If your kids are into surfing, any trips to southern Cali between now and March 31, 2008 should include a stop at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. Until then the aquarium, which is home to over 500 species native to the Pacific Ocean, is featuring the Catch a Wave exhibition. Showcasing the surf culture is not the only aim of the exhibit; it also focuses on tsunamis, how sea life survives in crashing surf and other aspects of ocean waves.

Where to stay in Long Beach? The Westin Long Beach is one option worth considering. While it’s more of a business hotel than a vacation resort, the proximity to the aquarium - half a mile - make it a perfect spot especially for short stays. Their Aquarium of the Pacific Weekend Package includes:

• accommodations
• 2 adult & 2 child passes to the Aquarium of the Pacific
• American breakfast for 2 adults (kids eat free)

This 2-night package is valid on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only. For more information or to book, call 866.716.8132 and ask for rate code AQUA1-10.

Check out the sea life at Miami’s Seaquarium with the Ritz-Carlton’s Discover Flipper package. The hotel sits on 1200 feet of beach and also has 2 oceanfront (and heated) swimming pools. Kids 5 to 12 can participate in the Ritz Kids program for half or full days of activities such as basketball, arts and crafts and karaoke. There is a children’s menu for the difficult-to-please (we’re trying to wean our daughter off of these things but who needs the fight on vacation?)

If you’re up for discovering Flipper (and all his oceanbound friends), the package includes:

• Deluxe resort view room accommodations
• Two admission tickets to the Miami Seaquarium (1 adult and 1 child)
• A special gift upon arrival

Now, we’ve noted that the package only includes 1 ticket each for adults and children. This makes it a great family vacation option for a single parent with 1 child - not a group we see catered to very often. We’re not sure that the Ritz-Carlton had them in mind, but we do.

Rates start at $229 a night. The package is available until October 31. Additional room nights will be sold at the published rates. For more information or to reserve this package, click here or contact the hotel directly at 305.365.4500.

All of a sudden, the daughter has developed a fascination with sea life. It’s not that she didn’t like the aquatic species before, but all of a sudden, there’s been increasing talk of whales, seahorses and the like, which often crescendos to pleas to go and see some soon.

Of course, given that we want to shut her up please her, we’ve been looking up cool aquarium trips where we could indulge our desire for luxury travel while visiting a fish or two. We posted one a while back from England, and also told you about the seahorse farm in Hawaii, but figured we could surely tackle this request in the continental U.S. Here are some hotel packages we’ve found (that as always, are in destinations and/or hotels where you’ll have a good time too).

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