Plan your spring break with our special section!

And check out our annual guide to Fun in the Snow

Maybe your gang wants to ride roller coasters all day.  Maybe you want to join the grandparents on a cruise.  Maybe your idea of a perfect Spring Break getaway is cheering on your favorite baseball players at Spring Training games in Florida or Arizona. 

Whatever floats your family's boat-literally-spring break is a terrific time to get away. Spring break clearly has moved beyond bikinis and beer kegs as growing number of families find it the ideal time to get away together.  And if you plan smart, you may even snare a bargain. 

You may find time to give back on vacation too. Websites like www.togetherforgood.org and www.packforapurpose.org can show you how easy it can be!

Here are five places TakingtheKids and Family Travel Forum recommend for a stupendous spring break:

Play on the beach, whether in sunny San Diego  or Carlsbad, CA. Hunt for shells on Sanibel Island in Florida or build sandcastles with the fine sand at Panama City Beach.  Or opt for an all-inclusive in Mexico, the Dominican Republic or Jamaica.

Opt for an Adventure.  OARS touts aGrand Canyon Sampler or a 4-day San Juan river trip in Utah.  Be the first four to book on a trip before March 31 and save 10 per cent. Adventuresmith Explorations  touts small ship expeditions along Baja California where you can snorkel, kayak and see dolphins and Gray and Humpback whales. 

Hit the seas on a cruise. Go from a port near home and you can avoid the hassle and expense of flying.   See our Family Cruise Section.  Some ships like Disney Cruise Line and select Royal Caribbean  ships even have day care for infants while Carnival Cruises nursery begins at age 2.  On MSC Cruises, Children 11-years old and under sail free, and kids 17-years old and under sail at reduced rates.

Orlando is Family Spring Break central with plenty of new attractions   including Antartica: Empire of the Penguin at SeaWorld Orlando complete with ride and live penguin colony; Universal Orlando Resort's TRANSFORMERS: The Ride and world's first Simpsons themed area, Springfield and at Walt Disney World Resort,Princess Fairytale Hall as part of the New Fantasyland expansion at Magic Kingdom Park where little princesses can meet Cinderella, Rapunzel and other Disney princesses.  LEGOLAND Floridaopened The World of Chima, an expansion based on the Cartoon Network animated TV series and LEGO product line. The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex unveiled the $100 million 90,000-square-foot (8,362-square-meter) home for the Space Shuttle Atlantis, which retired in 2011.

Hit the slopes. Late season is a great time for great deals-and lots of sunshine.  Check out our FUN IN THE SNOW section. At the Aspen resorts kids stay, rent, ski and even eat free all March and April (as long as you book in advance and purchase lodging and a three day adult lift). Kids 12 and under ski free at Keystone Resort every day of the 2013/14 winter season without any blackout dates. (Families must stay two or more nights in one of Keystone's numerous owned and operated accommodations.)  New York State has more ski mountains than any other state and 25 of them welcome all 3^rd and 4^th graders to learn the sport with free lessons and lift tickets all season.