Miami tourism leaders are betting that a movie from India will bring a wave of new visitors to South Florida.

The Miami-Dade County tourism bureau recently sponsored screenings in Mumbai of a new Bollywood movie called Dostana (music video below). It was filmed in Miami, and includes shots of the city’s skyline and beaches.

The Florida city's hopes aren’t that far-fetched. Indian tourism to the Swiss Alps skyrocketed after Bollywood directors began filming in the region. I remember being amazed finding an Indian restaurant in the Jungfrau observatory on a Swiss mountain top.

Dostana seems to be a typical Bollywood film with elaborate dance and song scenes.

But there’s a twist: The plot involves two men who pretend to be gay so they can share an apartment with the gorgeous niece of a landlady. It sounds like Three’s Company goes Asian, but the frank acceptance of a gay couple is raising eyebrows in conservative India.

Miami doesn’t seem to mind the controversy. It just hopes that it will soon attract wealthy tourists, ready to spend their rupees on a Florida vacation.

“It portrayed Miami as a fun, bright, interesting place to be,'' the head of Miami’s film office told the Miami Herald. ``Miami could have been a fourth character in the film. How bad could that be?”

Has a movie ever inspired you to take a trip? Let us know in the comments below.

Halloween may be over, but it doesn’t mean you can’t be spooked on the coast.

Wannabe ghost hunters should head to St. Augustine, Florida, this weekend or next for a night time visit to the 134-year-old lighthouse.

The popular Dark of the Moon tour explores the historic beacon’s haunted history, which has been featured on national television shows, such as Ghost Hunters.

Tour guides claim they’ve heard someone climbing the tower steps, but the footfalls fade away, and no one appears at the top of the tower. This lighthouse's collection of spirits also apparently includes a prankish girl in the keeper's dwelling, a tall man in the basement, and a merchandise-disturbing poltergeist in the gift shop. And visitors often detect the scent of cigar smoke.

According to the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum, seven people known to have died on the lighthouse grounds, so there’s no telling who’s doing the haunting.

Not sure why, but ghosts seem to love beacons. Our roundup of top ten Haunted Lighthouses gets some of the best traffic on our web site.

It couldn’t be the spirts Googling us, could it?

Have you ever been spooked in a lighthouse? Let us know in the comments.

I love nothing more than strolling across a bridge.

It's a great way to get exercise and bridges offer extraordinary views. Usually you get a full sweep of a city skyline, and if you’re lucky, you’ll also get wind in your hair, sunshine on your face, and a view of chuffing freighters below.

My favorite bridge walk so far is the Brooklyn. But if I was on the Georgia coast this weekend, I’d be sure to line up for a once-a-year chance to walk across the Talmadge Memorial Bridge, left.

Usually, the span's off limits to pedestrians, but on Saturday morning, up to 4,000 runners (and strollers) will hit the bridge deck for a festive crossing of the Savannah River.

The cable-stayed bridge is a joy to behold. Its span stretches 1.4 miles, and it peaks at 196 feet above water. The 5.5 percent grade makes it a good workout for everyone. Events include 5K and 10K runs. Runners compete for glory. But others are welcome to enjoy the walk.

If you can’t make it, you don’t have to wait until next year for a great southeast bridge walk.

About 100 miles up the road, you’ll fine the similar Arthur Ravenel, Jr. Bridge in Charleston. It hosts a huge run in April, and it’s open to pedestrians year round.

Others on my must-walk bridge list: the Golden Gate and Mackinac.

Do you have a favorite bridge walk? Share it in the comments below.

No telling if the law will change under the new administration, but right now it’s illegal for U.S. citizens to visit the communist island nation.

So how to get a taste of Old Havana without drawing the attention of the State Department?

The New York Times has a nice piece about the city’s Cuban restaurants. These are places where you can enjoy ropa vieja (the classic dish of flank steak in tomato sauce that literally translates as “old clothes”), and take in the rhythms of Cuban bands sounding like the Buena Vista Social Club. (Video below to get you in the mood).

The Times pick? Cafe Cortadito, an East Village restaurant that’s quite popular, so make reservations.

Or you could always head to Miami.

I never tire of visiting Little Havana, eating at Versailles restaurant, and picking up a cup of cafe cubano from a stand.

Photo: HavanaNewYork.com

Maine know-it-all Hilary Nangle notes a great deal tomorrow for folks in Boothbay Harbor on the mid-coast of Maine.

