Gone with the Family

Seuss Landing at Universal Studios

Although the primary reason for our visit to Islands of Adventure at  Universal Studios Orlando was The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, we did spend some time in Seuss Landing which is based on the popular children's books by Dr. Seuss.   Seuss Landing is bright, shiny and colourful - in another words, a complete contrast to Harry's dark and gloomy world.  It's a cartoon world come to life and loads of fun for younger kids and Dr. Seuss fans who will feel like they are walking through the pages of his imaginative books.  Fans will appreciate the fact that there are no straight lines in Seuss Landing because Dr. Seuss only drew curved, slanted or "wonky" lines in the illustrations for his books.

Little Luxe City Guides

People that are traveling with kids have different needs than adults  traveling on their own and standard guidebooks often don't provide the exact details that they require.  For this reason, I get very excited when I find guidebooks that have been written expressly for families.  Luxe City Guides is well-known for its hip pocket-sized city guides that are based on the recommendations of locals and collated by a resident editor.  The brand is now extending its line to include a series of Little Luxe City Guides (created in partnership with Little Steps Asia) which will provide readers with everything they need to know in order to "go glam with the fam...".

That Statue is Alive!!

 

Emma's encounter with a "living statue" in Avignon, France.

 

 

Lake Buena Vista Resort Village & Spa

 

We recently visited Orlando, Florida for the 6th time as a family.  On all of our previous visits we have stayed at Disney World Resorts, however, this time we decided that it was time to venture off Disney property.  As much as I loved staying at Disney's Polynesian Resort and The Grand Floridian there were two reasons that we thought that off-site would work better for us this time. 

Striking a Pose in the Cayman Islands

 

This is Emma at age 2.5 in Georgetown, Grand Cayman which was a port of call on our Disney Cruise.

Planning for 2012

Now that I have finished reminiscing about our 2011 Travels, it's time to start the planning for 2012.  We have a couple of trips in the works that we are really excited about and hopefully will also be able to sprinkle in a few short jaunts throughout the year. 

The Gardens of Peterhof Palace

One of the most spectacular, and certainly the most kid-friendly, sites that we visited in St. Petersburg, Russia was the gardens of Peterhof Palace (nicknamed the "Russian Versailles") located just outside of the city of St. Petersburg on the shores of the Gulf of Finland.  The palace and it's grounds have been named UNESCO World Heritage Sites and are among the most popular tourist attractions in St. Petersburg.

Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey - An 8 Year-Old's View

Emma in front of Hogwarts at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

  

Our family recently visited The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.  My husband and Katie had visited 16 months earlier, however, it was a first-time experience for Emma and I.  Katie was excited to learn about her return trip and immediately started bugging me about going on the park's signature ride, The Forbidden Journey, with her.  I don't do roller-coasters so I wasn't sure whether or not I would but the one thing that I was certain of was that Emma would not be going on that ride.

2011: A Memorable Year

2011 was an eventful year of travel for our family - I had lost track of just how many places we had actually been until I sat down to write this year-end retrospective.  We tallied quite a few miles, saw some incredible sights, learned a bit along the way and most of all had a lot of fun.  Of course, we had our ups and downs while traveling, however, I find that, as time passes, I forget the bad experiences and am left with happy family travel memories and a yearning to hit the road again to explore somewhere new.  So here's a rundown of where we were in 2011.