By Michael Lyons
If you’re like many this summer, your plans for that big vacation have been either cancelled or delayed.
“Staycations” are now the trip of choice, with everyone turning their homes into four-star resorts.
If you’re one of the many who will find themselves taking a road trip no further than your own driveway this summer, there’s no reason why you can’t travel “virtually,” by going back to a simpler time with one of TV’s most famous families and some their best remembered “epic” vacations.
“The Brady Bunch,” actually featured several well-loved episodes where parents Mike and Carol took the kids (and housekeeper Alice) out of their perfect house for vacations that are well-remembered by fans of the series.
These “Very ‘Brady’ Vacation” episodes could provide some fun for your “stuck at home summer.”
A Very “Brady” Vacation at The Grand Canyon, (Season 3, 1971)
As the third season of “The Brady Bunch” started, the family kicked things off with this three-part-episode that centered on the family’s trip to the Grand Canyon (the episodes were entitled “Ghost Town, USA,” “Grand Canyon or Bust” and “The Brady Braves.”).
This being the Bradys however, the trip includes a stop over at an abandoned Old West Ghost Town, meeting up with a strange prospector (played by none other than “Gillian’s Island’s” Thurston Howell himself, Jim Backus) and a cliff hanger where Bobby and Cindy get lost.
The episodes feature some great footage, as it was filmed on location at the Grand Canyon, and it was nice to see the show take place outside of the familiar house, for a change.
Additionally, like almost all episodes of “The Brady Bunch,” these three are a nice look back. When we see the Bradys packed into their station wagon, with a trailer attached, it’s so comforting to remember what family road trips were once like and the excitement and innocence that went along with them.
A Very “Brady” Vacation in Hawaii (Season 4, 1972)
The Bradys really upped their vacation game when they kicked off their fourth season with another family trip, this time to Hawaii. It was another three-episode run (“Hawaii Bound,” “Pass the Tabu” and “The Tiki Caves”) and this time it was filled with even more cliffhanger excitement.
The whole gang is thrilled when Mike announces that he has to go to Hawaii on a business trip and that the family is coming along on vacation. It’s all sunny Hawaiian fun, until Bobby comes across a small tiki, which turns out to be bad luck to all who wear it: Alice throws out her back during hula lessons, Greg almost drowns during a surfing contest and a dangerous spider almost attacks Peter.
The three boys attempt to return the tiki to the gods by leaving it in a cave, until they meet a mysterious stranger, played by horror movie icon Vincent Price (who, even after kidnapping the boys, is later invited to a luau by the family - !?)
These episodes, shot on location, are filled with such a time capsule-70’s feel and Hawaiian vibe that it’s no wonder they have become some of the shows’s most popular. And, even with all the bad tiki luck, the episodes also make anyone want to venture off on their own groovy Hawaiian getaway.
A Very “Brady” Vacation to King’s Island Amusement Park (1973)
In the final season of “The Brady Bunch,” it took only one episode to tell the story of the family’s vacation to King’s Island Amusement Park in Ohio, in the episode, “The Cincinnati Kids.”
Once again, Mike has to travel for business (his architectural firm has created plans for the amusement park) and he invites the family along. Of course, as with the other trips, things go awry, once they’re at King’s island, after Jan buys a poster of Yogi Bear in one of the gift shops. Mike loans Jan one of the tubes that are holding his plans...and wouldn’t you know it, the tubes get switched.
As the Bradys tour King’s Island (which is never referred to by name in the episode) and also attempt to find Mike’s plans, there is great footage of the park, especially the various rides and attractions.
Additionally, the Hanna-Barbera costumed cartoon characters appeared at King’s Island at the time and we see several of them in this episode, including “The Banana Splits” and a member of “The Hair Bear Bunch,” which Greg gets into costume as, to try and meet a girl (don’t ask, just watch).
For fans of King’s Island, or any theme park and amusement park, this episode is a real treat. With so much that’s changed around theme park vacations in the almost fifty years since this episode aired, it’s so great to see the Bradys in this park setting. It’s like looking at snapshots and home movies from another era.
In fact, all of the Very “Brady” Vacation episodes share a common theme: it’s not the destination, but who you’re with that really matters. Something we are all learning during this quarantine summer.
Continue to have a groovy - and safe - summer everyone!
Sources:
IMDb
VisitKingsIsland.com
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