10 Best Hotel Kids Programs

Smugglers' Notch, or "Smuggs" as it is affectionately known, is arguably the best ski resort out there for families. The ski lessons for kids (which begin at age 2.5) are second to none, and led by friendly and knowledgeable instructors. Group classes and private lessons are available for every skill and comfort level imaginable. But there is more to Smuggs than skiing.

Smugglers' Notch offers snowboarding, snowshoeing, dogsledding, airboarding, snowmobiling, skating and tubing. During the warmer months, children ages 3 to 17 can participate in summer camp, where they may take swimming lessons, go hiking, climbing, biking, skateboarding, join in theater and music projects, and do arts and crafts or a ropes course.

The resort's supervised childcare center, Treasures, is open daily to children from six weeks to 3 years old. With almost 10,000 square feet of total space, indoors and out, they will be entertained with singing, arts and crafts, a ball pit and story time.

Moms and dads visiting San Diego will love the Hotel del Coronado's children's facility, Kidtopia. The program offers three-hour camps and one-hour programs for children ages 4 to 12, with plenty of fun indoor and outdoor activities. There is a beach-themed room where kids can put on stage performances, a cool funhouse mirror and entertainment stations with computers. But what's a visit to San Diego without hitting the surf? Perhaps the best feature of the program is the surfing lessons, which are available for kids ages 4 and older daily. Private and group lessons are available and the equipment and wet suit are included in the additional fee. Paddleboard lessons for ages 10 and up are also available.

Teens ages 13 and up can also visit the spa for special massages and facials. Summertime activities for the whole family include dive-in movie nights, surf camps and family S'mores nights.

The Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman's children's program, Ambassadors of the Environment, is as unique and educational as it is entertaining. Created in conjunction with Jean-Michel Cousteau, the program offers kids ages 4 to 18 the opportunity to explore their surroundings with cool adventures like pontoon boat rides through the mangroves, and rides in the resort's own submarine, Atlantis XI, which sinks to a depth of 100 feet so kids can view the underwater reefs off Grand Cayman first-hand.

The program allows kids to choose six from more than 40 themed experiences each day. Three modules are geared for ages 4 to 7 and three for ages 8 to 17. The program divides into morning (9:30 a.m. through 12:30 p.m.), afternoon (2 through 5 p.m.) and evening (6:15 through 9 p.m.) segments. Parents are encouraged (but not required) to share in these kids programs with their kids.

In Stingray Detective, kids can test their detective skills and learn about Grand Cayman's most popular attraction. Kids can try a Night Snorkel, too, where a flashlight is used on the reef and all the night critters come alive. Other popular themes are Ambassadors of the Kitchen, Cayman Connection, and the Sea Floor Submarine Adventure.

Although its stunning location on Maui's Wailea Beach might be enough to please the kids, The Grand Wailea (part of the Waldorf Astoria collection) has a wonderful supervised children's program for kids ages 5 to 12.

The Rock, a mini-resort for kids and families, is a more than 20,000-square-foot facility open seven days a week, and offers full-day, morning, afternoon and night camps. Children under 13 must be accompanied by an adult at The Rock, which features a whale-shaped outdoor wading pool, a play kitchen and tool set, a private movie theater, snack bar, craft room and a full-sized soda fountain. Another popular area is the teen lounge called The Spot, which has foosball, Ping-Pong, pool, and an arcade.

At Grand Wailea, children can participate in activities like exploring tidal pools, sandcastle building, nature walks, Hawaiian lei making, and hula lessons. Night Camp includes dinner, a Walkie Talkie Tag at Night game, sand crab hunting, theater games, scavenger hunts and more.

The Mohonk Mountain House has a fairytale setting kids will love, nestled in the secluded woods of the Hudson River Valley. The resort's children's program stands out because it puts the kids in touch with nature and local wildlife through an impressive array of outdoor activities. Parents of toddlers will also appreciate that Mohonk accepts children as young as 2. A full-day program is open from mid-June through Labor Day and kids ages 2 to 12 can join in hikes, take pony rides, go on frog hunts, go swimming, and take boat rides, as well as get plenty of beach and playground time.

Older kids (7 to 12) also have the option of learning rock scrambling, as well as joining in tennis and golf clinics and sports tournaments. Supervised activities for children ages 13 to 17 take place in the Teen Lounge, a separate space where teens can listen to music, watch movies, play Wii and Playstation 2 or just hang out away from mom and dad.

In the winter, kids can take ice-skating lessons, go snow tubing, or snowshoeing. Mohonk also offers a program for children ages 4 to 12 on Saturday evenings.

