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Last week my family got to experience another wonderful, fun-filled trip around Pennsylvania. This time we spent three days and two nights in Lancaster and Hershey, home to some amazing family-friendly vacation spots, including Dutch Wonderland, Hershey Park, the Strasburg Railroad, Choo Choo Barn, and much more. For those who live in the mid-Atlantic area, this is such a wonderful and close place to vacation. For those further away, it is so worth it to come to this area for a family trip! Read on to learn more about this exciting area…

Our Stay at the Willow Valley Resort
We started off our trip at the Willow Valley Resort, a fabulous family destination central to everything in Lancaster and about 45 minutes from Hershey. This was our hub for our trip and it was very comfortable, relaxing, and a nice place for our family to stay. Our double room in the Atrium building was nice and upgraded with granite, had a refrigerator (great for storing milk, fruit and snacks!) and was a convenient walk to everything on property: 2 restaurants (with great Smorgasbords!), a bakery, an indoor swimming pool and water playground, a beautiful lake with playground, and a family-friendly farm.

My children really enjoyed their time playing on the property throughout our stay. They loved the water playground and one of the highlights of the trip was a visit to the Willow Valley Farm. My boys learned about all of the animals there, got to feed them and give them water, and pet the animals, too.

We also liked the fact that the hotel was centrally located to Dutch Wonderland, the Strasburg Railroad, and the Lancaster outlet shopping (all about a 15 minute drive), Hershey Park (about 45 minutes) and was around the corner from a nice supermarket (which we went to numerous times!)

Take a look at some more pictures of the hotel and our stay in Lancaster/Hershey.

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Our last trip of our fun-filled summer was to an amazing place called Skytop Lodge, in Skytop, Pennsylvania (in the Pocono mountains). Despite the colder and rainy weather that greeted us when we arrived, we had an incredible experience and couldn’t believe the beauty all around us at Skytop.

This all-inclusive resort is a wonderful family destination, especially for active families. As you approach Skytop, you can’t help but be amazed at the incredible property (take a tour here) – the main building, which opened in 1928, is majestic and beautiful. The gardens and flowers all around the property are probably the most beautiful that I have seen. And the numerous waterfalls throughout the property are simply amazing. Activities on property include over 30 miles of trails to hike, bike, relax and play by the lake, enjoy sports like archery, tennis, basketball, golf, paintball, rock climbing, kayaking, geo-caching, wilderness skills, and much more. Winter sports include downhill and cross country skiing, ice skating and sledding, and fishing and shooting in their indoor center.

One of my favorite features that sets Skytop apart from other destinations that we traveled to this summer is that they offer a kids camp in the summer, called Camp in the Clouds. For potty-trained kids over 3, they can participate in highly active, outdoor-geared activities for either half or full-day sessions. My older son Jacob, who is 4 ½, had the greatest time at camp. He played at the pool, did arts and crafts, and enjoyed playing indoor mini-golf. (It was raining the day he went to camp.) He met some friends and enjoyed playing with them throughout our stay at Skytop. And we loved that we got a little break (while our little one napped) which made the trip even more of a vacation for us! Skytop also offers a kids Ambassadors Club, which gives kids 4 and up a passport and special lapel pin. Each time they do an activity, they get a special stamp in their passport, which they can turn in for a prize at the end of their stay. Finally, it’s important to note that babysitters are available at Skytop, which allows parents some time off at night to enjoy the great entertainment activities and fabulous dining options (more on that later, too!) Read the full story

Woodloch

Throughout the month of August my family has been taking various trips around the state of Pennsylvania, exploring great family destinations and creating awesome vacation memories. Our first trip was to Woodloch, an amazing all-inclusive family resort in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, very close to New York state. (Here is a quick link to a slideshow of photos from our trip)

From the minute we arrived to the time we left, we were treated like we were part of the Woodloch family, with friendly smiles and attentive service. The owners of Woodloch personally meet and greet each person multiple times during your stay and truly make you feel like you have known them for years. Beyond the amazing hospitality, we couldn’t get over how peaceful and beautiful this place is, with its incredible lake, beautiful trees and trails, and spacious, nicely appointed rooms and suites. The meals were delicious and plentiful, in a very homey and comfortable dining room. Finally, everyone there, from toddlers to grandparents, can stay as relaxed or as busy as they choose, with the vast amount of activities happening all throughout the day.

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