Our Family Travel Bucket List

Do you have a family travel bucket list of places you want to go as a family? While we haven't formally written anything down (well, until now!) we've talked about some places we want to travel to and experience together as a family. Since today's Mother's Day, it seemed a good time to put this together and invite other families to share their family travel bucket lists too, or relate their experiences with places on our list.

We haven't ranked them, so in no particular order ours are:

1. Dinosaur Fossil Park

Most likely, this would be Dinosaur National Monument in Colorado, although we're open to other suggestions.

Why: For the munchkin, no day goes by without various dinosaur battles and reading dinosaur books…enough said!

2. Maldives

The Maldives may surprise some, because it's usually thought of as purely a honeymoon or couples destination. But we love the water and marine life, and the best snorkelling and diving spots in the Maldives are among the best in the world. And even though the munchkin isn't snorkelling yet, and diving will have to wait of course until he's quite a bit older, we still want to experience as a family the incredible beauty and sea creatures. If anything, it makes it an excuse to go at least a couple times!

3. Australia and New Zealand

This choice is all about the incredible natural beauty, landscapes, and also snorkelling and diving. Even though I grew up in Hawaii, closer to Australia and New Zealand than most Americans, I've never been to either place. We just need to ensure we can spend a good amount of time on this vacation, given the length of the trip. That's probably why my cousin moved his family to New Zealand for 6 months–I know whom I'll be asking for family travel advice!

4. Big Island of Hawaii

If there's anything that competes ever so slightly with dinosaurs in the eyes of the munchkin, it's outer space, planets, and astronomy. A good reason, then, for us to head to the place with the best land-based astronomy on earth: Mauna Kea, on the Big Island of Hawaii. We'l need to wait until our son is a bit older in order to venture all the way to the summit (not advised for young children or pregnant women, due to the elevation). Also see why the Big Island is my favorite island in Hawaii in Honeymooon in Hawaii: Which Island and Which Hotels?

5. Safari in South Africa

I have great memories of seeing giraffes, lions, elephants and other wild game up close while on safari in Tanzania. As I was going through old magazines yesterday the munchkin was transfixed by a picture of twilight in South Africa and the silhouettes of giraffes. “Where is this?” he asked. “Can we go there?” Consider it on the bucket list!

6. Alaska

This choice was added by my husband, and while I might not have put it on myself, I am thrilled looking at some of the magnificent photos of pristine Alaskan landscapes, polar bears, penguins, and whales. We had a great experience in the Galapagos with Lindblad Expeditions, so we would likely choose them for an Alaskan adventure.

7. Build (or Stay) in a Tree House

While NYC has a ton to offer kids, one thing it doesn't have is someplace you can build your own treehouse. I have no idea if there's a vacation that lets you do this, but that would rank high on the list of my son's summer things to do. I know there are certainly tree houses you can stay in, so we'll need to figure out if we want to settle for that or try to find a place to build your own.

8. Myanmar

Gazing out over the many temples in Bagan, Myanmar at sunset can be magical and otherworldly. The reality, in the heat, is likely a lot harsher, but we'll still put this on our family travel bucket list and aim to do it when our son is a bit older.