Fifty-Two Weekends: Family

Llama Rides

If little Lily is bored with the penguins at the New England Aquarium and yawns at the gorillas in the Franklin Park Zoo, you're in desperate need of a llama trek. Lindsay and Geoff Chandler, owners of Northern Vermont Llama Company (802-644-2257) in Waterville, Vermont, arrange summertime trips on the trails of Smugglers' Notch ski resort, crossing over mountain streams and heading up the slopes. Spend the night at The Jefferson House (802-644-2030, jeffersonhousebb.com, $120 for the family suite). Three-hour trips with Northern Vermont Llama Company cost $45. - Stephen Jermanok

A Resort with Character

At first glance, Wyndham El Conquistador Resort in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, (800-468-5228, wyndhamelconquistador.com, from $159 for a room with two double beds), just outside San Juan, might seem like any other mega-hotel in the Caribbean, with its 900-plus rooms, seven pools, golf course, and casino. But try their kids' programs - kayaking in a bioluminescent bay, trekking Rio Camuy Cave Park - and suddenly Junior is having a better time than you are. The whole family will want to take the all-day hike to the lush El Yunque Rainforest to walk alongside orchids, ending at La Mina Falls for a cool dip. - Stephen Jermanok

A Trip to Bethlehem

With two Christmas-tree farms and almost 60,000 firs in the ground at any one time, odds are you'll find just the right Christmas tree in appropriately named Bethlehem, New Hampshire. Cut your own at The Rocks (800-639-5373, therocks.org, $33), a 1,300-acre estate owned by the Society for the Preservation of New Hampshire Forests, or at Finnegans Fine Firs (603-444-6275, $30), a family-run operation with 4 acres in town. More than two dozen area inns offer special tree packages. The best one for families is The Wayside Inn (800-448-9557, thewaysideinn.com) at $321 for two nights for two adults, plus $64 per child, which includes dinners and breakfasts, any size tree, one wreath, and an ornament. - Patricia Harris and David Lyon

Take the Lift

The valley directly west of Mount Washington, home of the historic Mount Washington Hotel (800-314-1752, mtwashington.com, from $320, including most meals) in Bretton Woods, has always been a favorite of New Hampshire cross-country skiers. Thanks to the Cog Railway (thecog.com, an adult day pass is $57, a child's is $37), downhill skiers can now enjoy the mountain, too. Last December, its coal-fired engines started roaring for the first time in winter, allowing skiers to carve their own turns down the western slope of New England's highest peak. - Stephen Jermanok

3 Day Getaway: Wild, Wild West

"I'm king of the world!" shouts my son Jake, climbing up the jagged ridge walls. We were supposed to take an easy walk to a series of small ponds carved out of the rock in Utah's Zion National Park. But, no. My 8-year-old boy insisted on the Hidden Canyon hike, even after the park ranger told him, "We lost a couple of 'em" - meaning children - "up there." Next thing you know, we're on a rock face where one misstep would send us plummeting 600 feet.

"This is fun," says 6-year-old Melanie, though my wife does not necessarily agree. She's fully committed to loosening the parental hold and letting the kids become more independent. But she doesn't want our children flying off a cliff. Eventually we reach the relative safety of a narrow slot canyon. Sunlight seeps in, illuminating the red Navajo sandstone. Another hiker lends our children his binoculars, and they stare at the morning moon peeking out above the serrated rim.

Drive 90 minutes east of the Las Vegas strip, and you're in the arid desert of southwestern Utah, as far from verdant New England as one can imagine, and a nice three-day weekend for a family that, like ours, may have already hiked every trail in New Hampshire.

Our first stop as we crossed into Utah was Snow Canyon State Park, outside St. George. We took a nature walk through such desert flora as white cliffroses, ancient creosote bushes, juniper trees, prickly pear cactuses, and old-man sagebrush. We spent one night at the Best Western Zion Park Inn (435-772-3200, zionparkinn.com, from $105 for two adults and two children in the summer high season), where the pool overlooks the park. The park's shuttle service is excellent; leave your car at the hotel.

