San Diego is the perfect destination for families where you can easily mix a day in the great outdoors and still take in a museum or two. It is known for its beautiful year round weather where the average daily temperature is 70.5 degrees Fahrenheit (21.4 degrees Celsius). What makes San Diego an even more perfect vacation destination is, that within a very short traveling distance, you can enjoy coastal, mountain and desert environments all in the space of one day.

What better way to unwind and relax than on the San Diego beaches? San Diego boasts 70 miles of beach where families can swim, surf, snorkel, play volleyball, or just lie in the sun, a perfect spot for both parents and kids to enjoy a vacation day.

However, if the beach is too low key for you, San Diego has many other attractions to choose from.

LEGOLAND California, is a 128-acre theme park featuring more than 50 interactive attractions and rides that kids can push, pull, steer, pedal, squirt, climb, or build their way through a wonderland of activities.

SeaWorld San Diego, located on Mission Bay, is a 189-acre park featuring six major shows, fascinating attractions and dozens of exhibits containing marine life from around the globe.

San Diego’s Balboa Park is the largest urban cultural park in the United States. It has been referred to as the “Smithsonian of the West.” The park is the home to 85 cultural attractions, including 15 museums, 8 gardens and the San Diego Zoo. The Old Globe Theatre, modeled after Shakespeare’s Old Globe in London, is located within the park. The theatre has 3 stages, including an outdoor theater, where 15 plays and musicals are presented each year including its highly-regarded Shakespeare festival.

Also inside Balboa Park you will find The San Diego Zoo. The zoo is a world-famous 100-acre tropical garden that houses 4,000 animals of 800 rare and exotic species. Popular zoo activities include a three-mile guided bus tour, sky tram, children’s petting zoo, and baby animal nursery.

Parking at Balboa Park is free, but space fills quickly on weekends and during the summer. Overflow parking can be found on the streets surrounding the heart of Balboa Park on Park Blvd and Sixth Avenue. No matter where you park, the walk to the park is great but if you prefer to ride, free shuttles are available, just look for the signs.

Hillcrest, the Gay Heart of San Diego, is only minutes from Balboa Park with just a short drive from the downtown area. Also downtown is the Historic Heart of San Diego, the Gaslamp Quarter. Here you will find Petco Park which is the home of the San Diego Padres. This area is primarily straight, but gays feel welcome.

Located 30 miles northeast of downtown San Diego, the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park is a 1,800-acre preserve where wild animals roam free over vast expanses as they would in their native habitats of Africa and Asia.

If shopping is your form of entertainment, you will not be disappointed. Fashion Valley is the best, with Mission Valley only a few miles away. Horton Plaza (The heart of downtown) is a must see for the architecture. Also, there is the Las Americas Outlet mall located right next to the border of US and Mexico, and outlet malls at Vejas casino.

For all you Wizard of Oz fans, L. Frank Baum, who was the author of the book, did much of his writing at the Hotel Del Coronado. It is said that he based his designs for the Emerald City on the hotel. Baum is also credited with designing the crown chandeliers that hang in the Crown Room of the hotel.

Other must sees: the small “island” town of Coronado and La Jolla. In La Jolla you will find the Museum of Contemporary Art’s Main Gallery, upscale shopping and restaurants, and the seal pool which is a cove where seals nurse their pups.

Ready to plan your trip? Browse Pink Pavilions vacation rentals by owner in San Diego

SanDiego.org is offering discount coupons so that you can enjoy more of what San Diego has to offer for the gay family friendly vacation:

• SeaWorld – 2 days of fun for the price of 1
• $5 off up to six one-day adult or child admissions – LEGOLAND California
• Rent 2 kayaks, get the 3rd FREE! – San Diego Bike & Kayak Tours Inc.

When my sister-in-law first suggested New Hampshire for a summer vacation, I looked at her quite quizzically. I had only been to New Hampshire for skiing. I had not thought much about a summer vacation but there was an appeal to the idea.

