The Wonderland - A Kingdom for kids

Location : Lancester, PA

We made the trip in the month of August. The park opens at around 10am and has ample of parking space. Plus the parking is free. Eatables are not allowed inside the park. But there is a small seating area , a pavilion ... close to the parking space where you can eat and go. They allowed us to take a few snacks and juice...but sandwiches / lunch items are strictly prohibited.

The Castle entrance into the Wonderland is a highlight, ..the first thing you would notice and a perfect spot to take a quick picture.. The price of the tickets...so reasonable. $30 per ticket and kids under 2 is free. And soon you will discover how reasonable the ticket price is and how totally worth the trip is :-)

You can rent out strollers inside the park. We took a double stroller for $10.

From the time we stepped into the park, we were surrounded by lot of lil kids, colorful rides and could hear fun , giggles and laugher all around. My kids were so excited, they got on every ride.

The following are some of the things the 4 n half yr brother and his 3 yr old sis really loved -

* The train - that gives a quick tour around the park

* The Merry-go-round

* Fun Slide

* The Turnpike

* Dukes Dozers

* Sky Ride

* Monster Trucks

* Whip It

* Space Shuttle

* Boat ride

* Kingdom Coaster

* Bumper cars

* Crazy Plane

* Frog Hopper

But there is one thing... there are huge lines in front of each ride. You have to wait awhile for your turn. Some take a little longer. This kinda waiting can tired little kids, most importantly. So be sure to come equipped with water and some snacks.

And don't forget a hat and a pair of sun glasses for the kids and for yourself... because sometime the waiting line gets extended under the sun.

The big show that we highly recommend to anyone going to Dutch Wonderland is "The Adventures of the Frog Prince". This is a a high-dive water show that is not only entertaining in theatrics but stunning in the sport of diving and especially high-diving.

Make sure you are aware of the splash zone! and if u don't get wet, the performers make sure u do :-) Its a Musical story about a Princess and her 3 suitors who are frogs. The Acrobatic performances are simply awesome.

Food, Water, ice creams are available in the park. The prices are reasonable too. There are small seating areas where u can sit and eat. Restrooms are clean and equipped with diaper changi

ng stations.

If you love water parks...there is one here too. Its called - Duke's Lagoon. The place is very much a kids water kingdom with plenty of playground structures complete with water sprayers, water geysers and huge bucket dumps that will keep the kids running around. The good part is - flooring of the water playground area is a rubber matting material that

is not only serves as padding but reduces the potential to slip.

The Lagoon has a bigger play area for older kids , a small one with mini slides .. for infants and little kids and giant water slides for people of all ages to enjoy! So be sure to get some swim wear for yourself and the kids. We loved hopping around in water. But its terrible crowded and you are lucky if u can find a spot.

Another notable is the The Royal Rompers; a roving horn band that plays tunes and involves their audience in games and fun. They were very animated and entertaining .. played very well. Most of them are kids favorite songs comprising of Eeya eeya oo and itsy bitsy spider...etc. We had fun listening to their tunes :-)

We ended our trip by taking a walk across the bridge on the other end of the park. A place with gardens, fountains and wonderful scenic view.. called "The Island". A best way to sit back and relax a calm cruise ride around the gardens.

Although the Park is apt for kids of all ages, I highly recommend it for families with younger kids ... who usually miss out on rides in regular amusement parks. There are few rides the older kids enjoy too. Some rides need a Parent to accompany the kids. The rides are very age appropriate and my kids are already looking forward to another day @ the park :-)

Our Choo-Choo Train Ride

Location : Ronks , PA

We discovered the place through a friend. My 4-n-half yr son loves trains and we wanted to take him on a coal-burning steam engine train just like in his story books.

We took the train ride on a mid day - Sunday. The weather was nice. The place is about an hour n half ride from Philly. There is a train every

one hour starting 10 AM in the morning till 7 PM. So you can be sure you won't miss the train here :-)

There is ample of parking space once you make the turn into the station. My first impression about the Station was - "Wow!!" It almost feels like a small town. Very neat and maintained well. There is ice cream, a small cafe, gift shop and some fun things to do while waiting for the train. Tickets are reasonably priced. They accept credit cards too. We chose a "Open Car" since it was warm , sunny & breezy that day.

We were there a little early and had lot of time for our train after we purchased the tickets.Right across the road is

Strasburg Rail Road Railroad Museum of PA. Anoth

er must-see place!! The entry ticket is $10. The place has huge engines and trains from old times. Nah...am not talking about miniatures/exhibits .. am talking about the real deal!! Huge trains and Engines of all kinds. If you are a train Lover .. you should visit this. The place is well-maintained. A Great Place to learn lot about trains - dining cars, freezer cars, sleeping cars etc. A walk through the History!!

