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Maui

11 Favorite Kid-Friendly Stays Around the World

December 20, 2017
by Carrie

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Exploring the SF Bay Area & Beyond!

I’m Carrie, a native to the San Francisco Bay Area. I have a huge passion for outdoor adventures (hiking, kayaking, zip-lining, scuba diving to name a few) and love taking my family along with me. I love to inspire other families to get outside with their kids and find outdoor activities everyone will enjoy. We love exploring not only the Bay Area but also California & beyond! I aim to show families with busy school & sports schedules that you can still find time to adventure together!

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marquezfiveadventures

Our last stop in Kenya was in the Laikipia region

Our last stop in Kenya was in the Laikipia region at the amazing @segeraretreat. We added this stop to our itinerary at the last minute and I am SO happy we did! Our trip would not have been the same without it. The service at Segera was over the top and each person made us feel welcomed like family.

This morning out on safari was one of my favorites. We departed in our jeep to an amazing sunrise and had already seen a leopard with its impala kill, lions, and an albino zebra. We stopped at this iconic tree for coffee, hot chocolate, and biscuits. The kids found a metal hoop that they tossed at the tree trying to catch it on a branch and naturally made it into a competition. I felt such joy and gratitude watching them play this simple game. At home they’re all so busy with their individual lives - the games they do play are mostly organized sports. While there is always space in sports to make decisions and play within the rules, it was so refreshing to watch them create a game on the fly, make up their own rules, cheer each other on, and of course taunt each other as well. And even though I did accidentally walk through the game and get hit in the head with the flying hoop I’d call this a great morning!

Have I mentioned that the big cats in Kenya were m

Have I mentioned that the big cats in Kenya were my favorite?

On our last morning in the Mara, we stopped at a M

On our last morning in the Mara, we stopped at a Maasai Village where we got to partake in traditional dancing and singing. Then one at a time, they had the kids participate in the famous jumping contest called Adamu. The Maasai made it look easy, but it was really hard - although our basketball playing 16yo did impress them. This dance is part of the Eunoto ceremony where boys transition to men. The higher one jumps, the more of an eligible bachelor he is!

We toured the elementary school and joined the students in the classroom as they learned English and at recess playing soccer and jump rope.

The Maasai live in huts called Manyattas made out of cattle dung and grass. From the outside, the huts looked quite small and we were all surprised by how spacious they felt on the inside!

Finally, we went to their market to look at the handicrafts made by the locals - there were gorgeous carved wooden animals, jewelry, bowls, it was so hard to decide on just a few things!

Our itinerary had a tip that said: “bargain hard!”. I didn’t and here’s why: When we did a tour in Bucerias Mexico with @humanconnections we went into the homes of local artists and learned about their trades. The story one of the artists, Teresa, told us made a huge impact on me. The lengths she went to in order to learn to make beautiful beaded jewelry was incredible and showed such determination. She taught herself by copying other artists and initially struggled to purchase enough materials. She started out by walking along the beach selling her jewelry to tourists and then transitioned to a stand in town. She told us many people would bargain with her assuming she was selling things that were massed produced. They didn’t recognize that her items were handcrafted, took a lot of effort to make, and by bargaining she lost most any profit. She was just a single mom trying to make ends meet. So when I go to a local market to buy authentic handmade items, which is not often, I will always pay the asking price. Did I pay too much? Maybe. But I feel that’s a way I can support local communities and respect the hard work that went into creating these items that I will take home and treasure.

This is the very last picture I ever took with my

This is the very last picture I ever took with my beloved FujiX-T10

One of the first things we did when we returned home from Africa was to head out on a coastal hike🌊 We had never tried Gray Whale Cove Loop right on the coast in Pacifica. It’s just south of Devil’s Slide and north of Mavericks Point - two of our favorite spots. Gray Whale Cove did not disappoint - in fact it exceeded my expectations! The views were just 🤩 and I had missed the cool & invigorating coastal air 🌫

Everything was great. Until I stopped to take a few pictures and mid-picture my camera went black. It wasn’t out of battery. It didn’t accidentally turn off. I hadn’t messed with the settings. It just died. I panicked and tried to troubleshoot on the trail as my family hiked on oblivious to my troubles. The camera’s screen would occasionally flick bright white and then go black again. My diagnosis: Not good.

