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Tokyo

Hong Kong, Thailand and Tokyo With Kids: 3 Week Itinerary

July 30, 2018
by Carrie
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Big Buddha on Lantau Island, Hong Kong. Tian Tan Buddha

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Spring Break: 3 Days in Yosemite
Hike to Wapama Falls – Lost Yosemite
10 Amazing California Hikes
Batteries to Bluffs: A Stunning San Francisco Hike
Your Guide to an Epic Week in Charleston with Kids

marquezfiveadventures

We had an amazing time at @yosemite_rushcreek last

We had an amazing time at @yosemite_rushcreek last month! It’s located just minutes from the park entrance on Highway 120 and it took us only 20-30 minutes to get to Yosemite Valley. I really liked having a nice place to come back to each afternoon where we could relax after hiking and where Ben had an opportunity to play.

I loved the hot tubs and relaxing by the pool each afternoon with a magazine while Ben swam & played. I also loved the onsite restaurant where we ate under heat lamps and watched the sunset from the deck each evening. 💦⛱🏔🌅

Ben’s favorite was the nightly s’mores, but he also couldn’t get enough of the ziplines, game room, bocce ball, corn hole and life-sized checkers & connect-four boards. Honestly, the resort is a destination by itself!

We will definitely plan to come back with the rest of the family soon!

**3 Days in Yosemite in the Spring** Ben and I sp

**3 Days in Yosemite in the Spring**

Ben and I spent 3 days in Yosemite last month during his spring break and it was amazing! The weather was perfect: cool nights and daytime temps in the 70s ☀️We spent our days exploring and hiking and then returned each afternoon to @yosemite_rushcreek for swimming, dinner, evening games, and nightly s’mores.

I’d recommend spending one day seeing the sights in Yosemite Valley and then the rest of your time exploring a bit deeper. It’s a slower way to see Yosemite, but I really prefer experiencing one or two things fully rather than many things superficially. This is how we typically approach traveling no matter where we are.

Because we were there in spring when the waterfalls were at their finest, all 3 days revolved around visiting different falls 💦:

🌿Hike Wapama Falls in Hetch Hetchy

🌿Yosemite Valley - bike, hike or drive through the valley and see all the sites: Bridalveil Falls, Yosemite Falls, Half Dome, El Capitan

🌿Hike The Mist Trail to Vernal and Nevada Falls

⭐️New Blog Post on all the details of our 3-day spring break itinerary in Yosemite! (link in bio)

Do you have a go-to hike? Ours is definitely Pulga

Do you have a go-to hike? Ours is definitely Pulgas Ridge in Redwood City ✅ When we want to hike and are short on time, we almost always go here!

Here’s what we love about it:
🌿366 acres of open space with 6 miles of hiking trails that vary between cool canyons filled with oak trees to the open ridge top with views towards the bay and the surrounding hills.
🌿Very kid friendly. We think all of the trails are relatively easy and great for kids. Both the Hassler & Cordilleras trails are wide and stroller friendly.
🐶Dog Friendly! Not only is Pulgas Ridge dog friendly, but there is a 17 acre off-leash area for dogs which is accessible by many of the trails. Note - this area is fenced off at the entrance, but not around the entire area. So this may not be a great option for dogs who need containment.
🌿Parking - the main parking lot is small, but we can always find street parking. I find it’s much easier to park here than at nearby Edgewood Park (which we also love) across Edgewood Road.

And if you want to know my favorite spot on the trail apparently this is it! No matter how short on time we are or how many times we’ve done this trail, I always pull out my camera or phone when we hit this tree and take pictures 🤩

2/28/2021. Hike 7/52. Our rating 7.5/10. #52hikechallenge2021

**Wapama Falls Hike - Yosemite National Park** 💦

The hike starts across 430 foot tall O’Shaughnessy Dam and through a long dark tunnel. On the other side of the tunnel the trail continues with massive granite cliffs on one side and the sparkling reservoir on the other. When we reached 1080 foot tall Wapama Falls they were roaring and impressive!

🏔Located in Hetch Hetchy Valley in Yosemite NP
🏔5 miles out-and-back
🏔200’ elevation gain
🏔Moderate - The hike is at ~4000’ elevation and has some moderate ups & downs and stairs. If you’re already acclimated to the elevation then this hike would be on the easier side.
🏔Kid-Friendly! Ben especially loved testing out his new @merrell hiking boots in all the puddles and running water and making sure they were as water resistant as they claimed! Plenty of rocks to climb and hop across along the way. Plus every kid loves a waterfall!
🏔No dogs
🏔Parking: Free (park in the day use lot closer to the dam - overnight backpackers use a lot that is a little farther from the trailhead)
🏔Restrooms: We didn’t see them, but apparently there are some near the backpacking parking lot.

