Today's guest is Dana Freeman, editorial director of Find & Go Seek, an insider's guide to kid-friendly fun in the Champlain Valley of Vermont. Here she shares five fabulous free things to do with kids in and around Burlington, Vermont. 

Maple Open House at Shelburne Farms: Shelburne Farms is a dairy farm and nonprofit education center on the shores of Lake Champlain in nearby Shelburne, Vermont. Throughout the year, the farm hosts many free and nearly-free family activities and events. One of the best takes place at the end of every March, when Shelburne Farms hosts a Sugar-on-Snow event that is free and open to the public.  Park your car at the barn and hike up the hill behind it. There, set back in the woods, you'll find a steaming sugar house. Inside you'll learn how the sap turns into syrup. Outside you can sample sugar-on-snow —hot maple syrup drizzled on snow and served with the traditional side of pickles! Then continue on a scavenger hunt along the wooded trails to find "tree cookies" which kids can collect and trade in at the barn for maple candies. Should you get cold while you are hunting, there is an outdoor campfire to warm up your hands. This is a great way to spend the morning sampling Vermont's tasty treats and getting a little exercise too. (Maple Open House dates: 9:30am-2pm, March 27-28, 2010)

Island Line Trail: This spectacular 12-mile walking-and-biking path is absolutely the best in all of Northern Vermont. It is so unique, beginning with a paved section that skirts Burlington's waterfront and ending with a packed gravel stretch that juts out on the Colchester Causeway three miles into the middle of the lake. You actually get the feeling that you are walking on water. Along the way there are public beaches and scenic views that take in all of the natural beauty of Vermont, with the lake and mountains surrounding you.  Because the trail is so flat, kids of all ages can bike or walk it with ease and small ones can be pushed in a jogging stroller. There is not much shade, if any at all, so remember your sunscreen, as well as snacks and water. (In downtown Burlington, take Main Street west toward the waterfront. Follow the road past Battery Street as it curves to the right, then turn left on College Street. To go straight to the Colchester Causeway, take Route 127 north and turn left onto Porter's Point Road. Turn left onto Colchester Point Road. Airport Park will be on the right, with parking and trail access.)

Bristol Falls Swimming Hole: In the summer, there is nothing better than a Vermont swimming hole.  Located alongside Lincoln Road with convenient parking, Bristol Falls is one of the prettiest. It starts with a waterfall that leads into a small canyon of slow moving water. Though the rocks can be slippery (water shoes are a great idea), you can swim to the far side and walk along the rock edge and actually stand right underneath the waterfall. A couple of hundred feet out, the water level is really shallow and is ideal for younger kids. There are places along the shore for picnicking and relaxing.

Stoweflake Hot Air Balloon Festival: It's no wonder the Vermont Chamber of Commerce picks this as a top 10 summer event. Although the festival charges admission for the evening launches, the morning launches are all free. To see the balloons being blown up on the fields is truly a colorful feast for the eyes. Some of the balloonists will even let the kids go inside the balloons for a close-up look.  When all the balloons finally launch, it is a magical moment for young and old alike. (Stoweflake Hot Air Balloon Festival dates: July 9-11, 2010)

Thursdays at the Intervale: While there are many great places to hike in Vermont, the Intervale is just superb. This family-friendly trail can be enjoyed all year round for hiking, biking and cross-country skiing, and it is very close to downtown Burlington. In the summertime, there is a great free program called Thursdays at the Intervale. Families gather at the Community Barn for food, live music, kids' activities, and educational programs. You can bring your own picnic dinner or buy slices of pizza from one of Vermont's favorites, American Flatbread. 

Set on 20 lushly landscaped acres along a spectacular seven-mile stretch of beach, the resort offers a wide array of fun activities for the whole family. Take your pick of five heated pools, explore the grounds by paddleboat along a meandering river, or head to the white-sand beach for water sports and a ride down a giant inflatable waterslide. You can play tennis, have a round of mini golf, take in a dive-in movie, or simply kick back in a cabana or hammock and sip your umbrella drink. Then let the kids play at the supervised KONK Club while you enjoy a massage or a romantic dinner.

For a chance to win a beach escape at TradeWinds Island Grand Resort for your family, just fill out the form on the giveaway page. You can enter once a day through March 16, 2010. Good luck!

