THEIR EYES combed the lush jungle landscape as we stood waiting at the gated entrance to 907 Whitehead Street. With a quiet gasp from my travel companions, the first orange splash of cat appeared, a bold stroke sauntering on four legs before the chartreuse shutters of the porch. It paused for a moment, gazing toward us as if daring the children to skip the queue, then turned to walk through the open door as if it owned the place.

“Do you think it has six toes?” my son whispered.

I held up crossed fingers where he could see and whispered back, “I hope so.”

As the official travel planner for our family, I often walk a fine line. Drag everyone to an activity too esoteric and risk mutiny, but build a trip around too many child-themed activities and at some point I may feel compelled to jab something sharp into my eye. For the most part, we’ve kept a good balance in our family’s travels. Though I wasn’t so sure how our visit to The Hemingway Home Museum in Key West was going to play out. After all, what did my three young children know of Ernest Hemingway?

(Note: This post may contain affiliate links, which help support this independent site.)

Still, I vowed I would not travel all the way from San Francisco to Key West and miss my chance to stroll along Mr. Hemingway’s bookshelves, peer into his private chambers, and possibly gaze into the very bathroom mirror where he’d examined his beard on so many mornings, including the one after a favorite poet of mine purportedly broke his fist against it.

It would be a literary pilgrimage for the parents, and—I secretly hoped—a possible antidote to the plague of the blank page I’d been battling of late.

But what would it be for the kids?

I imagined myself giving a parental preface upon arrival, something like, “A famous American writer lived here. He wrote novels, short stories, and nonfiction books, and some of his best and most important works were created here—right in this room in fact. And on THAT (we assume) typewriter.” But I already knew better. It doesn’t matter how many times you tell a child a place “is important because it’s important.” That’s not what will make it important to them.

There was only one thing I could think of that final day in Key West, one card to play that would get my young entourage to walk without grudge through the sweltering blocks of Old Town to visit the Hemingway Home Museum. It was the prospect of seeing cats there, “And quite possibly…” I widened my eyes for effect, “the legendary six-toed grandcats of Mr. Ernest Hemingway.”

“SIX toes?” cried the littlest.

“Wait a minute,” challenged the biggest. “How many toes do cats usually have?”

Cat research was quickly underway, and there was definite interest in visiting Hemingway’s cats at least, if not his home. Even better? Polydactyl—the scientific term for cats born with more than the standard set of five toes on the front or four toes on the back—could also be, the kids were quick to point out, the scientific term for their grandmother were she a dinosaur.

At last, we strode up the path toward the stunning Spanish Colonial that had stood abandoned and a shambles in 1931, the year that Ernest and Pauline moved in (his second wife of four). As the guide preparing to lead the next tour greeted us on the steps, the kids darted past her without salutation. On the far end of the porch, they’d spied a snoozing patchwork calico draped across the stonework corner.

I overheard a quiet counting followed by a very loud confirmation: “SIX TOES!!!”

I cringed, but the cat simply yawned in response and continued its siesta as if it were used to such invasions by small, paw-prodding visitors.

One of many polydactyls (sometimes called mitten cats or Hemingway cats) at the Hemingway Home Museum.

The guide called us to join our group in the dining room, with its many portraits of Hemingway, African sculpture, and photos of the famed second family that called the house home, but the room was packed. I did my best to listen from the doorway as my husband wandered down the hall taking in the rooms of the lower level on his own, and I wondered if we shouldn’t follow his lead and see all we could before the kids lost patience. Though I hated to miss the storied details of the place I now stood after imagining it for so long.

I’d at least hear the introduction.

When the Hemingways arrived in Key West in 1928, planning only to stay long enough to retrieve a Ford Roadster that Pauline’s wealthy uncle had purchased for them, the town was nearly bankrupt. It hit upon hard times well before the Great Depression owing to the end of the shipwreck salvaging era that had built the community and the recent demise of the local sponging industry which had, for a time, sustained it.

Since the car had not yet arrived in Key West, the couple stayed on. And in the three weeks they waited for the Roadster, an inspired Hemingway managed to finish the manuscript for A Farewell to Arms while he simultaneously fell in love with America’s southernmost city. When the Roadster finally arrived, it remained in Key West along with the Hemingways.

Kids splashing in what some believe is the “World’s Most Expensive Cat Drinking Fountain,” in the gardens of the Hemingway Home Museum.

As we listened on, a sociable tabby padded down the hallway toward certain inspection. “Only five toes,” the kids confirmed.

Three years later, Pauline’s Uncle Gus purchased the two-story villa as a gift for the couple—along with two other houses on the same property—from the City of Key West for a mere $8,000 in back taxes. The Hemingway’s home itself had been built in 1851 for Mr. Asa Tift, owner of one of the most prosperous salvaging operations in Key West history, with no expenses of architectural detail, marble fireplace, or carved wooden baluster spared.

Just days before, we’d seen Tift portrayed by a costumed interpreter at the Key West Shipwreck Museum, but when I turned to remind the kids, they were nowhere to be seen. I politely sped through the first level of the house—and checked the status of the calico sleeping on the front porch—but didn’t see a one. Up the narrow staircase I went.

