Kid-Friendly Options for Your Travel Wish List

Looking for an intriguing international destination for your next family vacation that will offer a dose of “edutainment” along with plenty of fun? Here are seven examples of kid-friendly options to put on your wish list.

Royal Mansour in Marrakech, for example, is showing off its brand new Kid’s Club, where kids receive a complimentary children’s book starring Lila to follow the young girl’s exploration of the hotel’s winding passageways and gardens. Other hands-on fun includes Moroccan art activities, Arabic lessons and a chocolate-making experience in the on-site Chocolate Laboratory, where kids can, of course, taste their own creations.

At the White Elephant on Nantucket harbor, the Mini Chef program lets children decorate cupcakes and cookies in 45-minute weekly sessions in July and August. At night, they can enjoy an in-room camp-out, complete with teepees and a faux, indoor campfire, all while dressed in cozy, kid-sized robes.

The Belmond Napasai in Thailand’s Koh Samui, encourages children to think about potential careers — from botanist or dancer to Michelin-starred chef. The My First Job program includes such activities as creating chocolate roses with the hotel’s head chef, blending papaya and coconut juice for a mocktail with the bartender or learning to dance with a local expert in Thai dance. Other activities include windsurfing, kayaking, boating, snorkeling, scuba diving and even Thai boxing.

The Majestic Hotel & Spa in Barcelona offers a scooter program for families who want to explore the city on folding scooters. Kids and parents are outfitted with child- and adult-sized helmets and scooters, a backpack with water and snacks and a loaner iPad loaded with themed maps and itineraries. Families can also opt for the Spanish language tour option to take in La Sagrada Familia and Casa Mila in the native tongue.

Petit Piton in Sugar Beach, St. Lucia © Melho010 | Dreamstime.com

Older kids are not forgotten at the Spice Club at St. Lucia’s Sugar Beach, which offers a cool space for older kids to get away from their parents, meet new friends and play ping pong, go kayaking or paddle boarding, or join the sailing club to learn to sail on the resort’s fleet of 3.5m Laser Pico sailboats. Meanwhile, younger children aged 4 to 12 can enjoy a whole menu of age-appropriate activities at the resort’s Sugar Club.

At Nayara Resort, Spa & Gardens in Costa Rica, children can take a lesson in relaxation at the Sloth Sanctuary, where these Costa Rican native animals give new meaning to the expression “chill out.” Of course, more high-octane fun is also available, from ziplining to playing in a waterfall.

UXUA Casa Hotel & Spa in Trancoso, Brazil, challenges kids to learn the ancient art of capoeira, a traditional Bahian sport that blends martial arts, acrobatics and dance. Kids are invited to either train privately in the hotel’s studio or play side by side with more than 65 local children and young adults at the local Casa da Cultura or Cultural Center.