Here are Backroads, we are a very kid-friendly company offering family adventure trips to destinations around the world created with both adults and children in mind. While we have plenty of parents travel with their children, we also see plenty of grandparents travel with their grandchildren – we’re the experts in multigenerational family travel.

Backroads hiking tours and family bike tours are a great way to celebrate big milestones in life, and grandparents often choose to reward their grandkids with one-on-one multigenerational adventure vacations. We’ve seen groups celebrating Bar Mitzvahs, graduations, major birthdays and more. It’s an opportunity to expose kids to different cultures around the world and enjoy together a life-changing experience they will remember for the rest of their lives.

Traveling with Backroads is ideal for grandparents, as we plan every detail to let you truly focus on your amazing destination. We provide a dedicated Kid Coordinator, whose sole job it is to entertain your troop and keep them happy! If you choose, children can dine separately during some meals and enjoy activities designed just for them while grandparents may experience a wine tasting or other adult event.

We find one of the greatest benefits of our family adventure vacations is the lifelong friendships the kids develop. Over the course of five to seven or more days spending the bulk of the day together, budding friendships blossom into lifelong pen pals or perhaps Facebook friends J.

Backroads family adventure holidays are also a wonderful educational experience. Not only will your teen, preteen or school-age grandchild get to experience a new culture, our Expert Trip Leaders will sneak in some extra educational information in fun and exciting ways!

Here are some of our recommended trips for grandparents and grandkids:

• Family Iceland Hiking Tour
• Loire Valley Biking Tour for Families
• Hawaii Family Multisport
• New Zealand Family Biking and Hiking Tour

See all of our available family adventure vacations.

Would you consider taking your grandchild with you on a walking tour or biking tour? Where would you travel?

Book your getaway today by calling us 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific time at 800-462-2848.

Photo credit: Brian McGilloway

As the weather starts to turn from hot to mild here in the U.S., we think it’s a great time to head south and experience some of this country’s most charming cities, y’all. Backroads offers a multi-sport adventure tour that takes you from Charleston, S.C., to Savannah, Ga. and kicks into full gear this fall, just when their weather is at its best.

Begin your bike trip in graceful Charleston, where you’ll get a history lesson as you explore what’s also known as the Holy City, due to its many and varied churches and steeples in the skyline. You’ll also have the chance to marvel at the grand mansions, stunning architecture and beautiful gardens in which there is something blooming in all seasons as you bike Charleston. The historic city is framed with live oaks draped with Spanish moss and every turn is picturesque, making you feel like you’ve stepped back in time. In addition to biking Charleston through its historic district and enjoying a guided walking tour, enjoy a kayak trip to a bird sanctuary and take in incredible views of the Cooper River Bridge as you pedal across.

On your way from Charleston to Savannah, you’ll also make a stop in historic Beaufort, S.C., and explore surrounding areas such as Hunting Island State Park, which has a beautifully preserved lighthouse; and tour the Penn Center, which describes sea island and Lowcountry African American culture. After Beaufort, you’ll head into lovely Savannah.

As you bike Savannah, you’ll have the pleasure of pedaling along the Intracoastal Waterway to the Isle of Hope, which was home to Savannah’s elite in the 19^th century. Enjoy the city’s many beautiful squares, common areas that have been turned into beautiful parks and surrounding historic mansions.

The lodging on this Premiere Inns trip is stellar, beginning with the Planters Inn in the heart of historic Charleston. A Relais & Châteaux member, The Planters Inn has a gorgeous garden courtyard and is literally a stone’s throw from the Old City Market, which was recently renovated. Other lodging includes the Rhett House in Beaufort, S.C., a Greek revival plantation-style inn, complete with sprawling verandas. Your final night will be spent in the Mansion on Forsyth Park in Savannah. This Victorian Romanesque mansion has been restored and is located right in the hustle, bustle and beauty of Savannah’s historic district.

You certainly won’t go hungry on this bike tour and you’ll want to sample all the Southern delicacies you can, from coconut cake at The Planter’s Inn in Charleston to fried chicken and biscuits at Mrs. Wilkes’ Dining Room in Savannah.