I found my stray children, along with two others, quietly gathered at the end of a long display case filled with odds and ends from Hemingway’s life: war service medals, a signed baseball, old snapshots, and tax receipts for the property. The kids were not admiring the treasures within the case, however, but the tabby sprawled comfortably atop its glass lid. Beside the bold feline on display was a sign reading: “Please do not lean on the glass.”

“I guess they should have written it in Cat,” my daughter grinned, giving him a gentle scratch between the ears.

Hemingway artifacts–and cats–on display in the Hemingway Home Museum.

Seeing that kids, cat, and museum artifacts appeared safe for the moment, I stepped into the neighboring room to see what I could learn from another tour in progress. It was the master bedroom, and the guide explained that the carved headboard had long ago served as a garden gate on the property. Ernest and Pauline had discovered it during their renovations to the house and both liked the look of it. When they discovered it was exactly the width of their bed, up the narrow staircase it went.

Above the bed hung an oil painting of the home with wide-footed cats in the foreground. And on the bed itself—which was chained off to prevent any person from presuming they could sit on it—was a cat. With an exaggerated stretch, it rolled over to its other side, the black of its tuxedo fur commingling with chenille nubs of coverlet. The humans in the room, including the guide, looked on with affection.

Though this painting of the Hemingway Home in Key West looks right at home here, it wasn’t painted until 1975 by artist and poet Henry Faulkner.

How these cats, numbering somewhere between 40 and 50, came to be at the Hemingway Home is a subject of much debate. While some argue they couldn’t possibly be related to any cat or cats the Pulitzer and Nobel Prize winning author kept here in the 1930s, others insist they are indeed the direct descendants of the original six-toed kitten young Gregory and Patrick Hemingway named Snow White.

What is widely agreed upon is that Snow White was the polydactyl progeny of a six-toed seafaring cat named Snowball, whom Hemingway had often admired on the docks of Key West. Snowball belonged to Captain Harold Stanley Dexter who had sailed down to the Keys with her from Massachusetts, where polydactyls are not only more common but have been traditionally thought to bring good luck to sailors. Knowing how fond Hemingway was of Snowball, Dexter gave him Snowball’s kitten as a gift.

As we ventured out to the patio between the Hemingway home and the carriage house, a full five cats quickly came into view. Our original guide stood surrounded by the stripes, patches, and black tie get-up of the resident Hemingway cats. As they snacked on treats delivered with a casual toss of the hand, I overheard her quote a letter from Hemingway: “One cat just leads to another.” Indeed, the cats appeared to multiply in the laughter as more crept in from the nearby shrubs to pursue her offering.

Hemingway made a tradition of naming his own cats’ six-toed offspring after famed celebrities, a tradition which the caretakers of the estate continue to this day. In the  shaded cat cemetery beside us, we quickly paid respects to the generations of four-legged stars laid to rest on the property—Willard Scott, Joan Crawford, Kim Novak, and Ezra Pound among others—before moving along with the tour.

The cat cemetery, filled with celebrities (or at least their names) at the Hemingway Home Museum.

At last, it was my chance to see Hemingway’s writing studio, which was the upper story of the adjacent carriage house. In Hemingway’s time here, there was an upper story walkway between the master bedroom of the main house and the entrance of the studio. But all that remained now was a narrow iron stair case labeled “UP” on the left and “DOWN” to the right, with tourists in transit on each.

For just a moment, I felt the fleeting pangs of envy for the stark separation of space “Papa Hemingway” kept between his writing world and that of his young family. The kids, quite engaged with the cats on the ground, might not miss this, I thought. “I’ll be right back—I’m going up to have a quick look in the writing studio,” I said, gesturing up toward the pinnacle of steep steps beside us.

With cocked heads and curious eyebrows raised, I could see my daughters read more into the statement than I’d imagined they would. My eldest daughter stood, her gaze suddenly level with my collar bones. Her younger sister crossed arms, and furrowed oddly familiar eyebrows.

“Do you want to come with me?”

Heads nodded quickly. They did.

So, slowly, together, we made way up the crowded steps toward the entrance of the room where Hemingway spent his early morning writing hours during what most agree was his most prolific period, toward the room where celebrated short stories like “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” and “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber,” the nonfiction book The Green Hills of Africa, the novel To Have and Have Not, and many other well-known works were penned, punctuated, and percussively typed.

Yet when we reached the top of the stairs, instead of entering a writing room we stepped into a holding cell. It was just a small entryway from which visitors could view the studio between decorative iron bars. So there we stood, pressed against the bars, as more and more visitors insinuated with shoulders and elbows that we should hurry up and snap our photo, genuflect, and exit the sacred space so that they might have a quick turn, too.

But I refused to be rushed.

If there is such a thing as “good writing vibes,” this room had to have plenty of it, and I would absorb every bit I could before I exited the staircase “Down.” If I couldn’t actually walk through Hemingway’s studio, I would at least take a moment to explore what I could of it with my eyes. And if I couldn’t stand next to his writing table, I would at least take in the air, deeply as I could, as it breezed from an open window over the keys of his typewriter to me.

Ernest Hemingway’s writing table and typewriter in Key West, Florida.

“Look!” my daughter pointed her slender finger through the bars.

At the far end of the studio, in an open window slept a cat, the long stripe of its tail hanging down from the sill like a limp exclamation point.