The Museum also has a small Play area for kids with lot of toy trains...the kids can operate with a remote control. We spent a lot of time there.

Soon it was time for us to go on the Ch00-Choo train .. we were waiting for. We purchased ice-cream and popcorn before we went on

board. The train started with a whistle and the ride was amid Amish farms and houses. The ride is about 30 minutes and the train also stops at a picnic place for anybody who wants to get down and resumes its journey. This picnic place has wooden tables and chairs...but there is no food available. You have to get your own food. Since there is a train every other hour, you can always board a train thats going back towards the station.

Although the ride seems short, the Picturesque of the farms and houses on the either side make it a pleasant experience. There is a Guide on the train who talks about the various things to look out for...including a "Ghost train" :-)

You can spot Amish villagers in their horse carts every now and then .. all around the station. Wave your hand and they wave back :-)

If you happen to forget a camera, there is a photographer on board.. who can take one for the whole family. In spite of having a camera, we had our picture taken. (One small suggestion - Please choose wallet size picture if you happen to take a picture with the photographer. The picture on the computer looked good .. but the quality was bad when the final thing came out. so watch out!! )

Overall a day well spent. A little something for everyone.

You can get more info here :

Railroad - www.strasburgrailroad.com/

Muesum - http://www.rrmuseumpa.org/

Our 3-day Orlando Trip

We made this trip in the month of October. My in-laws had come from India during that time and we wanted to show them The Sunshine State.

Visitors : Me and my husband, our two kids - 4 and 2 year olds and my in-laws .. who were senior citizens.

Planning the Trip-

Oh yea...we definitely looked for the best flight,hotel and car deals on several travel / trip planning websites. But some how we ended up doing everything separately.

Booking a Flight : My husband could afford only a day's leave. Because of that constraint, we initially planned to leave Thursday night and that way we could stay in Orlando .. friday, saturday and sunday... and probably return sunday night. But then when we tried looking for a deal on few of those trip planning websites .. we found the prices to be exuberant! So after a lot of thought and juggling around ... we found a good deal - a Saturday early morning flight and a return flight on Tuesday early morning. That plan worked for us and the rates were economical too. We purchased the tickets a month ahead and it costed us .. $150 per ticket , 2-way.

We found our flight deal @ http://www.airtran.com/Home.aspx

Booking a Hotel : We googled for hotels, resorts and villas. We liked the Villa idea much better than others. The way it came equipped with a kitchen , jacuzzi and feeling of a home away from home with all those basic amenities...excited us. Plus the place where we decided to stay had a 3rd night free.. so the total cost was 80 bucks per nite, which we felt affordable.

We stayed @ http://www.mystic-dunes-resort.com/

Booking a Car : Since we are so many people, we preferred a mini van. "Enterprise" car rental rented us the van for $60 per day.

A Double stroller Rental: I now feel so glad ..we did this. Instead of carrying those bulky strollers all the way from where you live is so tiring mentally and physically.. esp when u are travelling with two small kids , so much of baggage with crowds, delays, security checks etc, this idea is so convenient.

Umbrella strollers is seriously not recommended for your Orlando trip. Especially if you are tall and the idea of bending and pushing those strollers and even the maneuvering is very very tiring and difficult! Consider a rental instead. Free delivery and pick-up to your hotel/resort. Assembling & dissembling is easy too!

Stroller rental @ http://www.abbf.com/ for 3 days costed us less than 50 bucks.

An ECV rental : Since my in-laws were both around 70 yrs old, we initially thought of a wheel chair option. But then the idea felt not very convenient. Then we came across this ECV idea, it was a instant sense of relief. The scooter operation is super simple and we rented one scooter for 3 days. My in-laws took turns riding it around the parks. Free delivery and pick-up to your hotel/resort. Assembling & dissembling is easy too!

ECV rental @ http://www.scootorlando.com/

The Trip -

TiP : Don't expect to be all warm and sunny in Florida. We had packed all sorts of shorts/capri pants and tanks for the florida weather. But we ended up wearing the fleece jackets and . pants, we traveled in. All the 3 days we stayed...was chilly :-)

On Saturday, our flight was at 7:00 AM. We left home early and everything was on time... Thank God..! We reached Orlando around 9:30 AM. We had bought a portable GPS device with us and back home .. we punched in and saved the addresses and destinations we will be visiting while in orlando. So as soon as we hopped into the van and buckled up , all we had to do is choose the destination and Voi-la!!

