Tour Operators
 |
 |
Backroads
web: www.backroads.com | phone: 800-462-2848
At Backroads, we believe in the profound rewards of traveling the world actively as a family. Exposing our kids to different cultures and landscapes and showing them the places where the stuff of history books actually happened, and having a ton of fun together in the great outdoors. With over 500 biking, multisport and culturally rich Insider trips departing year-round and around the world, there is sure to be something for your gang.
|
 |
|
Classic Journeys
web: www.classicjourneys.com | phone: 800-200-3887
Classic Journeys' family trips to more than a dozen destinations around the world are family-scouted and kid-tested. We scout the tours together with our 10- and 12-year-old children, and we listen to their feedback. We also offer the most guide-intensive family travel. All of our guides are local residents. And every tour has guides for the adults and for the kids. The kids and their guide "get their hands dirty" riding mountain bikes, going to gelato tastings. Adults and their guide visit the vineyards and can take longer walks that might be too much for kids. Both groups come together for plenty of shared activity as well.
|
 |
|
Tauck World Discovery
web: www.TauckBridges.com | phone: 800-788-7885
Tauck World Discovery's family travel specialists, Tauck Bridges, offers fun-filled family vacations in the world's most exciting places, including North and South America, Europe, and Africa, providing priceless opportunities for families of all ages and generations to truly connect with one another.
|
Travel Agencies
 |
|
Valerie Wilson Travel
web: www.vwti.com | phone: 212-592-1218
Kimberly Wilson Wetty is Co-President of Valerie Wilson Travel, one of the largest privately owned and operated travel management companies in the US. This mother of two (ages 8 and 4) knows what it is like to travel the world with her kids. Always on the look-out for family friendly destinations an resorts, it is no surprise that Conde Nast Traveler has voted her a specialist in Family Travel consecutively for the last 4 years. She is also contributor for mytravelingbuddy.com and sits on the Advisory Boards of Travel+Leisure Magazine, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, Classic Vacations and Cambridge Beaches. Kimberly specializes in premium and luxury travel and her planning fee begins at $150 per person, per trip.
|
Villa and Apartment Rental Agencies
 |
|
HomesAway
web: www.homesaway.com | phone: 800-374-6637
HomesAway has been providing the quintessential villa vacation in Europe since 1990. Whether you are traveling as a single family, multiple families, or a large multi-generational family, we provide the exquisite properties, experience, and comprehensive planning services (including Local Hosts) to ensure that you have an exceptional, family-friendly villa vacation. Come join us and find out how we can help you step into the 'local rhythm of life'.
|
 |
|
Homebase Abroad
web: www.HomeBaseAbroad.com | phone: 781-639-4040
The splendor of Italy. The chance to truly relax and explore, gather and celebrate with family and friends for the vacation beyond compare. Offering luxury family villa vacations since 1994, Homebase Abroad utilizes its extensive knowledge and expertise ofthe villa vacation travel industry to build vacations that guidebooks cannot provide. Homebase Abroad has become an expert at creating and building family vacations that are customized to each individual family. Careful attention is given to the make up of each group ensuring that the home is the best to satisfy all of the needs and wants of each family. Whether creating a scavenger hunt in Florence, pizza or chocolate making in your villa or daily Italian lessons, HBA enjoys working with you to create those memorable experiences that live forever.
|
 |
|
Just France
web: www.justfrance.com | phone: 877-343-3351
Just France has assisted over a thousand families since opening in 1991. We personally inspect and qualify every property before offering it for rental, assuring that the only surprises encountered upon arrival will be pleasant ones. Our staff of knowledgeable and enthusiastic Francophiles can help you select the perfect property, be it a farmhouse in Provence, a villa along the Cote d’Azur, a bastide in southwest France, a chateau in the Loire Valley or an apartment in Paris. Spending a week, two weeks or even a month or two at a property in France can impact a family in unexpected and profound ways. Children benefit from the appreciation of another culture and language and are sure to be intrigued by the differences between their own home and their vacation home in France. They can also be dazzled by simple things like the amazing array of treats and sweets found in the window of any patisserie (pastry shop) or the sights and smells of the local farmer’s market. About 40% of our rentals each year are from repeat clients, and some families have rented with us four and five years in a row, creating indelible memories for each member of the family. We invite you to discover our collection of superior and luxury properties by visiting our website or giving us a call.
|
Guide and Activity Providers
 |
|
One Step Closer
web: www.OneStepCloser.net | phone: +39 055 59420
Jump into Italian culture with tours of private art collections, medieval villas, museums, personalized jaunts, art courses, art restoration lessons, cooking classes, and wine tastings in Florence/ Tuscany, Rome, and Naples. Escape into nature on a sail boat or mountain bike trekking through hills and woods. We create customized itineraries for families and make sure every age group shares the fun. We can even help with reliable and trustworthy babysitters so parents can enjoy some adult time!
|
 |
|
Context Travel
web: www.contexttravel.com | email: info@contexttravel.com
Context is a network of scholars and experts in various fields who design in-depth "walking seminars" in many cities around the world, including: Paris, Rome, London, New York, Istanbul, Venice, Florence, and Naples (Italy). Many of the docents in the Context network are museum educators, teachers, or trained in inquiry-based learning. They have put together a series of family walks in several cities that draw on the latest approaches to on-site learning to craft amazing experiences for parents and their children. The emphasis is very much on the children themselves, and Context's objective is often to find ways to get them excited about art or archaeology or whatever material they’re dealing with. But they don’t forget about the parents and that this is a group experience. And, so, the activities and methods employed seek as well to get the whole family involved in a collective learning experience. The docents in Context's Family Program are all trained in Visual Thinking Strategies. Many of them have taught children of all age ranges or are parents themselves, making them uniquely equipped to bring the city and its rich history to life for travelers of all ages. Handouts, interactive activities like sketching, and other materials are often employed as teaching tools on- site.
|
 |
|
Canadian Mountain Holidays
web: www.canadianmountainholidays.com
phone: 1-800-661-0252
Canadian Mountain Holidays' Heli-Hiking adventures were designed to reconnect kids and families with our natural environment. We believe that a powerful and vivid and positive experience in nature is the key to creating caring and bright stewards of the land. Family Adventure vacations include helicopter flights that take families and their guides from deluxe mountain lodges to remote alpine lakes and glaciers for amazing activities and fun.
|
Babysitting Agencies
 |
|
Babysitters4hire
web: www.babysitters4hire.com | phone: 402-379-7811
Babysitters4hire is owned by Nannies4hire, with more than 20 years of experience. We've made hundreds of thousands of families and nannies happy. And now we're doing the same with babysitters.
|
 |
|
Sittercity
web: www.sittercity.com | phone: 888-748-2489
Sittercity.com, America's most trusted online sitter network
makes it quick, safe, and simple to find quality child care. Find the
perfect sitter with sitter profiles that feature background checks,
parent reviews, references and more. Your perfect sitter is just a
click away!
|
 |
|
Angels Association
email: staffinitaly@yahoo.co.uk | phone: +39 06 6782877
Angels specializes in carefully selected multilingual nannies and babysitters. Qualified and experienced staff are always available for families traveling throughout Italy.
|
 |
|
Sitters Studio
web: www.sittersstudio.com | phone: 646-246-6024 New York
email: book@sittersstudio.com | phone: 312-890-8194 Chic.
Sitters Studio provides families with experienced, engaging, artistic sitters. Artists may be actors, singers, writers, and painters, to name a few. The sitters come not only with childcare experience, but also a tote of artistic toys ready to engage the children in interactive and creative play. Sitters Studio is an insured and bonded agency.
|
|
|