It’s amazing how camera issues can put me in a bad mood. I’ve forgotten my memory card, gone hiking with a full memory card, without a battery, with a dead battery…...I reluctantly pulled out my outdated iphone and continued taking pictures. Luckily, there is no better way to lift my mood than to be outside hiking. So while I was momentarily reeeeeeally bummed about my camera, I was quickly distracted by the views and the awe of being on the most amazing coastline.

The cost to repair my camera wasn’t worth it. I decided this was a sign to upgrade to the #fujixt4. First I rented a new body at @borrowlenses, decided that I loved it, and then searched around for the best deal!

So in the end it all worked out. I am SO thankful my camera waited until we were home from Kenya to give out on me 😅and I’m excited for all the new memories I’m going to capture 📸

The two most popular questions I’ve received sin

The two most popular questions I’ve received since I started posting about our Kenya trip are: How close were we able to get to the animals? and Was I ever scared?

We were able to get very close to the animals! I took this picture of a jeep, with some cape buffalo just a few yards away, on our balloon ride 🐃 What struck me was how vast & remote the land is with just this tiny lone jeep surrounded by buffalo (you can’t see that there are a few behind the jeep too). There is no fencing or barrier between the jeep & the animals. The “roads” are basically tire tracks through the bush. It doesn’t get much more wild than this. We got so close to lions that a few times I could have reached out of the jeep and touched them (obviously don’t do this!)❌😵

So were we ever scared? The only time I was ever scared was when Mike & I decided to do a guided bush walk in Samburu. We were going to walk down to the watering hole and back - no big deal - it would take about an hour or so. We met our guide and an armed guard who was there “just in case” 😬The guard explained he would never use the gun on an animal - he would only shoot it into the air to scare them away if necessary. As we were walking through the hills, we encountered some elephants & babies. One mother (about 30 yards away) was staring right at us through some bushes and sensed we were there. When our guide told us to quickly stand behind him and the guard, I decided that was enough for me and I asked them to go back. I’m sure I overreacted and we weren’t really in any danger. In hindsight I wish we had kept going and finished the walk, but my nerves got the best of me in that moment 🐘 I’m the big scaredy-cat in the family - everyone else is much braver than I am 😂

Also, did you know that elephants can climb hills? I was so surprised to see elephants up on BIG rocky hillsides! Our guide told us they can get down on their front knees and sort of shimmy up when it gets really steep! Who knew?

Scariest animal we encountered on safari? This one

Scariest animal we encountered on safari? This one right here. A Cape Buffalo - one of the Big Five🐃

Did you know that the term “African Big Five” was coined in the late 1800s as a list of the 5 animals most challenging and difficult to hunt on foot? It’s not because of how big they are or how many people they kill (Hippos actually kill the most people🦛). Now with so many anti-poaching efforts in place, this list has evolved into a list of “must see” animals on safari.

Male & female buffalo both have horns, but the male’s horns fuse in the middle creating a solid bony plate called a boss. This is a female because the horns are separated in the middle. Buffalo are herbivores, but are aggressive & deadly if attacked or threatened. They lower their heads and try to scoop up and toss a predator onto their horns. They travel in herds - sometimes up to the thousands. We saw several herds of around 100, but this one was alone when we saw it. We came around a corner and there she was lurking in the bushes 👀

When we’re on vacation, I have what I consider t

When we’re on vacation, I have what I consider to be a very simple and achievable goal: to get one family picture per day. One picture - that’s it! Yet, even on our trip to Kenya I didn’t reach this goal.

Sometimes it’s just easier if I take a picture rather than set up a tripod (which I’m not great about bringing anyway) or ask someone else to take it for me. And sometimes, one of the kids is not in the mood for a picture. They aren’t toddlers anymore, I can’t quickly distract them with a joke or something silly 😜 Instead I get eye rolls 🙄

Here we were at a champagne 🥂breakfast set up in the African bush after our amazing balloon ride and I just wanted a picture. I tried to gather them up and get a quick shot before breakfast was served - and I was getting lots of pushback. A woman, who I had bonded with on the balloon ride over our love of travel, was sitting next to me and overheard my plight. She very graciously offered to take a picture of all of us. I took her up on it and because it wasn’t me holding the camera, the kids obliged.

