Top 10 Family Spring Break Vacations

It's hard to beat Florida for one of the best family spring break vacations. Most breaks fall in March or April when the water's getting warm and the beaches invite relaxing or playing in the sun. South Carolina's Hilton Head Island, shown here, is another good weather destination for biking, water sports like kayaking and spotting dolphins and other wildlife. You can even sneak in some education for the kids at the Coastal Discovery Museum, with its focus on mariculture, the island's Gullah culture and the environment.

Or — think beyond the beach for your family spring break vacation. Some destinations are small towns or urban areas; others are family-friendly resorts that offer so much to see and do, you might not leave the grounds. Explore our list of got-to-go destinations and find your fun.

The island of Atlantis was a mythical paradise, but Atlantis Paradise Island, in the Bahamas, is the real deal. Choose from five spectacular hotels, 20 swimming spots with 11 unique pools, a 141-acre water park with high-speed slides and rushing rivers, and five miles of sandy white beaches. The activities for kids 3 to 12 in the Atlantis Kids Adventure club are outrageously fun, ranging from staff-supervised pizza-making to donning hard hats and building with Legos, and from playing pirates to playing detectives or wizards. Want an extravagant tea party? Atlantis has this covered in a life-sized Victorian dollhouse with a charming pretend kitchen. There are gaming systems galore, nightclubs for adults and teens, and water fun on paddle boats and water bikes. New to Atlantis: an overnight marine life camping adventure for ages 6 and up that lets guests snorkel at twilight, kayak with dolphins, encounter sea turtles and more.

Saddle up for spring break at a luxurious dude ranch in Arizona. Rancho de los Caballeros has been giving families an insider's look at Western life since 1947, so it's no surprise they've mastered the art of the family vacation. The children's club keeps kids busy swimming in the heated outdoor pool, playing tennis, roping, riding, hiking, playing horseshoes, going on scavenger hunts, doing arts and crafts, and watching movies under the stars. Parents can relax, visit the full-service spa or play golf. Hop on a hayride for a cookout around a mesquite campfire while authentic cowboys strum acoustic guitars and lead everyone in Western songs. This resort boasts 13,300 acres of horse-accessible trails to explore the Sonoran Desert. Wickenburg is a 75-minute drive northwest of Phoenix.

Tucked into the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Greenville has free or budget-friendly things for families to see and do, and the downtown area is completely walkable. Pack a picnic to enjoy beside the waterfalls at Falls Park on the Reedy, named a Top US Park by TripAdvisor and home to the only single-sided suspension bridge in the Western Hemisphere. Let the littles take a scavenger hunt along Main Street for nine bronze mice statues, inspired by the book Mice on Main, or climb the multi-story structure, have a real-life pit crew experience and try other hands-on exhibits at The Children's Museum of the Upstate. If you're a sports fans, catch the free trolley to Greenville's West End, where the Boston Red Sox's minor league plays at Fluor Field and pop into the Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum and Baseball Library. At the Greenville Zoo, feed giraffes and encounter more than 200 other animals. Hit the Roper Mountain Science Center for the Friday Starry Nights exhibit.