run the gamut from hiking and fly fishing to kayaking and pony rides. Throw in archery, scavenger hunts and a stellar on-site kid’s club and you’ve got the ultimate en plein air vacation.
Make dinner reservations for pint-size “Lord of the Rings” fans at one of the resort’s whimsical Hobbit House structures with tree trunks snaking through the design. (For grown-ups: dine at Double Barrel Steak where the lobster mac is a must.)
Last but not least, enroll your youngsters in the survival skills course to learn things like fishing, fire safety and shelter building.
Round the Bend
Remember that time you went stargazing with your child after a perfect day hiking, biking and horseback riding? Oh, it hasn’t happened yet?
Make it a reality at Sunriver Resort (from $250 a night), a Central Oregon retreat located 15 minutes outside of Bend. Mother Nature sure is glorious here, with the Cascade Range overlooking your every move, which on any given day may include taking a bike ride along 40-plus miles of paved trails or canoeing or kayaking on the Deschutes River.
Kids can learn how to ride horses or enjoy hands-on programs at the nature center, such as observing animals in the “Creature Cave” or chasing butterflies in the botanical garden before settling into a family dinner at the Lodge Kitchen. There’s also a self-guided “Wildlife Quest” scavenger hunt. But back to that daydream: Stargazing at the observatory awaits.
Whale of a time
Cape Cod, Massachusetts, may be the setting of endless contemporary romance reads, but it’s also chock-full of child-friendly delights.
Set up shop at Wequassett Resort & Golf Club (from $295 a night), on the aptly named Pleasant Bay. From here, you and your tiny tagalongs can embark on seal and harbor tours, whale watching, fishing excursions, kayaking jaunts and sunset sails before wind down time.
On May 2 and 30 and June 14 the property will host Orvis Saltwater Fly Fishing School, designed for anglers of all abilities. In June, naturalists from Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary will lead weekly, on-site bird-watching walks for young ornithologists, as you spy birds of all stripes (feathers?) and learn about Pleasant Bay’s role as a key migratory flyway.
On Tuesdays in July and August, backyard biologists can hop aboard the floating classroom to explore the bay in a solar-powered vessel.
Be sure to reserve one night for dining at Twenty-eight Atlantic, a waterfront haunt housed in an 18th-century sea captain’s home.
Spring into action
Crystal Springs Resort in Hamburg, New Jersey, comprises Grand Cascades Lodge (from $474 a night) and Minerals Hotel (from $306 a night), and has a plethora of complimentary offerings for junior explorers. Think hiking, fishing at the quarry, farm animal visits, koi feeding, forest bathing, archery and … you get the idea.
About 60 miles from Manhattan, the setting overlooking the Appalachian Mountains (some 5 miles away from their namesake trail) makes you feel like you’re eons away from city life. As will activities like meeting the beekeeper, learning how to raise chickens and going on the chef’s garden tours.
Nature calls
From stargazing to garden strolls to hiking, the Inn on Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina (from $350 a night), makes an excellent home base for making the most of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The famed estate of the Vanderbilt family is also home to Antler Hill Village, where youngsters can interact with lambs, calves and baby goats and catch demos like goat milking and hoof trimming.
Off property, wheel along stroller-friendly paths at the North Carolina Arboretum and Asheville Botanical Garden, while scenic drives along the Blue Ridge Parkway keep the clock — and views — moving.
In late spring, families with slightly older children will want to sign up for a guided evening tour with Asheville Wellness Tours to scout out the rare blue ghost fireflies and visit the Western North Carolina Nature Center, a wildlife park with black bears and otters. The Adventure Center of Asheville has kid-friendly zip line experience designed for ages 4 to 10.
Sweet home Alabama
Don’t sleep on Alabama’s coast. The Lodge at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores (from $171 a night) sits on 2.5 miles of sugar-white beaches in a state park built for fresh-air fanatics spread over 6,150 acres with nine different ecosystems and nearly 30 miles of trails.
Hop on a bike with the park’s free bike-share program or let your kids experience Gulf State Park’s free Junior Ranger Program. At the park, kids can also get their hands dirty and nogging, brimming with new knowledge at the Learning Campus and Nature Center, featuring standouts like a radical raptors course, oyster shell decoupage and sea-based bath salts making. Venture to Alligator Island via the raised boardwalk and look for Lefty, the park’s famed alligator who is missing a right paw.
Come dusk, retreat for fancy-shmancy fare and sorbet sunsets over the Gulf’s emerald waters at the Lodge’s Perch. Or, for more casual dining, try Woodside at Gulf State Park, which has live music and a yard with ping-pong, Jenga, firepits, cornhole, horseshoes and more.
Mountain mamas
Journey to Sullivan County (about 90 minutes outside of Manhattan) for mountain magic in spades.
The Arnold House in Livingston Manor (from $349 a night) welcomes children with its Little Camper package, with an in-room teepee, flashlight and s’mores cookies waiting at check-in. It’s a fitting setup for kids to experience the hotel’s private hiking trails, pool, wildflower meadows and greenhouse to tour. (The property is dog-friendly, too.) All will love the fare at down-home and inviting the Tavern at the Arnold House. Dig into the divine smoked trout dip on the outdoor deck.
Carve out half a day for a quick drive to Catskill Fly Fishing Center & Museum, a sprawling campus on Willowemoc Creek, and another few hours to visit a hands-on experience with the fluff balls at Buck Brook Alpacas in nearby Roscoe.
And while your offspring may be too young to nurse the delectable suds at Upward Brewing back in Livingston Manor, the 120-acre grounds make for an ideal spot for little ones to run around the pond, nosh at the picnic tables and a pond and join you on the mountain trails.
The Arnold House sister property Kenoza Hall (from $389 a night) on Kenoza Lake also offers the Little Camper add-on and is also near the above attractions.
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