I inserted the lens of my camera between the bars that the cats could easily transgress, accepting that it was as close as I might ever get to Hemingway’s typewriter.

“If you just showed up and didn’t know better, you’d think this writing studio belonged to the cats,” my daughter laughed.

“Maybe it does,” I shrugged, adjusting my focus on the typewriter.

Both daughters laughed in spite of the throat clearing behind us.

“People: Do not enter,” my big girl warned.

“Cats only!” the middle sister cried.

With a giggle, I snapped the shot.

“Imagine what stories they might write…” I dared, and of course they did.

We descended the stairs with visions of polydactyls pouncing on typewriters and running their own small publishing empire from a writing studio that once, long ago, was used by a man called Hemingway.

In the nearby shade of a banana tree, we found my son crouched down in quiet observation of an enormous orange tabby. “Look at his toes,” he whispered. He gently lifted a forepaw as we all leaned in for the count. “SEVEN TOES!” he squealed.

A seven-toed spectacle snoozes at the Hemingway Home Museum in Key West.

The kids could have happily spent another hour hunting polydactyls in the shade of the African tulips, plumeria, and palm trees that surround the Hemingway home, but eventually it was time to leave and begin packing up for the long trip home.

—

Post script: A poem

Among the many souvenirs we brought back with us from Key West, I discovered something so small and nearly invisible I hadn’t even realized I’d acquired at the time. I only noticed it when I was suddenly compelled to pick up a pen—and write.

What if, like a six-toed seafaring cat,

I could slip between the iron bars

that separate His hallowed hall

from the daily deluge of onlookers?

If I could pad over to His typewriter

in the hours when no one can see?

If I could type one sentence upon it—

what would mine be?

If you go:

The Hemingway Home Museum in Key West is open 365 days a year, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission includes a 30-minute guided tour, and kids 5 and younger visit free of charge. Please note: The museum accepts cash only at this time.

For more information about the museum, visit www.hemingwayhome.com or call  (305) 294-1136. For more help planning your trip to the Florida Keys and Key West, take advantage of the many free resources at www.fla-keys.com.

Where to stay? For the best Key West hotel offers for your dates, check here. And to see family-friendly Key West vacation rentals, check here. And don’t miss our other recommended Key West and Florida activities for families below (with more great family destination ideas).

Reader’s note: This travel narrative was originally published June 6, 2015 on FamilyTravel41.com. It received the Lowell Thomas Award Honorable Mention for North American Travel Stories and the Silver Award in Animal Encounters from the Solas Awards for Best Travel Writing from Traveler’s Tales Publishing. 

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The post If Cats Could Type in Key West: A Visit to the Hemingway Home Museum appeared first on Family Travel 411.

While the scenery is hard to top and dock-to-dish dining options abound, Morro Bay also registers high on my family-friendliness-ometer for some very practical reasons. Among them: free parking, abundant public restrooms, and great walkability. All of which makes it a good alternative to bustling Pismo Beach (30 minutes to the north), especially for families with little ones.

All together, it’s what a great California coast family destination should be. When you get there, here are my top recommended things to do in Morro Bay with kids, along with recommendations for 1 great place to eat and 1 great place to stay while you are there.

1. Get Your Bearings at the Morro Bay Museum of Natural History

Morro Bay has the only California state park with a Museum of Natural History. Better still, it happens to be FREE for kids up to 17 years old and is only $3 for adults, which might lead you to believe there’s not a whole lot there to see.

To the contrary, I was quite surprised to find room after room of interactive exhibits and viewing areas that gave a fantastic overview of the natural forces shaping the landscape of the area and the marvelous creatures that call it home.

It’s a great place to start your vacation in Morro Bay (or even without) and will especially help you identify many of the bird species you are bound to see and get the lay of the land.

There is also excellent viewing of the bay from the museum’s lofty vantage point–keep an eye out as you never know what kinds of critters you might spot. Find out more: www.facebook.com/MBMuseum.of.Natural.History

2. Visit Morro Rock — and sea otters, and hermit crabs…

A surprising number of visitors to Morro Bay are satisfied to enjoy Morro Rock as the photogenic landmark that it is as viewed from throughout the town. I encourage you to not be one of them. A visit out to the rock itself is easy enough and free—and may just prove to be your kids’ favorite highlight of your trip to Morro Bay.

Forged as a “volcanic plug” twenty million years ago, Morro Rock is now an ecological reserve and home to numerous nesting birds as you’ll see when you walk the short trail from the parking area out to its south-facing side (stay left), where weather-worn pocks … and of the 200 peregrine falcon nesting sites in California, Morro Rock is home to two.

But don’t stop there. As you can see in the video, the beach below Morro Rock’s south side has foot-friendly sand and enormous boulders that make the perfect setting for some serious hide-and-seek (or hide-and-ambush, as my kids prefer).

As you get closer to the beach’s end, the rocky jetty that juts to the left helps shelter this part of the beach from ocean wind. And there you’ll find more rocks and smaller pools that form between them when the tide is low—leaving many hermit crabs to be found.

However, one of the best reasons to venture out to the rock is for your best chances of viewing (and photographing) the adorable sea otters that favor this part of Morro Bay. They often spend their midday slumber “rafting” in this area (the otters’ way of latching on to each other for safety while resting).