If you’re looking for an off-the-beaten path hike in Yosemite this is it! One of the main reasons we chose this hike is because it was relatively close to where we were staying at @yosemite_rushcreek just outside the park, but WOW this hike is amazing and I’d go out of my way to hike it again!

3/30/2021. Hike 11/52. Our rating 10/10! #52hikechallenge2021

Just posted more details & pictures of this amazing hike on my blog. Link in Bio!

“Our memories of the ocean will linger on, long

“Our memories of the ocean will linger on, long after our footprints in the sand are gone.” – Unknown 🌊

This is why I look at travel as an investment. These two won’t always remember the details of our trip to Florida, but they made memories and strengthened bonds with family that will stay in their hearts forever. And someday they will see pictures if I ever get them off my computer!! 📸

Hetch Hetchy in Yosemite National Park is AMAZING!

Hetch Hetchy in Yosemite National Park is AMAZING! 🤩

The hike to Wapama Falls kind of blew my mind because it was absolutely stunning AND because all my life I had been oblivious to the history of this area.

Did you know that the Hetch Hetchy is part of Yosemite National Park? 🏔It’s sometimes referred to as “Lost Yosemite”.

🔥In 1906 the San Francisco earthquake caused major damage resulting in a fire that burned 25,000 structures in a matter of days. This devastation highlighted the fact that SF had no reliable water source.
💦 Congress passed the Raker Act in 1913 which allowed construction of a dam within a National Park.
💦 Naturally this resulted in much opposition led by organizations like the Sierra Club and John Muir and raised public awareness about the importance of preserving nature.
🐻O’Shaughnessy Dam was completed and the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir was filled flooding a valley that was once filled with bears, eagles, bobcats, flowered meadows and ancient forests.
💦 Yosemite Valley & Hetch Hetchy are geologically similar. Hetch Hetchy even has Kolana Rock which looks like a sister to Half Dome. Hence the name “Lost Yosemite”
💦 Just 3 years after the approval of the dam, Congress passed another Act creating the National Park Service which now ensures our National Parks will be protected for all to use.
📍If you live in San Francisco, Santa Clara, Alameda or San Mateo counties then this is where your water comes from.
💦 Still today there is ongoing opposition over the dam (including ballot propositions to evaluate and study alternate water sources as well as legal challenges that the dam is unconstitutional).
💦 Check out @restorehetchhetchy to learn more.

Regardless of how you feel about the reservoir, this area is truly stunning and absolutely worth a visit. It’s in a separate area of the park than Yosemite Valley and attracts fewer visitors which means way fewer people on the trails! 🙌🏻

Earlier this month I gushed about our hike at Swee

Earlier this month I gushed about our hike at Sweeney Ridge! The truth? I loved how green it was and all the spring wildflowers that were starting to pop up 🌿🌼🌷I also couldn’t get over the gorgeous views despite the fact it was an overcast day.

Mike and Ben didn’t love it as much as I did. Here are our ratings:
✅Carrie: 8/10
✅Mike: 6/10 - he would have rated it higher if the weather was better. It was cold & windy especially along the ridge.
❌Ben: 4/10 - he said there was nothing special about this hike and it was cold.

I always find it slightly unfair to penalize a hike because of the weather, but then again being cold can ruin an experience 🥶 I like to tell myself: there’s no such thing as bad weather - only bad gear. So maybe the lesson here is that we need to be better prepared. As we were hiking I did think to myself “I wish I had brought a beanie instead of this baseball hat”. Bay Area weather can be unpredictable. It might be sunny & warm at our house, but 10 miles away it can be foggy and cold.

As we’ve started to hike more, I’ve been adding things to my backpack (a first aid kit, a compass, a pocket knife, a flashlight...), but I’m thinking we all need hiking “go bags” with hats, extra socks, gloves, rain jackets, beanies, etc. Then we’ll always have what we need wherever we go and we won’t take bad weather out on an awesome hike.

I plan to do this hike again in better weather - I think it needs a fair shot!

Ben and I visited Yosemite earlier this month over

Ben and I visited Yosemite earlier this month over his spring break! Our must-do activity was to hike the Mist Trail to Vernal and Nevada Falls 💦 It was by far the toughest hike he has ever done and I was SO PROUD of him for hiking 8.8 miles with over 2,000 feet of elevation gain (the valley floor is 4,000 feet above sea level which makes it extra tough).

