Over the summer, my wife and I celebrated our 10th anniversary. In the past decade we’ve taken come pretty cool adventures. Some of the trips we took were with our kids, some were not, this is about the trips we took withOUT our kids.
Here’s a list of the top 6 places to visit withOUT your kids…
6. Memphis
Civil Rights Museum, Graceland, Beale Street. The Civil Rights Museum was absolutely fascinating. My kids are at the ages now to be way too young for it, and as they get older I could potentially see them feeling like they were trapped in a social studies textbook for three hours. It would not be their idea of a vacation. Graceland, I visited as an adult, and was unimpressed, I can’t imagine how bored/confused a kid would be while there. Beale Street is no place for kids.
5. Hawaii
The amount of time it takes to travel from Indianapolis to Hawaii would test any level- headed adult’s patience, let alone a toddler. Once you get there, because of the time change, no matter how much YOU want to sleep in, your kids will be up at exactly 2am (3am if your lucky) ready for the day. If traveling to Oahu, Pearl Harbor is a can’t miss, but not a place small kids would enjoy, especially the waiting in line for two hours just to get in part. Another reason to travel to Hawaii withOUT your kids, it is HOT there. I mean melt-the-skin-off-your-face hot. No major outing could last more than 30 minutes or kids would be fried from the sun. It would be hard to justify that Jeep Wrangler from the rental car place if you had your kids with you too. Finally, and probably most importantly… cost. Hawaii is an expensive place to get to, visit, and eat and drink. $6 milk in 2005 expensive.
4. New Orleans
New Orleans is a pretty dirty place. I haven’t been there in quite a while, but I remember feeling like the whole town was covered in a layer of dirt and grime. Bourbon Street, much like Beale Street is so full of drunken adults, it’s really not a place for kids. The live music everywhere is fantastic, but the unpredictability of the city makes it a place I’d rather go without my kiddos.
3. Turks and Caicos
Don’t worry if you’d never heard of it until now, but now that you have, dig out your passport, line up the babysitters, drain the savings account and book a trip. At the very least, do a  Google image search for Turks beaches. Even though we saw several families on our trip to this Caribbean island, I wouldn’t recommend it. First, the beauty of Turks is not doing much of anything, except sitting on the beach staring out into the beautiful water. The people we saw with kids were stuck by the pool, I can hang out at a pool in Indiana, when I’m at the beach I want to be AT THE BEACH. Second, it’s expensive, like makes Hawaii look like Wal-Mart prices expensive. Of course I expected the resort prices to be high, I was still a little surprised my burger cost $22, but the real eye openers were at the gas pump and the grocery store. Gas was not under $5 per gallon anywhere on the island. This wasn’t a big deal for us because we didn’t rent a car, but we did have to eat. Our first day there I went to the grocery store to buy a few things for our room…my 6 pack of “imported” Coors Light was $18! That’s one way to force someone to drink in moderation. I also bought a bag of Honeycrisp apples. I know Honeycrisp are expensive in the US, but I paid $5.75 PER APPLE.
2. Vegas
Why would you take your kids somewhere that is known for gambling, prostitutes and bachelor parties? Sure the food is fantastic, but really what are you going to do with your kids in Vegas?
1. Key West
The best way to get to Key West is by car. We flew to Miami, then rented a car and road tripped it to Key West. The road trip was great for us, but I’m not sure our kids would be up for spending 2 1/2 hours crossing 42 bridges to get there. Once in Key West, a lot of beaches that were too rocky to hang out on. The final reason not to bring your kids to Key West…Duval Street. Duval Street is similar to Beale Street and Bourbon Street, maybe even a little crazier. And did you know Key West is only a couple of feet above sea level? A little bit of rain and the whole place is underwater.
So there you have it. Six great places to go on vacation, just not with your kids.
-Pete