A charity fundraiser, Lobster-mainia, will offer lobsters, live or cooked, for $5 each. The event is at the Boothbay Region High School football field parking lot from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., on Saturday November 8. There’s a limit of 20 cooked ones, but that should be enough for a great party.

Cash only and bring your own bag or cooler.

The sale is meant to bring attention to the slump in lobster prices, which are now bringing lobstermen $2 a pound or less. (Bet you haven't noticed a dramatic drop in prices at restaurants). The problem is caused by a glut in the market, and rising prices for lobstermen, many of whom are being forced out of the trade.

Photo: LobsterfromMaine.com

In these tricky financial times, there’s no shame in snagging a Lilly Pulitzer skirt for $45, or other designer duds at a serious discount.

The Palm Beach and Naples areas have plenty of sharp-dressed snowbirds, who are always looking for the newest thing – and ready to part with last season’s blouse for a pittance. (Although it's not coastal, another Snowbird-favored city, Scottsdale, Arizona, also has a great consignment scene).

One of the best-dressed people I know, Miami Herald Travel editor Jane Wooldridge, recently blogged about her favorite South Florida consignment shops. Take her advice and you’ll be looking glam for pennies on the dollar.

In Palm Beach, she recommends shops along Sunset Avenue, Sunrise Avenue and North County Road. Even charity shops, such as Church Mouse and Goodwill, can have upscale merchandise.

You still may have to put down cash, though. Palm Beach's Attitudes Consignments offers a Isaac Mizrahi Pants Suit for $558. Not exactly pocket change.

Across the state, It can take a day to visit all Naples has to offer, Jane notes. Stores stretch from downtown to Bonita Springs.

And here’s another money saving tip: Until the winter season heats up in mid-December, hotels in these beachy spots are on sale for vacationers.

Photo: Red Balloon Consignment Shop

Florida’s tourism industry not only spawned roadside attractions, but roadside artists. 

The Florida Highwaymen were a group of about two dozen self-taught African-Americans from the Fort Pierce area, who painted tropical landscapes for tourists. For canvases, the artists sometimes used roofing tiles or other scraps.

The images were often peddled from cars parked along the side of coastal highways, and sometimes were still wet when sold. The price: usually $25. But the artists considered their profession a better fate then working in orange groves.

The Highwaymen worked from the 1950s to the ‘80s. Eventually their creations were recognized as folk art and ended up in galleries, museums, and art auctions.

The Cummer Museum of Art in Jacksonville just opened an exhibit of their work this week. It centers on Al Black, a Highwayman who ended up in prison, where his talent was discovered and he was allowed to paint murals. The exhibit includes both Highwaymen paintings and photos of Black’s murals by author Gary Monroe. It remains on view through January 4.

Picture: Royal Poinciana, painted by James Gibson from Visit Florida

Cape Fear might sound like a spooky place to visit Halloween weekend.

After all, the skies will be filled with surprising creatures. It's not often you see octopuses and rays climbing to the heavens.

But rest assured. Visitors’ hearts will soar with delight not terror at the annual Cape Fear Kite Festival.

The windy North Carolina beach will host demonstrations of stunt kites, those quick moving fliers controlled by two strings. Visitors can enjoy a kite auction, and live music, while the Childrens Museum of Wilmington will run a tent for kite-making.

The free-admission, third annual festival centers on Wrightsville Beach in front of the Shell Island Resort, near Wilmington.

The festival's popular with kite flyers in the region, so you can expect to see a sky dancing with colorful creations -- some as large as 40 feet wide and 100 feet long.

Festival founder Mike Agner says the sight is mesmerizing. "It's almost like artwork," he told Wrightsville Beach magazine. "It's like painting the sky."

Just pack your string and hope for steady breezes.

Know of a good beach to fly a kite? Share your spot with us in the comments below.

Are you addicted to election news? Do you support your candidate to random strangers? If so, then The Liaison Capitol Hill hotel designed this “Pick Your Party” hotel package for you.

Located in the heart of Washington, D.C. on New Jersey Avenue, the Liaison offers guests the chance to customize their stay depending on political party preference.

Now through November 8, the package includes accommodations for one night, a picnic basket with goodies, a Not for Tourists city guidebook, and of course, free wireless Internet access to stay updated on the polls.

Your party preference even determines your newspaper delivery: Washington Times for Republicans, Washington Post for Democrats, or USA TODAY for Independents.

For evening activity ideas, you’ll receive a guide to “red” or “blue” dining and nightlife hot spots around town. You can be the ultimate political supporter all day long.

Photo from The Liaison Capitol Hill.

A new book landed on my desk this week, bringing the whiff of suntan lotion into a gray, rainy day.

