baby alabama
Magazine for New, Expectant, and Hopeful Parents
Have Baby Will Travel Family Travel Guide Family Travel Guide
Caboose Babies Lifeline Village Shaken Baby Syndrome APRIL/MAY
PRICE $2.95
Ht: 0.816", Wd: 1.4872", Mag: 80% BWR: 1
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tavel guide
baby alabama
Magazine for New, Expectant, and Hopeful Parents
family travel guide FAMILY-FRIENDLY RESORTS TRAVEL GEAR KID PICKS ROAD-TRIPPIN CARS
A little help for planning travel with baby.
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resorts
family friendly destinations
BEACH CLUB VIEW (Above from
THE BEACH CLUB
left to right).
925 Beach Club Trail Gulf Shores, AL 36542 www.beachclubal.com 888-260-7263
Nestled on a 1/2 mile stretch of white sandy beaches on the secluded Ft Morgan Peninsula in Gulf Shores, Alabama. The Beach Club offers a perfect sanctuary for any family. The resort features 5 outdoor and 1 indoor swimming pools, hot tubs, a full-service European spa, tennis courts, 2 restaurants, lounge, poolside bar and grill, old-fashioned soda fountain, grocery store, and 2 gift shops. Popular seasonal events include summertime movies on the lawn and kids' camp, Fourth of July fireworks and barbeque and winter botchy ball tournaments, ballroom dance lessons and sudoko.
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resorts
MARRIOTT SHOALS HOTEL & SPA 800 Cox Creek Parkway South Florence, AL 35630 866-746-2560 or 256-246-3600 www.marriottshoals.com MARRIOTT SHOALS HOTEL & SPA (Bottom, Left to Right).
Overlooking the Tennessee River, the Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa is a great family getaway in north Alabama. The 200 guest rooms, including seven suites, have private balconies and riverfront views. The resort features Alabama’s only revolving restaurant and more than 30,000 square feet of versatile meeting space. For upscale dining, the revolving 360 tower restaurant offers remarkable cuisine and views of the Tennessee River. The 6,000-square-foot European-style spa and salon helps make the Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa the premier resort in the Tennessee River Valley.
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resorts
GRAND HOTEL (Above) Family at
GRAND HOTEL MARRIOTT RESORT
play on the beach. (Opposite, clock-
One Grand Boulevard
wise from top left) The Grand at
Point Clear, Alabama 36564 USA 800-544-9933 or 251-928-9201
night. The expansive grand pool.
www.marriottgrand.com
A family-friendly historical hotel offering southern hospitality on historic Mobile Bay. With 405 luxurious guest rooms and some of Marriott’s best spas, golf courses and pools, the Grand Hotel remains grander than ever. A $50 million renovation on The Grand was completed in 2006. In addition to world-class golf and the 20,000square-foot European spa, the resort offers a variety of activities, including eight rubico tennis courts, a croquet lawn, horseshoes, bikes, kayaks, sailboats and other watercraft for guests’ enjoyment.
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resorts
SPLASH (Above) Children play in the onsite waterpark.
SPLASH 12700 Front Beach Road Panama City Beach, FL 32413 1-866-5RESORT www.SterlingResorts.com
Opened in Febuary 2007, Themed around all things “water,� Splash's centerpiece is a water park, including children's interactive aqua play structure with water slides and spray toys, a lazy river, dive-in movie theater and two large pools located directly on 400 feet of white sand beach. Beyond the water park, vacationers can enjoy a fitness center, pool-side bar & grill, Alvin's Island Surf Shop, video arcade with mini bowling alley and numerous other amenities.
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resorts
ROSEMARY BEACH Cottage Rental Company Rosemary Beach, FL 32461 888.855.1551 or 850.278.2100 www.rosemarybeach.com
The resort-style offerings of the Rosemary Beach Cottage Rental Company couldn’t be more conducive to family vacations. They vary from studios and lofts to carriage houses and cottages. All come very well stocked with kitchens (often full professional kitchens), laundry facilities and often have closets full of beach toys and supplies. Many of the cottages have unique and playful bunkrooms, play lofts and sleeping porches perfectly suited to families with children—and families traveling in packs. The community also offers children’s activities including “Sea School,” where they can learn to surf, sail, skim board, kayak and snorkel, and organized activities such as dodge ball, soccer, horse shoes and sand castle building. Spring and summer events include, “Kids Rock the Block” block parties, markets, outdoor films creenings (“Moonlight & Movies), concerts and other community events.
ROSEMARY BEACH Top to Bottom) Cottages and interior living spaces. (Right) Cabana pool. (opposite right) Beach.
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resorts
WATERCOLOR INN (Left to Right).
WATERCOLOR INN 34 Goldenrod Circle Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459 866-426-2656 or 850-534-5000 www.watercolorinn.com
Children have their own beach club at camp watercolor. Designed for children aged five to 12, the program offers a variety of experiences both on and off the beach, including a shallow wading area and a water play area and a playground that blends into the nearby trees. There’s craft and game room, a stage with a backlit projection system for movies and presentations, a large set of doors that open out to a new amphitheater, and a stage for concerts, plays and other productions. An additional open space, a lawn the size of a soccer field, offers even more open-air recreation opportunities, from Frisbee tossing to stargazing. Activities range from silly to serious, including scavenger hunts, nature walks, sailing, swimming, tennis, snorkeling, scuba diving, canoeing, kayaking, boogie boarding, arts & crafts, and games.
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY MICHAEL CLEMMER
resorts
RENAISSANCE ROSS BRIDGE GOLF RESORT AND SPA 4000 Grand Avenue Birmingham, AL 35226 800-593-6419 or 205-916-7677 www.rossbridgeresort.com
ROSS BRIDGE (Top to Bottom) Aerial of the resort. Lobby of the spa.
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Birmingham provides a unique environment of stylish comfort and sophistication. This four diamond resort has 259 guest rooms, with balconies overlooking the third longest golf course in the world at 8,191 yards from the tips. The resort has 11 spacious suites, for an extra level of comfort and indulgence.. The resort offers luxurious pampering in a 12,000-square-foot, European spa and has multiple restaurants, including fine dining with a Mediterranean influence. Ross Bridge has 20,000 square feet of meeting space. The resort consistently remains among the top Renaissance hotels for guest satisfaction and overall style in North America.