Are you an expert vacation planner, or do you like to travel last minute? Have you been dreaming about a destination for years, or do you travel to where your dreams take you? Who’s the winner here? The person who is out traveling and on a great adventure is definitely winning! I love to plan our trips, and am not too happy when we do something last minute or plans change. So, that means we have our travels planned out for this year, and I’m excited to share with you where we are traveling to in 2018!
The kids have a day off of school in January, so we are going to check out the new Great Wolf Lodge in Bloomington, MN. This hotel and water park opened up in December, and we can’t wait to see how much fun it is! We have never been to a Great Wolf Lodge before, so this will be a first! Since we will be right by the Mall of America, we will just have to stop by for a visit, right? Seriously, how mean would it be if I just drove by without stopping?

One of my favorite signs! Photo credit: Mall of America
My husband and I have a quick trip to St. Paul, MN in early April to watch the Frozen Four. I’m looking forward to some good food at Cossetta’s and some exciting college hockey!
This spring, I’ll be heading south to Clear Lake, IA for my first travel blogging conference. I can’t wait! Stay tuned for all sorts of info about family fun in the Midwest!
June will find us in a new town for a wedding. We are heading to northern Minnesota to Giant’s Ridge ski resort. The resort looks beautiful, and we hope to check out the golf course while we are there.
Have you ever traveled somewhere that doesn’t have wifi, running water, or even electricity? It’s definitely an experience! We will be taking a fishing trip to a beautiful lake in Ontario, Canada and hope to catch some fish and pick alot of wild blueberries that are abundant up there!
In August, the whole family (and extended family), will be road tripping to Colorado. We will spend our annual week in Estes Park, and hike our way up and down the mountains in Rocky Mountain National Park. This will be our first visit where we are renting a house! It will be so nice to have the extra room, and I can’t wait to recover from my hikes while lounging on the awesome deck of our house.

Will you agree that Mill’s Lake is the prettiest lake in the park?
We’ll also spend a few nights at Keystone Ski Resort in Dillon, CO and visit Breckenridge and Vail. I love visiting ski resorts in the summer because they are so much fun! It’s going to be a fantastic trip and we can’t wait to see the mountains!
For the rest of the summer, we have a lot of camping trips planned around northern Wisconsin, plan to spend some time along the north shore of Lake Superior and Duluth, and maybe will head to Madison for some family fun.
The fall will have us spending a weekend in Minneapolis for a concert, and we still need to plan another trip for when the kids are off of school.
We are still trying to decide where we are going to go in December, but we are leaning towards the Bahamas. We loved our first visit to Atlantis, and think this trip will even be more fun since the kids are older. We also want to spend a couple of nights at the new Baha Mar resort.

We hope to have another awesome trip to Atlantis!
Hopefully we’ll throw in a few more quick trips to Chicago, La Crosse, and other great destinations in the Midwest.
Well, those are our plans, and it looks like we are going to have a busy year! We can’t wait to share the fun we have, and inspire you to visit many of the great destinations in our country!
Where are your family’s travels going to take you this year? Share your destinations with us, because there’s always 2019….
Stop dreaming, and start traveling!
Whenever we’ve gone to RMNP, we’ve always stayed at the Y camp. My husband was fly fishing on the Big Thompson in there when some elk came into the water very near him.
Our favorite lake is DREAM Lake. Absolutely love it!
Having said all of that, the most fantastic NP I’ve been to is Glacier. The Going-to-the-Sun Road is touted as the most beautiful drive in America and I would have to agree! The water there is like the Caribbean.
I would love to visit Glacier, but for some reason we always find ourselves planning a trip to RMNP! The Y camp is a fantastic facility for anyone visiting the area!
Well I moved to Spain so I could spend free time traveling. My big goal is to save so I can go to Iceland in June! I’m super excited!
Have fun!
Oh, also forget to mention, go to Casa Bonita in Denver, your kids will love it. The inside is like a cartoon version of Mexican village, with cliff divers and strolling mariachi bands.
Oh…we’ve been there! Check out my post of Food Firsts in Denver…it sure was a crazy place! Thanks!
While you’re driving around the Rockies, I’d recommend a short stop in Leadville for lunch or something. Cute little town and was also the first capital of the state.
And in Estes Park, there’s the hotel where Stephen King was working when he wrote the Shining. So obviously a must see spot. Enjoy!
Thanks for the suggestions! I’d love to visit the Stanley Hotel, but I’m not sure if my kids are brave enough yet!
LOoks like you’re going to have a super fun year! Can’t wait to read all about it 🙂 my kid loves great wolf lodge so I’m sure you’re gonna start with a bang!
Thanks Magaly! We are so excited for our upcoming trips! Enjoy your 2018!
So many fun trips planned! I leave for Mexico in a couple weeks & then I am going to Canada in April.
Xx,
Amanda || http://www.fortheloveofglitter.com
Mexico sounds wonderful right now! I’m tired of Winter! I hope there’s electricity and running water on your trip to Canada!
I am currently in St Vincent and the Grenadines and traveling to Madrid next!
Sounds fantastic! Enjoy!
Love the Midwest (Michigan girl here!). I always wander northern lower Michigan in the summer. Heading to San Francisco, NYC and Austin for sure. Enjoy your exploring!
Thanks Heather! Have a great 2018!
Looks like you have a lot plan. Have fun on your adventures.
Thanks!
Some amazing inspiration – would love to see the Rocky park!!!
Thanks Lydia! Rocky Mountain National Park is my favorite park!
I’ve been to Ontario, but none of the other places you’re going. They sound amazing! My husband will likely travel to Croatia for work this year, and I’m hoping to come, too!
Visiting Croatia would be awesome…I’ve been seeing a lot of travel info about it and it seems like the place to go!
You sound like a Midwest Traveler after our own hearts!
We live in Mankato, MN and love getting to LaCrosse, Madison & Duluth when we can.
We’re also attending the blogger conference in May. It will be great to connect.
Thanks for the comments Kelly! Can’t wait to meet you in May!