Literary Vacations

Summer is almost over. School starts for my teenagers in about three weeks, and we didn’t go on a vacation this year (unless you call filling up a plastic storage bin with water, and telling my 2-year-old that it's a waterpark a "vacation").

If we do go somewhere in the future, I think we might need to take a “literary vacation.” After reading about possibilites on Salon.com, I have more than a few ideas.

Have you ever planned a vacation based on a book? You could visit:

Heidiland in Maienfeld, Switzerland-The Swiss Alps area that inspired the classic Heidi.


Tintagel Castle in Cornwall, England-A medieval castle rumored to be that of the legendary King Arthur.


Jack London’s Beauty Ranch in Glen Ellen, CA still has displays of his manuscripts with scribbled edits and plenty of rejection letters from early in his career.


Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Massachusetts where the author of such beloved books as The Very Hungry Caterpillar is honored.





Washington Irving’s home of Sleepy Hollow, New York where Irving may have pondered the plot of Sleepy Hollow while carving a pumpkin on his front porch.



The Birthplace of Hogwarts in Edinburgh, Scotland- Be sure to visit The Elephant Café, where JK Rowling completed her early novels.







Click below for a slideshow from Salon.com that highlights literary spots that would make an excellent trip for both adults and kids! Scroll down completely to see up to three pages of locales.

Slide Show of Literary Places

Have you visited any literary places?