My family couldn’t afford to go away for spring vacation. Our solution? My kids and I communed with the Mississippi River by checking into the Aloft Hotel in the Mill City neighborhood of downtown Minneapolis for one night.  Expedia told me that the hotel was within my price range. Little did I know that the place is a kid paradise, with a lively lobby scene (board games, lots of flat screen TVs) that made us feel more than welcome. My kids loved the Guthrie Theater’s public areas, including the Endless Bridge and the glass floor in the theater’s 9th floor lobby. We strolled on the Stone Arch Bridge and walked around the neighborhood. I wanted to visit the Mill City Museum but was overruled in favor of the hotel’s indoor pool.  ”I feel like I’m in another state,” my son Peter said from the hot tub. An enthusiastic endorsement if there ever was one.Did the recession change your family’s plans for spring break? What did you do?  

Now that families are getting ready for their spring breaks, here’s a 8mm Disney World promotional video from the 1970s. The place looks a little lonely floating in undeveloped Orlando without its theme park relatives. Which attractions are no longer there?