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From Away.com

North America's Top 100 Family Resorts
Sunriver Resort, Sunriver (OR)
Oregon's Best Family Resorts

By Candyce H. Stapen

Sunriver Resort | Rock Springs Guest Ranch

The Spread:
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One hundred eighty miles from Portland and 15 miles south of Bend, Sunriver opened in 1969 with a few residential sites, a lodge, and the goal of integrating nature and resort development. Today, Sunriver has four swimming pools, 37 miles of paved biking and walking trails, three championship golf courses, a riding stable, a nature center, and a total of 238 hotel rooms and more than 350 rental units spread across 3,500 acres. The main Deschutes River borders the property and the Little Deschutes runs through it. Come winter, nearby 9,065-foot Mount Bachelor is the focus, offering ten chairlifts and 3,683 skiable acres. For a day that’s more about pampering than playing hard, the resort’s Sage Springs Club & Spa offers 35,000 square feet devoted to relaxation, indulgence, and total body rehab.

Why Families Love It:
Fort Funnigan is a year-round program for ages three to ten (summer hours, Monday to Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., half-day options three days weekly, $35 to $65) with different activities for different age groups. There might be science experiments one day and a bike ride or pony ride the next. Kids also tour a local fish hatchery, canoe, and swim. Night sessions are available, too ($30 without dinner, $40 with). For adventurous pre-teens and teens, the summer Guided Adventure program includes horseback riding, biking, a challenge course, and hiking the glaciers on Mount Bachelor. There’s even a Cosmic Bowling adventure for the late-night crowd. And teens ages 13 to 19 can ramp up the adrenaline by playing after-dark sand volleyball, rafting, or tackling the 8,000-square-foot indoor rock-climbing facility.

Special Events & Activities:
On Secret Agent Night (holidays and summers), kids crack secret codes, go on scavenger hunts, and eat pizza; all other activities are classified so we can’t tell you more. For families, don’t miss Traditions, the annual Thanksgiving to New Year’s holiday program of sleigh rides, elf tuck-ins, teddy bear teas, and cookie decorating.



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Sunriver Resort | Rock Springs Guest Ranch



Away.com's resident family expert Candyce Stapen has written the book on family travel, having authored some 1,400 travel articles and 27 books, 26 of them on family travel. She is the winner of the 2004 "Caribbean Travel Writer of the Year for North America" award and a three-time winner of the Society of American Travel Writers' Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism award. Her articles have appeared in publications including Nick Jr, FamilyFun, Parents, Better Homes & Gardens, Conde Nast Traveler, National Geographic Traveler, and the Family Travel Network, among others. Her book, the National Geographic Guide to Caribbean Family Vacations is available from Amazon.com.

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