Fall colors in Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina (Bill Russ/courtesy, NC Tourism)
If you think fall foliage is exclusive to the Northeast, you haven't been to Asheville, North Carolina, in late October and early November. Leaves on the dogwoods, sweetgums, mountain ash, red maples, poplars, and birches all change color this time of year. Take the Blue Ridge Parkway, which rises from 2,000 to 5,000 feet, and you're bound to find something. Many hiking trails lead from the road if you want to wander into the forest. Or head ten miles down the road from Asheville to Pisgah National Forest, one of the Southeast's top mountain-biking locales. Some 200 miles of narrow singletrack and many more miles of old logging roads weave through the mixed hardwood forest. Children will like the clay tennis courts and spacious rooms at the Crowne Plaza Resort in Asheville. -- Steve Jermanok
For more seasonal inspiration, visit Away.com's Fall Foliage Guide, which features state-by-state leaf-peeping guides, peak foliage estimates, activity recommendations, and seasonal photo galleries and screensavers.
Head on over to the Orbitz Travel Blog for a chance to win a pair of smart Klipsch Image X10 headphones. Our friends at Orbitz.com, an Away.com partner site, are looking for your stories about travel tantrums, all-night hotel-room acoustics, and yup, airborne run-ins with that Annoying Cell Phone Guy. The best entry will get a pair of Klipsch earbuds (street value $350!), the perfect antidote for drowning out even the most obnoxious on-the-road annoyances. Download an entry form and read the official rules here. Entry deadline is Sunday, October 26, 2008. Good luck!
SAFE HARBOR: The beach at Praia do Carvoeiro (Photodisc)
Most people associate the Portuguese Algarve with Spain's Costa del Sol, an area with far too many high-rise hotels and far too many tour groups. This is certainly true in the popular British resort town of Albufeira. Yet, there's a simpler side to the Algarve, where small fishing communities like Carvoeiro and Vilamoura hide coveted crescent beaches ideally suited for families who want to leave behind the hectic pace of modernity. There are nine beaches in this small town, all backed by cliffs, and most of them are exquisite. Just ask my parents. After following my advice and heading to this quiet town, they didn't leave for a month. Families will like the spacious suites at the Alba Resort & Spa. All rooms come with a buffet breakfast every morning. -- Steve Jermanok
When I was little, my sister and I ate apples from every tree we could reach or climb near our home in the Pocono Mountains. When my kids were little, we visited orchards in New York and New England every fall—we even camped at one a month before my daughter Molly was born (and I didn't yet have a self-inflating camping pad).
October is National Apple Month—time to celebrate fall's super fruit. To start, apples are cool. They float. That's because they're 25 percent air. It takes just 85 minutes to digest an entire apple. They're good for your lungs and bones and they have antioxidants. Here are more apple facts:
GREEN LAND: Prince Edward Island, Canada (Kaz Chiba/Photodisc)
Prince Edward Island will always be synonymous with that 11-year-old girl, Lucy Maud Montgomery, and her famous book, Anne of Green Gables. And since Anne turns 100 this year, the Green Gables site and Lucy Maud Montgomery's home will surely continue to be the top two sites for visitors to see as they make their pilgrimage to this banana-shaped island in northeastern Canada. However, there's a smaller group of visitors, like my family, who return to PEI as often as possible to bask in the bucolic countryside. Head to Kings County, the northeasternmost corridor of the island, to sea kayak under red cliffs, bike on the Confederation Trail through velvety green potato farms, and hike in dense forests. Stay at the Inn at Bay Fortune, the former home of actress Colleen Dewhurst and her husband George C. Scott.
ART ATTACK: The Denver Art Museum's new Hamilton Building (courtesy, Denver Art Museum)
The best thing about the Democratic National Convention being in Denver this year was the chance to show off the city to visitors. And I'll tell you the same thing I told delegates and others who wondered about bringing their kids back: Denver is a blast for families of all ages. Here are ten cool things to prove it.
1. Sun and lots of it: We have more than 300 days of sun annually. Even in January we have "T-shirt days" where it's sunny and warm enough to play outside without a coat.
2. Children's Museum of Denver: Eleven interactive spaces and exhibits just for ages newborn to eight—perfect for young families.
HAPPY DAYS: Family fishing outing (Sam Roberts/Digital Vision)
With Grandparents Day coming this Sunday, September 7, Away.com's "Are We There Yet?" blog hit up BP Pro Angler Guido Hibdon for his family-friendly recommendations for Americans planning a fishing excursion with their grandchildren (or vice versa) this year. There's no better way to get close to nature, not to mention getting precious time to connect with each other. Take it from Hibdon, a Gravois Hills, Missouri, resident and 30-year veteran of the sport, who says he now enjoys fishing even more because of the time it allows him to spend with his family, especially his son Dion, who travels with him during the tournament season.