Make sure to tell the kids you need to keep your distance and use very soft voices when observing these protected creatures.

Tip: For an even more memorable family visit out to Morro Rock, go by Surrey Bike! We picked up a four-pedal surrey (seated 5 of us just fine) from nearby Farmer’s Kites & Surreys and laughed our whole way there. We pedaled out along the bike path toward the rock—and giggled fantastically as we parked our “surrey with the fringe on top” right alongside the other cars in the area nearest the resting sea otters. Regular bike rentals are available, too. Find out more: Farmer’s Kites & Surryes

3. Kayak Morro Bay

More than 250 species of birds frequent the Morro Bay Estuary Natural Preserve and its 800-acre wetland. Paddle along quietly in your kayaks, and watch closely. You’ll have some of the best bird-watching opportunities right from the water. Herons, cormorants, egrets, kingfishers, and other feathered residents are regularly spotted in this protected region.

A guided kayak tour with Central Coast Outdoors will take you to the best viewing locations on the water and at the shore’s edge, and teach you all about their lifestyles and life cycles. Keep your eyes peeled for harbor seals as well along the way. If conditions are right, you may also have the chance to paddle the “back bay” with your guide.

We had the good fortune to paddle by several harbor seals snoozing on a sleepy “haul out” they favor in this quieter part of the bay. Central Coast Outdoors’ paddling tours include 1.5- to 2-hour family-friendly short paddles.

Want more time on the water? Book a half-day tour, sunset paddle, or private tour options (great for families and those with wee travelers). Find out more: www.centralcoastoutdoors.com

Morro Bay photos from my stock photo gallery (click here for more info).

4. Hike Black Hill

As you drive up and up through the Morro Bay Golf Course toward the Black Hill trailhead, you might wonder just how much of a hike will be left once you reach it. And the view from the staging area is impressive already.

Yet the 3-mile round trip hike up through coastal pines, brush, and wildflowers gains you another 600+ feet in elevation. Suffice to say you’ll earn yourselves the spectacular 360-degree view once you reach the top.

It was the perfect way to end our visit to Morro Bay, looking out at the places we had played, kayaked, bicycled, and dined during our visit. Not to mention, our legs got well-stretched before the drive to Los Angeles. Find out more:  http://morrobay.org/things-to-do/outdoors/black-hill

For more great hiking trails in and around San Luis Obispo County, check out the Central Coast section of my new Hiking with Kids Southern California guidebook from Falcon Guides (shown here). More Morro Bay family tips follow below.

1 Great Place to Eat in Morro Bay with Kids: Tognazzini’s Dockside

Do you like extremely fresh seafood that’s sustainably harvested by small fleets? Whose boats dock within a mere block or two from where you sit as you dine? If so, you will love dining in Morro Bay. And Tognazzini’s Dockside restaurant, as it happens, is owned by a commercial fisherman. Need proof? Stroll past his fishing operation and fresh fish market right next to the restaurant.

The casual atmosphere at “Dockside” puts families at ease — as do the prices. And the kids menu options ensure everyone will be happy here. Even as mom rolls her eyes back in ecstasy over one of the day’s specials: halibut cheeks piccata. Clam chowder fans should also note they serve what my husband remains convinced is the BEST New England-style clam chowder on earth.

But don’t kid yourself–no matter how full you think you are after dinner, you will find room for dessert. Particularly when you first lay eyes on that strawberry-banana chimichanga, and I say go for it. You’ll need something to occupy you while the kids enjoy making at-table s’mores anyway. Find out more:  www.morrobaydockside.com

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1 Great Place to Stay in Morro Bay with Kids: Inn at Morro Bay

Bird lover’s will especially delight in The Inn at Morro Bay’s location–adjacent to the heron and egret rookery. (For optimal viewing, go down to the inn’s large waterside deck that ends right at the edge of the rookery. Bring your binoculars!)

Our king room with queen sofa bed was plenty spacious to also fit a rollaway (extra fee). Even then, we still had room for the five of us to stretch.

Family-friendly extras:

Flipping on the fireplace in the evenings was also a special treat. Though we first had the challenge of once getting the kids out of the courtyard swimming pool and Jacuzzi.

Note that the rooms have mini refrigerators and coffeemakers, but just showers and no bath tubs. I leave it up to you whether or not to reveal the flat screen TV concealed behind the panels above the fireplace.

Hotel dining:

The Inn at Morro Bay’s on-site restaurant, 60 State Restaurant, serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner with extraordinary views of the bay.  In fact, I snapped the lead photo from their dining patio before breakfast one morning. While they don’t offer a children’s menu, there are plenty of breakfast items so suit.

Just be warned that an order of “pancakes” turned out to be three fluffy plate-sized pancakes that could have easily fed all three kids. But I heard no complaints from my crew as I myself delighted in the spinach eggs Benedict (menu on website). Find out more: www.innatmorrobay.com

For more help planning your visit to Morro Bay with kids, visit www.MorroBay.org. For more California family travel recommendations click here.

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The post Morro Bay with Kids? Your Must-See California Family Vacation Guide appeared first on Family Travel 411.

