mom traveler spotlight Archives - Mom's Guide To Travel

Shannon Entin is the Northeast editor of Road Trips for Families. She blogs at 100routesacrossamerica.com. Shannon has two kids, a 13 year old son and 7 year old daughter. You can find her on Twitter @shannonentin and @100routes.

Shannon lives in Bloomsbury, NJ – northwest Jersey, very close to PA.

ABOUT NEW JERSEY

Many people have a narrow view of NJ. They think crowded NYC suburbs or they think the Shore. There’s SO much more! One of the things I love most about where I live is its proximity to a number of diverse areas. I’m within an hour and a half drive of New York City, Philadelphia, the ocean, and the mountains! Some of our favorite family places are: Ringing Rocks Park, The Crayola Factory, Delaware Water Gap, Grounds for Sculpture, Sesame Place Theme Park, Bowman’s Hill Tower, Delaware River Tubing.

WHERE TO STAY

I live in a rural area. There are lots of great B&Bs around here, but they aren’t typically family friendly. If your family is looking for something other than a traditional hotel experience, I’d highly recommend the Great Wolf Lodge in the nearby Pocono Mountains, or Lambertville House. Crystal Springs Resort is further north, but another amazing place to stay.

TRAVEL STARTS

My parents would often take “Sunday drives” when I was younger. We would get in the car and just drive around. I grew up in the Adirondack Mountains of New York state where there’s so much to see. While I didn’t recognize it when I was younger, these Sunday drives had a big impact on my love of road trips. I’ve loved traveling since I was young, but I think I only recently realized how important it is to me to travel with my kids and cultivate adventurous spirits!

WHAT PARENTS SHOULD KNOW/KEEP IN MIND WHEN TRAVELING WITH KIDS

I think the most important thing for parents to remember is to build in extra time! Be prepared for the unexpected. You may plan three hours at a zoo and find your that your kids just can’t tear themselves away from the peacocks! My daughter recently spent over an hour following a peacock around a zoo. She named it and talked to it. And I was able to accommodate her interest because I hadn’t over-scheduled our trip. And I got some great photos! 🙂

BIGGEST CHALLENGE TRAVELING WITH KIDS

Fighting siblings! Arrrgghhh! I often wish I had a sound-proof barrier I could put up between my kids in the back seat.

ALL THE PLACES SHANNON’S LIVED AND TRAVELED

I’ve lived in upstate NY and northwestern NJ. Outside the USA, I’ve traveled to London, Niagara Falls, Toronto, Montreal, cruised to Bahamas and Western Caribbean (Haiti, Grand Cayman, Jamaica), and spent a day in Tijuana, Mexico. Within the USA, I’ve been all over the Eastern US, from Maine to Florida. I’ve been to Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, San Francisco, San Diego, skiing in the mountains of Utah and Colorado, and driven across country from NJ to Utah and from Chicago to NJ. Wow – writing all this out makes me feel so lucky!

FAVORITE DESTINATION SO FAR

That’s a tough question. I have several favorites for different reasons. I really love cruising. It’s such a fun, relaxed way to travel. The downside is you don’t get to really “see” the destinations you stop at because you’re typically taking the “Americanized” excursions. But it’s a great way to get a glimpse of several different locations. I absolutely love the Rocky Mountains in every season of the year. And Disney World is also very high on my list of favorites!

MOST SPECTACULAR RESORT/HOTEL

Royal Caribbean cruise line is the best “resort” I’ve stayed in. The Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas is pretty spectacular, too.

WHERE TO NEXT

We’ll be driving from NJ to Charlotte, NC in June. Haven’t quite figured out the itinerary yet, but we’ll spend a few days in Charlotte and then make several stops on the way back north. We’re also hoping to get to Niagara Falls this year. We’re going back to Disney World (I’ll be running the Disney Princess Half Marathon) in February 2013. But I’m most excited about our plan to live in Colorado or Utah for 6 months in 2014!

Thanks to Shannon for being a part of this week’s Mom Traveler Spotlight.

