TV Turnoff Week: great places without the Tube

April 24 to 30 2006 is Turn Off the TV week: and if you have to ask, "why?", then you're probably watching more than the 7 hours and 40 minutes that the tv's on each day in the typical American home.

It can be hard to turn off the TV at home... so take a vacation that's a getaway from the Tube as well.

• Head to suggestions for going away unplugged -- such as this luxury resort on Hawaii's Big Island, where guests stay in "hale" (ha-lay) cottages on 82 acres; the much-lauded YMCA of the Rockies; eco-resorts in Belize; and other suggestions, both near and far.

In honor of TV Turnoff Week: suggestions for unplugged getaways

• YMCA of the Rockies - picked by FamilyFun Magazine as a top family resort, this great year-round "family camp" has two giant outdoors playgrounds -- Snow Mountain Ranch, with 5100 acres, and 860-acre Estes Park-- myriad activities, and no tv's in its lodge rooms and most of its cabins.

• Kona Village, Big Island, Hawaii: this luxury getaway on the Kohala Coast -- with no phones or tv in rooms-- has "hale" cottages (pictured above) spread over 82 acres; snorkeling; outrigger canoe and glass-bottom boat rides; kids and teens program.

• Belize Eco-Lodges: Belize -- the small country with Caribbean beaches and coral reef just south of Mexico's Yucatan-- has some very cool "jungle lodges"; one even combines rainforest and reef.

• Bitter End Yacht Club, British Virgin Islands: a top pick of Child Magazine, Travel + Leisure, and more, this resort features sailing and other watersports (and does have an outdoor movie theater, if the kids need a moving-image fix.)

• Fiji Resorts for Families: beautiful beaches, simplified life, unspoiled tropical paradise... it just suits this fantasy that many Fiji resorts are tv-free. And by the way, Fiji is less expensive than you might think.

• Summertime Family Camps: family summer camps typically have beautiful settings, simple lodgings, meals included (probably in a dining hall), and many, many outdoors and other activities. Affordable, too.

• Outside the Box: wherever there's a big resort or a name-brand hotel, there's probably some smaller place that would welcome your family. Sure, these places don't have all the amenities and built-in activities; but they might have a great beach, or great location as a home-base for exploring on your own. And thanks to TripAdvisor.com, you can probably get real-time reviews from other family travelers, which removes a lot of the risk when stepping outside the resort box.

^{* photo courtesy of Kona Village Resort}