Selling the Sunshine State by Tim Hollis brings back the bright, gaudy, tacky, and exuberant days of Florida tourism from the pre-Disney ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s. The book includes 500 full-color reproductions of tourism brochures, post-cards, menus, and more.

If you’re a boomer or older, it will be a nostalgia trip. If you’re younger, it offers a retro field trip.  Flipping through the pages is a journey to a happy land of bikini beauties, roadside attractions, miniature golf, and wigwam shaped motels.

The thick coffee-table book joins two similar titles from the University Press of Florida. Silver Springs: The Underwater Photography of Bruce Mozert features a black and white collection of amazing publicity photos. I love the guy pushing a lawnmower submersed in the crystal-clear spring.

And then there’s the favorite of any mermaid wannabee: Weeki Wachee: City of Mermaids. It offers a comprehensive, loving look at an only-in-Florida attraction. It’s still in business, even operating mermaid camps to teach the ways of Neptune to eager young girls.

Each book would make a great holiday present. Maybe you can put an airline ticket to Florida inside the front cover ...

In these financial zig-zagging days, we all need to take time to relax. Yoga's good for the soul, and so is the beach. So how about mixing the two together?

But given the state of the economy, it’s best if it doesn’t cost much. That's why the yoga classes at Miami's Bayfront Park are such a wonderful way to spend an evening, or Saturday morning.

All you’ve got to do is make it Miami and the yoga’s gratis. Classes are offered Monday and Wednesday from 6 to 7:15 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 to 10:15 a.m.

The class caters to all skill levels, although you must be at least 18. Just bring your own mat, water, and towel.

Do you ever mix yoga with your travels? Tell us about classes you've found on vacation in the comments below.

AltMD: Miami Waterfront Free Yoga In Bayfront Park -

When you think of Savannah dining, pastrami usually doesn’t come to mind. Let alone, blintzes, or egg creams.

But this Sunday, Mickve Israel congregation sets stereotypes on end with its Shalom Y’all Jewish Food festival.

The idea’s not as crazy as you think. The sponsor, the third oldest Jewish congregation in the country, dates to the 1730s. The festival’s not quite as historic. But in 20 years, it has become a Savannah institution, attracting as many as 10,000 people to Forsyth Park, just a few blocks from the synagogue.

It runs 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on October 27. There’s face painting, cupcake decorating, and music. If you can’t make it this weekend, tours of the nearly 200-year-old temple are available year round.

Will it be Wellfleet oysters in Massachusetts this weekend, or andouille sausage near New Orleans.

Either way, you can’t go wrong.

Starting in the Cape Cod, mollusks will take center stage at the Wellfleet OysterFest on October 18 and 19. Activities include a shuck-off contest, oyster jewelry-making for kids, and a Taste the Terrior workshop with samples of three different local oysters and clams. (Oyster beds just a few miles apart have a distinct taste).

You can also take a guided beachwalk, attend cooking demonstrations (paella and oyster stuffing) and, of course, have a bite from the many seafood vendors.

Down near New Orleans, the action starts Friday night at the St. John Parish Andouille Festival 2008, a combination food festival, funfair, and concert. Saturday’s musical entertainment includes none other than Charmaine Neville of the famous music family. At the same time, local chefs will be facing off in the chicken andouille gumbo cookoff.

No one will go hungry. Vendors will serve onion mums, andouille potatoes, hog cracklin, shrimp stew, BBQ ribs, jambalaya and white beans, gumbo, spaghetti jambalaya, red beans, andouille on a stick, boudin, bread pudding, smothered okra, shrimp fettuccine, and crawfish jambalaya. And more.

So pack your loose jeans, and hit the road.

You don’t have to be a lighthouse nut to attend this party. The historic Barnegat Light, which towers over the northern end of New Jersey’s Long Beach Island, marks its 150th birthday on Saturday, October 11.

The event kicks off celebrations for the lighthouse, which is New Jersey’s most-visited state park. The light will be relit to aid navigation on January 1, 2009, 150 years after it was inaugurated.

The party includes a Coast Guard flyover, a bird-watch walk, marching band and bagpipe concerts, and historic lectures. No word on birthday cake, though.

One discussion will focus on the light’s Fresnel lens. That might sound boring if you don’t know lighthouses. These elaborate prisms concentrat a tiny kerosene light and project a beams for miles.

The lenses are practically pieces of art that some liken to glass jewels. They were constructed in France and cost a relative fortune. Back in 1858, it cost $45,000 to build the lighthouse, while the lens itself ran another $15,000. It weighed three tons and stood 15-feet tall.