Ready to experience a bit of Southern culture this fall? Visit our website or contact one of our trip planners 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific at 800-462-2848.

Argentina is a stunning country that has a lot to offer, from some of the highest peaks in the Andes Mountains to some of the most unique wines in the world. And who hasn’t heard of the Argentine Tango … the intoxicating dance that heats up dance floors from South America all the way to the set of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars!

Backroads has put together a bike tour of Argentina that captures the essence of this South American beauty, giving you a taste of the country and its locals complemented by Backroads’ outstanding service.

Our six-day, five night trip begins in San Miguel de Tucaman, a city that is nicknamed “The garden of the Republic” because in the springtime there are flowers as far as the eye can see. From San Miguel, you’ll head to Cafayate, a region known for having the world’s highest-altitude vineyards. Speaking of high altitudes, on the way to Cafayate, you’ll face the challenge of pedaling a 10,000-foot pass!

Have you ever heard of a gaucho? In the U.S., we call them cowboys! Raising cattle is a way of life in this South American country, and gauchos are a great part of the Argentine landscape. On your Argentina biking tour, gauchos will share with our group their passion for horses, music, wine and storytelling. We’ll also enjoy the fruits of their labor, and that of those who work on local farms and vineyards.

On this bike trip, you’ll gain some serious elevation between the Andes and the Quebrada de Cafayate (a brilliant canyon). Each day, your reward is the simple yet breathtaking scenery and the interaction with locals along the way. You can also look forward to relaxing the last two days in Salta at the House of Jasmines, a Relais & Châteaux member. Here you can indulge at the spa or hop back on the saddle for one final steep climb before descending toward Ciénaga Lake.

Of course, daily mileage options are up to you and we provide two vans along the route to help you with whatever you need as you bike Argentina, whether it’s to fix a flat or you’re ready to head back to the hotel. Come bike with us in Argentina. We’ll leave you with memories of this stunning country full of wonderful people and plenty of natural wonders to go around.

To book your Argentina trip today, call us 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific at 800-462-2848.

At Backroads we try to cater to a range of traveler interests  whether you prefer to go on a bike tour or a walking tour or enjoy more casual versus luxury hotels. Our options for lodging are varied and include three main categories:

• Premiere Inns – Many of the places you’ll stay are members of distinguished alliances such as Relais & Châteaux and Small Luxury Hotels of the World.
• Casual Inns — While our Casual Inns are by definition comfortably informal, they must meet a rigorous list of criteria set by the very discriminating Backroads team.
• Deluxe Camping – Truly enjoy the great outdoors by day and night, but relax while your leaders, the camp chef and a camp assistant do all the hard work.

If you’re considering taking a Casual Inn walking tour or biking tour with us, here’s one sample of what you can expect. On Backroads’ Amalfi Coast Walking and Hiking Tour, for example, you’ll stay at Hotel Mamela in Capri. Each room is decorated in bright, unique furnishings and beautiful tiled floors. The hotel offers WiFi, a pool, daily breakfast options and a great location for viewing and touring this beautiful island. Check out the hotel’s gallery to see what a Casual Inn in Italy looks like!

Another example of our Casual Inn trips is the Glacier Park Walking and Hiking Trip. After hiking through Montana and Alberta, you’ll get to relax in the “casual” Glacier Park Lodge. The hotel site is situated on the Blackfeet Reservation and was purchased from the Piegan Indians in the early 1900s. Its opening in 1913 was celebrated by more than 600 invited guests and the Blackfeet Indians who erected teepees on the lawn.

The lodge offers 161 guest rooms, a dining room, bar, espresso stand, gift shop, swimming pool, nine-hole golf course, a day spa and more. Just take a look at some pictures of the Montana lodge. Its lobby is like something from a movie with the main hall flanked by columns made from actual (gigantic) trees. Glacier Park Lodge is casual yet magnificent. We think you’ll agree.

Browse Backroads.com for the region to which you’d like to travel and then simply click the “Casual Inns” option below the trip name. You can check out all the inviting casual places you’ll be staying. Let us know if you have any questions! We’re available every day 7 a.m.-5 p.m. (Pacific time). Just call us at 800-462-2848.