Both falls were putting on a spectacular show! If you do one hike in Yosemite make it this one!! - even if you just go to the top of Vernal Falls (pictured here) which is 4 miles round trip and ~1200 feet elevation. You won’t be disappointed!

🥾Mileage: 8-9 miles to the top of Nevada Falls depending on if you take the John Muir Trail or winter route back down.
✔️Difficulty: Hard
✔️Kid Friendly? Yes, but….. Kids should have some hiking experience before attempting this hike. We saw a lot of kids hiking to Vernal Falls, but this is still a hard hike. It’s basically uphill the entire way with lots of stairs. Much fewer kids continued to Nevada Falls. This part of the hike is also uphill the entire way.
✔️Restrooms: Yes - at the trailhead and at Nevada Falls (there were some others along the way that were closed when we were there)
❌No dogs. No strollers.
🚗Parking: We used the day use lot off Happy Isles Loop Road. It’s a short walk to the Happy Isles Trailhead.

4/1/2021. Hike 13/52. Our rating 10/10! #52hikechallenge2021

We spent Spring Break 2018 in Arizona and made a d

We spent Spring Break 2018 in Arizona and made a day trip to the Grand Canyon from Sedona. Did you know you can take the historic Grand Canyon Railway 🚂 from Williams, AZ to the Grand Canyon Village on the South Rim? There is one departure & return time each day which leaves passengers with a little over 3 hours to explore the Grand Canyon. At the last minute we decided to drive ourselves, but I still kind of kick myself that we didn’t take the train! We ended up getting lunch at the gorgeous El Tovar hotel which is over 100 years old and sits right on the rim. Then we walked the rim trail and explored for a bit - just enough to satisfy my Grand Canyon craving, but leave me wanting to come back and explore more!

There are 2 Grand Canyon Bucket List Adventures that I’d love to do:
🥾 Rim-to-Rim Hike - North Kaibab Trail to Bright Angel Trail - 24 miles one way
💦 Multi-day Rafting trip through the canyon

The rafting trip is high on my list as I think my kids would LOVE this! Hiking rim-to-rim? Not so much. That might be something Mike & I save to do by ourselves - or maybe when the kids are a bit older and are up for the challenge. I won’t hold my breath.

🌋🌺Hawaii Volcanoes National Park! We visit

🌋🌺Hawaii Volcanoes National Park!

We visited in 2017 and had such a great time! We did an amazing bike tour which allowed us to see a lot of the park without having to drive around in a car. We started at the Jaggar Museum which overlooks Kilauea’s active crater and rode down the volcano making lots of stops to take in the views, walk through lava tubes, explore lava fields & cross lava bridges. We ended our tour at the Chain of Craters Road where we ate lunch overlooking the Holei Sea Arch.

The highlight of our visit was an open door helicopter tour 🚁over the park with @paradisehelicopters where we saw active lava flowing and could feel the heat even from 500 feet above. Our pilot told us that the section of sunken lava below is about 28 acres. It used to be raised and in line with the rest of the lava and one day just collapsed! Also, to the right, you can see the road that just ends because it got covered by lava! This was an absolute bucket list adventure!!

We will definitely visit again the next time we are on the Big Island!

More details on our amazing Volcanoes NP adventures - link in bio!

Last summer (yes, summer! 🥵) we finally made it

There’s nothing like #nationalparkweek to remind

There’s nothing like #nationalparkweek to remind me that we have been to very few National Parks! Each one I have been to has been amazing in its own unique way and I’m excited to explore more.

Pinnacles is the closest National Park to us - only about 2 hours away. My good friend put Pinnacles on my radar over 20 years ago before it was a National Park, but it took us until 2019 to finally visit when Kate had a soccer game in Soledad (which happens to be the “Gateway to the Pinnacles”). Soledad is the west entrance to the park. The east entrance is in Paicines. The two sides do not connect within the park so you need to decide which side of the park to explore before you go.

We hiked the Balconies trail which leads through the bat caves 🦇 (flashlight required!). If you hike during winter/spring be sure you check beforehand if the caves are open. They were closed when we were there due to the risk of flooding. We still need to go back and check these out because I think the kids would love it!

The Pinnacles were created by a 🌋volcanic field 23 million years ago. Over time the field moved almost 200 miles north to where it is today. The power of wind, rain, and ice deteriorated the field, eroded the rubble and left behind these large cliffs.

