Picking vacation destinations has always been a challenge. I have a super intellectual 16 year old and a 14 year old adventurer, both boys. We are planning a trip down the Grand Canyon in a few years which will appeal to both, one for the physical challenge and one for the rock formations. If you guys have children like this, I'd love to hear what your group loved to do. We were also thinking of a trip to Europe, riding the rail to different places but I'm not sure what we could do there for my adventure king. Ideas local or international are appreciated. Thanks!!!
For your European trip, check out Interlaken, Switzerland, a huge extreme entertainment destination. How about Costa Rica? Zip lines, scuba diving, volcano hikes, rainforest, museums, ancient cultures, rafting?
Have you been to Yellowstone National Park? It is one of my favorite places on Earth! Check out the Yellowstone Association web site. They have classes that you can take as a family. (My dad took one of their classes for teachers many years ago and still talks about it.) They are usually four days and involve adventure (hiking, animal observation, boating) and education (geology, ecology, conservation, forestry). The classes are led by rangers and/or scientists. The cost is kind of high, but the price is pretty much all inclusive. Kids have to be at least 12 for almost all of the classes. I'm looking forward to when my kids are old enough. There are tons of things to do in Yellowstone, Teton National Park, and the Jackson Hole area to fill out a week.
Just remember that Yellowstone is a beautiful, but deadly place if you don't follow the park rules. There have already been two deaths in Yellowtone this summer. Both 100% preventable if the victims had followed the posted signage! I've seen videos of at least a dozen more who did asinine things and just lucked out that they also were not killed. It is unbelievable the stupidity of people this summer. (Sorry for the rant. Having grown up near Yellowstone it really ticks me off the way people have been acting in Yellowstone.)
A friend went to Rome and her daughter went to a kids gladiator camp while she toured architecture.
Check out what they have to do ahead of time. Let your intellectual son research and enjoy the history of the place visiting museums. For the active/physical son be sure to check out all of the active things to do in both places like bike riding, zip line, boating, rafting, riding. In Europe you can rent bikes, those street gliders you stand on & ride around.