Sound too technical? Why not get a workout by climbing the lights' 217 steps for a sweeping coastal view.

There’s a nip in the air this morning, which means it’s perfect weather for clam chowder.

Hundreds of gallons will be distributed this weekend at the 20th annual Chowderfest in Beach Haven, N.J. 

If you’re a Chowderhead, You'll want to come on Sunday, Oct. 5. The chowder cookoff runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and features all the soup you can slurp, from more than a dozen local restaurants. Tickets run $20 for adults, $10 for kids. Early admission costs $50, but also includes a t-shirt.

Visitors will have a chance to vote for the “King of Clams.” Due to the partisan nature of the event, organizers try to play it down the middle, giving both New England and Manhattan chowders equal billing.

On Saturday, the festival’s free. It will include food vendors and local merchants offering end-of-season deals. (Try not to spill anything on the clothes). The event, which attracts thousands, is held near the southern end of Long Beach Island. It occurs rain or shine, with events scheduled for large tents.

Can’t make the trip? Try out some of our chowder recipes, and have a festival at home.

What city has the best restaurants to boot? New York City? Think again. Chicago? Nope, still wrong.

Travel + Leisure and CNN Headline News teamed up to compile travelers’ rankings of 25 top U.S. cities in 45 categories, ranging from culture to food to nightlife, shopping, and others.

And you travel bugs rated New Orleans #1 for destination restaurants, live music and bands, vintage shopping, and ethnic food and cheap eats.

New Orleans wasn’t the only coastal city to rack up the awards. Here’s a sampling of #1 honors from coast to coast.

New York City: people-watching, art galleries, and theater
D.C.: museums
Charleston: friendly people
Miami: attractive people
San Francisco: noteworthy neighborhoods
Portland: cleanliness, environmental awareness
Seattle: cafes/coffee bars, farmers’ and specialty food markets

See the complete list here.

Pictured: Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan Bridge at twilight

You may want to stop eating right now to make sure you’ve got a big appetite for the grand tasting at Newport Mansions Wine and Food Festival next weekend. The exclusive Rhode Island fundraiser includes food samplings from nearly two dozen caterers and restaurants, and tastings from 150 wineries from around the world, souvenir glass included.

The Saturday tasting is already sold out, but tickets are available for Sunday, September 28, from noon to 4 p.m. Tickets start at $75 for non-members. Or for $100 you can enjoy the tasting in the Chinese Tea House at Marble House, a National Historic Landmark originally built for the Vanderbilts.

For a meal you won’t have to balance on a plate, you might like special restaurant wine dinners on Thursday, which begin qt $125. Or if you want some education with your calories, consider the guided tastings and food and wine parings.

Rest assured. All this grazing is for a good cause, supporting the Preservation Society of Newport County.

What do you get when you cross Southern cooking with seafood? Shrimp and grits, one of the tastiest combinations this side of lobster and drawn butter.

Since moving to Alabama, I’ve come to love the dish, and order it every chance I get. Just wish I could make it to the Shrimp and Grits festival in Jekyll Island, Georgia, this weekend.

The festival features wild caught Georgia shrimp -- which will be gobbled up by the pound during several shrimp-eating contests. Or take a trip on the Lady Jane, a retired shrimp boat, which offers two hour tours and an on-board shrimp boil.

Back on land, there will be amateur and professional cooking demonstrations. Watch Christopher Hewitt of Savannah’s Olde Pink House as he tries to defend his title as the “Best Professional Shrimp and Grits Chef.”

Finally, it’s an excuse to visit the beautiful historic district of Jekyll Island.

New York offers a chance to celebrate two classics this weekend. One, Dorothy Parker, the acerbic and brilliant writer, and two, Governor’s Island, an idyllic park in the middle of New York Harbor.

Parker was the grand mistress of the Algonquin Roundtable, an informal collection of journalists, miscreants, and wits, during the 1920s. She wrote criticism, poems, and screenplays.

As for the site, Governor’s Island has become a favorite of New Yorkers seeking quiet open space, and stunning view of Manhattan. The former military base is reached by a free ferry.

This weekend’s Parkerfest runs Sept. 13 and 14, with a raindate on Sept. 21. The event includes a Jazz-Age Lawn Party. There will also be Charleston and Peabody dance lessons, a hat parade, a vintage auto exhibit, and croquet. Visitors are encouraged to wear vintage clothes, or they can buy them from dealers and boutique vendors on site. Picnics are welcome, but not alcohol.