The thought of leaving the humidity of Florida in the middle of August to go to the mountains of New Hampshire was very appealing indeed. The house we rented was a 2 ½ hour drive from Logan International Airport in Boston. The time went quickly as the scenery grew more and more beautiful as we progressed north on the interstate. When we finally arrived in town, the afternoon sun was washing the mountains with it warm rays and the sight was spectacular and worth every minute of our travels.

My partner and I were joining my family for a gay family vacation. We settled into our rental house and got the barbeque going right away for dinner. We had snacked a lot in the car but we all were looking forward to some barbequed chicken and fresh corn and vegetables that we bought at a farm stand nearby.

The next day we took off for the Basin and Cascades of the Pemigawasset River. The basin was carved by glacial waters thousands of years ago. A small waterfall spills into the basin and passes over a rock formation nick named “The Old Man’s Foot.”

The trail continues past the basin and down along the river where you can watch it run over the large granite rocks in the river’s path and on to Kinsman Cascades.

This inaugural day was for easy hiking and little discoveries. On our second day, we took on the Flume. The Flume is a natural gorge 800 feet wide with walls of granite rising 70 to 90 feet. Over the years, steps and boardwalks have been constructed to enable visitors to reach the falls easily. The trail is classified as a walk but the climb is strenuous at times. The walls of the flume are slippery and covered in moss where the water continuously rolls down the rock. At times the passage is only 4 to 6 feet wide and voices echo off the walls. The trail back down the mountain is much wider and twists around with a wonderful covered bridge takes you back over the falls. We were up and back in two hours with lots of stops for photos and appreciating the scenery.

The following day we made the mistake of taking the Mount Washington Cog Railway. It was very expensive with tickets priced at $55 per adult. I thought my nephews would enjoy the experience but it was definitely not worth the price. The ride to the top of the mountain was unpleasantly smelly, noisy, slow and sooty. The train has a coal burning engine and you are covered in soot by the time you reach the top where you are given only a half hour to take in the sights before you have to return to the base. I would never do this again.

We ventured over to Meredith for a day trip. Meredith sits on Lake Winnipesaukee. There are a few public beaches in and around Meredith. One of which is Weirs Beach that has a large sandy beach with shops and restaurants nearby. My nephews liked the arcades in particular.

The next day we hiked up to Lonesome Lake. The lake is a 1.5 mile hike up from the trail head by Lafayette Campground. This was a challenging climb over very steep slopes and rocks. By the time we reached the lake, some of our hikers had sore thighs and aching knees and looked forward to a rest at the Lonesome Lake hut. The lake did look inviting but it had gotten cloudy and cooler and we decided against a swim.

We took a ride over to North Conway for another day trip. The town is quaint with lots of shopping and a park in the middle of town. We strolled around the shops and had a nice lunch. My nephew is a die hard Yankee fan and got a lot of ribbing by the wait staff in the restaurant for wearing his Yankee baseball cap. Needless to say, they are all Red Sox fans.

On the way home we stopped along Route 302 and took an easy hike to Ripley Falls. The boys enjoyed rock hopping but neither was hot enough to get into the cold water.

To get a little historical perspective on the area we headed this day to the Robert Frost Museum in Franconia. The Frost family lived on the property full time from 1915 to 1920 but spent 19 summers here. The house is open to visitors and in the barn is a small TV to watch a 20 minute video of Frost’s life and accomplishments. There is a short hiking trail at the back of the property. At various points on the trail are Frost’s poems posted on display panels. It was a very nice way to spend a relaxing afternoon.

New Hampshire is a beautiful state and the White Mountains offer swimming, biking, hiking and relaxation. We hope we get to see the moose on our next visit!

Two very good books to use for selecting your hikes in the White Montains are:

• Waterfalls of the White Mountains: 30 Hikes to 100 Waterfalls
• Foghorn Outdoors New Hampshire Hiking