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American Morning
Where Families Are Finding the Most Kid-Friendly Fun This Summer
Aired July 22, 2002 - 09:40 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ARTHEL NEVILLE, CNN ANCHOR: Come late August or September, when the talk turns to "what I did on my summer vacation," you'll want the children to have some exciting stories to share with their classmates, right? So listen up, mom and dad, we are going to get the scoop on where families are finding the most kid-friendly fun this summer, from Mark Orwoll, managing editor of "Travel & Leisure."
And right up front tell us the favorite cities am parents and kids.
MARK ORWOLL, MANAGING EDITOR, "TRAVEL & LEISURE": Well, I am going hold off a little bit of surprise here.
NEVILLE: Oh, come on.
ORWOLL: Here's what we did, we did a survey in association with American Online and "Travel & Leisure Family," our spin-off magazine. And over 100,000 people voted in the survey about the best places for hotels, the best places for sightseeing, the best places to get a bargain, which is what everybody wants to know about.
NEVILLE: Oh yes, of course, we need a deal.
ORWOLL: And so we published the results in the July issue of "Travel & Leisure" magazine.
NEVILLE: Let's get it now. Kid friendly hotels? Where will I find them?
ORWOLL: It's got to be Orlando. And indeed that's what people vote on for the kid-friendliest hotel cities. This is a place with a huge array of accommodations to choose, from whether you want small inexpensive mom and pop hotel to something really lavish like the new Royal Pacific Hotel at Universal Studios. There are great deals that are hard to find.
What I found -- this is really interesting. In the summertime, you are going to pay top dollar most of the time. I went on to a Web site called disneydollarless.com, and a found a deal, $20.02 for the Courtyard by Marriott. This is just adjacent to downtown Disney -- $20.02, this is for the 100th anniversary of Walt Disney's birth. That's a weekday rate. And anyway, lots of great accommodations to choose from in Orlando. NEVILLE: You need that. Let's talk about sightseeing -- where am I going to find the best sightseeing for the kids, and parents?
ORWOLL: Number one is Washington D.C. And let's face it, there are enough memorials, monument, museums for a lifetime of family vacations. It's even getting better with organization like Children Concierge, which runs a program called "Good Night, Mr. Lincoln," at the Lincoln Memorial, with games, and sing-alongs and activities. Good deals Summer of Freedom Savings in Washington D.C. Go to Washington.org, online, you will find thinks like the Best Western, New Hampshire Suites, where you'll pay for two nights and get the third night for free. A whole bunch of deals, all throughout Washington D.C. this summer.
NEVILLE: OK, that's good news, because we need deals, which is where I'm going now.
ORWOLL: I know where you're going.
NEVILLE: Where do we get the hookup?
ORWOLL: The very, very best place to find deals on family vacations is Las Vegas. Now, you know, 10 or 15 years, they made a big push to get more families to come.
NEVILLE: Right.
ORWOLL: So places like Circus Circus started having fire- breathing acrobats and trapeze artists, and now you can get water parks, IMAX theaters, roller coasters atop the 909-foot high tower hotel, Stratosphere Tower.
NEVILLE: Yes, I won't be going on that, by the way
ORWOLL: No, neither will I, but it looks like fun.
Great deals in Vegas. Go to their Web site, to the Las Vegas Convention of Visitors Authority Web site at vegasfreedom.com. You will find all sorts of deals. Airfare is great going with America West. They have deals -- $193 include round trip airfare from Minneapolis, including three nights at the Circus Circus hotel. You can get it for as little as $121 from L.A., again, on America West. So lots of great ways to get bargains in Vegas this summer.
NEVILLE: That makes sense. I'm wondering, though, I'm sure Vegas has some really good kid's concierge programs set up. because they want the parents to go inside and gamble while the kids are having fun.
ORWOLL: Keep the kids amused, let the parents spend, spend, spend. I know you can save money one place, but you can blow it someplace else, on the tables.
NEVILLE: Real quickly, though, can we still utilize these opportunities now, these bargains? ORWOLL: Yes, but the one at Disney, I wanted to mention, actually begins on August 11th, runs through October 3rd. All the rest of these deals are in place right now. Go on to the Web sites. It's the best place to get a sense of what the deals are. Talk to your travel agent. They can book the trips for you.
Mark Orwoll, thank you very much.
ORWOLL: You're welcome. Nice to be here again.
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