What Do Children Want? Travel-Intel Examines Vacays With Kids and Hotels That Are Answering the Call

SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwired - Mar 4, 2014) - Family Vacation 2014: the topic is near enough to grasp although the latest bout of snowstorms across the central and east coast of the U.S. might make this thought seem just out of reach. Still, new studies show that children hold the weight in this discussion and what they want in a summer vacation is something that listening hotels are willing to offer.

The latest issue of Travel-Intel, published by Tours.com, puts kids in the middle of summer vacation plans. It details a new survey put out by Holiday Inn on children's vacation preferences and then offers a list of new hotels opening up this spring that were built with kids in mind.

This week's issue of Travel-Intel also looks at where the "one percent" is skiing this year. When it comes to top ten luxury ski resorts this year it is not surprising to find Beaver Creek Resort at the top of any jetsetter's list.

When it comes to traveling abroad, New Zealand is very much in vogue and while it has its share of ski lodges, most visitors are coming for the peace they will find amid magical landscapes fit for film sets. Travel-Intel looks at three lodges: the Lodge at Kauri Cliffs in the Bay of Islands on New Zealand's North Island, the Farm at Cape Kidnappers along the North Island's Hawkes Bay, and Matakauri Lodge on Lake Wakatipu near Queenstown on New Zealand's South Island as three such places where time stands still.

Active travelers and cruisers alike will appreciate looking into a recent Holland America Line cruise through the Caribbean taken by writer David Yeskel, which underscores the types of unexpected adventure one can find on an otherwise relaxing cruise vacation.

Meanwhile, to the travelers who have been braving the storms and flight interruptions during this intense season of winter weather in the U.S., Travel-Intel looks at what money many of these travelers may be leaving on the table. Travel insurance is not something you need only when you are heading for a safari in Africa. Many travelers stranded at major U.S. airports are eligible for help or compensation during these inevitable flight interruptions and for very little up front cost. Travel-Intel decodes trip insurance and the language used to help travelers make smoother plans.

Finally, the Airline Recording Corporation reports that travel agents are selling more tickets this year than last and Travel-Intel is on the topic looking at where the deals are -- and aren't -- for flying over Spring Break 2014.

Travel-Intel, the weekly travel industry news channel from Tours.com, reaches more than 100,000 sellers of travel in the U.S. and Canada and is also posted online.

The publication dispatches writers to travel conferences and popular travel destinations to bring back the latest intel. Current features and archives can be viewed at www.travel-intel.com.

"We are out there, listening to the influencers, listening to the travel companies, talking to the CEOs," says Lark Gould, content director for Travel-Intel and Tours.com. "Travel is a constantly changing field, never fitting the same shape twice so we are out there watching, talking, listening and bringing back that intelligence to our readers and keeping them up to date."

As a veteran travel journalist who has been covering the travel industry for more than 20 years, Gould puts her incisive perspective into the weekly publication, with features and news updates, and also "packages" issues that detail great deals to be found at hotels and resort locations worldwide. Travel-Intel can be viewed as a stand-alone site on Tours.com. Gould publishes travel columns in Larkslist, genConnect and Barclay's Travel Community. She also writes for Business Traveler USA.

About Tours.com: Tours.com Since 1995 - The Official Directory of Tours & Vacations Worldwide. Tours.com has a deep and searchable database of vacation and tour companies searchable by company name, destination and/or activity. A comprehensive one-stop Travel Resource section, plus the Find a Travel Agent Specialist search allows one to search for travel agents with in-depth knowledge in their chosen specialty.