Now is the time to makes plans for a one-of-a-kind Iceland family adventure, as we’ve recently released our 2013 summer travel dates to this magnificent “land of extremes.”

Our Iceland tour, recently named a National Geographic Traveler Tour of a Lifetime, explores the dramatic beauty of this country from its diverse and often contrasting features. They include: glaciers atop volcanoes, stark white icebergs washed up on black sand beaches, and gray lava flats amid white ice fields. It’s truly something to behold on this Iceland bike tour.

Based on this diversity, we’ve created a great family multisport trip in Southern Iceland for you and your family to explore the region’s natural wonders. Get ready to do lots of family biking and hiking, as well as riding on Zodiacs, planes, rafts, horses and even a “super jeep”!

A few highlights include a visit to Skaftafell National Park to view out-of-this-world ice formations, water caldrons, crevasses and a breathtaking icefall; and setting out in a “super jeep” to explore the creeks and rivers near simmering Hekla volcano.

We’ve picked out a selection of Casual and Premiere Inns for this trip, including a comfortable lodge, a countryside resort and a peaceful hotel. Additionally, the Fludir region of Iceland is famous for its organic produce, which you will certainly enjoy at Hotel Fludir, a peaceful hotel in a quiet organic farming community. In addition to its amazing views (rolling hills and ice-capped mountains), you’ll be able to its restaurant menu which includes slowly cooked cod served with potato mousse, vegetables and soy sauce-infused butter; and Icelandic garlic-roasted langoustines with garlic bread and salad. Yum!

This Iceland family trip is the perfect mix of history, culture and adventure and will introduce your family to the wonder of this magical land.

Ready to book or just have questions? We’re available every day 7 a.m.-5 p.m. (Pacific time) at 800-462-2848. You can also visit www.backroads.com.

What’s your travel style? Do you prefer luxurious accommodations and fine dining? Then you’ll love Backroads’ luxury trips designed for a day of adventure followed by relaxation at premiere inns and refueling in gourmet restaurants.

Here’s a little “taste” of what you can experience on a Backroads adventure when you select a Premiere Inn trip.

Our Provence Biking Trip, for example, includes two nights at Crillon le Brave, a “relaxed and informal refuge” that’s also a Relais & Châteaux member. This hotel is located about 25 miles northeast of Avignon at the foot of the Dentelles de Montmirail mountains and Mont Ventoux. Crillon le Brave is a collection of beautiful lodges that once served as a presbytery, stables and a school. With 24 rooms and 8 suites, this charming and historic hotel offers stunning views from each room. Bedrooms feature crisp Italian linens by Frette and luxurious bathrooms, as well as Bose Wave systems with iPod connectors. Conde Nast Traveler says this is “easily the best hotel we’ve ever stayed in.”

Crillon le Brave offers two restaurants, each serving high quality, locally-sourced fresh ingredients prepared and served by a team of experts who work together to ensure your food and wine is paired perfectly.

A heated outdoor pool makes a wonderful place to relax after a day on the bike. Other amenities and services include a mini-spa for full body, hot stone massages and facials, a boules court, laptops for loan with complimentary high speed Internet access and a selection of English daily newspapers. They also offer a babysitting service and a special menu for children. What more could you ask for?

We believe all of our Premiere Inn Trips offer the perfect blend of gracious hospitality and authentic regional flair. In addition to hotels that members of Relais & Châteaux, we also frequent Small Luxury Hotels of the World, and accommodations that have won acclaim from the likes of Andrew Harper’s Hideaway Report, Condé Nast Traveler and Travel+Leisure.

When it comes to distinguished dining, all of the Premiere Inns we frequent work hard to ensure you enjoy authentic and memorable meals. These establishments are regularly featured in Gourmet and Wine Country magazines, and often boast Michelin stars.

Explore our Premiere Inn Trips in all corners of the world to get a sample of true luxury travel. If you have any questions or want to book a trip, please call us at 800-462-2848 7 a.m.-5p.m. Pacific time.