HOME-TOWN FAVORITES
Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri
Conveniently located in the heart of Missouri, the Lake of the Ozarks is referred to as the "Midwest's premier lake-resort destination" and it's an ideal setting for fun and fishing. Kids can catch bass and catfish almost year-round. And there is loads to do when you're not on the water, with the Ozarks boasting plentiful family-friendly lodging, lakefront dining, and attractions like miniature golf and horseback riding.
TRUE NORTH: Vancouver, British Columbia (courtesy, Tourism Vancouver)
Offering a slew of activity on its Pacific shores, Vancouver is one of North America's favorite family getaways. Certainly one of ours. Last summer, we biked through the forest and along the seawall of Stanley Park
to the beluga whales and black-tip reef sharks found at the Vancouver Aquarium. Another day, we took the short jaunt across False Creek on the Aquabus to Granville Island, home to the Public Market. The kids ran from stall to stall, amazed at the bounty of goods that stood before us. Of course, there were the fish for which the Northwest is famous—halibut, tuna, and every type of salmon available. Bins of fruit overflowed with fresh figs, quarts of blueberries, freshly picked gooseberries, and yellow golden berries. Then there were the miscellaneous items like French baguettes, assorted patés, and sweets such as almond horns, their ends dipped in chocolate, and homemade fudge. Within walking distance to Stanley Park and many of the best restaurants in town, Pacific Palisades Hotel offers spacious rooms that are ideal for families. -- Steve Jermanok
British Columbia reigns the mountain-biking scene for one very simple reason: it's just that good. Away.com profiles some of the best—and some of the least-known—fat-tire hot spots, including Vancouver's North Shore.
I've been a full-time travel writer for 15 years now, flying all over the globe, but until this past year I have never had major luggage problems. That all changed last November when American Airlines left me without clothes for four days in Costa Rica. Several weeks later, United couldn't find my daughter's bag on a trip to Chicago. Then, this past week, I arrived in Boston after a flight from Philly on US Airways to a third-world situation where luggage was everywhere, yet no one could find their particular bag. Not surprisingly, I left the airport empty-handed. Add extra airline charges now associated with checking your bags and luggage delivery services no longer seem so extravagant. In business since 2004, Luggage Forward picks up your bags at home and makes sure they are at your final destination safe and sound, thus eliminating the hassles of lost bags or airline fees. Fees vary depending on the number of bags, type of luggage, your end destination, and so forth. When I have to schlep all those skis to Park City this coming winter, I might be giving them a call. -- Steve Jermanok
Do you have other tips on ways to avoid lost luggage headaches? Tell us in the comments section below..
BY GEORGE!: Lake George and the Adirondacks, New York (Corbis)
Most people associate Lake George with the honky-tonk T-shirt and fudge shops that line Lake George Village. That's unfortunate, because the middle section of this 31-mile-long lake, near Bolton Landing, has far more of that Adirondack appeal. On the opposite shore, waves of rolling summits form a silhouette against the sky that, due to the lake's narrow width, hems you in snugly between the peaks. This is a popular region for sailors who tack around Dome Island, a round, uninhabited forest of firs that looks almost tropical. Or rent sea kayaks to circumnavigate the island that's home to the historic Sagamore Resort. Inland, you can climb tall pines, walk across cable bridges, and zipline back down to the ground at Adirondack Extreme's new aerial adventure course. Icing on the cake is a hike atop Tongue Mountain with glorious vistas of the lake, one of Backpacker magazine's top trails in the Northeast. Spend your nights at the Sagamore Resort and you'll be staring at the peaks. -- Steve Jermanok
If you think fall foliage is exclusive to the Northeast, you haven't been to Asheville, North Carolina, in late October and early November. Leaves on the dogwoods, sweetgums, mountain ash, red maples, poplars, and birches all change color this time of year. Take the Blue Ridge Parkway, which rises from 2,000 to 5,000 feet, and you're bound to find something. Many hiking trails lead from the road if you want to wander into the forest. Or head ten miles down the road from Asheville to Pisgah National Forest, one of the Southeast's top mountain-biking locales. Some 200 miles of narrow singletrack and many more miles of old logging roads weave through the mixed hardwood forest. Children will like the clay tennis courts and spacious rooms at the Crowne Plaza Resort in Asheville. -- Steve Jermanok
Head on over to the 
With Grandparents Day coming this Sunday, September 7, Away.com's "Are We There Yet?" blog hit up BP Pro Angler Guido Hibdon for his family-friendly recommendations for Americans planning a fishing excursion with their grandchildren (or vice versa) this year. There's no better way to get close to nature, not to mention getting precious time to connect with each other. Take it from Hibdon, a Gravois Hills, Missouri, resident and 30-year veteran of the sport, who says he now enjoys fishing even more because of the time it allows him to spend with his family, especially his son Dion, who travels with him during the tournament season.