Utah is a geologist's dream of twisting red rock walls, craggy peaks, monoliths, buttes, and - if you have the stamina to go another 90 minutes north to Bryce Canyon National Park - the colorful pinnacles geologists call "hoodoos." At Bryce Canyon, Best Western Ruby's Inn (435-834-5341, rubysinn.com, from $95) sits right outside the park's boundary. We opted to use our rental car to get to the trail heads in this park, since the bus follows a circuitous route. Peer down from the rim trail at the hundreds of hoodoos that line the amphitheater. Inspiration Point is an apt name for the peach, apricot, tan, white, red, and orange rocks that stand like congregants in a church. Behind every hoodoo is another fantastic wall, arch, grotto, or cliff. "It would be a hell of a place to lose a cow," Ebenezer Bryce supposedly said. Melanie is not so impressed. "How many of these hoodoo dudes do we need to see?" she asks. That's our cue to head back to the hotel pool. - Stephen Jermanok

Honky-Tonk Heaven

Lake George Village, New York, a resort community at the southern tip of 33-mile-long Lake George, an Adirondack landmark, was built for family vacations. There are taffy and fudge shops, video arcades, miniature golf, an amusement park, and, lest we forget, a wondrous lake surrounded by towering mountains. For the finest views, take an hourlong steamboat ride on the Minnie Ha Ha ($9.75 for adults, $6.25 for children). Stay at the conveniently located Nordick's Motel (800-368-2697, nordicks.com, from $77 for two queen beds). Its family-friendly restaurant, Porreca's (from $60 for a family of four), serves Italian fare and juicy ribs. - Stephen Jermanok

A Short Ride to a Long Island

Leave the Hamptons to the Manhattanites, sure. But don't overlook the North Fork of Long Island, just an 80-minute ferry ride from New London, Connecticut, which is less than two hours from Boston by car. Reserve a spot on the auto ferry (860-443-5281, longislandferry.com, $42 per car, including the driver, plus $12 per adult, $6 per child). Once the boat docks in Orient Point, New York, drive 8 miles to the old whaling village of Greenport. Take the kids to the beach or go for a sail on the Mary E, departing from Preston's Dock (516-381-1825, schoonermarye.com, $30 per adult, $12 per child). For a parents-only dose of seafood and Hampton-style swankiness, dine at the Frisky Oyster (631-477-4265, thefriskyoyster.com, from $100 for two) and stay at the pet-friendly Greenporter Hotel, Bistro & Bar (631-477-0066, thegreenporter.com, from $129), once a seedy motel but now a stylish retreat offering baby-sitter referrals. - Ann Silvio

Antlers Aweigh

In the Moosehead Lake region of Maine, amateur moose spotters can watch the animals simply by driving along the region's roadways. (Drive the speed limit, and to find a likely spot, look for skid marks left by other people's swerving vehicles; Route 201 between Bingham and Jackman is especially lively.) For a full-blown weekend excursion, hire a guide. The Birches (800-825-9453, birches.com, from $60), a rustic resort located in Rockwood on Moosehead Lake's western shore, offers moose tours on pontoon boats daily during the summer at 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. ($28 or $40 per person, depending on the trip you choose). - Wayne Curtis

Going to Town

What could be more chic than black and white? A celebration of Vermont's cows in Brattleboro June 1 through 4, 2006, will kick off National Dairy Month (strollingoftheheifers.org). Live music and art galleries open late are the main events on Friday, but Saturday belongs to the bovines. Start your day at the Strolling of the Heifers Parade (about a hundred Holsteins, followed by human musicians, jugglers, and baton twirlers), then spend the day eating ice cream and cheese. The grand old Latchis Hotel (802-254-6300, latchis.com, from $75) is close to the action. - Patricia Harris and David Lyon

Unless otherwise noted, room rates listed are for two people staying one night in a hotel's least expensive room with a private bath. Some inns require two-night stays on weekends. All prices are in US dollars.