With most of the country experiencing record heat this summer, we’re thinking a journey into Alaska’s Last Frontier sounds pretty spectacular – and cool – right now. Backroads offers several opportunities to travel to Alaska, including Alaskan hiking trips and Alaskan bike tours. Take this opportunity to see nature at its finest and enjoy the outdoors without melting the moment you walk outside.

A few fun facts: Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area, spanning nearly 600,000 square miles, more than twice the size of Texas, the next largest state. It’s also the fourth least populated state in the U.S., which makes Alaska a wonderful place to explore the beauty of nature without the crowds.

Alaska has more than 30,000 miles of dramatic tidal shoreline; several active volcanoes, including the “most perfect (symmetrical) volcanic cone on earth;” as well as three million lakes. Sign us up!

Here are the Alaskan adventures we offer:

• Alaska Biking (Classic) – Travel a remote section of Alaska seen by few with adventures in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Prince William Sound and Matanuska Glacier.
• Alaska Walking and Hiking (Classic) – Hike along Exit and Grewingk Glaciers, boat across Kachemak Bay and travel through the towns of Homer and Seward.
• Alaska Adventure Multisport (Classic, Singles+Solos, Family) – No matter who you’re traveling with, you’ll enjoy hiking Harding Icefield Trail, kayaking around Yukon Island, visiting the town of Homer and watching salmon swim upstream.
• Alaska Family Adventure Multisport (Family – Deluxe Camping!) – This trip is new in 2012 and includes biking, hiking, rafting, sea kayaking on the Kenai Peninsula. Highlights from the itinerary will give you and your family the chance to experience everything from snow-clad mountains (in any season!) to viewing marine and wildlife, as well as simply enjoying this wilderness paradise by bike, foot, boat and even dog sled!

Remember how we said this new multisport trip included Deluxe Alaska Camping? Well, we’ve arranged for you to stay at two campgrounds: Slidehole Campground at Anchor Point and Trail River Campground in the Chugach National Forest. And when we say “Deluxe Camping,” you can take that to mean that you get to relax and enjoy your evening as we set up camp, cook dinner, clean up and more! This might just be the kind of camping you’ve been waiting for!

Alaska is on most people’s bucket lists. Why not go ahead and check it off yours this year? Call us to book your Alaskan getaway today at 800-462-2848 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific time.

As the days blaze on in the summer, our minds sometimes wander to cooler days and we often think of fall foliage trips. It’s not too late to begin planning your trip and we have a great spot for you: Vermont.

Our Vermont Biking Tour is an amazing way to experience what Charles Kuralt calls an “unbearably beautiful American time and place.” Leaf-peep an autumn rainbow of colors: red, orange, yellow, brown and green will greet you on almost every pass. And the weather? Well, it’s just about as perfect as it gets.

Our Vermont biking trip takes you through rolling hills and farmlands, under amazing oak canopies, over picture-perfect covered bridges and past postcard-worthy red barns. There will be plenty of quiet roads and a good mix of New England villages, too, like Woodstock!

We know we started this post about fall foliage, but we can’t talk about Vermont without these four words: cheese, beer and maple syrup.

This trip includes a tour of New England’s Maple Museum, and you’ll have plenty of time in the evenings to relax with a tasty New England brew and a bit of Vermont cheese. Sounds like a pretty good way to spend a week in the fall, doesn’t it? Call our Trip Consultants today to check departure dates for our fall foliage tours. Our Trip Consultants can be reached at 800-GO-ACTIVE (462-2848) 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific Time.

Credit: Gord Sonnenberg

Kids have been listening to stories and seeing movies about princes and princesses living in and defending castles since they were little. Show them a real castle and share with them a little history by embarking on one of our amazing European family adventure tours or Europe bike tour.

The Loire Valley Family Biking Trip is one option for castle-dreaming kids. This France bike trip includes castles straight out of fairy tales like the Château de Cheverny and Château de Chenonceau, where you and your children will be transported back in time.

Château de Cheverny, built between 1604 and 1635, is still owned by descendents of the original builders, the Hurault family, and has retained an intimate charm. Furnishings and period costumes are on display, and the gardens are enormous and immaculate.