After all, you want to make sure the trip you plan will pay off for everyone in terms of the needed rest and relaxation, fun factor, and great memories you want from the investment of your vacation dollars (and time!).

Truth be told, it’s all too easy for many of us to feel exhausted just from planning the trip — let alone executing it (moms on family vacations are still moms, after all!).

Not to worry. Here are some easy ways you can help make sure you get your own vacation needs and desires met during the trip–so when you get home you can feel like you had a vacation, too!

This post contains affiliate links which help maintain this website at no cost to you. Opinions are my own.

Assign a Morning to Sleep In

Few are the parents of young children who would not LOVE the opportunity to sleep in during a family vacation. If you are blessed with early risers, make a plan with your partner to let each other sleep in (at least) one morning of your vacation.

Just be sure to agree on your designated days ahead of time so you can fully plan on, look forward to, and enjoy your late-morning snooze. (And don’t forget your sleeping mask and ear plugs! That’s my favorite one shown here in 100% mulberry silk.)

Give Yourself a Mini Facial

Even in a crowded hotel room with your favorite people piled on a bed watching a movie, you can still treat yourself to a mini facial.

Take a hot, steamy shower or soak in the tub with aromatic bath salts brought from home. Then put on your favorite P.J.s and apply an easy-packing sheet mask (they take up virtually no room in the suitcase!). Prop your feet up, take a deep breath, and put in those ear buds with relaxing sounds from nature or your favorite tunes.

But why stop there? Don’t forget there are also nourishing sheet masks for your hands and feet that are just as easy to pack and apply. Amazon and Sephora both have a great selection of sheet masks for hands, feet, and face.

Bring a Journal

Just letting your family know you want to write in a journal during the trip can help build in “mini mental breaks” for yourself — and time to step out on your balcony, go sit on the beach alone (or at the less-crowded end of the pool), or have a coffee in the hotel lobby.

And here’s a fun secret: While you might aspire to write a gratitude entry each day, chronicle your family’s vacation so far, or record the funny things your kids said along the way — you don’t have to!

It’s your journal. If you just feel like doodling while you people watch or listen to a favorite podcast, it’s all good (and good for you!).

Now, to help make the vacation PLANNING a lot easier on yourself, be sure to use the resources on this website and our sister website TravelswithBaby.com. Here are links to some of our most popular posts. And you can also use the drop-down menu for help planning family trips to Destinations around the world.

From Family Travel 411:

How to Build a Budget-Friendly Maui Family Vacation

Ten Unforgettable California Family Vacation Ideas

Six Amazing Ireland Family Vacation Ideas (with Tips from an Expert)

Six Great Mexico Family Vacation Destinations

Three California Desert Family Vacations for Spring Break

Five Great National Park Vacations for Families

From TravelswithBaby.com:

The 6 Best Places to Visit California’s Giant Redwoods and Giant Sequoias

Seven Easy Ways to Get Your Car Seat Through the Airport

How to Travel with a Car Seat (Without Losing Your Mind)

The Best Tips for Flying with a Baby or Toddler (start here!)

The post Three Easy Ways For Moms to Build Self-Care Into a Family Vacation appeared first on Family Travel 411.

Whenever your family’s spring break falls, you’re likely to enjoy pleasant temperatures, the sunshine you may still be lacking at home, and the giddy joy that comes with spotting desert wildflowers, cacti, and Joshua trees in bloom.

Not to mention, you might also happen upon some well-timed contrasts like a snow-dusted Telescope Peak jutting up above Death Valley, or tumbling waterfalls in a palm-filled canyon fed by a desert oasis.

Just remember, the later you visit in spring, the hotter the days may get! So plan accordingly for your sun and fun–and frequent hydration on the run.

Here are my recommendations for eight spring break vacation ideas for families excited to explore our incredible California deserts. All are in southern California, with approximate drive times from the major cities included to help in your planning.

But first! Pin it to your travel board for future vacation planning …

And don’t forget — I’ve got complete details, tips, maps, and advice for 14 unforgettable desert hikes (from easy to strenuous) in Hiking with Kids Southern California: 45 Great Hikes for Families!

This post may contain affiliate links that help fund this independent website at no cost to you.

1. A Joshua Tree National Park Family Getaway

Approximate drive time: Los Angeles 3 hours, San Diego 3 hours, San Francisco 8 hours

What you’ll find:

Joshua tree is a fascinating family desert destination thanks to its “Jumbo Rock geology” and the contrasts that come from straddling two distinctly different desert ecosystems.

On its western side, you’ll find classic Mojave Desert habitat with prickly pear cacti, pinyon pines, Mojave yucca, and the Joshua trees for which the park is named.

To its east, you’ll find Colorado Desert habitat (part of the larger Sonoran Desert), with a different personality punctuated by spiky ocotillo, palo verde, and teddy bear cholla.

And as your spring break family vacation destination, you’ll have the chance to see both deserts when many visitors feel they’re at their most beautiful.

