Tuesday, June 24, 2008

It's the Most WonderFALL Time of the Year

I'm looking outside my window, and I feel a bit like the little kids on The Cat in the Hat. It's been raining all day, sometimes sideways, others straight down, but it all adds up to one thing...a day spent inside.

It was fortuitous that I got an email from Mom Central about Beaches' Resorts WonderFALL celebration. It's often hard to plan one more thing to do in a summer that is jammed with activity. Beaches has thought of everything for you, as they're running a special that will help intice you to travel this Fall. Right now when you stay 5-6 nights (between September 1 and November 4, 2008) in any one of 4 locations, you'll get 1 night free, and if you stay 7 nights, they bump it up to 2 free nights! Next to planning my dream home, I love to plan dream vacations, so I immediately went to the site and started to click away. I have to admit that while I was browsing, my attention was initially focussed on the 'honeymoon' and 'girlfriend getaway' packages and not on those that included taking your children with you.


Last year, J and I went to Maui while Granny and Papa stayed with H at our house, and it was the best vacation I've ever had. While I know that I'll treasure the memories created at future family trips, I've always felt like it was really important to continue placing importance on the relationship that made you a family in the first place.


Those sentiments aside, I rolled over to the "Fall Family Fun" and found that they're doing a whole Elmo/Sesame Street themed getaway for families, as Beaches is a sponsor of the beloved PBS classic. Ever the consumate viewer of PBS kids, this was something I already knew, and have to admit that those commercials are such smart marketing, as I'm sure I'm not the only mom sitting at home bleary-eyed with lack of sleep with her kids from about 5:30am until 9 when we turn off Super Why.


Oh yeah, and the vacation is obviously on a beautiful island resort and is all-inclusive...how could it get any better than that?!


Perhaps the most family friendly feature was found at the very bottom of the page; an offer for single parents to receive up to $190/night in savings, making it more affordable for them to take that vacation on a single income.