Homework: Get an early fall trip on the schedule

Summer should feel like lightweight blouses and linen shorts, but the area's humidity is more akin to slogging around in a cement muumuu. The mugginess will break probably around the time the first school bell rings and the likelihood of a warm-weather family getaway will fade with the last fireflies. Surprise your school-bound squad with an escape before they are too entrenched in the schedules and soap operas of a new semester.

In addition to more comfortable temps and fewer crowds, your early fall excursion could cost less. Who wants to vacation in the tropical stickiness of Florida in July or August when in September you can snag a four-bedroom vacation home with a private swimming pool near Disney World from $91 per night?

Granted, it will still be fairly toasty down South, but you can cool off with an anytime dip in the pool just outside the door. VillaDirect Vacation Homes (www.VillaDirect.com) is offering September pricing valid on select four- to seven-bedroom homes with a minimum seven-night stay.

Since a four-bedroom home can accommodate up to six people, it sounds like additional savings if the entire family or multiple families share the same accommodations (hello, moms with toddlers and preschoolers).

Your stay is based on availability, so the home might feature a game room, spa or home theater or themed kids' bedrooms with game systems in addition to standard amenities, such as cable or satellite TV, VCR or DVD player and a full kitchen. You'll have access to all resort-style amenities in the communities where homes are located, such as pools with water slides, fitness centers and playgrounds.

All VillaDirect vacation homes are within 10 miles of Walt Disney World theme parks, Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, SeaWorld Adventure Park and water parks such as Wet 'n' Wild, Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon. For more information about VillaDirect and to book with Value Villa Pricing, visit www.VillaDirect.com and click on the special offers tab, or call (877) 259-9908.

For many, fall is all about the colors, and Vermont is the idyllic destination for an autumn escape. Kids don't generally care about color unless it involves their new school clothes or iPod cover. Northern Vermont's Smugglers' Notch Resort solves the dilemma with a family vacation fix: the AutumnFest Family Vacation Package valid Sept. 3 through Oct. 8, the lowest rate period of the year.

The kids adore theme-based activities and you'll appreciate mountainside Resort Village condo lodging along with daily guided nature hikes, pools and water slides (indoors after Sept. 18), evening entertainment for adults and families, tennis, volleyball, movies, a skate park and Disc Golf.

The AutumnFest Family Vacation Package is for families traveling with children ages 6 weeks to 5 years and includes half-day and full-day programs for the little ones at the award-winning Treasures child-care center. There are also afternoon family programs. Guests on this package staying three nights or longer may stay an extra night at no additional cost.

For information on Smugglers' Notch Resort's fall vacation packages and programs, log on to www.smuggs.com or call (800) 419-4615.

The hotel rates drop with the falling humidity in Washington, D.C., allowing the family to indulge in a fantastic learning weekend in the nation's capital. With all of the notable historical, political, cultural and educational attractions, D.C. offers some brand new must-sees.

For media hounds, the new Newseum is six levels of high-tech and interactive exhibits that trace the history of news reporting from smoke signals to blogs. Have the young Katie Courics and Charlie Gibsons in your news crew try their hands at broadcast journalism or have the photographer in the family snap photos of news scenes for a computer-generated assessment by professional photojournalists. Log onto www.newseum.org for details.

Madame Tussauds' latest wax museum opens here in early October with a cast of characters that includes Abraham Lincoln, Duke Ellington, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Beyonce Knowles, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Have Junior pose for pictures in the Oval Office for his civics class and then view replicas of the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence. For more information, call (212) 512-9600.

The vibrant Hotel Helix (www.hotelhelix.com) offers a fun Bring 'em Along Downtown Washington Hotel Deal that includes lodging in a family bunk room complete with Nintendo, hosted champagne hour Monday to Friday in the hotel lobby, two pints specialty Haagen-Daz ice cream, a family pizza party and a complimentary game of Sorry, Monopoly or Life.

For other lodging ideas, go to www.washington.org.

How about a straightforward escape to an island? Midwesterners might not think of Bermuda first, but there is a roster of reasons to do so.

Bermuda is only 3½ hours away with nonstop flights daily on United Airlines from O'Hare. It's a beautiful place with a distinct British flair and some of the most hospitable people on the planet.

Pink sand beaches offer a taste of the last vestiges of summer and older kids will like the body boards, kayaks and snorkeling equipment that you can rent right on the shore. Bermuda is known for its pristine water and coral reefs, ideal for snorkeling; a visit to Crystal Caves, discovered in 1907, is a great family outing.

If Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones aren't out on the links (the island is a golfer's paradise and the PGA Grand Slam takes place in October), perhaps they can help you out with babysitting (sure).

Surf over to www.bermudatourism.com or call (800) 237-6832.