15 places in the US kids should see (according to Budget Travel):

Grand Canyon National Park, Ariz ($12, vehicles $25, kids 15 and younger free)

Ellis Island Museum and the Statue of Liberty (free guided tours, audio tour $6)

Colonial Williamsburg, Williamsburg, Va. ($37, kids 6-17 $18)

The Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C. (free)

Niagara Falls, N.Y. (free)

Gettysburg, Pa. (free)

The Alamo, San Antonio, Texas (free)

USS Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii (free)

Monticello, Va. (tours from $15, kids over 6 $8, free for children 5 and under)

Walt Disney World Resort, Orlando, Fla. ($60 for kids, $71 for 10 and older)

National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis ($12, $8.50 kids) {Also highly worthwhile: Alabama's Birmingham Civil Rights Institute ($10, kids free) and Cincinnati's National Underground Railroad Freedom Center ($12, $8 kids)}

Redwood National Park, Calif. (free)

Ground Zero, New York City ($10 suggested donation)

Freedom Trail, Boston ($12, kids $6)

Independence Hall, Philadelphia (free but tickets for timed tours are required from March 1 to December 31)

Let the vacation planning begin!