Most of us think of “kid-friendly” as being anything welcoming of tots or pre-schoolers – after all, they’re the ones most likely to cause an embarrassing scene.  But teens go on family vacations too, and although they’re just shy of adulthood, they’re not mini-mes – they have their own interests, some shared with parents, some not.

Loews Hotels has some excellent teen-focused Edu-Cations being featured at several of their properties around the country.  These cool packages allow teens to explore a new world or delve deep into a current interest.  At Loews Santa Monica, for instance, your hipster can move one step closer to living like Lohan, with a 2-night stay in a premium suite, limo service for the duration of the stay, an acting lesson, meeting with an agent, and a makeover.  (Can we sign up?  We swear we’re 16, really…)

If your teen is less into the meat market of LA and more into the stock market, the Loews Regency in NY offers an inside view of the financial markets, with a tour of the NASDAQ, a power breakfast featuring a financial speaker, and a photo of your budding broker on the NASDAQ tower.

Other packages include surfing in San Diego, a tour of the National Press in Washington D.C, and a music and lyric session in Nashville, all with inside scoop and/or access to people really connected in their respective fields.  With vacations like these, you might actually get some (begrudging) respect from your know-it-all kid.

Here’s a little something for you and something for the kids for the Wednesday tour of the web:

• The San Francisco Gate recommends lesser known attractions in San Diego for your kids in “Getting Beyond Shamu“: less touristy, no less fun.
• Trying to get around NYC using public transportation? Use HopStop. Like Google Maps, you plug in your current location and desired destination; HopStop tells you how to get there via train and/or bus. Pretty darn cool.
• Prepare your toddlers and pre-k’ers for a trip to the zoo with an online visit to Bembo’s Zoo, where animals come alive out of the alphabet. We won’t explain more here – you’ll just have to check it out yourself.
• Don’t know your Limousin from your Auvergne region? Test your geographical knowledge with Statetris, a cool online game mixing Tetris with geography. It’s a cool way for you the kids to get oriented for your next vacation.
• These silk lavender sachets keep luggage and clothes fresh in a print not too girly, too childish or too adult. In other words, get one for every member of the family.

lavender sachet from auto, $18

From Juliana at HotelChatter: we’ve learned that several Texan Omni properties will now feature kids’ suites. These come brightly decorated with beanbags, twin beds (for the kids, that is) and an assortment of toys and “kid” stuff. Select properties in Austin, Corpus Christi, Houston, Dallas and San Antonio will feature the new digs , and you can also find suites at their L.A, San Francisco and San Diego posts, which debuted similar family accommodations in 2005 .

You can learn more about the Texas suites (which are available starting tomorrow) from Juliana here and from Omni Hotels here. (HotelChatter includes a snapshot.) Omni Hotels already have a kids program that offers suitcases of games and books to be used during the stay and a welcome goodie bag with “cool stuff” like bracelets, kaleidoscopes and kazoos.

copyright Omni Hotels