We first headed to our resort .. dropped the bags and refreshed. Picked our ECV and strollers. Then we went to Woodlands , a south-indian authentic cuisine which took less than 30 minutes from where we stayed.

Yummy Indian vegetarian/vegan food while in Orlando : http://www.woodlandsusa.com/

Day 1 : Saturday - EPCOT

After a sumptuous lunch buffet Saturday noon, we headed to EPCOT. It was around 12:30 PM by the time we reached the place. While purchasing the tickets, we mentioned the ECV at the counter and were given privileged parking which was so close to the parks. Even though you don't have the Handicapped parking sign on your vehicle, you will be given the privilege... all you have to do is ask for it.

After parking the van, we took out the ECV and strolled out and got in the line for the shuttle to take us from the parking lot to the EPCOT center.

TiP : All the time when you are in Orlando, keep a camera , handy cam or both handy .. you won't regret it :-)

TiP : Orlando being the tourist destination .. is always crowded, anytime of the year. Something to expect and be prepared.

The ride took us less than 10 minutes and all through the journey , an enthusiastic guide on the shuttle kept cracking jokes and told us the history of EPCOT and what to expect inside. We then waved him Bye, got down and headed towards the center.

One thing we did not do ahead of time was to purchase the park tickets. At that time we weren't sure what we were going to see and when and what day. I wish we had made up our minds and bought them online ... because I heard the park ticket prices keep changing everyday and usually we end up paying the top price , if we buy them at the entrance. and another disadvantage - waste of time !!

TiP : Decide ahead what do you want to visit and when. Purchase the park tickets ahead, online.

EPCOT center has two parts : Future World and World Showcase. We first checked out Future world which has fun and non-scary rides - fun for everyone.. all ages - indoor.

The order of attractions/rides we visited inside Future world :

1. Innoventions

2. Circle of Life

3. ImageWorks – The Kodak "What If" Labs

4. Honey , I shrunk the Audience

5. Journey Into Imagination With Figment

6. Project Tomorrow: Inventing the Wonders of the Future ( This one .. I personally enjoyed )

7. Mission : Spaceship Pavilion ( this ride is for adults only)

There are a few more attractions which we didn't cover. Be sure to check out the website & plan accordingly. http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/parks/epcot/

TiP: Expect huge lines and crowds before each attraction. But then the good thing is 'the wait' is not too long :-)

TiP : Be sure to check out each attraction timings. Some finish up too quickly so check them out first.

TiP : Come well equipped with water and few snacks. Number-1 : these stuff are very expensive in the park and Number-2 : huge lines.

As we moved further into the park .. we saw a small lake in the center of the EPCOT center. All around the lake are spread are pavilions .. you will find the second part of EPCOT .. The World showcase . There is a boat ride every 20 minutes that takes you on back and forth. Its the easiest way to see all the pavilions if you are too tired to walk. We opted for the boat ride since it got very chilly by then. We clicked a few pictures here and there , while on boat.

Lastly, there were fireworks near the water. Since it became cold , chilly and dark .. we watched them from a distance and made our way to the shuttle.

You can't agree more with what the Shuttle guide had to say about EPCOT on the way back . EPCOT stands for Every Person Comes Out Tired ... and I can't agree more !!!! :-)

We dined @ Woodlands again and while going back to the resort, we made a quick stop at a local supermarket and bought milk , coffee powder , sugar , cereal and of course water.

TiP: If you have older people travelling with you , esp if they are from abroad and dislike the food we get outside, I highly recommend to -

#1: get a room with a microwave at least and #2: buy Food from the store which are easy to prepare and do not involve lot of ingredients and less effort. After all you are on a holiday and you don't want to spend too much time in the kitchen.

[When we stopped at an Indian store in Orlando, we bought some of these - Priya's Ready-to-eat Upma mix, MTR masala rice kinda stuff (which u can either mircowave or put the pouch in hot boiling water) and from frozen section - Udipi 's Dosa and Idlli boxes. It was easy and turned out tasty too :-) ]

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Day 2 : Sunday - Universal Studios

We made some heavy breakfast comprising of some ready-to-eats and frozen stuff .. we bought a day before, and headed towards Universal Studios. Thanks to the privileged parking , we got a parking very close to the park entrance. In spite of that, we had to walk a bit. There are moving walkways all along the way. Since we had a stroller and ECV, we opted to walk instead. The walkways end near the Universal's City Walk entrance. Visitors need to move through the City Walk in order to get to Universal Studios.