Good to know:

Three important things to know before planning your first visit to Joshua Tree National Park include:

1. There are no concessions and very limited potable water within the park. That means you need to bring all the food and snacks, drinks, and water (and backup extra water) for your time spent in the park.
2. The only overnight accommodations in Joshua Tree National Park are in its campsites. And reservations can fill up 6 months in advance–as soon as they open for popular seasons. So if you’d like to camp in the park itself (beneath its dark night skies!), plan your timing well in advance and set a reminder to book your camping reservation 6 months earlier if possible at at Recreation.gov.
3. It’s a popular national park — especially in spring! But most visitors stick to the primary (paved) roads in the north and easiest-to-reach attractions. To encounter fewer crowds, I recommend STARTING EARLY and with the most popular attractions and hiking trails you’re interested in (eg. Jumbo Rocks, Skull Rock, Arch Rock, Hidden Valley). Then use the rest of the day to explore the less-traveled areas that interest you most.

There are more great tips for planning your visit to Joshua Tree NP in the article “Plan Like a Park Ranger.” And be sure to download your “offline accessible” guide to the park and maps from the free National Parks App. (Don’t expect cell service inside the park!) Click here for more info about the app.

Where to stay when visiting Joshua Tree National Park with kids?

If you won’t be camping in the park, there are several campgrounds outside its borders. There are also numerous hotels to be found in the towns surrounding the park and of course in the Palm Springs Area.

But for many families, a full-service vacation rental house or condo in one of the 9 Coachella Valley communities might make an ideal base for exploring the wider area.

We’ve found great value in family vacation rentals in La Quinta, a small town southeast of Palm Springs and Palm Desert. It’s on the edge of the Santa Rosa Mountains (I love looking at those mountains) — and also puts you near the the scenic Book Hoff trailhead!). Click here to see available vacation rentals in La Quinta.

Alternatively, you might check for deals at the Cathedral City Hampton Inn & Suites. It has some very large rooms for families, free breakfast, and an outdoor swimming pool with a nice mountain view (we saw snow on the mountains during our stay!). Click here to check availability and pricing for your dates.

2. An Anza Borrego Desert State Park Family Adventure

Approximate drive time: San Diego 2 hours, Los Angeles 2 hours 45 minutes, San Francisco 9 hours

What You’ll Find:

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is a favorite spring break destination for many reasons. One of the best known reasons is the potential for its spring wildflower spectacular (especially in super bloom years!).

Golden brittlebush, beavertail cactus, desert woolstar, wild heliotrope, pink-blooming cheesebush, barrel cactus, and then some. Seriously, how many state parks have a dedicated wildflower hotline for updates? Just dial (760) 767-4684 for the latest updates. (For a great Mojave Desert Wildflower guide, see this book.)

But Anza Borrego is more than a world-famous destination for desert wildflowers. This 600,000-acre park is home to big-horn sheep, not to mention dramatic canyons and badlands, and California’s native palm trees and oases.

Better still, there is evidence of human history and culture here dating back more than 5,000 years (see my post for a fairly easy hike that will lead you to a cool pictograph and kitchen rock!).

And dig this: The Colorado Desert portion of the park to the east has a fossil record dating back 7 million years! This arid landscape was an ancient inland sea teaming with life 5 million years ago?

Good to know:

The best place to start your visit to the park is at the Borrego Visitor Center. The exhibits give a great overview of the flora and fauna (and geology) of the park throughout time. And the rangers will give you updates on the best locations to visit and hikes to do at the time of your visit (and a heads up if there’s anywhere you should avoid!).

Where to Stay for an Anza Borrego Family Vacation

You can camp in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and enjoy its starry dark-sky splendor (make reservations well in advance at ReserveCalifornia.com). Or choose from several campgrounds and RV parks, hotels and motels, and vacation rentals nearby in Borrego Springs–which is literally surrounded by the park. Click here to check available accommodations and pricing in Borrego Springs.

3. The Bucket List Desert Family Vacation: Death Valley National Park with Kids

Approximate drive time: Los Angeles 5.5 hours, San Diego 7 hours, San Francisco 9 hours 20 minutes

Death Valley’s staggering landscapes can surely bend the mind. I wish everyone the opportunity to see its salt flats, sand dunes, jagged peaks, waterfalls both wet and dry, craggy mountains, captivating canyons, and bewitching badlands. (That’s why I included hikes that explore them all in my guidebook!)

Death Valley NP, is in the northernmost part of the Mojave Desert (on the border of the Great Basin Desert). The park actually comprises TWO valleys: the Panamint Valley and Death Valley. However, most visitors enter the park from the east side (from the east / Las Vegas side). And many never make it to the Panamint Valley side — though both sides are worth exploring!

Good to know:

In 1913, Furnace Creek in Death Valley was recorded as the hottest place on earth at 134 Fahrenheit (56.7 Celsius). The record is yet to be broken, though the same location came close again in 2023. As you can imagine, Death Valley NP is no place to take kids in summer! And be warned that it can feel plenty hot already in mid to late spring.

It’s always a good idea to check the weather forecast and plan your sightseeing and activities accordingly. Here’s a sample day in Death Valley:

• Hike in the early mornings
• Do other outdoor activities later morning,
• Visit the air-conditioned Furnace Creek Visitor Center in the afternoon
• Get ice cream and go for a swim in the afternoon
• Visit Artist’s Palette at sunset.

But remember, if there’s any chance of precipitation, steer clear of the canyons — flash floods and mud slides happen!