I probably would have framed the picture differently and cut out the table filled with dishes, but we’re all looking at the camera and everyone’s eyes are open. So I’ll take it! Because the alternative is that I wouldn’t have a picture at all 📸

What’s your secret for getting family photos? Send them my way!

Have you ever gotten cold feet before an adventure

Have you ever gotten cold feet before an adventure?

I planned this balloon ride across the Masai Mara months before we left on our trip. It was one of my MUST HAVE things on our itinerary. But I knew at least one kid was not thrilled about the idea of going (because he told me multiple times). I didn’t want to force anyone to go, but I also knew that his fears would be lifted once he got on and realized how smooth the ride was. Then we learned we had to leave our camp at 4:30am 😴to drive in the dark over extremely bumpy “roads” for an hour, cross a river in a canoe 🛶 as someone pulled us across using a rope (on our way back when it was light we noticed the river was filled with hippos 😳) all so we could be up in the air before the sun rose. The enthusiasm for the adventure was waning.

But we went! As soon as we arrived at @governorscampcollection and they started firing up the balloons my kids were sold. We were assigned spots in the basket and discovered our guide had learned to fly balloons at a school in the Bay Area. The ride was so smooth none of us even realized we had lifted up until we saw the ground moving underneath us. Our pilot kept us low to the ground so we could spot animals🦒🦓🐘only lifting us up high enough to clear the trees and occasionally give us an aerial perspective.

My absolute favorite moment was when we flew over a lone hippo wandering around in the marsh. The hippo didn’t like the balloon and charged toward us with its mouth wide open bearing its enormous teeth! That was the only hippo we ever saw on land. We flew over giraffes, elephants, zebras, and the gorgeous Masai Mara river and plains as the sun rose 🌅

In the end, we all agreed it was an amazing adventure worth getting up for (even the reluctant kid)! Some adventures we might have to work for a little more - but that just adds to the memories. Now we look back and laugh about the early wakeup, the rough roads, and especially the look on our faces when we saw the “boat” to cross the river. And when I hear my family recounting the balloon adventure to others with great enthusiasm it makes me happy and reminds me that the adventures are always worth it!

Taking a break from Kenya photos today because Lak

Taking a break from Kenya photos today because Lake Tahoe is so heavily on my mind.

I grew up in California. The only fire I really remember was the Oakland Hills Fire in 1991 which was only miles from where I lived. It was small by today’s standards (only 2.5 square miles) but unbelievably devastating to the community as it burned in a residential area and destroyed more than 3000 homes.

Things are so different now and it’s sad for California and other western states. Wildfires are becoming normal. We expect them and ✨hope✨that it won’t be as bad as last year. But every year it seems to get worse - almost 2 million acres burned in California just this year! I can now detect the faintest smell of smoke in the air and I know the orange glow of the sun and how it tints the light signaling wildfire. I know all the ranges for AQI and monitor it daily, sometimes hourly: is it safe to be outside? We buy N-95 masks and extra air purifiers. Our eyes burn, we cough, and we wake up to a layer of ash on our cars. School and sports are canceled due to smoke. Unfortunately, this is becoming normal to my kids 😢

Last year the Santa Cruz fire burned close to our home. And now the Caldor Fire is threatening one of our favorite places on earth: Lake Tahoe 💙My heart aches for the forest, the wildlife, and all the people who have evacuated not knowing what will become of their homes, businesses, and community. I am so thankful for lighter winds today that have allowed firefighters to keep the blaze just south of Lake Tahoe. And of course I am grateful for all the firefighters and first responders who risk their lives to protect us and keep going day after day and year after year even though they must be so exhausted.

This was Ben’s first of many trips to Lake Tahoe, taken at Dollar Point in June 2011. Still one of my favorites.

