10 Superlative Family Vacation Destination Ideas

Buggiest Museum: Montréal Insectarium

Located in: Montreal

Why you should go: The Montréal Insectarium—the largest bug museum in North America—offers much more than creepy-crawlies mounted in shadowboxes. There’s plenty of hands-on fun here: Kids can handle some bugs with the help of a staff member, and there’s a station that allows visitors to play composer by setting various insect sounds to music. The Insectarium is part of a complex that includes a botanical garden and a biodome, which re-creates four ecosystems (from a tropical rain forest where monkeys roam cage-free to an arctic island that houses—what else?—penguins). (A 30-day ticket to all three attractions is $31.50 for adults, $16 for children ages 5 to 17; admission to the Insectarium alone is $17.75 for adults and $9 for kids 5 to 17; montrealspaceforlife.ca.)

Where to stay: Hotel de l’Institut, in Plateau, near downtown Montreal (from about $229 per night for a suite with a dining table and a kitchenette, www.ithq.qc.ca).