It was a little chilly and windy that day, so we were all wrapped up. We purchased the tickets and this time we purchased Express plus passes (for moving ahead in line attractions without waiting).

TiP: Its advisable to buy Express Plus Passes. Its totally worth it .. especially while travelling with young kids / older people. You can get pass the long lines for attractions. It saves a lot of time & energy ..!! ( for more information , check out the website : http://www.universalorlando.com/Tickets/tickets_2.aspx#page=Tickets_special-offers_UniversalExpress_expresspluspasses.html&expID=13-5805&contentID=13-1152&seq=1 )

The order of attractions we visited while in Universal studios :

1. Shrek 4-D

2. Terminator 2

3. Twister

4. Men in Black

5. Jaws

6. Jimmy Neutron's Nick Jr. Blast

In between the rides, we grabbed the lunch on the go... a few sandwiches , cake and biscuits we took with us.

TiP: On and off .. visitors are visited by characters like scooby-doo, dora , simpsons etc.. and people stop to take pictures with them. But again lines. With so many attractions , rides etc .. its not possible to see everything. So if you have only one day designated to the Studios, plan ahead and decide what you want to see and skip.

TiP: The shows and attractions start at different timings. Each attraction has a walking distance of at least a mile.

TiP : The park closes on different times on different days. Make sure to check the calender on the website and plan accordingly.

The things we skipped included a The Blue Man Group show. The ticket for that show is extra. All these attractions below are the ones we decided to avoid. These are kind of thrill rides .. so there is spinning , sudden movements , roller coaster kinda fun. Watch out -

Revenge of the MummySM

Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster®

The Simpsons Ride™

Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit

E.T. Adventure

TiP : Food and beverages are expensive. Plus long lines and wait to buy food. Time saver - get your own stuff...eat while you walk .. save time.

TiP: The Gift shops and Souvenirs are expensive too. Its too tempting to buy everything you see.. but just stick to some thing/ character you adore the most and invest in it :-)

On our way back.. stopped at a local Indian grocery store and bought some ready-to eats for the next day. Later, we grabbed some take-out dinner at a restaurant and headed back to our Villa.

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Day 3 : Monday - Sea World

We left early finishing breakfast at the villa. We purchased our tickets and made our entrance into Sea World. After taking a few steps , we saw a scary , super fast roller coaster ride - Manta..!!! All you coaster fans... you would definitely go crazy!!

The order of shows we attended while in Sea world :

1. Clyde and Seamore Take Pirate island

2. Believe - Shamu Show

3. A'lure - Call of the ocean

4. Pets Ahoy

5. Blue Horizons

TiP: The shows have specific times, at most 3 a day. So its advisable to attend the shows first based on their timings and later go for the exhibits.

The Shark Encounter was the best of the best. Be prepared to click a lot of pictures .. the Shark tunnel has a moving walkway and before you know .. you are outside. Again, there is lot of walking inside the park.

I was keen on visiting the Sky Tower , but unfortunately that day it was closed as it was a little windy.

We purchased a few souvenirs and headed back to our villa. On the way back, we stopped at a restaurant for dinner, went back..packed for the next day.

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Early tuesday morning we left for the airport.

Adventure in the Aquarium

Adventure Aquarium, Camden - NJ

Home of two dozen sharks in 760,000-gallon open-ocean tanks, 4,000 aquatic animals and a great 4D show about aquatic life.... made us think probably a trip to the Aquarium would be a ideal weekend get away for the kids and us :-)

My kids 3 yr old boy and 18 month old daugher ... know what a "fish" is and are fond of THE Famous Nemo :-) Back at home, at my parents house ... we have a small Fish Tank at home. My dad loves fish and during our visit sometime back, my kids spent endless time looking at the colorful fish and sparkling water. It used to be their favourite pastime.

So , last weekend ... the great sunny, warm weather prompted us to get going. The drive took us less than an hour to get there. The good part about the Adventure Aquarium in Camden is that it allows strollers. I know Baltimore aquarium doesnt permit strollers. I remember how difficult it was when we went there during the time my son was less than 6 months old. We had to carry the infant car seat and My God! it was tiring !

The place :

The parking is very close to the aquarium and it costed us around $10. Its walkable distance from the parking to the aquarium.

