Use the Destination Finder in the Travel section of this site to search for your perfect vacation, or browse kid-related travel tips. Preparing to Go Kids love seeing in person things they recognize from a book or movie. A trip to the library will turn up a surprising number of books for all ages related to some aspect of your trip. You might want to read books about the history of a region or about activities or animals you'll see there. Watching a movie such as Dinosaur may interest your kids in pre-history and artifacts, and by extension, an archaeological trip.
Many resorts send short videos.
Even if they sound like ads, they'll help kids picture where they're going. With little kids, take pretend trips before you go. Kids will love packing a small suitcase, setting up rows of chairs as a plane, cutting up paper for play tickets, and taking turns being waiter and customer in a restaurant. And start small. Try a one-night camp out in the backyard or a nearby state park before committing yourself to a weeklong trip, an afternoon hike as a trial run for a vacation in the mountains, a local museum visit before a weekend grand museum jaunt.