Sequoia National Park

Walking with Giants

Oh man. Never have you had a humbling experience quite like this one. Somehow, these trees pretty much command you to be reverent as you walk through them. Tyler and I did the most epic backpacking trip you can imagine passing through these giants. We loved walking through the center of fallen logs without even bending over and discovering a rare snow plant. It took about two days for us to stop pointing and calling out every time we saw those walls that turned out to be trees. We saw a bear not even 20 feet away. Everyone should visit this incredible place that helps you understand an ants perspective. Breathtaking!

Tip: Learn about the amazing life cycle of the sequoia trees. It makes their presence much more impressive.

Visiting Sequoia National park with Kids

I can’t WAIT to bring my own kids here. It’s such a stunning place and so easy to share with young ones. The first time I personally ever saw a tree this big was a moment I’ve never forgotten.

Tip: This National Park feels like a forever long drive. Stop at the Foothills Visitor Center to break up the trip.

Tip: Keep your eye out for sequoia pinecones. They are actually much smaller than you’d expect.

Tip: Look for wildlife along the edges of meadows. This is where we saw the bear.

Uxmal, Mexico

We would say that Uxmal was the biggest surprise of the trip. It is HUGE. I’m not sure why this place isn’t more famous…  It’s not to be missed.  They had gone to extensive lengths to reconstruct massive courtyards and rows of temples and arches. Lizards longer than my arm stood guarding the stone like sentinels on every corner and massive fruit bats filled the dark places. They smelled SO bad in there! The dryer climate made it so once we climbed to the top of a temple we could see s long ways off. We were glad we got nice and hot exploring Uxmal so we could go cool off in a cenote afterwards.

Tip: Don’t miss this place.

Visiting Uxmal with Kids

Tip: These ruins are an excellent option with kids. There’s loads of space and grassy areas for the kids to run around. You are also allowed to climb on almost all the ruins, so they are free to explore. The big lizards and bats are easy to find and would be memorable for little ones.

Tip: Plan to cool off in some sort of cenote nearby–it was super refreshing after the hot day at the ruins. We recommend this one https://walkabout.travel.blog/2019/04/04/mexico-cenote-swim/, although it’s a bit of a drive.

Mexico Cenote Swim, Kankirixche

Visiting this cenote was a dream. Cenotes are water caves scattered all over the Yucatán. We had the whole place to ourselves and the water was crystal blue. The water was so smooth and clear, it created some sort of magnifying glass and made it look more shallow than it actually was.  It was actually very deep. We climbed up on the viney staircase and jumped into the sapphire water. I liked hanging onto the stalactite when I got tired. Swallows swooped around like racehorses keeping the bugs down. The water was the perfect temperature cool and clean. We had a blast messing around this incredible natural swimming hole.

Tip: Make sure you find a small, less famous cenote to swim in. There are dozens all over the Yucatan. Having this whole place to ourselves made the experience unforgettable.

Visiting Kankirixche with Kids

Tip: It’s a bit of a long dirt road (30 min) to get to this cenote. The remote feeling is worth it though.

Tip: This particular cenote was only a couple of dollars a person and had several platforms you could jump off into the water. This makes it fun for kids and teenagers to challenge themselves.

Belize, In a pickle

We drove our car into a mud hole and got VERY stuck. Bumper coming off, dark, raining, jungle on both sides, the works. I jumped out into the knee-deep sludge to try and push it out.  The water was almost deep enough to spill into the car. Stuck. Fast. It was dark and it was raining.  We were in the middle of the jungle.  Who would you call? Yeah, we called the only living person we knew of in Belize–our AirBnB host.  This woman should get a medal or something.   She sent her husband and son out to give us a boost. After the fact, we found out they missed their little sister’s ballet recital to help us.  What champions!  Tyler looked over at me and solemnly said,  “I’m glad we finally decided to get insurance on the car.”

Tip: Go with AirBnb. That way, you’ll have a contact in the country to turn to if you need to.