The ticket counter had long queue and it was crowded. While standing there with the kids, the wind made us feel a little chilly and I really wished we had bought atleast some kind of fleece with us. The ticket costs about $20 plus the tax and the 4-D show is another $5 bucks extra. Below 2 yrs old - its free and above 2 its $15 pluz tax and 4-D extra.

My son also got to wear this fancy hat too ... since it was Hippo's birthday that day .. Hippo names Button's Birthday Bash! That cheered him up and the sight of all the other kids wearing similar hats.... excited him :-)

The Exhibits :

The Aquarium exhibits are divided into 4 blocks - A, B, C & D. Except for the block - D where the Shark Canal is ... most parts of the aquarium that displayed the exhibits had a dim light. The place seriously lacks adequate light to read signs explaining exhibits.

The exhibits are very poorly labeled or not labeled at all. The names and information about the exhibits are on top of the exhibits , close to the celing ... the place, most people would miss or not look at all! At one point through the light-less cave, I felt I was looking at the same type of fish/sharks over and over again :-)

The path through the exhibits is kinda narrow and crowded. The reluctant visitors surrounding the exhibits .. who did not want to move and then the strollers that either kept knocking onto other strollers or people walking beside them ..... almost made it even more difficult to move around. It was a sort of bumper car things going on there ;-)

If this is the case with me ... imagine the kids!! My son was soon bored and wanted to go home and it was more or less the same thing with my daughter too. Since it was the Hippo's birthday that day, there was loud music playing. The kids were playing with paper and watching the orchestra play. The Aquarium Staff dressed up as sharks and other animals were dancing and posing photos with kids. I guess all these things scared my son off .. especially the costumes. He totally freaked !!!

Then the D-block. Finally some light!! The huge room where they keep the hippos was packed with people. There was not even an inch of place for us to even take a peek because of the birthday thing going on. I should tell you...the place was very stinky.

The Shark Tunnel is the next exhibit ... the one I enjoyed,

personally! Before entering the Tunnel ... it says the capacity should'nt exceed more than 43 people. But I should say there were lot many people there and there was no one who kept a check on it ... so enter at ur own risk ;-) But the pictures we took there were awesome...its worth a stop :-)

Food :

The food is highly overpriced. The cost for 2 adult and 2 children is around $30 to eat there, and we really didn't get anything much to eat. Most of them are deep-fried snacks or sugary / creamy cakes/pie s kinda stuff. I would say it would be ideal if you can get lunch packed from home or from you fav restaurant. The seating area inside close to the cafeteria is crowded and noisy, something to expect that with the mass of children and families. The outdoor seating area would be ideal as it looked much quieter and got a lot of sun! We sat outside by the water and since the weather was

pleasant... its a nice spot to sit and relax. Ofcourse .... just hope there is no body smoking around you. You can see the Ben-Franklin bridge from there. Its a perfect Kodak location :-)

4-D show :

Soon it was it wme for our 4-D show. They ask us to go in 10 minutes before the show starts. The strollers are not allowed inside. The moment u are inside ... the visitors are made to wait. The waiting room is not big enough and with everyone inside... it made the place very very crowded. Becasue of this, me and my husband had to carry the kids while standing. It was very tiring! Once inside the theatre, before you start getting comfortable... the show is over! My piece of advice - - Don't waste your money on the 4-D shows .. the 17 minutes of good-for-nothing movie is really not worth the $5 extra..trust me!

The Gift Shop :

The shark tunnel area ends up dumping you in an incredibly large gift shop. The place is huge , colorful and well- lit ;-) Secure your wallets while making you way through this tempting area!! The place is too expensive. The sooner you can find your way out of the exit ... its that much better ;-)

Overall Experience :

We all were pretty tried by the end of the day. We had a different kind of adventure with our kids. After a few exhibits, my son got tired looking at the same fish again and again. He was bent up on leaving the place as soon as possible ... thanks to the shark costumes ... some staff were wearing. Soon we were pushing the empty strollers through the crowds and each of us were carrying the kids as they didnot feel like walking anymore ... that tired us..totally! I felt my 18 month and 3 year olds might be too young for this aquarium

Unlike some of the reviews I read online , the place is highly overrated. The re design of the building is not done in the right way. I felt the place around the exhibits was very narrow and small. At the same time... there are empty places in the aquarium which look wasted. I just felt that the entire place was very boring and not as interactive as I would have expected. The place best suites kids who are a little older may be.

On the other hand, we had our fun by the water side... took some pictures ... kids got out of the house and saw something new. The warm weather is compliementing! Most of all...we all spent quality time together :-)

My Ratings - 2 out of 5