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My family just spent a week in Singapore, which was nice.  We really enjoyed the Botanical Gardens and the Science Museum among other things.

However my favorite vacation spots have got to be 1) Niagara Falls, 2) The Grand Canyon, and 3) NYC during the Redemption National Tournament a few years ago

I will sound completely biased, since my top spot will be where I live now, and my second choice will be where I grew up.

1.) Orlando, FL - My dad drove 24 hours straight from New Hampshire to Florida almost every year of my childhood, shortly after Walt Disney World first opened in the early 1970s. Back then the prices were relatively cheap since you could buy individual tickets for the rides you wanted. We stayed at the KOA campground in our pop-up camper and tents. There were also other attractions like Sea World, Gatorland, Circus World (which is now closed), and Cypress Gardens (which is now Legoland). As an adult, looking back, I led a somewhat traumatic personal life in those days, so the Orlando trips were my only real positive memories from my childhood. That stuck with me, because every time I wanted to take a family vacation with my own kids, I really wanted to have them experience the joys that I had in Orlando. After a while, I finally decided to save the money traveling to Orlando and just move there instead.

The cost of going to the amusement parks has skyrocketed, so I will have to attach a disclaimer to this endorsement. However, if you can afford it, you will not regret it. Universal Studios arrived in the 1990s and is the best "thrill" park for teenagers and thrill-ride enthusiast adults (like me!). Disney's four theme parks meet the needs of families with varying age groups and interests, but the Hopper passes make the best use of your time. I still like Sea World in spite of the Blackfish movie, but I don't really go to the shows anymore. There are enough rides and exhibits to entertain my whole family. Legoland is awesome if you have young children, but there is not much to do there for teenagers. You also have great half-day adventures in WonderWorks, the Orlando Science Museum, and the plethora of minor tourist attractions like SkyZone and minigolf. We have lived here for 7 years and have not run out of new things to do even on a low budget. 

2.) New Hampshire's White Mountains - As a contrast to the hustle and bustle of Orlando life, there are times when I just want to go out into the wilderness and be away from people (other than my family). The White Mountains have plenty of hiking trails and secluded camping sites, but I love the natural wonders that are scattered there. "The Basin" is a rock bed river that flows through the mountains. The river has carved amazing rock sculptures which display the beauty of God's Creation. Also, the smooth rock bed offers incredible natural waterslides that dump you over small waterfalls into pools of crystal clear water. The hiking trails lead to some breath-taking views of the valleys between the mountains and the amazing clear lakes that reflect the mountains. You used to be able to see the "Old Man of the Mountain," which was a cliff on the side of one mountain that, from the right angle, looked like the silhouette of a man's face. It is still the state symbol, even though the formation eventually collapsed due to erosion. My final plug for this particular area is the nice cool breeze that permeates the area, even in the summer. There are few experiences like it. 

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With all that said, though, it appears that even Disney execs agree with Prof Underwood on where their favorite vacation spot might be:

...and 3) NYC during the Redemption National Tournament a few years ago

I really despise the dates in history and just don't like it all together, I'm more of a science math kind of person. But st Augustine is the oldest permanent city settled (1565) in the U.S. Today.
(That is a snippet from our history book)

We have always wanted to visit Canada. That is certainly a place we would like to visit sometime in the near future.

@ Legoland and Professor, do you guys fly up to Canada to visit the cabins or is it within driving distance?

We have always wanted to visit Canada. That is certainly a place we would like to visit sometime in the near future.

@ Legoland and Professor, do you guys fly up to Canada to visit the cabins or is it within driving distance?

Our cabin is about a 6.5 hour drive from where we live (Minneapolis, MN) so we always drive.

We drive it normally takes us the whole day to get to the island about 10 hours (I think) we used to only go there once or twice a year but we Are going to start going there more often

That is awesome. How often do you get to go?

We usually go once or twice every summer, anywhere between 4 days to a week at a time. My wife's parents usually spend an average of 4-6 weeks out of the summer there, in different trips. And now that her dad is retired, that will probably increase.

Wow,  very cool. You guys like to fish or hunt? I am guessing that is pretty popular there.

No hunting where the cabin is, but fishing is very popular. I am not a huge fan of fishing myself, but my wife's whole family loves it, and I love eating fish, so it works out.

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We usually go once or twice every summer, anywhere between 4 days to a week at a time. My wife's parents usually spend an average of 4-6 weeks out of the summer there, in different trips. And now that her dad is retired, that will probably increase.

So I am assuming her parents own it? I know if I was retired and had something like that, I would spend a large majority of my time there.

I am not the biggest fan of fishing myself. Cathing fish is a blast, but staring at a pole for hours upon end with no bites, not so much. 

Yep. Her dad inherited it from his parents.

Totally with you on fishing. 98% of the time, it should be just called waiting...

That sounds like my kind of vacation!

My favorite place would have to be Joseph Peninsula State Park located in Port St Joe, FL. The scenery there is absolutely mind blowing. The state park stretches about 8-10 miles to the end of the peninsula and is full of amazing wild life, trails, camping sites, and cabins along the bay area. The Gulf side of the peninsula has the most beautiful beach I have ever visited. My family and I always rent one of the cabins for a week. You get to wake up to a gorgeous sunrise over the bay. Then the sun sets on the Gulf side,  which usually makes for outstanding photographs. I have so many great memories there. This is definitely a family favorite.

Ps, sorry for the grammar errors in my last post. My phone has a mind of its own at times.

You seem to have a lot of great memories from Florida, which was my story too.    That's the other great part about living in Central Florida, I am less than an hour from the Gulf Coast and the Atlantic Coast, so beaches are a dime a dozen. 

Indeed I do. You enjoy living in Florida and having access to a ton of beaches?

Two excellent reasons. How many children do you have? I'm in total agreement with you about the sun. When I go to the beach, I dread baking in the sun, so I'm always sure to have a beach umbrella. My wife has had three pre-cancerous moles removed, and I have a couple A-typical moles. So needless to say, I don't enjoy being out in the sun for very long periods of time.

Gulf Coast beaches have always been a lot nicer in my opinion. Of course, I am partly biased, since my family and I always went to the Gulf Coast.

That's great. I have a 14 month old son who keeps us very busy! Children are such a blessing, though.