0  | 

I found this helpful Thank You! Your vote will be tallied soon!

Springtime fun in Brussels, Belgium (Scarborough photo)

Kinda blew that one, didn't I? Spring break has (mostly) come and gone, and although I had the best intentions about writing a post or two with recommendations, I just didn't quite get to it. 

That might be because I was busy helping launch the Perceptive Travel blog, where I'm one of three writers talking about all sorts of cultural aspects of travel and getting to know the world around us.  You might enjoy my thoughts on the secret places in north central Florida, around Gainesville.  Gators, spring-fed pools, the novel The Yearling....it's all there.

The Perceptive Travel webzine also featured a fun article by Laurie Gough about what happens when you used to be a carefree world traveler, and then became a mother.

Hey, maybe it's not too late to plan Spring Break;  we'll just call it Memorial Day long weekend planning instead!  Let's get to it....

Teresa Plowright at About.com's Travel with Kids has a good laundry list of family travel deals for April; several should still work for Memorial Day.  Check out Kelby Carr's family travel site on Suite 101 -- she has s'more ideas for camping, too.  So does Andrew here, in the Travel section of the Family.com site.  Planning a group trip?  Consider TripHub to help sort out itineraries and planning for a far-flung family; there's even the Group Trip Advisor blog, with destination guides.

What the heck, these spring break spots for families still sound good even when the heat is on, and balmy spring is just a memory.  If you're flying coach, though, don't leave home without reading travel guru Wendy Perrin's advice on comfort aids for coach, which is a short version of her full article from Conde Nast Traveler magazine.  Fortunately there's also an article right here on Family.com about layovers in family-friendly airports.

Have Florida on the brain?  You could do worse for info than the award-winning Miami Herald Travel Editor's blog, Travels with Jane (Wooldridge.)  She just sent some postcards from the road about her discoveries and finds in Florida.

You probably won't hit Europe over Memorial Day weekend, but if you're in the throes of summer or fall trip planning for Europe (including Italy, perhaps? Looking for unusual European lodging?) read these words of wisdom from Rick Steves.

Whatever you do, try to remember to pack lightly -- the airlines are getting fierce about overweight/too many bags.

Technorati tags:  travel, family travel