Parker wouldn’t approve. Although some of her best lines can’t be repeated here, she ran with a fast crowd.  “I'd rather have a bottle in front of me, than a frontal lobotomy,” she once said.

In this era of instant cell phone weather updates, there would seem to be little need for a weathervane – but what about one that animates the wind by spinning the blades on a toy helicopter, blowing bubbles or powering a charging moose?

With entertainment like that, you’ll be wishing for storms.

Next weekend, the coastal town of Shelburne, Nova Scotia, hosts its annual whirligig and weathervane festival. Visitors are welcome to gaze at (or blow on) the winning creations. The more crafty can sign up for whirligig workshops to learn to make their own. Adult sessions run $25, but the kids’ ones are free.

Last year the festival attracted 1,500 visitors, including some from as far away as New York. If you can’t make it to Canada, mark your calendar for November 1, and set your sights on Wilson, North Carolina. The town, east of Raleigh, also sponsors a whirligig fete.

Whirligigs have been around since ancient times, according to Wikipedia. But perhaps, there’s some wind left in their sails yet. They seem perfect for the YouTube era.

You don’t need to be investing in McMansions to take advantage of falling housing prices.

The troubled Miami condo market has created incredible bargains for vacation rentals, reports Arthur Frommer. A glut of building, much financed by South American investors, has created a buyer's market across much of the Sunshine State.

Renters can often save money by booking directly with the owner. Frommer cites an agent who recommends looking at Homeaway.com and VRBO.com to find the deals. I've heard good things about both.

In just a few clicks, I found a three-bedroom, oceanfront Miami Beach condo going for under $1,000 a week. I’d do more checking because I bet there are even bigger bargains out there. And remember, Caveat emptor. Might be worth checking these tips to avoiding vacation rental scams.

Connecticut has long guarded its beaches closely. Without a pass, much of the coast was off limits. I learned that the hard way many years ago when I took a detour off I-95 hoping to catch a glimpse of the beach. I ran into gates and “Residents Only” laws.  My presence, it was clear, was not welcome.

Restrictions were especially tough in Greenwich, which owns islands in Long Island Sound reached by municipal ferry. The parks and their beaches were open to residents and their guests.

No longer.

Following a lawsuit, the city recently opened ferry and island access. I learned about the change in a fascinating New Yorker article about Greenwich real estate, which mentioned in passing that Great Captain’s Island and nearby Island Beach had changed.

You still have to pay ferry fare and buy a beach pass: A visit will cost a non-resident $8 per adult.

If you want a peek at this island chain, the southernmost portion of New England, your time is limited. Ferry service to Great Captain’s Island runs through Labor Day and ends for the season after the following weekend. Island Beach service continues until September 15.

Photo of Island Beach by pixxiestails via Flickr

Tugboats, those workhorses of the shipyard, don’t get respect. Sure, we all hear about the QEII, but what about the vessels that make sure the grand ships make it to harbor.

This Sunday, New York honors its tugboats with an annual race down the Hudson.

The Great North River Tugboat Race and Competition kicks off with a tugboat parade from Pier 84, near W. 43rd Street, to the starting line near the 79th Street Boat Basin. The race, which covers one nautical mile, starts at 10:30.

You can watch the action from the river on a Circle Line boat for $35 a person. Or you can take it in at no cost from land. Get a good view of the start of the race from Riverside Park South at 72nd Street. Race sponsor, the Working Harbor Committee, says Clinton Cove, at 55th Street, offers a good view of the middle of the competition.

Later, the boats and crews will compete in pushing and line-toss contests. By 2, it will all be over and the tugs will chug back to obscurity for another year.

Photo from Tugster

One of the best parts of my job is the books. OK, the travel’s a blast too, but I love nothing better than having a shelf full of travel guides. It puts the world literally at my fingertips.

It’s rare to find something new. I’ve got enough Hawaii and New York titles to start a library. But up until this morning, I’ve never had – or even seen – a book on Muskegon, Michigan.

The guide by Roger Rapoport, Muskegon 365, promises an “All Season Guide to Michigan’s West Coast.”

Just flipping through the pages, I suddenly want to visit. The dunes, beaches, and marinas sound idyllic. The White River lighthouse resembles a scene out of Thomas Kinkade painting, and as a terminal for the Lake Express ferry, it would be great to visit before or after crossing Lake Michigan.

While we're on the topic, let me mention the new Moon Coastal Maine guide by Hilary Nangle, actually the third edition. I used it to plan a vacation this summer, and was repeatedly delighted with its tips and suggestions: from Lucky Catch Lobster cruises in Portland to the popovers at Acadia's Jordan Pond House, recipe included. If you’re heading Down East, check it out.

