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1. Go camping. Find a campground near scenic hiking trails, cool and refreshing lakes, or even extended ATV trails. This is a fantastic trip idea for the entire family, especially if each of you has different ideas about what you want to do on your vacation. For example, you can do some bird watching while your son attempts to cast for dinner. And your spouse might enjoy reading a book in a hammock strung between two trees while your daughter chases fish through the lake using her snorkel and fins.

2. Travel back in time. Turn the vacation into a history learning experience by exploring the Old West, walking the streets of America's founding cities or designing a road trip along the Mississippi River and popping into the small river towns teeming with river history. Educational vacations don't have to be boring - many communities in historical settings offer live recreations of the event or events, and if your children happen to be studying that era in school, it's an even better experience.

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3. Take an off-road trip in the wide-open spaces with the Polaris RANGER RZR 4, a sporty, multi-passenger side-by-side vehicle that can handle dunes, desert sands and wide-open spaces with ease. The bonus is this vehicle seats four, which means your family saves money on renting or purchasing multiple off-road vehicles. ATV and side-by-side trails allow your family to travel great distances off the main roads, giving you the opportunity to see new geography and potentially different wildlife which you wouldn't be able to see from your car on the highway.

4. Visit one or several of the national parks stretching from coast to coast. You can take in the Atlantic Ocean from the cliffs of Maine in Acadia National Park, rare and endangered species in the waters of Everglades National Park, pretend you're part of the explorers following the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail that stretches through 11 states over mountains, through rivers, across prairies and all the way to the Pacific coast, or admire the architecture of more than 600 cliff dwellings built by the Ancestral Puebloans in Mesa Verde National Park. That's just to name a few of the hundreds of parks you can explore.

5. Organize an extended scenic drive. Plan a trip around one of the great lakes, or through a mountain range or even across the expanse of a desert. Research some of the small towns along the route for new and interesting things to see. Try out new restaurants and ask the locals what some of the more popular dishes are. If you are on your trip during the harvest time, stop by a roadside stand and make a picnic or a tailgate party out of the fresh produce that's available.

When planning your next family vacation, make sure you pack plenty of food and beverages, as well as your camera. Encourage the kids to take along journals so they can document the sights they see and the new places they are experiencing. But most of all, enjoy the time spent together on vacation.

by ARAcontent