9 March Break getaways for every budget
We've got vacation ideas whether you have $500, $1,000 or $2,000. Prices are based on a family four (and most can shrink or grow depending on length of stay and meals out)
WEST COAST Saltspring Island, $500: Get your kids off the couch and out of the city. BC Ferries has teamed with resorts to offer winter packages. For just $149 an adult, for example, your family can unwind at the Green Acres Lakeside resort. bcferriesvacations.com
WEST COAST Cypress Mountain: $1,000: Outdoorsy types should head here, just 30 minutes outside Vancouver. If the kids aren’t into skiing, they can horse around in the Snowtube Park. After the slopes, unwind at the Sandman Hotel in Vancouver ($95 a night). cypressmountain.com
WEST COAST Seattle: $2,000 Science-loving kids will get a kick out of a week in Seattle. The city is chockablock with museums, but highlights include the Museum of Flight, the Burke Museum and the Pacific Science Center. Stay at the Four Points by Sheraton Downtown Seattle Center. Newly renovated rooms average $104 a night.
CENTRAL Blue Mountain: $500: Special events from March 10 to 18 include snowshoe tours, face painting, fireworks and a free concert by Suzie McNeil (March 14). Stay close to the action for a couple nights at the Blue Mountain Inn; rooms are $128 a night.Andrea Hamlin
CENTRAL Ottawa: $1,000 Some kids love learning. Take them to the nation’s capital. Specials include hotels starting at $88 a night and discounted museum tickets (purchased in advance). When the kids start to get antsy, take them out over to the stray-cat house behind Parliament Hill: It’s a guaranteed hit. hotels.ottawatourism.ca
CENTRAL Mont Tremblant: $2,000 Hotels start at just $63 a person a night (get a 15-per-cent saving on three nights or more). Bonuses, offered until March 18, include first guests allowed on the hill, free skate rental and dining coupons. Plus, save 15 per cent on lift tickets of three days or more. (tremblant.ca/offers/winter)Peter Mccabe
EAST COAST Cape Breton: $500 The Family Star Gazing event at the Inverary Resort in Baddeck, N.S., on March 17 should be fun. Besides stargazing with an astronomer, the package includes a one-night stay, full meals for the day, an outdoor bonfire and more ($269 for a family of four). capebretonresorts.com
EAST COAST Stonehame Lodge, N.S.: $1,000 This lodge near Pictou, N.S., promises lots of fun for kids. The March Break package (available March 9 to 15) includes a digital scavenger hunt, a petting farm, pizza, movie nights, sleigh rides, snowshoeing, a s’mores bonfire and more. Deluxe rooms start at $149, with additional nights for $79. (stonehamechalets.com)
EAST COAST Maine: $2,000 No matter what your family’s interests, you’ll find a getaway package in Maine. Moosehead Hills, for example, offers one the kids will be bragging about for weeks: a two-night package that includes a dogsled ride starting at $570. (Additional nights start at $185.) Or try a snowshoe package starting at $370. (visitmaine.com)