A kayak offers one of the best ways to explore the water. My wife compares it to flitting across the surface like a mosquito. The challenge for novices: finding the equipment.

West/Rhode Riverkeeper in Maryland, has taken all the hassles out of the experience. Every Thursday in August and September, the local conservation group’s offering free evening kayaking from the tiny town of Shady Side, about an hour east of Washington. Boaters will explore the West River, a tributary of the Chesapeake.

And if that’s not enough, there will also be musical performances on the shore, and food for sale. So you have no excuse. Slip out of the office early, or take an afternoon break from sightseeing, and experience another side of the Baltimore-Washington area.

Thanks: Baltimore Sun Bay & Environment Blog

Photo: PBoGS via Flickr

Some people spend their vacations tracking down wineries, or baseball parks. Coastal Living readers love to chase lighthouses. The pursuit is even an organized event -- a lighthouse challenge.

A particularly tempting one's planned for Aug. 9. Lights Across the Border will guide fans to the northeast corner of the country. They'll visit Head Harbour and Mulholland lighthouses, both on Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada; and Lubec Channel, West Quoddy, and Little River lights in Maine.

Participants will be able to glimpse inside Mulholland Light, and take a boat ride to visit Little River Lighthouse, which is on an island and has recently opened for overnight stays. West Quoddy Light and Head Harbour Light will be open for tours and tower climbs, weather permitting.

Registration runs $15 through Aug. 1, and includes a map, which will be stamped at or near each location. If you need a place to stay, check with the Machias Bay or Cobscook Bay chambers of commerce.

And if you can't make the event, there's always the Machias Blueberry Festival the following week. Coastal Living readers also have a weakness for berries, you understand.

Pictured: West Quoddy Lighthouse

Did you ever want to be a mermaid ? If you ever stopped at Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida as a child, the answer is surely yes.

The beautiful creatures of the sea still perform underwater shows daily at the old-school Florida roadside attraction north of Tampa. And now they’re packing their tails and taking a roadtrip.

The mermaids will be appearing at Myrtle Beach, S.C.’s Ripley’s Aquarium from Aug. 1-3. One wonders how they’ll travel. A giant water tank, perhaps?

The event marks the first time in the park’s 61-year history that the mermaids have left the park to perform. (Hundreds of others left for careers, marriages and motherhood, all the while knowing that they once had the coolest summer job in the world).

Photo of Mermaid Carli: Walt Stearns

If everyone you see in Key West next week seems to have a neatly cropped gray beard, it’s not some vision fueled by too many margaritas. It's Key West’s annual Hemingway Days festival, which runs July 15-20.

Some visitors come just for the “Papa” look-alike contest. The bearded wonders pose for pictures throughout the week, and even participate in a run through the streets, Pamplona-style.

There will also be exhibits of Hemingway memorabilia, readings and presentations, and a three-day marlin tournament, with $250,000 in prizes. Others come for an arm-wrestling contest and a birthday cake to honor what would have been the writer’s 109th birthday.

Of course, you can celebrate Ernest Hemingway at Key West year round. The Pulitzer Prize–winner lived on the island during the 1930s. His home and museum’s open for tours, and the descendants of his six-toed cats are a Key West tourist attraction themselves.

Photo: Andy Newman, Florida Keys News Bureau

Summer time is ice cream time. But please, don’t limit yourself to chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. Mapplr.com points reader to two unique Bay Area spots for frozen treats.

Mitchell’s Ice Cream offers a taste of the Philippines with flavors such as purple yam, avocado, and jackfruit. While Bi-Rite Creamery serves organic flavors including ginger, orange cardamom and balsamic strawberry, to name a few.

Meanwhile, our friends at Roadfood.com, have been searching out the 50 best ice creameries in New England. The top four, each earning coveted five cone ratings: Sundae School in Dennisport, Mass., on Cape Cod; Shaw’s Ridge Farm in Sanford, Maine; Tubby’s in Wayne, Maine; and Herrell’s Ice Cream, in Allston, Mass., in the Boston area.

What's your favorite coastal spot for an ice cream cone? A hungry public awaits your tips!

Photo of Bi-Rite Creamery from Daily Feed

Here’s another reason to visit Nantucket. Its Shipwreck & Lifesaving Museum has reopened after a $3-million renovation. It’s worth a visit -- and not just on a rainy day.

