FAMILY ADVENTURE IN AMERICA’S WEST

If you’re looking for a fun family holiday that will tick the boxes for both adults and kids, head to The Great American West. The diverse states of Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming offer thrilling outdoor scenic adventures, intriguing museums and tours of iconic sites suitable for all the family. Idaho is home to the Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area where the ‘Glade Runner’ mountain coaster travels at speeds of up to 40 kilometres through the beautiful woods of Boise National Forest. Montana’s Glacier National Park offers hiking, boating or horseback riding alongside breathtaking scenery and wildlife. Bozeman’s Museum of the Rockies has the largest collection of T-Rex fossils in the U.S. In North Dakota the Theodore Roosevelt National Park has scenic byways such as the Oxbow Overlook, magical views at the Painted Canyon Visitor Centre and wildlife watching (spot the bison, wild horses, bighorn sheep, deer and prairie dog). Kids can gear up for the ‘Junior Ranger Quest’ on a self-guided tour of Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota, or sit beneath the stars in Badlands National Park and view the Milky Way as part of the Night Sky Program. For a taste of the pioneering past, ride in a covered wagon to the one-room schoolhouse. At Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, you can’t miss the Mammoth Hot Springs which looks like an inside-out cave, Old Faithful – a geyser that erupts water to heights of 40 metres and Grand Prismatic – the most photographed thermal feature in Yellowstone. greatamericanwest.com.au