Bar Harbor, Maine is the perfect town to spend 4th of July. We love the pancake breakfast, the parade, and fireworks.

If I could choose one place to spend 4th of July every year for the rest of my life, it would be in this beautiful town.

A review of Palm Suite, Rome, an SLH hotel near the Colosseum.

Traveling during Christmas can be expensive. Here’s how we visited Rome and Milan on a budget using our points and miles.

A 1-week itinerary for exploring Finland at Christmas.

Start at the Christmas Markets in Helsinki and then end with reindeer, snowmobiling, and ice-floating in Lapland.

Stockholm is an incredibly family-friendly city with lots of engaging and fun museums for young children.

Learn about our stay in Stockholm and our 5-year-old’s favorite activities.

If you live on the East Coast of the U.S. and near an American Airlines hub like we do, then you will want to make sure that you are stocking up on points that will help you get across the country or across the Atlantic.

American has great deals where you can fly from the East Coast to Europe for 30,000 points or fewer. You just have to plan in advance (or hope for a last minute deal).

Scandinavia is EXPENSIVE. Here’s how we were able to afford our Christmas holiday in Helsinki, Rovaniemi, and Stockholm.

How much does it really cost to visit Santa Claus Village? How does one visit Lapland on a budget? To be honest, I do not know! We attempted to visit Lapland on a budget, but it was challenging to complete our bucket list AND keep things affordable. Snowmobiling across a frozen lake, and being pulled around in a sled by reindeer is not cheap. We spent 4 days and nights in Rovaniemi, Finland in December of 2024. We stayed over Christmas, so that definitely increased our costs.

Edinburgh, Scotland is one of our favorite capital cities to visit. It has the perfect blend of history, culture, and family-friendly museums packed into a walkable area. Our first visit was in August of 2018 and we enjoyed the famous Edinburgh Fringe Festival. (If you have older children, then I would look into attending during Fringe).

For our second visit, we stayed for 4 nights in June and planned about 48 hours of activities to keep our 6-year-old daughter engaged and happy.

Here’s our favorite museums, activities, and restaurants in Edinburgh that can keep the whole family happy.

Read about our kid-friendly morning in Paris.

If you are looking for one place to add to your Paris itinerary and are traveling with young children, then I recommend spending one morning in Luxembourg Gardens (in French- Jardin du Luxembourg). Your child can have a quintessential Parisian experience and the gardens offer a nice break for parents who want to escape the hustle and noise of the city.

If you are looking for a beautiful winter getaway AND you want to visit a European Christmas market without the crowds, then look no further than Helsinki. We loved our two days and night in this capital city. Read on about about family friendly trip.

A concise itinerary for 2 weeks in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

If you need a place that checks off boxes for both adventure-loving adults and fun-loving children, that will not 100 degrees in the summer, then the Dolomites is it. South Tyrol, this area of Northern Italy is one of the most beautiful places we have visited and features Germanic influence and a confluence of Austrian and Italian culture.

If you are looking for a beautiful place to spend a weekend while visiting Washington, DC, then look no further than The Wharf. We had a great overnight visit at the Intercontinental and were surprised at how family-friendly a city hotel could be.

Malahide Castle made it to our list because it is touted as a kid-friendly castle due to it’s fairy trail, diverse food choices, and small castle (which is easy to navigate in a tour). The playground at Malahide is also extensive and suitable for kids from all ages.

When people think of Dublin, they might first think of pubs and not add it to their family trip to Ireland. However, we thought Dublin was a great city to visit with our daughter. We felt welcomed in all restaurants, and it is an easy city for walk around. If you are roadtripping around Ireland, you will probably want to spend more time in the countryside, but you should not skip Dublin and the surrounding area.