Also, when you visit Death Valley with kids, your accommodations can make a big difference how you structure your days. Not to mention how much you’re able to enjoy your time there. Which brings me to…

Where to Stay for a Death Valley Family Vacation

There are only two hotels located inside Death Valley National Park. And given the size of the park and likelihood of hot temperatures, I highly recommend staying at one of them.

And for families coming for spring break, I recommend staying one of these hotels in particular. The sprawling Ranch at Death Valley is family friendly and well located for exploring the major attractions. It gives you the advantage of short distances and an early start compared with those staying outside the park.

In addition to air-conditioned rooms and cottages for afternoon siestas (if needed), there is a huge outdoor swimming pool. And you’ll find lots of outdoor areas for visiting, playing corn hole or horse shoes.

You won’t have a kitchen, and the on-site dining prices may make your eyes pop (hello, $20 hot dog). But you will be so efficient with your time in the park with this as your base. And the kids will really enjoy that pool when it heats up! So it could be well worth the high cost of hot dogs for a short stay. Click here to see availability and pricing for your dates at The Ranch at Death Valley.

Get more California Family Vacation Ideas:

• Ten Unforgettable California Family Vacation Ideas
• Sequoia National Park with Kids
• Yosemite National Park with Kids
• Los Angeles with Kids
• Carlsbad with Kids
• Morro Bay with Kids
• See Monarch Magic at Pismo SB
• Greenhorn Family Dude Ranch Review
• Alisal Family Dude Ranch Review
• Review of Safari West African Tent Camp and Wildlife Preserve
• The Best Places to See California’s Giant Redwoods and Sequoias

Get More Family Hiking Inspiration:

• Shelly’s guidebook Hiking with Kids Southern California: 45 Great Hikes for Families
• Anza Borrego’s Best Hikes for Kids – Anza-Borrego Desert SP / SoCal
• The Hike to Whiskeytown Falls – Shasta Trinity / NorCal
• Hike These 5 California National Parks with Kids – and Confidence!
• Hiking Bryce Canyon with Kids
• Bend with Kids – Oregon Family Vacation Guide

Get More Family Vacation Ideas:

• Five Great National Park Vacations for Families
• Six Great Mexico Family Vacation Destinations
• The 6 Best Places to Visit California’s Giant Redwoods and Sequoia Trees

The post Three California Desert Family Vacation Ideas for Spring Break appeared first on Family Travel 411.

Photos from this post are available in my Pismo State Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove stock photo gallery.

What makes the Pismo State Beach Butterfly Grove so special?

The monarch grove at Pismo State Beach is one of the most populous monarch butterfly colonies in North America. Even with the tragic decline in monarch populations over recent decades (down by as much as 90% over 25 years), this grove still manages to host migrating monarchs in the tens of thousands.

When we visited in January of 2022, there were an estimated 16,975 monarchs in the grove that day! Check the information board to see the daily count during your visit, and don’t miss the daily docent talks during peak season (usually 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.) – or just look for them along the path on your visit.

What brings these monarchs to this grove each winter?

California’s coastal eucalyptus groves like this provide the perfect combination of shelter, camouflage, and humidity for overwintering monarchs migrating west of the Rocky Mountains. As you can see, when the monarchs close their wings to rest in clusters, they look like bunches of dried leaves hanging high in the trees.

And rest they should! These miraculous monarchs can fly as many as 200 miles per day during their seasonal migrations to escape the freezing winter temperatures farther north that could kill them.

Seeing them in such high numbers in this habitat, it’s hard to believe that monarchs haven’t always had a tie to eucalyptus trees. However, eucalyptus trees are not native to North America, and they only arrived in California the 1850s–first as envelopes of seeds from Australia promising fast-growing trees!

Before the rise of the (since invasive) eucalyptus groves along the California coast, monarch butterflies relied upon native trees like the Monterey pine and Monterey cypress for winter shelter. In harsh winds and stormy conditions, they monarchs still favor these trees–and the Pismo butterflies have the advantage of Monterey cypress here as well.

But the other attraction of the blue gum eucalyptus to these butterflies is its early winter blooms, which provide a bounty of nectar. When combined with nearby butterfly-friendly gardens, like the nectar-rich native flower garden adjacent to the Pismo grove, it’s no wonder so many monarchs love the location.

When is the best time to see monarch butterflies at Pismo State Beach?

To see the highest numbers of monarchs, park rangers and docents recommend visiting the grove during the holiday season (Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day). But the weather and time of day can make a difference in what you see on your visit as well.

For most of the winter, the monarchs are “clustering” in the eucalyptus trees to stay warm and conserve energy. Since they cannot fly at temperatures below 55 Fahrenheit, they will be least active on colder days or early and late in the day.

When bringing young children to see the butterflies, a midday visit is probably your best bet–and you can time it with a picnic lunch on the beach!

This makes for the most impressive clusters to see, however, the monarchs can also be the trickiest to see with their wings closed up to help them camouflage in the trees (binoculars definitely help here!).

But on warm days, or when the temperature rises at midday, the monarchs stir with bright flashes of their orange wings and can be seen flitting through the grove and to the neighboring garden for nectar–monarch magic!

Can I bring my dog to the Pismo monarch grove (or stroller)?