The museum explores the dangers along the island's rocky shore, and the heroic rescues following wrecks. The area was once a maritime Interstate connecting Boston to cities along the East Coast and around the world. At its busiest, up to 250 ships a day passed the island during the late 19th century.

Using restored boats, computer touchscreens, vintage photos, and a loveable Newfoundland dog mascot (once rescued from a doomed ship), the attraction aims to make its story interactive and child friendly.

The museum celebrates with a free-admission Family Fun Day on July 6, which includes storytelling and hands-on activities.

Tokyo had Godzilla. Beautiful Prince Edward Island, Canada, has its own creature bent on domination – a pig-tailed, red-haired wonder name Anne.

The book, Anne of Green Gables, long ago launched a tourism industry on the Maritime island. This year, the 100th anniversary of publication, it will be all Anne, all the time.

PEI has events planned all summer long including an Anne-inspired county fair July 3-6, and a Cuthbert “family reunion” on Aug. 17. As always, visitors (especially Anne-crazed Japanese) will flock to the Green Gables farmhouse in Cavendish that inspired author Lucy Maud Montgomery a century ago.

What’s a celebration without a web site? Surf over to learn the history of the plucky orphan, and download projects and coloring books for kids. But no dyeing your hair green. We all remember how that turned out!

You’ve got just over two weeks before the July 4 fireworks fly. No need to line up to grab a great seat. The folks at Jaunted.com have already found great places for waterfront fireworks on the East Coast.

In Florida, Miami Beach offers fireworks the only way it knows how—with a live DJ.

Folks from the Philadelphia and Washington areas, love the show at Rehoboth Beach, Del. Or head a bit north to Lewes, Del., where you can see the show at Cape May, N.J., too.

In Manhattan, it mentions the big show over New York harbor, and then notes that the same folks behind that production, the famed Grucci family, also produces one in Southampton, N.Y. If you don’t have a beach rental, or a friend with one, you can still take in the show from the Hither Hills State Park campground in Montauk.

In addition, the Gruccis have July 4 shows scheduled in New Rochelle, N.Y.; Boyton Beach, Delray Beach, and Key Biscayne, Fla.; Nantucket, Mass; and at Hickam Air Force Base, Pearl Harbor and Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.

Now that list still leaves out most the country. Do you have a favorite beachfront fireworks display? Let us know. We’ll save you a seat, honest.

Photo by loungeflyDE via Flickr

Any store can offer shopping, but L.L. Bean sets itself apart.

Its Freeport, Maine, flagship store remains open 24/7, attracting tour buses during the day and nightowls in the wee hours. And during the summer, the company offers free concerts in Freeport's Discovery Park.

Plus, now the retailer will teach customers to kayak, fly cast and shoot clays. For $15, L.L. Bean instructors will teach the fundamentals of these and other sports, including geocaching and archery, during “Walk-On Adventures.” The classes, which last up to two-and-a-half hours, are offered at all stores, located across New England, the Northeast, and as far south as Tysons Corner, Va.  Most adventures are open to anyone 8 and up; for shooting the minimum age is 12.

It's a pretty impressive array of offerings from an empire that began with Leon Leonwood Bean's rubber-toed boot.

There’s nothing like relaxing with a massage at a spa. Until you get the bill, that is.

Next month, Miami Beach’s top spas will offer a true luxury – treatments for $99, reports the Los Angeles Times travel blog.

Twenty properties from the Ritz Carlton South Beach to the Mandarin Oriental are offering Miami Spa Month specials. Treatments include aromatherapy massages, facials and Ayurvedic foot therapy.

Photo Spa at Shula's

Start your engines, lighthouse fans. Martha’s Vineyard dares you to visit its five historic lights in one weekend. 

One of them, Edgartown Lighthouse (right), will be open to the public for the first time in its history. The others are East and West Chop lighthouses, Gay Head (Aquinnah) Lighthouse and Cape Pogue Light on Chappaquiddick.

Tickets for the inaugural Martha's Vineyard Lighthouse Challenge run $95, and include admission to the five lighthouses, an opening night reception on June 13, transportation to lighthouses on June 14, a Sunday breakfast and awards ceremony, and a Challenge T-shirt. The reception and awards ceremony will be held at the Martha's Vineyard Museum in Edgartown, which displays an 1856 Fresnel lens.

Many Martha's Vineyard businesses will offer discounts, including price breaks on meals, hotels and house rentals.

JJS Photo via Flickr

New York’s more than skyscrapers, publishing and Wall Street. It’s also one of the nation’s busiest ports.  A working harbor boat tour offered on select Tuesday evenings will introduce visitors to the region’s bustling waterfront.

