Summer Gaming Vacation

Thinking About Summer Gaming Vacations

Last July, my wife Jennifer and I dragged the family on a short trip to Penn State University.  The two of us met in Happy Valley way back in August of 1997, and we enjoy making the trip back to Penn State just to bounce around and see what's changed over the years.  This last trip was unique in that it would be the first time our kids would get a chance to explore the campus with us.  

We had our sightseeing planned, and some dining, but one of the special moments for the family was sitting down to play Saboteur in the HUB and Love Letter in front of the Penn State Creamery.  During our time at Penn State, my wife and I were both involved in the Gaming Association of Penn State.  I even did a short stint as the club president.  Every Tuesday we met in the HUB for Crimson Skies and Battletech, and each weekend was HUB Late Night, featuring non-stop board gaming, card gaming, and RPG's.  Showing these locations to our kids, and sharing our tales from the past, was of a tour of their geek heritage.  

Of course gaming while on vacation is nothing new to us.  We played Numenera at Disney World last February, and there will always be the summer of #GetOutAndGame.  But as we are enduring this terribly cold and bitter winter chill, our thoughts turn to summer, and I'm thinking about new ways to experience gaming while on vacation.  

I'm grateful to have a supportive extended family that will occasionally play some awesome games with us, and many of them live far, far away from Pittsburgh.  Also, we've made some great friends through the Google+ community, and at Gen Con 2014 I had the opportunity to meet some of you!  Here are some of the ideas that have been stirring around my head as ways to enjoy a summer gaming vacation:

• Game-Camping:  I suggested this last year as part of #GetOutAndGame but it just never happened.  Even so, it would be pretty awesome to find some isolated campground, build a great fire, and run some Savage Worlds: Accursed at night!
• Following Cons:  My wife and I are already planning on attending Gen Con 2015, but maybe there are some other conventions we need to consider, as a family.
• Destination Gaming:  Is there a gaming haven out there that we need to find?  Perhaps somewhere close to where our other gamer-friends across the country live?  Road trip!  
• The Grand Tour:  Finally there is the ultimate gaming vacation.  We actually kicked this one around and are seriously considering it.  Our kids have never been west of Ohio, and we know a lot of gamers in the mid-west.  It could be pretty cool to arrange a sight-seeing tour of the "west" while planning meet ups with some of our favorite gaming pals.  

Are these ideas crazy and/or outlandish in a good way or a bad way?  What did I miss?  What would you recommend?