Best Ski Towns: Kellogg, ID

Located forty minutes past Coeur d'Alene on I-90 in the Idaho panhandle, the town of Kellogg, Idaho offers year-round outdoor and indoor recreation for a family vacation paradise. Hardly your typical 'resort town', Kellogg is not all slick boutiques and over-priced restaurants: it still thinks of itself as a mountain mining town with some really, really beautiful scenery and world-class skiing. It … [Read more...]

Coeur d’Alene Resort’s Fantasy Cruise to the North Pole

Bet you never knew the North Pole is in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho! Celebrate this holiday season while in the Eastern Washington/Northern Idaho area with a family Fantasy Cruise to the North Pole, hosted by the Coeur d'Alene Resort. These 40 minute cruises offer spectacular views of the many floating holiday light displays decorating lovely Lake Coeur d'Alene. The most memorable point in the … [Read more...]

Purgatory Chasm State Reservation

198 Purgatory Rd. Sutton MA This pit stop submitted by Pit Stops for Kids reader Sonia Beshiri. Thank you, Sonia, for your submission! Purgatory Chasm State Park runs for a quarter of a mile between granite walls rising as high as 70 feet (just outside of Sutton, MA). It's a great place to climb natural rock formations, and it's completely free! There are trails as well. You just need your … [Read more...]

A Pit Stop a Day (Day 3): Mobius Kids Museum

808 W. Main (Riverfront Square Lower Level) Spokane, WA Day 3 found us spending the day among friends in Spokane, WA for the city's annual Hoopfest basketball tournament. The kids and I temporarily escaped the crowds and heat at Mobius Kids, an expansive children's museum right in the heart of downtown. Mobius Kids is great for all ages with exhibits including a play city, a construction … [Read more...]

Hormel SPAM Museum

1101 N. Main St. Austin, MN If you've ever wondered what exactly is in that famous mystery meat, and you happen to find yourself driving along I-90 through Minnesota, you simply have to stop with your family at Hormel's SPAM Museum in Austin. Opened in 2002 and located directly across the street from Hormel's main meat plant, the 16,500 square foot museum is housed in its own custom … [Read more...]

Raptor Reef Indoor Water Park

175 W. Orchard Hayden, Idaho Located in Hayden, Idaho as part of the Triple Play Family Fun Park, Raptor Reef is a massive indoor water park that's easy to miss if you don't realize it's there. Stopping here makes for at least a half-day pit stop, but it's well worth mentioning because of its availability to the public (unlike many other indoor water parks attached to hotels such as nearby … [Read more...]

Fort Sherman Playground

416 Mullan Road Coeur d'Alene, Idaho Fort Sherman Playground is the perfect place to stop along mountainous I-90 during a summer vacation. A beautiful city in any season, Coeur d'Alene is a is a summer recreation mecca with ample hiking, swimming, boating, fishing, and golf. Fort Sherman Playground at City Park offers a sprawling, 14,000 square foot wooden ‘fort' play space on 17 acres near … [Read more...]

Spokane’s Riverfront Park with kids

507 N. Howard St Spokane, WA If you find yourself driving I-90 from Seattle or Idaho's ski and outdoor country, Spokane's Riverfront Park is a beautifully appointed greenbelt worthy of a stop. Much more than a simple pit stop, the park spans both sides of the Spokane River and includes a pavilion originally built for the 1974 Expo, amusement rides, an ice skating rink, a Sky Ride gondola, an … [Read more...]

Goebbert’s Pumpkin Farm

40 W. Higgins Road South Barrington, IL In South Barrington, Illinois, you'll want to spend a fall Saturday or Sunday at Goebbert's Pumpkin Farm. Their fall festival, running from September 26th through October 31st, includes a haunted house and camel rides in addition to the standard pumpkin patch, corn maze, and petting zoo! And their farmer's market and cafe offer some of the best local … [Read more...]

E.J. Roberts Park

North Bend Washington If you're stopping for a quick bite to eat in North Bend, WA, you'll quickly lament the lack of play lands at any of the fast food offerings. But a quick inquiry of the drive thru staff at Taco Time led us to E.J. Roberts Park. Only a few minutes into town (and it's a lovely town!), EJ Roberts is a beautiful little respite from a long roadtrip. Located in a quiet … [Read more...]