Belize

We LOVED exploring Belize! We saw hundreds of little crabs right near this sign. The ruins there are less regulated and we were free to crawl all over Xunantunich. Ruins are WAY better if you’re allowed to climb them.  We saw parrots, monkeys, an alarming swarm of ants, and explored ancient passageways. I even saw a toucan fly past! We had to put our car on a small ferry to get across the river to the ruins. These temples were designed to be tall enough to see over the jungle and you could see a long ways. I’m not surprised that many ruins remain undiscovered–the jungle is thick, steep, and deep. I don’t know who would trek through miles of jungle in hopes of finding a ruin. They just look like one of the hills with all the jungle that grows right on top of it.

Tip: Xunantunich was our favorite ruin in Belize. It’s pretty far south–almost to the Guatamala border. It was definitely worth the drive.

Visiting Belize with Kids

Visiting Belize with kids is like a secret treasure vacation idea. There is so much to do and the national language is English. There aren’t too many people and things are reasonably priced.

Tip: I hear the snorkeling trips out of Belize are world ranked. We wish we would have done some of that.

Tip: Don’t go to the national bird refuge there. It was more like a run down neighborhood on a random island in a brackish river. We did see some fun birds though…

Tip: Watch out for crazy speedbumps. They lurk in unexpected places without so much as a sign.

Tikal, Guatemala

Truly an adventure! Our inner Indiana Jones came out as we prowled through these ancient ruins. Structures were a solid 20 minutes apart at a brisk walk/run through deep, lush, dense jungle. The 4 hours that the taxi driver gave us didn’t even let us begin to scratch the surface of this incredible place. (Not to mention the wild roller coaster ride of a drive it took ta get there.) We hit most of Tikal at a run and ended up gasping for air on our way up the gazillion steps to the top of one temple. These incredible raccoon/monkey animals called coatis walk close by like stray cats. We heard a clatter in the trees high above us and looked up to see what animal could be up there and only narrowly dodged poop bombs sailing down from monkey snipers. We LOVED crawling all over everywhere we were allowed to and everywhere we weren’t allowed to. Rainbow turkeys flutters around and a capybara trundled past. Thick vines covered the ridges of sacred tree trunks that turned us into tiny ants. A place of mystery and adventure like I’ve never seen.

Tip: Do not underestimate how huge this place is. The temples take some time to walk between. Give yourself plenty of time to enjoy it. We left ourselves 4 hours and it was not near enough time.

Visiting Tikal with Kids

Tip: Bring plenty of snacks and water for the long walks between ruins.

Tip: Keep your eye out for a coati! They really add to the experience.

Tip: Since the site is so large, there’s plenty of room for advensuresome kids. Although there is limited climbing right on the ruins themselves. Rangers stand around to enforce this.

Snorkeling in the Florida Keys

We drove on the Overseas Highway from island to island until we were in the middle of the ocean! We essentially drove to some Caribbean islands.  It’s incredible how they could build a road like with ocean on both sides for most of the drive. We found our own little cove to explore the marine life–jellies, sea fans, loads of brightly colored fish, and mangroves. Beach combing is so calming and we found some great stuff! It was a place unlike anywhere we had ever been. We picked up a seafood dinner right on the harbor at one of those seaside restaurants you always want to stop at. An incredible day. 😎🏝

Tip: A great place for free snorkeling in the keys is called “The Horseshoe.” It used to be an old coral mine and the sheltered edges provide calm water even on windy days.

Visiting the Florida Keys with Kids

The Florida Keys are like visiting the Caribbean without leaving the states! You can give your kids a taste of the islands on a longer drive from Ft Lauderdale. Since you still get the comforts of America while still tasting that Caribbean flavor, it’s the best of both worlds.

Tip: The horseshoe is an awesome option for kids since it’s so sheltered on both sides. Kids can explore all the marine life without unknowingly being swept far down the reef.

