Vacation ideas

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kmacht

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Kmacht
Every year since covid I have done a father/son vacation with my dad in the winter to get out of the cold. It started when we were both getting grumpy from the cold weather and lockdowns during covid and has continued as a tradition and way for us to spend time together since then. We have done all inclusives in playa, cancun, dominican, and a southern Caribbean cruise the past few years. I'm trying to come up with something different this year other than another beach type vacation and need some ideas.

I'm in my mid 40s, he's in his mid 70s but still pretty active. It has to be somplace warmish (no where that we need more than a sweatshirt to stay warm) We are limited to January or April this year due to work and family commitments. Sun and fun in April is out because we have been to airventure a number of times together already. We both love national parks but have already done the grand circle (zion/bryce/capital reef/ moab / grand canyon). Neither of us golf. Budget is around 5k for both and less than 10 days including flights from the new England area.

What have you done for winter vacations that may not be the typical beach or skiing vacation?
 
Big Bend National Park and that area of west Texas area has a lot of outdoor stuff to do and see.
 
Cabarete in the Dominican Republic. Learn to kiteboard. Can be done in a week if you're reasonably athletic.
 
Do the coast of California, starting in Napa wine country and ending in San Diego... lots of stuff to see and do..
 
455 Bravo Uniform said:
Big Bend National Park and that area of west Texas area has a lot of outdoor stuff to do and see.
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+1. That’s also the season for rafting on the Rio Grande through Big Bend, which is nice. Not a lot (AT ALL) immediately around Big Bend but Marathon, Alpine, and Marfa aren’t terribly far (Terlingua is a pretty Bohemian place near the park). The MacDonald Observatory in Ft Davis is nice, too.

Santa Fe area is nice but could be cold. Nice trails to hike, Los Alamos lab, etc. A bit farther west of Albuquerque on I-40 near Grant is El Malpais, the biggest, most amazing lava field I’ve ever seen.

Monument Valley is interesting and the KOA there rents off-road-capable Jeeps, which is a cool way to see the nearby Garden of the Gods (there’s a nice lodge near the KOA if not interested in camping).

Antelope Canyon is near Page, AZ and is great. IMG_2138.jpegIMG_2175.jpeg

Bottom line: maybe flying into Albuquerque or El Paso and doing a big circle to see some of these is a consideration.
 
January & nothing heavier than a sweatshirt?

Look anywhere south of I-10. We’re considering San Diego next month for the Zoo and Safari parks.

April? Draw a line south of I-20 and there you go.
 
April is a great time to visit Bonaire and spend a week diving.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I had not thought of big bend and will look to see if maybe it can be incorporated into a road trip of some sort. I have done monument valley and antelope canyon already with my wife and daughter during our grand circle vacation. Diving locations unfortunately aren’t going to work. My father doesn’t have the desire to dive and I did not like the feeling of being that deep and under water when I tried it once. He has already done a racing school. A California road trip is a possibility but we have already done most of Southern California since my sister lived in San Diego for quite a while. I have been to Maui twice and Kauai once but would go back and explore one of the other islands in a heartbeat if I can find decent airfare and condo for rent. If you have any more ideas keep them coming but the ones so far have given me some options I had not thought about.

Keith
 
Sounds like you guys need to go down to Patty Wagstaff's aerobatics school in Florida!
 
Fly fishing for bonefish or tarpon in the Keys or Bahamas? South Georgia quail hunting?
 
Any fishing interest? Start in Texas and go clockwise to Florida along the Gulf of Mexico. Some freshwater along the way, back bays, surf, and Gulf for variety. Interesting food, people, and sights along the way, even if fishing is not of interest.
 
455 Bravo Uniform said:
Any fishing interest? Start in Texas and go clockwise to Florida along the Gulf of Mexico. Some freshwater along the way, back bays, surf, and Gulf for variety. Interesting food, people, and sights along the way, even if fishing is not of interest.
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Fishing is a possibility. We both freshwater fish during the summer here in the northeast.
 
Llewtrah381 said:
+1. That’s also the season for rafting on the Rio Grande through Big Bend, which is nice. Not a lot (AT ALL) immediately around Big Bend but Marathon, Alpine, and Marfa aren’t terribly far (Terlingua is a pretty Bohemian place near the park). The MacDonald Observatory in Ft Davis is nice, too.

Santa Fe area is nice but could be cold. Nice trails to hike, Los Alamos lab, etc. A bit farther west of Albuquerque on I-40 near Grant is El Malpais, the biggest, most amazing lava field I’ve ever seen.

Monument Valley is interesting and the KOA there rents off-road-capable Jeeps, which is a cool way to see the nearby Garden of the Gods (there’s a nice lodge near the KOA if not interested in camping).

Antelope Canyon is near Page, AZ and is great. View attachment 135776View attachment 135777

Bottom line: maybe flying into Albuquerque or El Paso and doing a big circle to see some of these is a consideration.
Click to expand...
Taos is cool to add to a santa fe trip if you like art. Maybe colder than you prefer though.

Winter fishing the gulf can be great but weather is slightly less predictable than summer and can really turn the bite off. Not that you shouldn’t, but just keep a backup plan/reasonable expectations
 
Hawaii, Bora Bora, or drive the Pacific Coast Highway of California. Start in Santa Barbara and take US-101 and CA-1 north to the Hurst Castle then continue north to Ragged Point.
 
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