"Hidden Gem" vacation areas: the ones you never heard of

Parent Cafe
41

<p>I have a few places I’ve seen that haven’t been mentioned…</p>

<p>First is Ponce, Puerto Rico. When you think of Puerto Rico, everyone automatically visits San Juan or one of the coastal resorts. Ponce is on the Southern coast of the island and is full of culture and beauty (think Ponce de Leon)! The best part is it’s a 10 minute (or less) drive from Ponce to either the beach or the mountains, so you can get either paradise you choose for the day.</p>

<p>My second recommendation is Halifax, Nova Scotia. My parents took me there when I was young (not really recommended for children btw, it can get boring) and there is a lot to do including a long light house tour (read the boring part for children). It’s only a short plane hop from Boston and my parents had a great idea to spend Canada Day in Canada, and come back for the 4th of July celebration in Boston (what beats two excellent fireworks shows?).</p>

<p>Third suggestion is western Ireland, yes, I know a lot of tourists do go there, but there is a lot of territory that not too many people take advantage of out there (and instead concentrate on Dublin or the likes). </p>

<p>Included in western Ireland…</p>

<p>Croagh Patrick - the mountain St. Patrick climbed up barefoot, you too can try to climb up the rocky slope, but make sure you’re in good shape, I didn’t even get up the whole way at 21 (in part due to not wanting to lose my footing)</p>

<p>Cliffs of Moher - yes, this is a very touristy place, but if you are already in the area, it is spectacular!</p>

<p>Aran Islands - again, very touristy, but beautiful real estate and nice biking options</p>

<p>The Burren - The landscape of the burren is of karst topography (i.e. weathered limestone) that is geologically fascinating from many perspectives. It’s amazing to see a country associated with its lush vegetation completely barren!</p>

<p>Numerous little villages - experience village culture is a must if you decide to visit Ireland, the more remote, the better. It’s amazing that a town smaller than anything I’ve seen in the US only manages to have a tiny convenience store yet 3 pubs!</p>

<p>chriscap: wish I could have done it, but I had the opportunity to go to the Canaries for a field seminar in May (geology seminar). Unfortunately I couldn’t afford the $800 bucks to get there. Maybe I’ll be able to go on my own someday…</p>

42

<p>Galway is also one of the loveliest cities in the world.</p>

<p>I’d say all of Iceland, Norway…</p>

43

<p>One good place is the southwest of France, near Montpelier & the border of Spain… Beaches in Sete and Agde, roman ruins, lovely gorges, rivers, mountains & wine wine wine. Not highfalutin at all. Cheap and empty compared to the Riviera.</p>

<p>Another is the place my H surprised me with for our honeymoon. I told him “a beach & pina colada” were my only must-haves. He found a privately owned island called Petit St Vincent (it is near Grenada) that was literally Gilligan’s island-- “no phone, no bike, no motorcar.” Three planes and a boat to get there from LA. All individual bungalows, set off privately from one another. When you wanted something you ran a flag up your flagpole and put a note in the mailbox, someone was a lookout watching for the flags; later on whatever it was would be delivered… Heavenly.</p>

44

<p>SB - nice husband…</p>

<p>In France, a little island off the Cote D’Azur called San Juan les Pins. As you can imagine, it has pine trees:). </p>

<p>In Sweden, or rather in the water between Sweden and Finland, the thousands of little islands known as the Archipelago. Some islands, but few, are big enough for houses. Few of these islands big enough for houses have roads or cars. Think going to dinner at a restaurant in your outboard motor boat. Finding a trio there playing the accordion, the bass, and the guitar, music alternating between Scandinavian folk songs and theme songs from American movies. The Godfather, aquavit, and grilled fish with dill.</p>

<p>Air so clean it smells like granite. Smoke to keep away mosquitoes. Melancholy in the midst of beauty - I guess common in a Northern country all too aware of just how short summer is.</p>

45

<p>dadofsam mentions the Eastern Sierra–we also like the Lakes Basin area, 45 minutes northwest of Truckee on Hwy 89. Packer Lake Lodge, Sardine Lake Lodge, Grey Eagle Lodge are all beautiful, rustic and unspoiled. Avoid on 4th of July weekend, rest of the year fine.</p>

46

<p>Alumother there’s some island that has a bird refuge/no cars, is that the same one? Right off St Tropez I think? Never been there but I recall reading about it and thinking it sounded wonderful.</p>