Can you find tiny Kate above?

One of our favorite ways to get around on vacation

One of our favorite ways to get around on vacation is riding bikes 🚲🚲🚲

We love it when hotels provide bikes to all guests - it’s such a fun way to get around and explore the property. Our @airbnb in Florida had everything except bikes so we rented a bunch of cruisers from a local company and we rode them everywhere!

There was a great bike path running from our house to Gulf Islands National Seashore. I loved admiring all the colorful beach houses in our neighborhood and then transitioning to a thin strip of white sand dunes with the gulf on one side and Santa Rosa Sound on the other.

"A ship is safe in harbor, but that's not what shi

"A ship is safe in harbor, but that's not what ships are for." -William G.T. Shedd

Are you a risk taker or risk averse? Since having kids I have become much more risk averse. I worry about ridiculous things that have a miniscule chance of happening - sometimes even on seemingly safe activities.

Even though the water was super calm, he’s wearing a life jacket, and there were 4 adults watching him from shore, I was still worried about 🦈 and a current that might carry him away. I have to remind myself that there will always be some risk to everything we do. I think it’s hard too when you see your youngest kid out there being all independent. I’ve got one kid driving, another who would spend 100% of her time with friends if we allowed it, and now even my youngest doesn’t need our help much anymore.

I guess that’s the point of being a parent though. You raise them, teach them, and show them how to make good choices and be safe and then you let them set sail and hope something sticks!

Hooray for Friday! 🎉 I had been wanting to che

Hooray for Friday! 🎉

I had been wanting to check out Sweeney Ridge for awhile! We finally made it on an overcast & extra windy day in March - it did not disappoint! Even on an overcast day, the views were expansive - we could see the Marin Headlands, a tiny glimpse of the Golden Gate Bridge 🌁, down the ridge to Pacifica & the ocean, and then out into the Bay, Crystal Springs, and SFO ✈️. We hiked from Skyline College in Pacifica to the San Bruno Gate where the trail dead ends into the SFPUC Watershed. If you are local and don’t know about this watershed, check out openthewatershed.org - it’s 23,000 acres of land in San Mateo County that you can’t use (though they do offer limited reservation-based docent led hikes that we’ve been trying to go on). If you want to rile up my husband - just mention this watershed!

I don’t know what this old concrete building was - but I sure loved all the bright graffiti against the gray day. 🌈

Distance: 6.2 miles out & back
Elevation: 301’
Our rating: Easy
Dog Friendly
Parking: Free (the parking lot at Skyline College was closed, but we found nearby parking along the street)
Restrooms: Yes at top along the ridge where the trail intersects with Sneath Lane Trail

March 2021; Hike 8/52 #52hikechallenge2021

We were in Florida in early March - pretty much th

We were in Florida in early March - pretty much the week before everyone started flocking to the beach for spring break 🏖With three kids on a traditional school schedule, we aren’t usually able to travel in the off-season. In fact, this trip fell right between their two breaks: President’s Week and Spring Break, which wasn’t ideal. At the time, Jack was in-person twice a week and Kate & Ben were doing remote-only classes (they are now both in-person part-time🎉🎉), but we still opted to pull them out of zoom classes for a week. It wasn’t a big deal for the younger kids, but Jack felt the effects of missing 6 days of high school. It was rough and not a situation I plan to put him in again anytime soon 😬

The plus side was that Pensacola Beach was pretty desolate. We basically had the entire beach to ourselves every day. We would set up our chairs, SUPs, boogie boards, and sand toys and hang out for the day and then take walks along the beach in the evening. Our @airbnb was a mile from the pier and beachside restaurants which made for great evening walks. I loved these lifeguard stations too! I still can’t get over the white sand and turquoise water - I had to keep reminding myself we weren’t in the Caribbean! 🌊

Kate and her littlest cousin are 11 years apart in

Kate and her littlest cousin are 11 years apart in age, but they are kindred spirits. They are both younger sisters who are fiercely independent, determined, risk-takers, and march to the beat of their own drum. Even though we live only 30 minutes from each other at home, it’s not always easy to get everyone together. So it was fun traveling with my sister’s family to Florida and watching all the kids create deeper bonds. My sister has always been my best friend so to watch our kids create these memories & friendships makes my heart very happy! ❤️

PS - Florida has some amazing sunsets! 🌅

Are you thinking about traveling again? Last month

Are you thinking about traveling again? Last month we traveled with my sister and her family to Florida for my brother’s wedding. I had really mixed feelings about going and I honestly kept the trip pretty quiet, telling very few people we were leaving. Coming from California, where things have been very strict, it seemed crazy that we were traveling to Florida...for a wedding. While there was no way I was going to miss my brother’s milestone event, I couldn’t help but wonder why they didn’t postpone it for a few months. What should have been a quick trip to was a 3-week commitment with isolating & testing on both ends. While isolating/testing wasn’t enforced (except by my son’s high school which required a mandatory 14-day quarantine upon return with no test-out option), we felt it was the responsible thing to do. And I’m happy to report that all our tests were negative.