Need a rental car for Presidents' Day weekend—or any other weekend through May?  Enterprise Rent-A-Car is running a 50%-Off Special for weekend rentals through May 21. The deal applies to three- to five-day rentals and on cars ranging from economy to full size—though alas, no super-kid-friendly SUVs or minivans. The only real drawback we see is that the deal doesn’t apply to any airport locations.

When we checked in San Diego, the deal was available at most area locations, including tourist-friendly Old Town. And it's hard to argue with the savings. For the upcoming Presidents' Day weekend, a full-size car was going for a regular rate of $43 a day at one of San Diego’s downtown locations, but only $20 a day in Old Town, a short trolley ride away.

To book the deal, start on the specials page, punch in your city and dates, and look for the orange “special” button next to participating locations. The discount is good through May 21, and doesn’t apply to charges such as taxes or the damage waiver.

Nemacolin Woodlands Resort is a stunner of a four-season vacation destination, set on 2,000 acres in the hills of southwestern Pennsylvania.  It began as a private game reserve in the 1960s, and today welcomes families with golf, skiing, hiking, swimming, tennis, horseback riding, and even a wildlife academy. The resort also has an impressive—and imaginative—line-up of kids activities, including a "Jackson Pollock Experience," where kids dress in protective coveralls and use everything from paintballs to brushes to create their own Pollock-inspired masterpieces. 

This winter, the resort is offering a Family Escape package that includes two nights accommodations, daily resort fees, and an eye-popping $400 amenity credit. As always, we priced out the components of the package to see if it really delivers a deal. Here's what the package includes:

• two-night stay in a lodge double room (normally $329/night x 2 nights = $658)
• resort fees (normally $15/day x 2 days = $30)
• $400 amenity credit 

We test-booked the package for a two-night February weekend stay for a family of four in a lodge double room. The total came to $990, which means the package rate was $495 a night. Importantly, the $400 amenity credit can be spent just about any way you like, even on meals (the only exclusions are lodging and in-room babysitting), which means that your ultimate spend doesn't have to go much higher than $990. 

If you booked the same two-night stay without the package, you’d pay $658 for the room plus $30 in resort fees. To compare apples to apples, we also need to add $400–the value of the amenity credit, which would most likely be spent on meals–for a grand total of $1,088.

Deal or no deal? This package will save you $98 over two days, which translates to a 9% savings.  It's better than nothing, but not what we'd consider an outstanding deal. In effect, the package price has been inflated to wipe out the lion's share of the amenity credit. On the upside, we like that you can spend the $400 amenity credit however you like, even on meals.

The lesson learned? The only way to get past smoke and mirrors is to always do the math.

The Family Escape package is available through April 29 and can be booked online or by calling 866/344-6957.

Named one of the “Best Resorts for Family Reunions” by TravelandLeisure.com, Skytop Lodge is a destination resort offering something for every member of the family. For a chance to win a winter escape at Skytop Lodge for your family, just fill out the form on the giveaway page. You can enter once a day through February 15, 2010. Good luck!

This winter is turning out to be a great time for a weekend getaway, thanks to big sales at two of the largest hotel chains. Last week we posted about Hilton's mega January sale, which offers winter weekend savings of up to 33% across its chains. 

Now Marriott has stepped up to the plate with a  Global Rate Break promo that lets you save 20% on weekend rates stay at many of its hotels—and claims to up the ante to a 40% discount at a few resorts. The deal applies to various Marriott, JW Marriott, Renaissance, Courtyard, Fairfield, SpringHill, Residence Inn, and TownPlace Suites hotels all over the world. 

We checked rates at several properties and found that, indeed, the deal typically delivers a 20% price cut. At Desert Springs, the JW Marriott in the Palm Springs area with requisite pool, lawn games and kids club, we found rates of $327 a night for a room with two beds and a balcony—down from the desert’s high season rate of $409. In Hawaii, the deal offered up the Kauai Marriott  for just $194 a night, down from $240.

But don’t get your hopes too high on the 40%-off lure that's said to be available at select resorts in the Caribbean, Latin America and Hawaii. When we test-booked a stay at a handful of properties for a February weekend getaway, we couldn’t find any availability at the 40%-off rate.  More commonly, we found that this deal led to a 20% discount.

The sale applies to weekend stays (Thursday to Sunday), and some hotels require a two-night minimum. You must book by January 22 and complete your stay by March 21. Use promo code F5X when booking online.