<p>Yes: my H did me a solid with that honeymoon!</p>

47

<p>Portugal, particularly the Algarve (Praia da Luz).</p>

48

<p>It’s not the Cote d’Azur and San Juan les Pins. That is different. That’s pretty well known. I’m a dope. And there probably is an island off St. Tropez, but that’s still not what I was thinking of :(. I was thinking of the Silver Coast, the Cote d’Argent. Off the coast near Bordeaux. Go to a town called Arcachon, which is or was a typical cute French family beach town. Then there is a peninsula called Cap Ferret. Not to be confused with Cap Ferrat.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.lege-capferret.com/PRATIQUE/plan.htm[/url]”>http://www.lege-capferret.com/PRATIQUE/plan.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>I am really getting dotty in my old age.</p>

<p>However, here’s one thing I am sure of. The Lakes Basin district is wonderful. I particularly like the Gold Lake Lodge. Incredible hiking. And even the 4th of July is fun, with fireworks down in Graeagle.</p>

49

<p>t’es sympa, merci!</p>

50

<p>Choteau, Montana.
The last big trip we took was in 1988, before the kids were born. We visited relatives in Montana, caught Yellowstone in the spring (no crowds) and Glacier Park just after they’d cleared the roads of snow. My favorite day was spent in Choteau, at The Nature Conservancy’s preserve at Pine Butte Swamp (misleading name for such a beautiful spot). Would love to have spent a week there. </p>

<p>Would love to take the kids on a trip out west someday, as none of us have ever been to the west coast. Maybe next year… Have always wanted to visit Oregon (much in the way that Cliff Clavin on Cheers was obsessed with Florida), esp. the Columbia River Gorge area…</p>

51

<p>No one seems to know about Onondaga Cave in Missouri. 2nd to Mammoth Cave–without the crowds and hype. Amazingly beautiful formations. It is right off of I-44 less than an hour W/SW of St. Louis. I also love St. Louis (hardly hidden) for everything it has to see–museums, science center, fantastic zoo, cathedral, the Arch–but don’t forget the Missouri Botanical Gardens (my favorite place on earth). South of St. Louis in the Ozark region there are some interesting geological formations–Elephant Rocks State Park, Johnson’s Shut-Ins are worth a visit. There are also a lot of springs, old mills, creeks and rivers to explore in this scenic area. </p>

<p><a href=“http://www.mostateparks.com/onondaga/cave.htm[/url]”>http://www.mostateparks.com/onondaga/cave.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

52

<p>Oh, I love the Columbia Gorge! The best spot is Oneonta Gorge; take the scenic loop off of the freeway and watch for a sign, near Multnomah Falls. From the parking area, it just looks like a narrow deep chasm (and I do mean narrow, it seems like you can touch both walls at once) but if you climb over a logjam and then go wading for a bit, there are several lovely waterfalls and all kinds of beautiful ferns and other plants. Access is easiest in the late summer-early fall, when the water is lowest, and I think it would be sort of treacherous during the spring snowmelt season. The water is always cold, but it is definitely worth it!
<a href=“http://www.oregon.com/hiking/oneonta_gorge.cfm[/url]”>http://www.oregon.com/hiking/oneonta_gorge.cfm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Another great PNW vacation area if you like sun and water sports is Coulee Country in central Washington–these parks were practically in my former back yard.
<a href=“Coulee Corridor Scenic Byway | Byways”>Coulee Corridor Scenic Byway | Byways;
<a href=“http://www.kidscosmos.org/kid-stuff/mars-trip-9.html[/url]”>http://www.kidscosmos.org/kid-stuff/mars-trip-9.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>The beautiful little Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is almost in my “new backyard.” You can get from just about any point in the country to any other area in an hour or so, and there are wonderful attractions for Battle of the Bulge geeks (me, I admit it!). And there is one area in particular that is spectacularly gorgeous, known around here as Le Petite Suisse.
<a href=“Ludo Verhoeven's Photo Galleries at pbase.com”>La 'Petite Suisse' 'Klein Zwitserland' (Luxemburg) Photo Gallery by Ludo Verhoeven at pbase.com;

53

<p>I agree about Luxembourg. Fascinating old city and beautiful winegrowing area along the Moselle.</p>

54

<p>Thanks for the great links, Renee!</p>

55

<p>The LLanthony riding stables in Wales had a trail ride straight up a mountain that scared the bejeesus out of me, but when we got to the top we were riding along a narrow ridge looking down on England on one side and Wales on the other. Sheep were everywhere. It was gorgeous. My younger daughter and I were scared to death the whole time. My husband and older daughter loved it. We all agree that it was the highlight of our whole England/Wales trip. I would never do it again, but I’m so glad we did! (not us in the photo) <a href=“http://www.llanthony.co.uk/main.html[/url]”>http://www.llanthony.co.uk/main.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;