The Pismo State Beach Butterfly Grove is stroller- and wheelchair-friendly. And dogs are welcome to visit the grove as well–along with the adjacent Grover Beach (just keep your pup on a 6-foot leash).

You can simply walk out of the back side of the grove near the campground and onto the beach. However, you may need to cross a small lagoon en route so be prepared to get your feet wet!

Find out more on the Butterfly Grove’s web page.

Getting there:

The Pismo State Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove is at the south end of the city of Pismo Beach. You’ll find it just off Highway 1 right after passing the campground driving south, or just after Grover Beach if driving north. TIP: If parking is tight, you can simply park free at Grover Beach (near Finn’s Restaurant) and walk to the grove on the lovely boardwalk trail that leads from behind the restrooms.

Note to readers: This post was originally published on October 13, 2022, and has since been updated.

If you’re planning a visit to the Pismo Monarch Butterfly Grove, don’t miss these posts:

Morro Bay with Kids – Family Vacation Guide

Review of the Alisal Guest Ranch at Solvang

Ten Unforgettable California Family Vacation Ideas

San Francisco with Kids – Family Vacation Guide

Review of The Greenhorn California Dude Ranch

Hike These 5 California National Parks with Kids — and Confidence!

Catalina Island with Kids – Family Vacation Guide

Review of Safari West: One Night in the African Tent Camp

The post See Monarch Magic at Pismo State Beach Butterfly Grove appeared first on Family Travel 411.

As you’ll quickly learn on a visit to the kid-friendly Key West Shipwreck Museum, even those aboard the afflicted vessel could at least be grateful that there was a bustling island economy close at hand with their misfortune literally in its sights. And better still, that the new law of the land ensured that all passengers must be rescued before whatever cargo might be aboard.

Note: This post contains affiliate links.

With “wreckers” watching from shore day and night, and some optimistically patrolling the waters, help was usually quick to come. The first to arrive at a fresh shipwreck got to lead the salvage operation and would receive the biggest share of the profits when auction day rolled around.

Of course, the highly motivated passengers were probably the easiest of a ship’s contents to salvage. Removing loot from a sinking vessel wrecked on a reef is not for the faint of heart, and under no circumstances should transporting valuables enough to weigh your pockets down to the bottom of the sea be taken lightly.

If your kids doubt this for a moment, let them get their own hands on this 64 lb. bar of silver which lay at the bottom of the sea for nearly three centuries—and try to lift it for themselves.

Be it gold, silver, emeralds, Italian marble, or an occasional shipload of pianos, reclaiming maritime treasure is almost always a heavy subject it seems. In this display at the Key West Shipwreck Museum, you can see rare illustrations from the 17th century showing some of the old-fangled methods used to locate and access sunken Spanish galleons laden with treasure.

And for the pre-neoprene and oxygen tankless nineteenth century divers of Key West, saving sinking cargo was even more perilous as they often battled the same treacherous seas and weather that wrecked the ships in the first place. Methods had to be fast and effective. Though not too effective.

To the left of these bottles found in the waters around Key West, you’ll see a large earthenware vessel, which was apparently packed with black powder and detonated against the hull of the sunken Isaac Allerton in 1856.

The explosion was so great that it shattered much of the Italian marble remaining inside the ship, leaving worthless fragments of it all around the wreck site to this day.  Remnants of the explosive vessel-device itself were found by modern divers over the course of three years–and over an area spanning hundreds of yards.

Still, what wreckers were able to salvage from the Isaac Allerton before it finally sank to a depth of 30 feet was enough to bring $50,000 at auction–making it the most profitable shipwreck in Key West history.

With news of such fortunes to be made, it’s no wonder that Key West’s population grew from a mere 688 residents in 1840 to 2,645 in 1850. By 1870, the population had doubled again.

Many artifacts from the Isaac Allerton, which was rediscovered by divers in 1986, are on display at the Key West Shipwreck Museum, which stands like a time capsule at the center of town, offering a glimpse of that bustling era of master wreckers and major players for whom many of Key West’s streets are named.

As your visit concludes, don’t miss your chance to climb the 65-foot lookout tower that offers the best views of Key West and your children’s chance to watch for shipwrecks off the historic shoreline. Chances are, the next time you hear someone shout, “Wreck ashore!” it won’t sound like disaster either–just your kids enthusiastically embracing the history of Key West.

If you go:

The Key West Shipwreck Museum is open 365 days a year, from 9:40 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with the last show beginning at 4:40. For location and directions click here. Want to purchase discounted tickets online? Click here.

For the best Key West hotel offers for your dates, check here. And to see family-friendly Key West vacation rentals, check here. And don’t miss our other recommended Key West and Florida activities for families below (with more great family destination ideas).

Traveling with a child under 5 years? Don’t miss “How to Travel with a Car Seat (Without Losing Your Mind)” and my ultimate index to Flying with a Baby or Toddler advice at TravelswithBaby.com.

Reader’s Note: An earlier version of this post first appeared here on FamilyTravel411.com on April 29, 2015. It has since been updated and revised.

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If Cats Could Type in Key West: Our Visit to the Hemingway Home Museum

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Dry Tortugas with Kids: Tips for Your Day Trip from Key West

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The post History on the Rocks: Diving into the Key West Shipwreck Museum appeared first on Family Travel 411.