Despite all my hesitation, the moment we arrived at SFO for our departure flight I felt completely at ease and it felt oddly normal to be back on a plane. We stayed in a house right on the beach - with white sugar sand and turquoise water. The kids could run out to the water in 30 seconds - and we had boogie boards, kayaks, and SUPs. It was pretty amazing! 🏖🌊

I am SO happy we decided to go. Yes, it was a pain to deal with all the extras that come with traveling these days, but being there for his special day was worth it. There were a lot of guests who decided not to come so the wedding was pretty small. Looking back on this trip years from now, I think the only thing we’ll remember is that we were all together celebrating my brother and his wife!

Last March I planned a spring break road trip for

Last March I planned a spring break road trip for Kate, Ben & I. We were going to start out in Santa Cruz, wind our way down the coast, and because Ben had just finished the 4th book, end at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal in Hollywood. Our first stop was going to be the ropes course at @mounthermonadventures in Felton. Ben had just turned 10 (the minimum age to participate) and we were thrilled to check it out! And then we had to cancel it all 🦠

When Mount Hermon reopened again, I quickly booked the Sequoia Aerial Adventure tour for all 5 of us over the kids’ February break. The setting in the redwoods is absolutely gorgeous!🌲There are 3 different levels of the course and we worked our way from the easiest to the most challenging. We’ve done several ropes courses before - this one high in the redwoods gave me the most pause. While I felt completely safe tethered to the course, I do not like heights and this course was much higher than the others I had previously done. I stayed mostly along the edges of the course (where the obstacles were less challenging) - my kids powered through the course completing every obstacle, including one where they had to leap into the air and try to grab a hanging rope to swing across to another platform. It made me proud to see how brave they are - so much braver than I’ve ever been - even my most cautious child did every challenge without hesitation 💪🏼

And just one quick shout out to the folks at Mount Hermon: I booked a spot for all 5 of us, but earlier that week, Mike had tweaked his knee snowboarding and had to skip out. They have a no cancellation policy so I just told them when we checked in that it would only be 4 of us. When I got home, I received an email with a credit for Mike that said “come back when your knee feels better!” I was perfectly ready to eat the money so this was the nicest surprise and we appreciated it so much! We will absolutely go back! They just recently opened their Redwood Canopy tour - can’t wait to go back and try that course next!

Mike, Ben and I hiked Owl Trail in Marin back in F

Mike, Ben and I hiked Owl Trail in Marin back in February. It’s a relatively easy trail, 2.1 miles out & back overlooking the coast. We started at Muir Beach Overlook and hiked to Slide Ranch where there were goats, ducks, chickens, and gardens. We hiked a little further down to the beach where you can find great tidepools, but we were there at high tide so we just sat and watched the waves crash 🌊Hiking down to the beach added a little bit of mileage, but I still think it was under 3 miles roundtrip. Older kids may not be impressed with Slide Ranch, but younger kids surely will be.

The problem with raising kids in the Bay Area is that their bar for hikes and outdoor spaces is set very high. They may grow up thinking every place has gorgeous coastal views, iconic bridges 🌁, ancient redwoods🌲, and so much accessible open space. My kids roll their eyes every time I ask them to just look around and appreciate how lucky they are to live here 🙄

I make everyone rank each hike on a scale of 1-10 and give me a few reasons why they gave it that score. You’ve undoubtedly heard of @subparparks? I think my kids could come up with a similar account with their feedback on hikes. They are tough critics so you can bet that the hikes that they rank high are pretty good ones. Some of the reasons they’ve dinged hikes are because they were “too short”, “too long”, “too hilly”, “not dog friendly”, and even “too sunny” 😎🤷🏼‍♀️

Ben rated this hike 6/10 and told me “It was OK - Just a normal hike”. Then he quickly followed that up with “Yes, I know I’m lucky”. That made me feel slightly better. But I disagree...this was a spectacular hike!

February 2021; Hike 5/52 #52hikechallenge2021

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