What would seem more ‘Old World’ authentic this holiday season than a trip to a little Bavarian village nestled away in the mountains?  You could enjoy the seasonal cheer, do some unique Christmas shopping, cozy up to a fire, sample the local fare, or get out and hit the nearby slopes for some world class skiing.  I know just what you may be thinking. A European vacation is definitely not in your travel budget.  Especially this year.  Fear not, if you are visiting the Seattle area this winter you can experience an “authentic” Bavarian trip just a couple of hours away in Leavenworth, WA.

Leavenworth Bavarian Ice Festival - Fireworks Finale

Leavenworth, population 2500, is a favorite Seattle area tourist destination.  Faced with a struggling economy in the early 1960’s, the town rallied together around their Alpine setting in the Eastern foothills of Washington’s Cascade Mountain range with a vision to transform their hamlet into one with distinctive European appeal, Bavarian architecture, and an abundance of Bavarian themed festivals and attractions. This vision paid off as Leavenworth has become a Washington State tourist Mecca attracting more than a million tourists each year.

Leavenworth offers a unique shopping experience with plenty of storefronts selling Bavarian themed gifts such as nutcrackers, beer stiens, and handmade wooden toys.  There is also an abundance of art and photography galleries, candy shops, and fine restaruants sprinkled throughout the town which make exploring a real treat.  Wintertime is a special treat, when the quaint village is decorated for the holidays and often coated with a sugar-topping of snow.

The wildly popular Christmas Lighting festival was a few weeks ago, but January offers another popular Levenworth event: The Bavarian Ice Fest (January 17, 2009 – January 18, 2009).  Here is the description provided by the Chamber of Commerce:  “A weekend grab bag invigorating outdoor events including, snow sculpture, tug ‘o war, ice cube scramble for kids six and under, the great Frisbee sweep, and Leavenworth’s famous Smooshing Contest, a unique race peculiar to the Great Bavarian Ice Fest. The Smooshing contest is held on Front Street with teams of four having their toes strapped to 8’ long boards trying to maneuver and glide down the street tandem style.” Sounds like a blast to me!   The Ice Fest also includes the Northwest Dog Sled Pulling Competition, a snow fun fest at the Winter Sports Club, live music and a fireworks finale.

Smooshing Competition

In addition to its shopping, culture, and holiday events, Leavenworth also offers a full range of nearby recreation activites for winter or summer travelers.  For those visiting in the wintertime, you can take advantage of world class ski lifts by stopping at Stevens Pass or nearby Mission Ridge. I have snowboarded ‘badly’ both sites and can vouch for the excellent quality of the smaller runs, as well as the snowboarding lessons for kids (and adults) at Stevens Pass.  Other winter recreational activites include dogsledding, guided snowshoeing, sleigh rides and music festivals.

During the warmer season, vacationers can use Leavenworth as a base camp for a full range of outdoor activites including camping, river rafting, mountain biking, climbing, hunting and fishing and plenty more. Stevens Pass offers summer bike trail riding packages, which are followed by food and drink in Leavenworth.  Or, you can rent a summer cabin on Mission Ridge to enjoy summer hiking, biking, boating or kayaking on Columbia River or Lake Chelan.  I personally like a shorter Winter trip, so I’ll spend a night in town, and hit the slopes at Stevens Pass on my way back to Seattle.

To reach Leavenworth from Seattle, travel north to Washington Highway 2 and follow it through the scenic Cascades, over Stevens Pass and down into the town. There are an abundance of hotels, motels, and B&B’s to fit your lodging needs but be sure to book early as this is a popular destination.

All in all, Leavenworth, Washington offers a perfect mix of culture, shopping, and recreational fun.  If you are looking to get away for a fun vacation, loaded with interesting activities on a minimal travel budget, give Leavenworth a try.  It may just become your favorite vaction destination.

*Photos courtesy of Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce

Parts of New England are getting up to three feet of snow this week. Can you say white Christmas?

Because of Christmas and the New Year, there’s also a week off from school for most kids at the end of this month. Can you say Christmas vacation?

For a lot of folks, a winter vacation means skiing. And, although some of the best skiing in the country is admittedly in the West, some of the best family destinations for skiing are in New England. These six states offer nearly ninety ski resorts with a wide range of trails for all levels, great scenery, local attractions, and activities for downhill skiers, cross country skiers, snow boarders, snow mobilers, ice skaters, and even non-skiers looking for great amenities like spas, indoor pools, game rooms, and great restaurants and entertainment.

Everyone has their own “top ten” or “best” list, and there are some notable exclusions here.  Stowe, for one, is usually in any list of top Vermont ski resorts.  The five here, however, come up again and again as the top New England destinations for family skiing.

Smuggler’s Notch

Skiing at Smuggler's Notch in Vermont

Located in Vermont, Smuggler’s Notch is a year-round resort that has been catering to families for over thirty years.  My own family and I have even visited in the fall.  With indoor pools and hot tubs, game rooms and play rooms, child care, great restaurants, indoor and outdoor activities, entertainment, on-site lodging (rooms with one through five bedrooms are available) and more, the resort is a great hub any time of year for visiting Vermont attractions. For skiers, three peaks—each appealing to different skiing and snowboarding levels—all lead to the base village.

Okemo

Also in Vermont, Okemo offers over 100 trails with most for intermediate skiers. Not to leave anyone out, there are also novice programs and a few runs for advance skiers. Other family attractions include a wide variety of kids’ programs, a snow park, snow tubing hills, and an ice skating arena.