The Cloister at Sea Island, located on 5 miles of private beach on Georgia's Atlantic coast, has an impressive children's center. The resort's seasonal kid's club, Camp Cloister, provides activities for children ages 3 to 12, including fishing, crabbing, baking and even tennis and shooting schools. Each day explores a different theme, from pirates to frogs and birds, and kids participate in activities like arts and crafts, scavenger hunts, and fishing.

Teens will love the Sea Island Junior Naturalist, where ages 7 to 14 can learn about ecosystems and wildlife on Sea Island. Paintball, soccer and basketball tournaments are also available to teens.

The kids' spa, movie manatee and golf and tennis clinics are also available to younger guests. This resort's club also operates a children's dinner on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights for kids ages 3 to 12, so parents can dine solo.

The Shooting School at the Cloister at Sea offers private and group lessons, and an Air Rifle Bull's-Eye Hour for children ages 5 to 12 takes them on educational adventures in the great outdoors, like reptile encounters and summertime campouts.

Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa is a great example of a resort that takes great care to enrich the children's program with local culture and flavor. The 500-acre resort is located on part of a Native American Pueblo and offers kids ages 3 to 12 the chance to experience the art and history of this culture first-hand within organized activities at Camp Hyatt.

Kids will create their own sand paintings, play Native American games, and explore the Rio Grande River on a guided stroll of the Bosque. Camp Hyatt works with National Geographic Kids to create eco-friendly and locally inspired activities. Each day of the week brings a different theme, including New Mexico Sunday, Tamaya Monday, Hisru Ku Hinu (You and Me) Tuesday, Wildlife Wednesday, Land of Enchantment Thursday, Farming Friday and Native American Saturday.

In addition to the kids' program, Hyatt Regency Tamaya offers other family activities like trail riding, Pueblo pottery making, adobe brick making, hot air balloon rides and Native American stories under the stars.

If it's luxury you're after, the posh Half Moon in Jamaica promises to spoil your kids as much as they spoil you. Half Moon's kids' program is housed in the resort's Anancy Children's Village, where kids ages 3 to 12 can join in many different supervised activities. Named after Jamaica's fabled children's character "Anancy the Spider," the space includes shaded play areas, activity rooms, a wading pool and a sand box. There are puppet shows in Tacoomah Hut, cold refreshments in Patoo's Lookout, an arts and crafts area and daily story times.

Teens can participate in tennis clinics, volleyball, nature walks, golf, squash, horseback riding and water sports. The Hype Zone is open to teens 13 to 19 and has a game room with air hockey, table tennis and pool, a cyber lounge with internet access and a mini spa.

The resort's Dolphin Lagoon is a great opportunity for kids ages 4 and older to get a hands-on experience with the dolphins. They are allowed to enter the water to touch, swim and play with them.

Franklyn D. Resort's children's program scores major points from parents with babies because of its unique nanny service. When you check in to the resort, you are assigned your own personal nanny for the duration of your stay. She is available every day from 9 a.m. until 4:40 p.m. and will do it all, including bathing and dressing the kids, and feeding them breakfast and lunch.

Franklyn D. Resort's supervised kids' club for ages birth to 16 offers tons of organized activities for children of all ages, including picnics, cooking classes, playground and computer time, beach games, movies and games. Nannies can (but do not need to) supervise all of these activities.

Teens have their own program and can take part in discos, group trips, dance classes, scuba diving (through an outside company, for a fee) board games, and organized sessions to get to know one another. Activities run from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. so mom and dad can have dinner alone if they choose.

The Ritz-Carlton, Naples, overlooking Florida's Gulf Coast, is home to the impressive Nature's Wonders Center, where kids (and parents!) will be wowed with the sanctuary they have created there. There are 11 aquariums housing fish, sharks, crabs, jellyfish, eel and even alligators, and touch tanks allow kids to get hands-on. Older children can make use of a small lab with microscopes, slides and Petri dishes to learn about tiny marine life.

Programs available through the Nature Wonders program include nature walks through the butterfly garden, boat rides to the estuary, learning about alligators, participating in feeding, and beach combing, among other field trips. The Nature's Wonder camp is open to kids ages 5 to 12 daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Kids can attend for a full-day, half-day or for an hour at a time.

Other cool spaces for kids are the Nature Vision Theater, which plays National Geographic and Discovery Channel specials and Disney movies, and the vue (virtual user experience) lounge, which is open to kids ages 8 and older. The vue houses interactive virtual reality games played on 40-inch LCDs, as well as XBox 360, Playstation 3 and Wii.