We spotted a pride of lions up on a grassy hill on

We spotted a pride of lions up on a grassy hill one morning as the sun was rising. The older ones were on rocks overlooking the valley below. The younger ones were running around playing. We could spot the trouble makers right away - they were always the ones pouncing on their resting siblings or attacking from behind. Reminded me a lot of our family dynamics 😜

We returned later in the afternoon to check on them. They were all sprawled out in the sunshine with very full bellies after a kill. It was the perfect opportunity to marvel at them as they weren’t going anywhere. Big cats are LAZY, but then again I guess they deserve to be after an eventful afternoon. 🦁

My favorite thing about watching the animals was when they would seem to make eye contact with me. Were they actually looking at me? Or just in my direction? I’m not sure, but I like to think I had a special moment with these amazing animals 💕

“Do you want to go chase the zebras?” 🦓🌅

“Do you want to go chase the zebras?” 🦓🌅

If you want an educational trip that will leave your kids in awe, I highly recommend a safari! Every day we learned new facts about the wildlife we saw and how they have adapted to survive in the African bush. I just can't say enough about how wonderful all of our guides were everywhere we went - they had all amassed a ton of knowledge from living here immersed in nature their entire lives. They were always so excited to be out on game drives patiently scouting & tracking animals to provide us with the best experience. And on top of that, they always knew how to engage our kids. Chasing a dazzle of zebras at sunset? Yes, please! ❤️

We learned on our game drives that often the anima

We learned on our game drives that often the animals can tell you when predators are present.

On our first morning game drive in the Masai Mara, our guide was telling us about a group he had right before we arrived who were determined to see cheetahs. They scoured the savanna for 4 days searching for cheetahs and never saw them.

We spotted some giraffes off in the distance and I didn’t think too much of it. But then our guide stopped the jeep, pulled out his binoculars, and started scanning the landscape. Then he exclaimed “Cheetah!!” Because the giraffes were all staring intently at something, our guide suspected they were watching a predator….so he followed their gaze and spotted the cheetah up on a hill.

We zipped off in our jeep and found a momma cheetah and 3 babies! I couldn’t believe our luck! 🐆😍

If you listen closely in the third slide, you can hear our guide telling us that the loud birds are warning others that the cheetahs are present. Make sure to wait til the end to see the baby cheetahs running & playing together!

We all agreed that our best meals were the ones we

We all agreed that our best meals were the ones we had out in the bush. This particular morning we had been out chasing cheetahs. We found a momma with 3 cubs and were anxiously waiting for them to start hunting. So while we waited, our guide found a perfect spot up on a hill where we could eat breakfast and still keep an eye on the cheetahs! 🐆🔭☕️🥐

Our next stop in Kenya 🇰🇪 was the Masai Mara

Our next stop in Kenya 🇰🇪 was the Masai Mara known for its prides of lions, elephants, buffalo, Masai Giraffe, and hippos. We had hopes of seeing a bit of the Great Migration, but were just a little too early this time. We did, however, see many wildebeest out in the plains as well as one of the spots where they normally cross the river during the migration.

One of our most memorable game drives was when we came across this very young elephant 🐘💕We saw lots of juvenile elephants during our stay, but none like this little guy who our guide estimated was only about 2 months old. He had more energy than I’ve ever seen - he was running, jumping and leaping all over the place. He’d run up to the other young elephants and try to engage them to no avail. We also saw him trying to figure out what his trunk was for - he just didn’t have the muscles to use it correctly yet - it was kind of like watching a baby trying to stand up or walk for the first time! 😂

One of my favorite experiences in Kenya was our ni

One of my favorite experiences in Kenya was our nightly sundowner - a drink at the end of a long day on safari to salute the African sun as it sets 🌅 This time of day always felt a little bit calmer to me - we’d spot some animals returning from a day out and others beginning to awaken and start their day. Our guides always found the most amazing viewpoints to stop our jeep and set up chairs to watch the sunset with drinks & appetizers 🥂

This could be controversial…..but I’m not a ca

This could be controversial…..but I’m not a cat person

Ironically, the big cats in Kenya were my favorite animals to spot 🦁🐆And is there anything cuter than a 6-month old lion cub?? How about two lion cubs? He had a twin! 😍

**SAMBURU NATIONAL RESERVE, KENYA** When we arri

**SAMBURU NATIONAL RESERVE, KENYA**

When we arrived in Samburu, we were immediately struck by the dry desert scrub and mountains - and the fact that we were very far from any town or village.

