We started our two week family trip yesterday, flying from Seattle to Boston. It went smoothly, relative to past outings, and we'll be touring Boston for a few days before driving out to the Cape. Some key items for this year that have helped traveling cross-country with three small children:
- Portable Media Players for everyone, loaded up with a good selection of films; sticker books, magnetic chess and other items are fun but this helps slice two hours off the trip. This year I made sure to get headphones for everyone (over the ear for kids, not in the ear!) at Radio Shack for $7.99 each.
- Suite - we booked a suite in Boston. It makes a huge difference with two queen beds plus a pull-out full sofa bed. Plan ahead and you can get one reasonably cheap, although it may not be in your ideal location. We chose Embassy Suites.
- Rental car "club" - I noted the Emerald Club from National in an earlier post. Just take the shuttle from the airport to National, pick a car (in our case a luxury SUV), and drive off. One less line to deal with and after flying across the country, one more line is something you want to avoid.
- Camera phone with Shozu - in addition to the "real" camera I am also using a 2 MP camera in my HTC Vox with Shozu to upload casual pix automatically to my Flickr feed for friends and family to see. Cool way for them to stay up to date in real-time! If you don't have a Vox you can do this with your new iPhone. Oh wait . . . you can't.
- Attitude - relax, dude. Kids sense anxiousness and just accept that you will not see everything, or close to it. Just enjoy what you are doing.
Today we'll explore Boston via the "T", or their local subway system. Great way to absorb a city and avoid driving/parking hassles.
Have fun on your trip! Two restaurant recommendations on the Cape: The Breakfast Room in West Dennis and The Red Cottage Restaurant in South Dennis. Both have excellent breakfast.
Posted by: Peter | July 01, 2007 at 08:36 AM