Bretton Woods

The Mount Washington Hotel in New Hampshire

Located in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, this is the state’s largest ski resort with over 430 acres of skiable terrain—including both downhill and cross-country skiing. Bretton Woods specializes in creating beginner and intermediate runs for family skiers. Again though, the advanced skiers won’t be left out. Bode’s Run—an expert’s only run—was designed by Director of Skiing, Olympian and World Cup Champion Bode Miller. In addition to great family programs and activities, Bretton Woods also offers a variety of accommodations that include The Mount Washington Hotel—one of New England’s finest.

Killington

Another Vermont resort, Killington is the largest in the East.  Like other great family destinations, Killington also offers something for beginners, intermediate and advanced skiers.  Because of its size, the resorts attracts more than just families.  But also because of its size, there’s a whole lot to do here both on and off the mountain in the local area.

Sugarloaf

Skiing above the tree line at Sugarloaf in Maine

Sugarloaf is the second-highest peak in Maine and offers the only skiing above the tree line in the East—and the longest continuous vertical drop in New England.  Sugarloaf is a great family ski destination, but—being deep into Maine (about four hours north of Boston)—there’s not much surrounding it.  Because of that, vacationers to Sugarloaf are likely to stay on the resort and take advantage of its restaurants, shops, entertainment, and activities for the whole family.

Whatever your plans are for the holidays, have fun, be safe, and enjoy any vacation time you get.

It’s common to be able to stand in one spot in Los Angeles and have a simultaneous view of the ocean and of snow-capped mountains.  ‘Tis the season for skiing and snowboarding, but for less physically ambitious powder lovers, the opportunity to frolick in the white stuff after just a short drive is too good to pass up.  The Big Bear and Mountain High areas are local favorites for a quick getaway to decent cold-weather sports and outdoor activities.

Photo courtesy of Stock Xchng

Now that we’re experiencing a cold snap and the Big Bear area is expected to receive 6-12 inches of snow, this seems to be the right time to check it out.  (First check the weather to make sure the big storms have passed and driving conditions are ideal.)  You can simply drive out to those areas, pull over to the side of the road where it looks safe and white, and play.

Photo courtesy of Stock Xchng

-Take 210 out to 30. Then you take 18 or 330 to Lake Arrowhead or Running Springs and Big Bear.  About 100 miles from LA, 2-3 hours.

-Drive up the Glendale Freeway and keep following Route 2 up into the mountains until you are in the snow. 45 minutes tops.

For more organized adventures, check out Mountain High Resort which offers snow tubing in addition to skiing and snowboarding, or Alpine Slide, home of the all-season tubing experience.  There are several smaller snow-play  resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains as well.

Photo courtesy of Jennifer Johnson

While you’re up in the mountains, if you and your kids are enjoying yourselves, this is the time to get them on skis and try it out.  After all, falling from a short height is a lot less painful, so maybe they will grow up actually looking forward to skiing, instead of hating it and avoiding it because they tried too late in life and spent the whole first lesson on their bums.  Not that I know anyone who did that.  For sore tushies, a visit to the animal park might be a nice respite and take the focus off the pain.

Snow Tubing

If skiing is your thing, there are a few nice ski resorts in Virginia that you may want to visit during your vacation. I, however, won’t be there. I’ve been skiing once in my life and that was enough. I am much too practical to stand on slippery pieces of wood and throw myself down an icy mountain at a high rate of speed. The fact that I ended up off the snow and in the mud (three times) and crashed into an unsuspecting old man at the bottom of the slope may have also affected my decision to never ski again. That beginner slope is treacherous! However, I can be found sitting on my behind while sliding down a mountain in a large snow tube. That’s good quality family fun without the risk of injuring someone’s granddad. I highly recommend it.

Bryce Mountain Resort in Basye, Virginia

There are several places in Virginia to go snow tubing. Our most frequent stop, due to its proximity to our northern Virginia home is Bryce Mountain Resort. They have 800’ lanes and a moving carpet that takes you up the mountain conveyor belt style. There is a height requirement of 42” tall to go tubing at this location.

Tuesday – Friday: $18/person
Saturday & Sunday/Holiday: $22/person

Massanutten Resort in Massanutten, Virginia

Despite having an unfortunate mountain name and an odd catch phrase “Where the rubber hits the snow” Massanutten Resort is another popular snow tubing spot. They have 900’ lanes and a towrope that you attach to your tube and it pulls you up the hill. There is a 36” tall height requirement to go tubing at this site.

Mon.-Fri., Non-holiday: $18/person
Sat., Sun., Holiday: $22/person

Tubing Lanes at Bryce Mountain

Wintergreen Resort in Wintergreen, Virginia

I’ve never been to Wintergreen Resort but it sounds like fun.

“Imagine being on top of a ten story building and looking out over a hill that’s longer than three football fields. Now imagine going downhill on a tube at speeds reaching 30 mph.” – Quote from website

They have a 42” height requirement

mid-week, non-holiday: $18/person
weekends and holiday periods: $25/person

While searching for snow tubing sites I found a link to Whitetail Resort in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. I feel a road trip coming on. Here are a few tips about winter weather and road trips for me to read before we head out.

Note: All of the resorts listed above also offer snow skiing and snow boarding.

All photos by Sherry Roberts