Fodor’s Family
Boston with Kids

Boston is my favorite American city to visit, and with good reason: 1) There’s so much to do and see; 2) It’s a beautiful place; 3) There’s a ton of history; 4) The food is incredible; 5) The locals are nice; 6) It’s easy to get around; 7) and it’s one of the best large cities anywhere to visit with children. Not only does pocket sized Boston with Kids writer Lisa Oppenheimer know all there is to know about Boston, but she also knows all families need to know to make the most out of a Boston vacation.

I love the way this book starts out. On page 6, there is an excellent map entitled “What’s Where” showing you the basic layout of the city. Boston’s winding roads and one-way streets can make travel here a bit confusing. Had I had this guidebook with me the first time I visited, I would not have had to stop so many times to ask directions. Following the excellent map, you’ll find pages on Bad Weather Plans, If Your Kids Like… Quintessential Boston, For Free and When to Go – all briefly written but containing essential information.

Chapter 1 is all about “Exploring Boston,” and information here is conveniently divided into different sections of the city. This and other chapters contain short quips entitled “Where Can I Find…?” giving you great little tips such as recommending a good coffee house in the Old West End. The best news here is that even though the book caters to kids, every member of the family will love the sites listed here. And every site is marked on the various maps in the chapter, making them easy to find. Hallelujah! (You can tell I’m not a big fan of confusing maps.) Let me interject here and just say that my favorite Boston sites are all in this book – The Freedom Trail, Boston Gardens, the Haymarket, The New England Aquarium, Harvard Museum of Natural History and the Boston Museum of Art.

On to Chapter 2, entitled “Cambridge,” gives you the best of this lovely city as well as MIT and Harvard Universities. Even if your kids are nowhere near college age, you simply cannot visit Boston without a visit to Cambridge!

Chapter 3 is all about “Where to Eat,” while Chapter 4 is about “Where to Stay.” Like all big US cities, Boston has endless choices in cuisine types, restaurant atmospheres and price ranges. Fodor’s does a nice job of listing a wide range of choices for families, and best of all, it is all mapped out – for both Boston and Cambridge. The food in Boston is ridiculously excellent, and the service is pretty darn good. Thank goodness for all the walking Boston requires, so you can burn some of those calories off! Do dine in at least one Italian restaurant in the North End during your visit. This is a MUST. As far as “Where to Stay,” there are also a lot of choices. I like that this book offers accommodations not just in Boston, but also in Cambridge and the outskirts. As we all know, Boston is quite pricey, so I trust Fodor’s when they recommend an affordable place to stay with kids.

There’s much more to Boston than monuments, food, and hotels. And you’ll get a nice overview of those options in this guidebook. Chapter 5 is all about performing arts options. Chapter 6 is about Parks and Sports, and Chapter 7 will lead you to the best shopping in the city. But wait there’s more! There are a few pages entitled “Family Fun.” Here you’ll find a clever treasure map of all the “American Firsts” you can find in the city. What a fabulous family adventure this would be! More fun things to do with kids are also listed here.

At the very end of the book is “Travel Smart Boston with Kids,” containing the essential information for families visiting the area. Any info you are looking for in the book is a cinch to find in the index. And Bravo! I can read every page and map in this book without my glasses. (Just gotta mention again how great all the maps are in this book!) Fodor’s Family Boston with Kids is compact, lightweight and chock-full of everything you need to have an unforgettable vacation. Get it and go.  

Wandering Educators Note:

We've partnered with Fodor's to offer a free shipping discount on any
of their travel guide books. Please click on the link to go directly to
their site!

Book Review: Savannah with Hilton Head and the Low Country

Fodor’s In Focus
Savannah with Hilton Head and the Low Country

Fodor’s is a trusted name in travel guides, with tried and true ratings for restaurants, hotels and sights. Fodor’s pocket sized Savannah with Hilton Head and the Low Country is no exception. Edited by Douglas Stallings,
this is an essential guide for any traveler who wants to find the best
this destination has to offer without the hassle of combing through a
heaping pile of information. And despite its compact size and light
weight, there’s no skimping on vital information.

The book is divided into 8 chapters, which are conveniently marked for the reader with tabs. Each chapter contains “Close-Ups” which gives the reader more detail about special places, restaurants and hotels worth visiting.
The book starts with a short intro of Savannah and a bit about its
history before transitioning into the heart of sightseeing. There’s no
shortage of historical sights and remarkable architecture in this
oldest city in Georgia. I enjoyed the page with “Best Bets” and the easy-to-read street map with clear markings of all the recommended sights.

The third chapter in the book, and one of the most important, is all about where to eat. I say it is important because Savannah has some of the best food I’ve ever eaten anywhere – no only in the US, but in the world.
In fact, now would be a good time for me to suggest that you eat
lightly a couple of weeks before your visit. Because if you are like
me, you will likely put on a few pounds while you’re here. I
regretfully recall being unable to button my jeans upon leaving this
city of great eats after my last visit. Southern food is really good.
No scratch that – it is supreme. Fodor’s guide will let you know
exactly what to expect at each restaurant, how it is rated, and what it
will cost you to eat there. And you don’t have to spend a fortune to
eat well here.

Of course you’ll need to know where to stay when in town, and
in Chapter 4 you’ll get a run down of the best of the Historic District
as well as other places around town. You’ll find inns, B & Bs as
well as traditional hotels. The map on page 64 will help you figure
where exactly the accommodations are situated.

In the brief Chapter 5, you’ll get an overview of the arts and the nightlife of the city, followed by a chapter on sports and the great outdoors. Shoppers will want to read Chapter 7 to learn about the city’s shopping districts and a list of specific specialty shops worth a look.

Visitors who have time to explore nearby Hilton Head, South Carolina and the Low Country, can check out Chapter 8. You’ll get a succinct briefing on where to stay, where to eat and what to do.

At the very end of the book is Travel Smart Savannah with the
all-important information about getting there, getting around there and
other travel essentials. The handy index at the back of the book will
make it easy to find what you are looking for. The print throughout the
book is easy to see. Yeah! And although there are no photos weighing
this book down, the concise information is exactly what you’ll need to
plan an extraordinary visit you’ll remember for years to come. Savannah with Hilton Head and the Low Country is
affordable, effortless to carry, easy to use, and it gets the job done.
Go out and get one today. Just remember what I told you about the food.

Wandering Educators Note:

We've partnered with Fodor's to offer a free shipping discount on any
of their travel guide books. Please click on the link to go directly to
their site!

Debbie Glade/smartpoodle is the Geography Awareness Editor for Wandering Educators