According to Vacasa’s Summer Travel Survey in partnership with Allison + Partners, 82% of millennial parents plan to travel with their children this summer. While summertime means a break from the textbooks, what if kids can still learn while vacationing?
Cue the family vacation with a twist, where leisure travel meets educational awareness! Here are some of the world’s top hotels and resorts offering learning experiences that textbooks and classrooms can’t teach:
Solaz, a Luxury Collection Resort, Los Cabos – Los Cabos, Mexico
Solaz, a Luxury Collection Resort, Los Cabos (Solaz), an oceanfront property with stunning views of the Sea of Cortez and the Baja desert in Mexico. The resort features El Gabinete "Del Barco," an indigenous gallery + museum featuring regional artifacts and open spaces to walk through while enjoying breathtaking natural scenery. One of the special and unique artifacts includes a whale fossil floating from the ceiling, and the exhibit also features ancient maps of the Americas based on limited navigation discoveries, 360˚ virtual photography, video interviews with archeologists, and replicas of harpoons, knives, and other tools from the region. The gallery offers daily guided tours, children’s sleepovers and secret cocktail party invites, making this a special experience for all. (Photo Credit: Solaz)
Atlantis, the Palm – Dubai, UAE
Dubai’s most iconic resort, Atlantis, the Palm strives to provide extraordinary experiences and seek the protection and promotion of environmental and human wellbeing. With this in mind, the Atlantis Atlas Project was created, which has invested half a million U.S. dollars into green initiatives that offer more environmentally responsible operations, in addition to reducing waste and emissions. This is a promise to a sustainable commitment, with key focus areas in conservation and animal welfares, education and awareness, and corporate social responsibility. Projects within the community have included a shark release, UAE dolphin survey, and a humanity painting entitled “The Journey of Humanity” by artist Sacha Jafri. Atlantis, the Palm is proud to be accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) as well as a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) to ensure happy and healthy marine life.
Hoshino Resorts RISONARE Osaka (at Hyatt Regency Osaka) – Osaka, Japan Founded on the concept of playing with creative ideas, Hoshino Resorts RISONARE Osaka (at Hyatt Regency Osaka) nurtures the imagination of children based on the Reggio Emilia Approach developed in Italy. Newly opened in December 2022, RISONARE Osaka marks the sixth property under Hoshino’s RISONARE brand and the first in Western Japan. The hotel features one of the largest ateliers in the country designed to foster children’s big ideas, as well as concept rooms that allow pint sized guests the freedom of expression by drawing on walls and windows.
Deer Path Inn – Lake Forest, IL
Junior Innkeeper Program
At the Deer Path Inn, a historic boutique hotel located 40 minutes outside of Chicago, young travelers can embrace the art of innkeeping and learn valuable life skills (from properly greeting guests and bed-making to baking turndown treats) through the inn’s curated Junior Innkeeper program. After a half or full day learning from the inn’s expert staff, Junior Innkeepers are presented with their own certificate and Deer Path Inn name badge to take home.
Botánika Osa Peninsula, Curio Collection by Hilton – Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica Botánika Osa Peninsula is a premier eco-resort located in Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula, known as “the most biologically intense place on Earth,” (source: National Geographic). This remote destination is rich with wildlife throughout the national parks and forest reserves, protected beaches along the Pacific Ocean and thick jungles. Botánika Osa Peninsula serves as the perfect jumping off point for traveling families looking for educational experiences, as the resort is home to a science and conservation center with an aquarium, kids club, and a schedule of presentations from resident scientists. The center hosts visiting scientists from major universities around the world who teach guests about the local wild and sea life and lead excursions to tag fish, dolphins and sharks, Botánika Osa Peninsula has also partnered with the non-profit foundation BioSur to host the largest insect museum in southern Costa Rica, with over 6,000 species of butterflies, beetles and moths, many of which are endemic to the area. Additionally, the resort can arrange guided jungle hikes, where families can spot rare monkeys, bird watch, or learn about the local environment.
Hawaiian Cultural Center – The Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas
The Westin Kā‘anapali Ocean Resort Villas offers guests an immersive experience to learn and understand the culture and history of Hawaii. Led by a team of cultural advisors, the resort’s Cultural Center is where guests can take part in hula dancing, ukulele lessons, Hawaiian language classes, and culture talks to learn about Hawaii’s rich history and cultural traditions. The resort prides themselves on preserving the land the resort is built on and encourages their guests to help keep the beaches clean and respect the Hawaiian culture found around them. These culture classes and activities are offered throughout the week for guests to enjoy at their leisure.