Families might not automatically think of Cape Cod as a winter destination. But Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club (see our review) is hoping to change that with its No School, Only Pool package, which shaves $40 a night off the room rate and includes a "kids eat free" bonus. 

The package is available from February 12 to 21, when many schools in the Northeast are on winter break. With the package, nightly rates in a deluxe double room start at $99 for a family of four, which is 29% less than the regular rate of $139.  Alternatively, you could splurge on a grand corner suite for $239, or 14% off the $279 regular rate. The deal also lets children 12 and under eat free from the kids’ menu (one child per paying adult), which is worth about $70 a day to the average family of four. 

Ocean Edge is a rambling resort with two indoor pools and a roster of family-friendly activites that include movie nights and pool parties.  If you feel like heading off-property, you can sneak in a little learning with a stop at nearby Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in the quaint seaside town of Brewster, where you’ll receive $1 off admission for each family member.  

While the Mondrian Scottsdale's uber-contemporary vibe might not automatically seem kid-friendly, its all-white lobby with the imaginary baobab tree reaching to the ceiling is actually the kind of thing kids like and remember. Plus, it’s hard to argue with a nice pool (and, for older kids, the free wi-fi). Meanwhile,  the hotel is close to Scottsdale’s Civic Center Mall, which often plays host to festivals and has a swan-filled lagoon, a spray-area for kids, and a nice amphiteater.

When we checked some nights in early February, the deal offered up a rate of $157 a night for a garden-view room with two double beds—indeed, a tidy 25% less than the regular rate of $210. The free wi-fi would otherwise cost  $10 a day, adding value of $20 more for a two-night stay.

The deal is good for travel through March 31 and does not include taxes, service charges, or resort fees. As usual, blackout dates may apply. Use promo code SPCONN when booking  online, or mention it when booking by phone at 800/697 1791.

This sale delivers tons of weekend destination options for traveling families. Want a city break? Consider Hilton properties in San Diego (the Hilton San Diego Resort & Spa is just one mile from SeaWorld), Boston’s super-convenient Back Bay neighborhood, or the family-friendly Doubletree Guest Suites in Washington DC. 

Hoping to escape the cold? At the Hilton Longboat Key Beachfront Resort, the January Sale offers nightly rates starting at $288 for a double room on February weekend.  By comparison, the resort's best available bed-and-breakfast rate for that stay is $429 per night—which does indeed translate to 33% off your bill.

You must book before January 31, but you can travel anytime before December 26. As always, there are some blackout dates and other restrictions. The sale rates are pre-payable and non-refundable, so you should be confident of your travel dates before booking.  

Less than three hours north of Boston, New Hampshire’s Mount Washington Valley is a popular destination for families year-round, and especially in the winter with its sleighload of cold outdoor fun. The Omni Mount Washington Resort gets in on the act with sleigh rides, snowshoeing and dogsledding—plus a kids club and heated indoor pool for when the kids are ready to come inside and warm up.   Good news for snow-loving families: The Omni Mount Washington Resort is offering a Stay Here, Ski Free promotion through April 11, 2010 (yes, the snow usually sticks around that long).  Valid for midweek (Sunday to Thursday) stays, the package includes lift tickets to adjacent Bretton Woods, the Granite State's largest ski area, which boasts more than 400 acres and 101 trails and glades. 

With nightly rates starting at $89 per adult, is this offer a good deal for families? We did the math to find out. 

The package includes:

• One night’s lodging (worth $179 in January)
• Two adult lift tickets to Bretton Woods (worth $66/adult x 2  = $132)
• Two lift tickets for kids ages 5 to 12 staying in same room (normally $40/ticket x 2 = $80)
• One Omni kid's backpack per child (let's say $10/backpack x 2 kids = $20)

When we test-booked a January stay for a family of two adults and two school-age kids (5 to 12), the package rate came to $219 a night. That is $172 less than the $391 this family would normally pay for lodging and lift tickets. (We won't include the backpacks, since they are not a necessary part of the ski getaway.) In other words, the package slices a whopping 47% off the price of what the stay-and-ski components would cost if purchased separately. 

Note: With this package, lift tickets are included only for kids 5 to 12. At Bretton Woods, children 4 and under always ski free with a paying adult. Teens would still have to buy a $53-a-day lift ticket.

Deal or no deal?  Grab your skis! This is a super deal, especially if your kids are between the ages of 5 and 12.