We stayed at @saruni.lodges which sits high on a bluff overlooking the vast African plains. Sitting at the bottom of the hill was a strategically placed watering hole that attracted a parade of elephants 🐘shortly after our arrival - we watched them with amazement until they moved on and were replaced with a troop of baboons (we counted over 30!) 🦍

We headed out on game drives twice a day (once in the morning and once in the evening). The wildlife here was simply stunning and our guide had a sixth sense for tracking down animals. He was an absolute wealth of information and patiently answered all of the questions the kids had on repeat: How fast does that animal run? Who are its predators? Which animal runs faster? Have you ever seen this animal attack that animal?, and my personal favorite “Have you ever seen a honey badger?” 🤷🏼‍♀️

We learned so much from our guides who had lived their entire lives in the areas we were exploring. They taught us not only about the wildlife, but also about their lives, families, tribes & villages.

Most have heard of the “Big 5”, but did you kn

We arrived in Nairobi at midnight following a 20+

We arrived in Nairobi at midnight following a 20+ hour flight and settled into our hotel around 2AM. 😴We were picked up a few hours later at 8:30AM for a private visit at the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust which is the most successful orphan-elephant rescue and rehabilitation program in the world! We got to watch the elephants come in from the park and get bottle fed by their handlers. Then we got to mingle with them, feed them leaves & branches, and watch them play! It was such an amazing experience - and a great way to battle jet lag! 🐘🐘

When we told people we were going to Kenya, their reaction was often “Is it safe to travel there right now?” My answer before we left was “Based on everything I’ve heard, yes”. My answer after traveling there: We felt absolutely safe!!!!

In fact, we felt safer related to c* vid in Kenya and the Seychelles than we do in the US. Everywhere we went, masks & social distancing were enforced and everyone that we encountered followed the protocols. The vast majority of people in the tourism & hospitality industry are vaccinated (from what we were told AND almost everything we did was outside and naturally socially distanced.

4 of us were fully vaccinated prior to our trip - our 11-year-old is not. This initially made me nervous but once we arrived and I could assess the situation I was never concerned.

Here’s what we had to do to travel:
💉Yellow Fever & Typhoid Vaccinations
🦟Malaria Pills
🛂eVisas for Kenya (everyone 16+)
🦠Negative C* vid tests taken within 96 hours of arrival to Kenya. Results had to be verified by Kenya and then we were each issued a QR Code to enter
🦠Negative C* vid tests taken within 3 days of arrival into the Seychelles + complete an online travel health assessment and one last negative test to enter the US.
🤒We had our temperatures taken at immigration and at least once a day thereafter, usually multiple times a day throughout our trip.

Yes, this added a new layer to travel. No, I didn’t like it because I worried about getting our tests back in time and we were often up late the night before we departed filling out all the health forms online. But yes, it’s worth it to travel again. ✈️🌎

If you were following along with my stories over t

If you were following along with my stories over the last few weeks then you know we recently returned from an epic trip to Kenya & the Seychelles! 🦒🦓🐘🐆

We let Kate pick our summer destination this year and she went big with Africa. When we started planning back in November 2020 we weren’t even sure if we would be able to travel. We reached out to Deb @roarafrica to help us plan an itinerary to meet our interests & needs. I can’t recommend Deb & her team enough. The entire planning & travel process was seamless & easy despite international travel being so complicated right now.

We spent 11 days in Kenya 🇰🇪 exploring 4 different areas (Nairobi, Samburu, Masai Mara & Laikipia) and then spent 5 days on Praslin Island in the Seychelles 🇸🇨 . The game drives blew our minds - it was the most incredible thing to be so close to wild lions, elephants, leopards, cheetahs, hippos, and SO many more amazing animals! Everyone we met along the way was so kind, welcoming, and absolutely grateful to have travelers back.

We found this leopard on one of our first game drives in Samburu. Leopards are notoriously hard to find and we were lucky to find 3 different leopards during our trip. Right after this photo, the leopard jumped out of the tree and walked right by our jeep. We followed it for a bit until it disappeared into a large bush to hide.

Africa stole our hearts and we can’t wait to go back and explore more!

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