Day Trips for Delaware Families

FUN! To me it's a critical part of life and maintaining sanity. Random fun around the house is always good, but sometimes we need to take it up a notch and plan a day trip or weekend away to experience new adventures. Of course, my definition of FUN can vary dramatically from my husband's, but that's another topic completely ;)

We recently enjoyed a WEEKEND in the POCONOS with our girls, and on the return trip home I was inspired to make a list of FUN places to visit with our children over the coming years. Now, I'm pretty excited about trying to fit in a few of these little trips a year if we can! Maybe it will inspire you too.

With baby #3 preparing to join us in May, I'm not sure how many we'll be able to get in this year but maybe we'll be brave and try a few outings with a baby, 3 year old and 6 year old! (I know many a mother who has handled more.)

Children's Fun Places to visit:

All of the places on this list can be visited with just a day or weekend trip from southern Delaware. Many I have been to at some point in my life, but we have yet to take our girls to any of these destinations.

Of course these "Day Trips" require three things that can be hard to come by: Time, Money and Patience. But I figure if we make a list and make a plan, maybe we'll get to experience them at some point in the coming years while our children are still young. I've even provided direct web links to aid in trip planning!

• Dutch Wonderland - Lancaster, PA (about 2.5 hours)
• My friends who have been there say that this is a must visit for young children.
• www.dutchwonderland.com
• Hershey Park & Hershey's Chocolate World - Hershey, PA (3 hours)
• I still remember the aroma when we visited their chocolate factory as young children, and the nearby theme park is great for all ages.
• www.hersheypark.com
• www.hersheys.com/chocolateworld
• Great Wolf Lodge - Williamsburg, VA or Poconos, PA (3+ hours)
• Just down the road from our Poconos hotel was one of the dozen national locations for this popular Family Indoor Waterpark resort.
• www.greatwolf.com
• Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom - Allentown, PA (2.5 hours)
• We passed this amusement park on the way home too, reminding me of when I went there as a Girl Scout...many years ago.
• www.dorneypark.com
• Delaware Children's Museum - Wilmington, DE (1.5 hours)
• This museum is just down the road from Adria's children's hospital, but we still haven't made it there for a visit. Need to do that soon!
• www.delawarechildrensmuseum.org
• Valley Forge National Historical Park - King of Prussia, PA (2 hours)
• Both Adrian and I have childhood memories of visiting this and other historical sites, and we'd like to share that with our little ones too.
• www.valleyforge.org
• Adventure Aquarium - Camden, NJ (2 hours)
• We love aquariums and some friends have raved about this one, but I've never been there.
• www.adventureaquarium.com
• Francis Scott Key Family Resort - Ocean City, MD (50 minutes)
• I just found this fun-looking place that's close to home and looks like it would make for an active weekend by the boardwalk and beach.
• www.fskfamily.com 
• The Franklin Institute - Philadelphia, PA (2 hours)
• One of my all-time favorite museums with a strong emphasis on science. I went there on school field trips and fell in love; I hope my children do as well. 
• www.fi.edu
• Assateague Island-State Park - Berlin, MD (1 hour)
• Wild horses on the beach and ocean front camping...need I say more? Oh yes, insect repellent is a must.
• dnr2.maryland.gov/publiclands/Pages/eastern/assateague.aspx
• Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History and Air & Space Museum - Washington DC (2 hours)
• Two different destinations along the Mall in our nation's capital that offer so much to see and learn.
• www.mnh.si.edu
• www.airandspace.si.edu
• National Aquarium - Baltimore, MD (1.5 hours)
• In our early years together, Adrian and I went on a special date here, now it's time to share this underwater adventure with our children.
• www.aqua.org
• Sesame Place - Langhorne, PA (2+ hours)
• This amusement park is for the Big Bird and Cookie Monster lover in all of us.
• www.sesameplace.com
• Kings Dominion - Doswell, VA (3 hours)
• We went to this family amusement park with Adrian's siblings a few years ago, but never made it back during our time living in Richmond.
• www.kingsdominion.com
• The Zoo - Philadelphia, PA; Baltimore, MD; and Washington, DC (2 hours)
• There are so many interesting, exotic animals waiting to be seen in the area. During our time in Indianapolis, we spent countless hours at the zoo with the girls. 
• www.philadelphiazoo.org
• www.marylandzoo.org
• www.nationalzoo.si.edu

Sometimes I complain about how little there is to do in rural southern Delaware, but the truth is, there are countless adventures waiting for us around the corner!

Of course there are many local adventures we have already experienced with our girls, that I would recommend. These include:

• Please Touch Museum - Philadelphia, PA
• Cabin camping at Trap Pond State Park - Laurel, DE
• Busch Gardens Amusement Park - Williamsburg, VA (not so great for the very young though)
• Winterthur Museum and Gardens - Wilmington, DE
• Cape Henlopen State Park beaches and camping - Lewes, DE
• Boardwalk and Funland - Rehoboth Beach, DE 
• Delmarva Shorebirds Baseball game - Salisbury, MD
• Cape May-Lewes Ferry and Cape May Zoo - Lewes, DE and Cape May, NJ

Little scientists at the Please Touch Museum last spring.

Beach bum at Cape Henlopen State Park

Bikers at Funland 

Are you ready to go have some FUN ADVENTURES with your little ones? I'd love to hear about your favorite places to take your children and recommendations to add to this list...though it's quite long already!

All that said, it's about 10 degrees outside and I've got a runny nose, sore throat and a big belly that makes me more tired than normal, so the most FUN thing I want to do right now...is snuggle under my covers in bed (and pray for a more restful sleep than last night).

But it is fun to dream about activities for sunny days ahead...