If you plan to be in Newport during the summer, reserve your hotel accommodations early.  With all its music festivals, Newport can book up quickly.  For out of the ordinary lodging, stay at Castle Hill Inn – which has spectacular views of Narragansett Bay and its own private beach.  For a luxurious bed & breakfast, stay at the Francis Malbone Inn or the Cliffside Inn. 

For dinner, stop by the Cheeky Monkey Café  on Perry Mill Wharf.  This  whimsical restaurant features creative food that’s perfect for sharing.  Scales & Shells on Lower Thames Street serves (what else) the best seafood in Newport.  For a place with atmosphere, have dinner at the White Horse Tavern, which has been operating as a tavern for over 300 years.

Newport is one of my favorite New England destinations for a summer getaway.  With its coastal beauty, opulent mansions, yachting heritage, and summer music festivals, there’s plenty to see and do.

Newport is where the ultra rich spent their summers at the turn of the 19th century.  No longer just a playground for the super wealthy, even those of us on a budget can enjoy a day or a weekend here.  Home of the America’s Cup yacht race for many decades, Newport is probably best known for its “summer cottages”.  These Gilded Age mansions were built for the Vanderbilts and Astors during an age when wealth was flaunted with lavish parties and hundreds of guests on sprawling lawns that stretched to the coastline.   (more…)

With its lush vegetation, palm trees and up-scale setting, Naples is the jewel of the Florida Gulf Coast.  Check into the luxurious Ritz Carlton – surprisingly affordable June through September – and then head out to the beach, just steps from the hotel.  The white sand beaches are wide, clean, un-crowded and full of colorful shells.  In fact, the Travel Channel chose Naples as their 2005 “Best all-around beach in America”. (more…)

The Ritz Carlton in Naples, Florida is frequently listed among the top hotels in the world.  The hotel has seven restaurants, the largest spa of all the Ritz hotels, two outdoor pools, 3 miles of beach and overlooks the Gulf of Mexico. From now through September they are offering a Sand and Sun Package which offers a significant discount from their normal rates.  

Rates:

• April–May, 2006: Rates starting at $499 per night
• June–September, 2006: Rates starting at $199 per night

The package features:

• Coastal view accommodations (three-night minimum stay required)
• Complimentary valet parking
• $100 resort credit  (with three-night stay)

A trip to Savannah wouldn’t be complete without some good old fashioned southern cooking. Fried chicken, fried green tomatoes, sweet potatoes and pecan pie can usually be found on the menu. Most visitors head towards Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room or The Lady & Sons. Both restaurants can be crowded around lunch and dinner, so expect to wait.

Mrs. Wilkes serves “family style”.  You sit at long tables with other diners and they serve big platters of whatever is on the daily menu. Your feast may include fried chicken, BBQ ribs, ham or classic southern side dishes like collard greens, okra, yams and pickled beets. The great thing is you get to choose.  That means you can keep passing on the bowl of pickled beets and loading up on the ribs!

We went to The Lady & Sons on our last visit to Savannah.  You can order off the menu or serve yourself from their popular buffet.  I chose the buffet.  The breads and desserts were my favorite part.   The rest of the food was good, but didn’t quite live up to my expectations. But I could be jaded.  My grandma was a master at southern cooking.

What’s your favorite for old fashioned, southern cooking in Savannah? The Lady & Sons or Mrs. Wilkes?

“Slow down and taste the sweet life” is the motto for the Back in the Day Bakery. Voted 2005 Best Bakery by Connect Savannah’s Annual Reader Poll, the bakery makes artisan breads, cakes, cupcakes, scones, pastries, cookies, puddings, brownies and fruit tarts.  Be sure to try their double dipped chocolate cake. It’s so decadent it was recently featured in Chocolatier Magazine. 

Get some Nana Pudding or try their Retro Coconut Cake with fresh coconut and lemon curd. With all the choices you’ll want to order a few and share bites.  Dessert isn’t their only specialty; try a sandwich like the Super Chicken or PB&J Club.

Back in the Day Bakery is located a block from Forsyth Park in the Design District.  The district has several art galleries and places to shop for furniture and jewelry created by Savannah College of Art and Design graduates.

The bakery is closed Sunday and Monday.

Live oaks draped with Spanish moss, white Doric columns and intricate ironwork are the indelible images of Savannah. The city is laid out in a grid, and dotted with lawn-sized parks.  You can’t go two blocks without stumbling into one of these mini sanctuaries.  It is the quintessential southern town and the kind of place where you just want to slow down and soak up the charm.  The setting of several major motion pictures, including Forrest Gump, The Legend of Bagger Vance and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, Savannah’s Historic District is alive with the flavor of the Old South.  (more…)

When visiting the Biltmore I like to stay at the Grove Park Inn – a grand historic hotel that overlooks the Blue Ridge Mountains and the estate winery.  When you stand on the expansive rear balcony, you’ll feel like a member of the F. Scott Fitzgerald party, one of the Inn’s many illustrious guests that included the likes of Thomas Edison, Henry Ford and eight U.S. presidents.

And good news for spa lovers - the Grove Park Inn is better than ever with a recent renovation and a brand new 40,000 sq ft full service spa.  (more…)