ONE of the keys to a successful educational vacation is to pick a place where children can forget they have been set up to learn

Here are three options, particularly for families with kids aged 8 to 16

The ancient cities on the Amalfi Coast: Visit the ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum, both destroyed in the summer of A.D. 79

filled with the remains of street cafes, thermal public baths, frescoed basilicas and villas — children can begin to picture imperial Roman life

first visit the National Archaeological Museum of Naples (www.marketplace.it/museo.nazionale)

art tour of the Côte d'Azur: Few artists are more accessible to children than those who painted in the South of France

use Nice as a base, but be sure to stop

at the Maeght Foundation, (www.fondation-maeght.com

An ecosystem experience in Costa Rica: Teach your kids to become young naturalists at Manuel Antonio National Park

But don't go without a guide; it has big cats