Château de Chenonceau was built around 1513 and is completely surrounded by water. Your kids will love the moat, though we can’t promise any dragons or trolls J. This castle is magnificent because of its original design, the richness of its collections, its furniture and its decorations.

Our Czech Republic and Austria Family Biking Trip is another fantasy land filled with storybook castles. Adults will enjoy the France walking tour of the town Český Krumlov, which was built around a 13^th-century castle and is complete with twisting lanes and buildings with red tile roofs. The town is described as an outstanding example of a central European small town dating from the Middle Ages. It owes the structure and buildings of its historic core to the town’s economic importance and relatively undisturbed organic development over some five centuries.

Later in the trip while in Austria, kids will get to experience a Renaissance castle. They’ll have a day of fun at the castle and get to watch a falconry demonstration that is straight out of the middle-ages.

What is your child’s favorite fairytale featuring a castle? Let us know if we can make those dreams come true! Call us between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Pacific time at 800-462-2848 to start your journey.

Responsible travel is important to Backroads. We’ve said it many times: Traveling on two feet or two wheels is the ultimate minimal-impact approach to traveling. Still, we recognize that any travel has an impact. So, in addition to creating wonderful walking trips, hiking tours and biking adventures, we also find ways to support the communities in which we travel to offset a little of the small footprint we leave behind.

Here are some of our favorite ways to travel responsibly. We hope you adopt these principles when you’re on a Backroads tour, as well as when you set out on your own vacation adventures, and even during daily life when your next vacation is just in the planning stages:

-          Buy locally grown products and donate leftover foods to charities.

-          Shop at local retail stores.

-          Recycle where recycling exists.

-          One of the easiest things to do is remember the motto: Leave No Trace. This especially applies to camping. If you pack it in, be sure to pack it out.

Here are a few of the organizations Backroads supports. In recent years, we’ve donated more than $1 million to causes or organizations like these:

National Parks Conservation Association

This group has been around since 1919 and sparked a nationwide effort to preserve our national parks. Chances are, if you’ve visited a scenic vista, a vast landscape or even historic sites, the National Parks Conservation Association has had something to do with preserving the integrity of that area. Backroads is proud to offer active national park vacations, including Wrangell-St. Elias, Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Glacier, Maine’s Acadia and Alaska’s Glacier Bay. For more information about NPCA, call 800-628-7275 or visit www.npca.org.

The International Ecotourism Society (TIES)

This organization aims to make tourism a viable tool for conservation and sustainable development. It works with outdoor travel entrepreneurs, researchers and conservationists. Every year, the International Ecotourism Society picks an ecotourism issue and works with its network to not just raise awareness, but bring about change.

Costa Rica and Ecuador’s Galápagos Islands - two favorite Backroads destinations – are just two areas benefiting from TIES attention. For more information about TIES, call 202-347-9203 or visit www.ecotourism.org.

Leave No Trace

What we love about traveling the back roads is that there is so much beauty. Sure, we travel in and to a few big cities, but we always try to take the road less traveled. We have a number of trips that involve camping and it’s the Leave No Trace motto that we make sure everyone in the group understands. This motto was developed in the late 1970s and is a cooperative effort among the U.S National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service and dozens of other private partners such as Backroads.

“Leave No Trace” principles include:

• Camping and traveling on durable surfaces: On our walking, hiking and mountain biking trips, we avoid and discourage cutting switchbacks, creating new trails or adding new trail markers. Minimal impact on the trails and surrounding areas is key.

• Pack it in, pack it out: While we aren’t doing any backpacking on our trips, we are very conscientious about picking up all our food and trash items when we are picnicking, camping or stopping for refreshments.

• Leaving what you find behind: We discourage the urge to take away even a small souvenir piece of lava or coral or wildflowers. We need to leave things the way they were when we found them, so others can enjoy the same beauty we did. For more information about Leave No Trace, call 800-332-4100 or visit www.Lnt.org.

So enjoy your adventure tour with Backroads but be mindful of your environment and the impact you leave behind.