Kids’ Survey Reveals Vacation Preferences

Jumping on hotel beds was one favorite activity listed in a recent survey that asked children their thoughts on family vacations. Swimming and meeting new friends should also be practiced, the children said.

They also advised that other kids leave their brothers at home, head for Wyoming, climb on the roof and make sure mom and dad know where they’re going.

Hyatt Hotels Corp. conducted the survey of 450 children participating in Camp Hyatt--a children’s program offered in all Hyatt hotels and resorts--in order to learn more about how kids (not their parents) feel about vacations and what they expect when they travel.

Most children recommended a vacation at the beach, but the mountains, the moon and grandma’s were frequent answers, too.

When asked how much money they thought should cover vacation expenses, most of the kids said $50 should be enough. Other advice kids had for other children planning vacations included the following:

--Bring a lot of stuff

--Stay a long time

--Never brush your teeth

--Stay out of trouble

--Get money from mom and dad

Quick Fact: The median number of visits that U.S. citizens make to foreign destinations during a lifetime: 9. Among the most-visited foreign destinations: Canada and Mexico. (Source: U.S. Travel and Tourism Administration.)

Going Underground: The smart visitor to Washington, D.C., will leave the rental car in the hotel garage and take to the Metrorail subway next Saturday when the largest military parade since World War II jams the streets surrounding the Capitol. Should one want to watch the parade, which honors Desert Storm troops, it will be led by Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf and will include more than 10,000 troops and a wide array of military equipment from Desert Storm, 11 military bands and 20 minutes of flyovers. The parade will begin at 11:30 a.m. at 7th Street and Constitution Avenue and continue west on Constitution, past the Lincoln Memorial, across Arlington Memorial Bridge and end at the Pentagon.

Sign Language: Speaking of traffic, motorists in Budapest, Hungary, are confused. And for good reason.

More than 130 Budapest street names that were associated with Communism and its heroes have been changed since political freedom was restored a year ago.

For local citizens, tourists--who now come in millions each year--and taxi drivers, the trouble is that rebaptism has been so swift that city map publishers cannot keep up.

With the process likely to last for years while the Marx, Engels and Lenin plaques gradually come down, city authorities have decided that, for the time being, the old name plates will be allowed to exist alongside the new. A red line will be drawn through the old plaques, like the slash of a censor’s pen.

The changes affect towns and villages all over the country, as well as Budapest.

Comparatively Speaking: March price per gallon of gasoline in Milan, Italy: $4.75. In Paris: $3.85. In London: $2.96. In Toronto: $1.79. In Atlanta: 96 cents. (Source: Runzheimer International.)

Of Course: The Shanghai International Golf and Country Club has opened in Shanghai. And it is open to tourists who can’t leave their golf habit at home.

The course was designed by world-famous golf course architect Robert Trent Jones Jr.

The new golf and country club is located on the bank of the Dian Shan Lake, about 30 miles west of the center of Shanghai. In addition to the 18-hole championship golf course, the facilities will include three practice holes and a driving range. The club will add 12 tennis courts, a swimming pool and villas at a later date.

The Shanghai International Golf and Country Club is the first 18-hole championship golf course in Shanghai in modern times.

A Taste for Romance: If the TV show “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” is to be believed, honeymooners should make tracks to any of the following romantic restaurants in the United States, which are part of the show’s best list for 1991: Auberge du Soliel in Rutherford, Calif.; Michel’s at the Colony Surf Hotel, Honolulu; Swan Court, at the Hyatt Regency, Maui, and the Rainbow Room in New York City.

Fair Warning: Surrounded by nearly a thousand acres of flower fields, many of which are blooming this month, Lompoc is in the perfect position to host a flower festival June 19-23. Among the highlights will be a Saturday morning floral parade with floats made by local clubs and organizations, and a flower show June 22-23 at the Veterans’ Memorial Building. There also will be free entertainment by local bands and talent, food booths vending cuisines from around the world, as well as an arts and crafts show.

Guided bus tours of the area--a center for the flower seed industry--will be offered or tourists can explore on their own with a map. For more information or a self-guided flower field tour that lists which flowers are growing where, contact the Lompoc Valley Chamber of Commerce, 111 S. I St., Lompoc 93436, (805) 736-4567. This is the 39th year for the festival. Lompoc is between Santa Barbara and Santa Maria.