The two-hour trip leaves from Manhattan’s South Street Seaport Museum and cruises past container and passenger terminals, tugboat yards, an automobile dock, a lighthouse – and even the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Prices: $17 children; $21 museum members; and $29 to the public.

The trip, sponsored by the Working Harbor Committee, is offered by Circle Line Tours on June 10 and 24, July 8 and 29, August 12 and 26, and Sept. 16 and 30.

A cozy base for viewing passing whales and icebergs, Newfoundland’s Qirpon Island Lighthouse Inn shines in our June feature on the remote Northern Peninsula. Bedazzled readers should know of a sister property, Cape Anguille Lighthouse Inn (pictured below), also in western Newfoundland. Another working beacon, another chance to revel in pristine nature, shoot the salty breeze with genial hosts, and sleep in a restored lighthouse-keeper’s house.

Often anchored in wildly beautiful settings, lighthouse lodgings have a gale-force romantic appeal, though the accommodations tend to be more homey than deluxe. Knowing our readers are drawn to them like moths to a flame, we’ve showcased some of the best and always look for new ones, such as the Lighthouse Inn at Point Cabrillo on California’s Mendocino coast. For other places where you can sleep with the light on, consult this far-ranging roundup.

Cape May, N.J., the queen of Victorian beach resorts, celebrates its roots every chance possible.

A seaside vacation a century ago wasn’t quite the same as today, we're told. Without iPods and rollerblades, guests found more creative ways to pass the time -- such as searching for ghosts and trying to communicate with the underworld through séances and Ouija boards.

The Victorians, it seems, were obsessed with the afterlife. This summer, Cape May’s Carriage House Gallery revisits the spooky 19th century with its temporary exhibit, Mediums, Well Done: The World of Victorian Spiritualism.

For more on those wacky Victorians, choose from an incredible array of tours. You can learn about Cape May hauntings, funereal customs, or take a moonlit trolley ride to hear tales about their romantic customs.

Photo: Wm. B. Becker Collection/PhotographyMuseum.com, right

If you’re planning a trip to Cape Cod this summer, take your time getting there.

A typical route will have you rushing out of Boston and bypassing the South Shore. Bad move.

The Washington Post calls the area “Classic New England,” and suggests five towns -- Hingham, Cohasset, Scituate, Marshfield, Duxbury –- to explore.

You’ll find colonial homes, B&Bs, lobster shacks, lighthouses, rocky shores, and what has been called the “Prettiest Main Street in America."  Who needs Hyannis when you’ve got all that?

Photo: Shoothead via Flickr

One of the best things I ever did in New York was walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. My wife and I were celebrating our 10th anniversary, and took a stroll on a beautiful April morning. Without really planning, we followed a ramp onto the deck then turned around. All of Manhattan opened up to us -- the skyline looked close enough to touch.

The memory makes me want to head back next week for the bridge's 125th birthday. The city's celebrating with a weekend long party, reports Newyorkology.com.

Events start Thursday May 22 with a free Brooklyn Philharmonic concert.  Over the next few days, there will be outdoor movies, art exhibits, lectures and, of course, guided walking tours. I'm particularly intrigued by the Brooklyn Icons Mini Golf course, available for play at Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park on Saturday and Sunday. Who wouldn't want to putt across the bridge, even it's HO scale?

So happy birthday to the engineering masterpiece. Wish I could send a card.

Photo: Global Jet via flickr

West Coast Editor Susan Kim points out that New Jersey has a long history of wacky beach laws.

Surfers may pull radical moves out on the water, but they better not try anything funny on the Jersey shore.

Long Beach Township, New Jersey, has become the lastest town to outlaw changing clothes in public – even if you’re covered up by a towel. This has outraged some local surfers.

As one wave-rider noted in a quote that you don’t expect to read in the New York Times: “Maybe when they’re pulling the suit up you’d see a little bit of someone’s butt, but you’d see more on daytime TV.”

Kind of ironic to read about a prude beach in the Times, notes Jaunted.com. Last Sunday, the paper used the cover of the Travel section to breathlessly inform us about a radically different trend: Nakations.

Better keep all this in mind, before you rinse off under an outdoor shower.

Photo: Sister72 on Flickr.com. Sign from Point Pleasant, N.J.

With April winding up, the “R” months are coming to a close. So if you’ve got a thing for oysters, time is wasting.

Here’s a Washington Post piece about seven tasty options in Charleston's downtown market area.

For more on our love affair with oysters, check out this Coastal Living story.