Tip: Bring plenty of sunscreen.

Journey to Aguas Calientes!

We BARELY caught our tour group to Machu Picchu! Delayed flights are a real problem in Peru. The train ride was incredible–the glass roof felt like we were sitting in a moving fish tank. The way the scenery slowly turned from arid to rainy jungle was surprising and fascinating. We explored all over the little town of Aguas Calientes. It is an absolutely beautiful place–we loved looking for orchids and birds. Mostly we just enjoyed finally being there.

Tip: Take the nice train–the glass roofs were essential.

Traveling to Machu Picchu with Kids

Tip: Taxis are inexpensive in the city of Cusco and they take you right where you need to go. You can take public transportation for cheaper, but it’s worth the extra few dollars for a taxi.

Tip: The journey from Cusco to Machu Picchu is several different steps: a bus ride from Cusco to Ollantaytambo , a train ride to the town of Aguas Calientes, and another bus ride to the ruins. I recommend finding a tour agency. They organize everything for you and it was slick–they took care of us even though our flight was delayed. We went with a group called Viajes Cusco and they did a good job.

Tip: From Aguas Calientes, you can either hike or take a bus ($24 USD round trip per person). We decided to save the fifty bucks and hike it.

Machu Picchu

Yes. It’s just as good as I imagined. Better.

So much to explore and it truly defies comprehension how they formed these stones to fit together so perfectly–like so many locking pieces. And why at the very top? The mystery of it all is that nobody knows. Our calves were killing us by the end of the day. It was such a beautiful place and the Andes mountains create a perfect amphitheater to present the emerald city of Machu Picchu–like the center jewel in a crown. You better bet we poked our heads into every possible nook and cranny we could find. And there are a LOT of nooks and even more crannies.

Tip: BRING BUG SPRAY. Wish I had.

Tip: If you like stamps in your National Parks Passport, they have a really awesome one you can do. And if you really like stamps like we do, they will stamp the entrance stamp into your passport too.

Visiting Machu Picchu with Kids

Tip: You are allowed ONE entry into the ruins and there are no bathrooms inside. Terrible planning on their part–time yourself well. This particular aspect would make this a difficult site with kids.

Tip: There are lots of stairs and not much shade, but plenty of places to sit down on the walls and boulders around.

Tip: There’s plenty of space for kids to roam around. We were surprised how spacious the site felt. Thousands of visitors come every day, but you still find yourself walking through deserted corners of ruins.

Tip: The site is designed as a kind of one way route through the ruins. They have rangers around to keep people moving in this general direction. Since the whole city is a kind of maze, you somehow pop out at the end and say, “Oh no! We wanted to go back to that one spot.” Then you can’t seem to find your way back with all the one-way signs and rangers waiting to blow their whistle at you. So don’t plan to return to any part of the site–take in everything you want from each part before moving on.

Sacsayhuamán, Cusco

You can’t fit a knife blade between these stones. And they aren’t small. HOW they managed to construct these citadels truly baffles. The idea of UFO involvement doesn’t seem so far fetched when standing next to these monster stones all evenly placed by a people who who didn’t even use the wheel. Incredible place .  This amazing site is right outside of Cusco and not expensive.  It’s a great option for families with young kids.

Tip: Just take the public bus around these sites. It comes around regularly and you just stick your hand out for it to stop. It’s a fraction of the cost.

Visiting Sacsayhuaman with Kids

Tip: This is really an excellent option with Kids–it’s not as remote and iconic as Machu Picchu, but equally as impressive and memorable. It’s super easy to get to and has lots of open grass for kids to run around on.

Tip: You can’t just visit one of the sites around Cusco–you have to buy it as a day pass. So you might as well take a day and visit them all. With kids, you can pay a taxi to be your driver for the day ($40) or just flag down the yellow public bus that frequently drives the loop between the sites. It didn’t take longer than 10 minutes for a bus to pull up–super easy to do. Ask the locals at the sites to point it out.

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