One of the best summer activities in Switzerland is hiking through the Alps. You see people of all ages and abilities enjoying the endless jaw-dropping mountain scenery on foot.

It’s easy to set off with babies and toddlers in carriers or backpacks — more challenging is motivating school-age kids to go for any consequential distance. Fortunately, our Swiss friends have thought through this …

The Wild Animal Park in San Diego has a new name, Safari Park. This rebranding sets the perfect tone for experiencing the park as unlike traditional zoos, the park is set up like a safari with expansive enclosures, letting the animals roam as if on a game preserve.

Like going on safari, there are many ways that you can enhance your visit to the park. You can simple visit for the day …

A family safari in Africa is extraordinary in every way. I’m not a fan of flying (in airplanes or otherwise), but the offer from Bateleur Camp to organize an early morning hot air balloon ride over the Masai Mara with Skyship Company was too compelling to pass up.

These photos don’t lie, this adventure was absolutely phenomenal.

Every once in awhile we do a Photo Friday post that has nothing to do with traveling with kids. This week is one of them. For a good reason … I’m a moon junkie and will drive long distances to watch the full moon rise. This week I didn’t have to go far to get a dose of moon magic.

We are lucky enough to live on the shores of Lac Leman (Lake Geneva) and have a view of France (Evian) from our bedroom window. The full moon setting across from us was so bright that it woke me up.

Exploring places off the beaten path is one of my favorite things about traveling. But planning a family vacation with a tour operator makes that a little difficult. It’s hard for a destination to have that undiscovered, almost exotic allure when you’re walking in a group of 30 or more. Hard, but not impossible.

When we went on our family trip to China, Guilin amazed us all. It was the part of the tour that lead us to the Li River, in other words, tourist central …

Of all the animals we saw on our family safari in Africa … guess what interested our 8-year-old the most? Believe it or not, it wasn’t the lions — even when we were lucky enough to see a kill in action.

Birds!

Surprise, surprise. Birds are extraordinary in Africa and come in all colors, shapes, and sizes. This is part of what captured his interest, but the other factor was …

I read an article recently about the rapidly dwindling number of California sea otters (they don’t know why this is the case yet) that left me sad. As a native Northern Californian, I grew up appreciating our spectacular coastline from Monterey to Big Sur. This is home to the much-adored sea otter.

I took 1,300 photos on our recent family safari vacation in Kenya and Tanzania. Enough fodder for Photo Friday for the next few years!

I’ll be judicious, however, and just feature the photos of moments that really wowed us. I’m going to start with a biggie — photos of a kill from start to finish. Witnessing one of Africa’s great cats hunt is absolutely fascinating and elicits a range of emotions: excitement, joy, sadness …

I’ve never met a traveler who doesn’t love Hawaii. Yes, it can be touristy but like all destinations that are popular — it is that way for a reason. Each Hawaiian island has it’s own brand of beauty and appeal. This magic is captured perfectly in these wonderful Hawaii photos from bloggers around the country.

One of our readers on Best Family Travel Advice asked a question about where to eat with kids in Paris. One of my suggestions for kid-friendly dining is to stop by La Grand Epicerie de Paris. Talk about a wide selection of fixings for a picnic, the array of wonderful, foods is staggering … and fun to peruse.