I had the pleasure of meeting Jody from FamilyRambling.com and IrelandWithKids.comlast year at the Blissdom conference in Tennessee. She was gracious enough to set up a tour of the Gaylord Opryland while we were there and we’ve stayed in touch online since then.

Leges State Park — Hiking at Ledges State park in Iowa

Jody has two daughters, ages 5 & 7 and is an Iowa (where she lives in a suburb of Des Moines) and Ireland (where she often travels with her fam) expert. You can follow Jody’s adventures on Twitter via @iatraveler and learn more about her in this week’s Mom Traveler Spotlight!

ABOUT IOWA AND IRELAND

Regardless of popular perception, there is a lot to do in Iowa. In Des Moines we have plenty of parks, lakes and open space for play, a zoo, a terrific Science Center, Adventureland Amusement Park, theater and museums. We even have an English Castle. Outside Des Moines you’ll find historical sites like the Amana Colonies, the birthplace of Buffalo Bill Cody, the Field of Dreams and even the Ice Cream Capital of the World.

Accommodation Recommendation: Des Moines has every hotel chain you can name, but a popular place for families is the Ramada Tropics Resort.

As for Ireland- it is truly a magical family destination. Castles, faerie glens, incredible history. Bunratty castle tops the list for a fun family day, and Killarney is a perfect central location for a first visit.

Accommodation Recommendation: In Ireland we usually choose bed & breakfasts. Harbour View in Doolin is perfectly set up for families, and Bunratty Meadows near Shannon is very welcoming.

TRAVEL STARTS

I began traveling solo in my mid-20’s. When I married, in my early 30s, my husband and I traveled practically every weekend. When our daughters were born we never thought about not traveling.

TRAVEL ADVICE FOR PARENTS

Children are smaller and notice different things than you will. Take the time to look from their perspective. And slow down. Remember what you do see with fondness; don’t rush through it.

BIGGEST CHALLENGE TRAVELING WITH KIDS

I’ve been really blessed to have raised good travelers. I think the biggest challenge is to not bring too much. Pare down; your kids don’t need as much as you think they do.

ALL THE PLACES JODY’S LIVED AND TRAVELED

I’ve lived in Iowa, Minneapolis and Boston. I’ve traveled to most states in the US (still need to get to Alaska and Hawaii), a bit of Canada, some of the Caribbean, London and much of Ireland. We’ve a lot of the world yet to see.

FAVORITE DESTINATION

Ireland. Always. It’s my passion. The friendliness of the people, the beauty of the country, the mystical history and the magic you can find around every bend of the road. I would love to live there.

MOST SPECTACULAR RESORT/HOTEL JODY’S STAYED IN

Wow, this is difficult. We love the JW Marriott Hill Country Resort in San Antonio for the incredible pools, fabulous kids club and amazing restaurants. The Gaylord Palms in Orlando is so welcoming and has everything under one roof; their ICE celebration at Christmas time is just amazing. And the Omni Majestic in downtown St. Louis is the most fabulous boutique hotel you can imagine.

NEXT STOP

Memorial Day weekend will find us in Chicago’s Southland for the Gaelic Park Irish Fest, then it’s off to Ireland for 2 weeks. About 10 days after we return we’ll hit the road for an RV adventure to Montana with stops at a few National Parks and a week with Austin Lehman Adventures on their Montana Family Adventure. No plans after that- but in December we’ll be heading back to Ireland for Christmas!

HOW TRAVELING HAS CHANGED JODY’S WORLD VIEW AND HER PLACE IN IT

I think I’ve mostly seen what we take for granted. Even just the difference from living in the Midwest to living on the East Coast. The openness, big yards and less traffic of the Midwest are under appreciated by practically everyone (as is the low cost of living/ good job market/competitive pay which affords us a pretty great lifestyle). Which is fine with me- if everyone knew just how nice we have it here in fly-over country we would be over-run!

Mom Traveler Spotlight: Shannon Entin

Mom Traveler Spotlight: Jody Halsted

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