Banyan Tree Mayakoba - Riviera Maya, Mexico
Banyan Tree Mayakoba is a breathtaking oasis where unhindered relaxation melts over a one-of-a-kind setting of natural waterways, luxurious private over-the-water villas and sugar sand beaches. This five-star eco-resort is perfect for a family escape with an educational twist - kids have access to the newly renovated Rangers Kid’s Club, a safe sanctuary where they are treated to an array of innovative, experiential programs aimed at sustainability, wellbeing and stewardship – pillars that are innate to the Banyan Tree brand. These include, among others:
The Foundry Hotel – Asheville, NC
A historic restoration of Asheville’s former steel foundry, The Foundry Hotel is an 87-room boutique hotel complex located in the heart of The Block neighborhood, Asheville’s oldest Black business district. Today, The Block is home to cultural institutions like YMI Cultural Center, one of the nation's oldest African American institutions dating back to 1893, and Noir Collective AVL, a retail space inside of the center for Black entrepreneurs, artists, makers and social activists. Families can get a behind-the-scenes look at The Block with a private, interactive ‘Hood’ tour led by local onsite historian DeWayne Barton of Hood Huggers International. Barton’s tours highlight the neighborhood’s entertainment, historic sites and authentic local cuisine, while celebrating the city’s past and unfolding the resilient and moving stories living within the walls of The Foundry Hotel’s original steel foundry structure.
French Quarter Inn – Charleston, SC
For a unique and artsy take on Charleston, South Carolina, families visiting French Quarter Inn can book the hotel’s VIP tour experience at Gibbes Museum of Art, which offers guests private before-hours access to tour the museum’s gallery and state-of-the-art storage facility, led by a museum Curator. Participants can view pieces of the museum’s 10,000+ permanent collection not currently on display while also gaining a unique perspective on the inner workings of an art museum. Afterwards, guests can relax at their accommodations in the 50-room luxury boutique hotel, which showcases the southern charm for which the city is known. At French Quarter Inn, a comfortable upscale design is paired with high-touch service and extensive daily amenities like locally sourced artisanal breakfast, personal wine and cheese pairings, turndown service with hand-crafted chocolates and a sound sleep pillow menu with seven different options.
LEGOLAND New York - Goshen, NY
Numerous studies show that playing with LEGO® bricks improves reasoning skills in kids, and at LEGOLAND® New York, kids and their families can play all day. Visit the Creative Workshop for daily educational trainings with a Master Model Builder (LEGOLAND New York’s expert builders responsible for constructing the park brick-by-brick). Learn advanced LEGO techniques and even create your own Minifigure or LEGO masterpiece. Then ride, climb, and build your way through the Park’s seven themed lands with a stop at the new LEGO City Water Playground (opening Memorial Day weekend) to cool off. Visitors can build and race a LEGO boat, splash on water slides, and be doused by a giant 318-gallon water bucket. The fun doesn’t stop at bedtime - visitors can sleepover in one of the themed guest rooms that include a separate sleeping area just for kids (with bunk beds and a trundle) and interactive features throughout.
Lockwood Hotel – Waterville, Maine The central city of Waterville, Maine is an ideal destination to travel to this summer with older kids + teens in tow, as the city is currently undergoing a $200 million revitalization that’s completely transforming the town into a vibrant arts and cultural destination. For families looking to really immerse in an art-centric educational experience, Waterville’s newest boutique property, Lockwood Hotel, offers its Colby Museum Package, allowing guests to discover a truly authentic contemporary arts destination in connection with the Colby College Museum of Art. When booking the package, guests receive complimentary museum entry; a copy of Five American Painters novel by Sharon Corwin; 15% off purchases at the museum café and shop; a Souvenir tote bag; and $50 dining credit for use at the hotel’s restaurant, Front & Main. Across the street from Lockwood Hotel is also Greene Block + Studios, an arts collaborative that hosts a rotating program of performances and exhibits. Additionally, Waterville recently welcomed the Paul J. Schupf Art Center, a cultural hub that brings new art galleries, studios, rehearsal space and screening rooms to the city, and it connects to the historic Waterville Opera House.
Paséa Hotel & Spa – Huntington Beach, California
A modern oasis located in the heart of Huntington Beach’s vibrant coastal community, Paséa Hotel & Spa boasts 250 rooms and suites – the majority of which are ocean-facing – the iconic Ninth Island pool with newly refreshed cabanas perched over the Pacific Ocean, and the Balinese-inspired Aarna Spa. Try fresh, California coastal cuisine at Tanner’s or head upstairs to the Treehouse Lounge to sip seasonal cocktails on the rooftop while enjoying panoramic ocean views. Check “learn to surf in the surf capital of the world” off your bucket list with curated surf lessons for two and Après Surf libations. The Après Surf package includes:
Marriott Bonvoy Hawaii - Maui, Oahu, Kauai (Hawaii)
Across the 18 hotels and resorts within Marriott Bonvoy Hawaii’s portfolio, kids are invited to participate in activities to learn about Hawaiian culture and traditions. Some standout educational activities for young hotel guests include:
