With Maple Syrup season in full swing, New Hampshire is coming up with some unique ways to experience our liquid gold. Using the syrup to lure you here to some of the region's best B&B's, visitors can participate on two levels with the Inn to Inn Maple Tour, March 27-29.

Option One for the low maintenance, self-directed visitor: Take a self-guided tour of participating inns within Mt. Washington Valley, where ticket holders will sample maple selections at various inns and shops and receive a booklet of participating inns with maple recipes.

Option Two for the wanting-to-be-more-involved visitor: Take part in a unique scavenger hunt in addition to participating in Option One. Gather "points" toward winning prizes by traveling on a specific route guided by directions "riddled with clues." Prizes include a stay at your favorite participating inn, a carriage or sleigh ride for two at the Farm by the River and other gifts from participating partners.

Inns participating include: Buttonwood Inn, Cabernet Inn, Covered Bridge House, The Farm by the River, Mt. Washington B&B, The Notchland Inn, Cranmore Mountain Lodge, Nereledge Inn B&B, Oxford House Inn and Spruce Moose Lodge. Visitors staying at any of these locations the weekend of March 28th and 29th will receive March Maple Madness tickets as part of their stay package, along with breakfast each morning and additional enticements ranging from maple candy to a maple-themed five-course dinner. Both options are open to non-inn guests for $15/person/ticket. Call for more info: 603-356-2694. Check online for details, or reservations.

Planning to spend Super Bowl weekend in Las Vegas? Obviously, you’ll have the opportunity to lay down a legal bet on the NFL’s big game (the Pittsburgh Steelers are currently favored over the Arizona Cardinals by 7 points). And why settle for a lame square pool where you can’t even control which numbers you receive? In Vegas, you can make esoteric wagers such as whether the game’s longest field goal will be over or under 43½ yards, or whether there will be at least one scoreless quarter (the odds slightly favor scoring in every quarter). The Vegas oddsmakers had our Patriots, the Colts, and the Cowboys as preseason favorites to make Super Bowl XLIII, and well, that didn’t turn out so well for the teams or those who went with the chalk. If you’re going to be in Vegas, Walters Golf has a nice proposition for football fans who play golf. Tee it up at two of their three local courses in any combination over Super Bowl weekend (Jan. 30-Feb. 1), and you will be entered in a raffle to win one of two signed team helmets (one Steelers, one Cardinals). If you’re bringing your clubs anyway, play at Bali Hai Golf Club, Royal Links Golf Club (which features holes inspired by 11 British Open courses), and/or Desert Pines Golf Club, and you’ve got a shot at owning one of these two helmets (they’re valued at $3,500 apiece). And hey, if you’re a Patriots fan who isn’t particularly fond of either team, you can sell the helmet or just paint it over. Kidding, kidding.

Believe it or not, there is plenty of opportunity to rejoice in the thick white blanket covering New England in the winter,...without knowing how to ski. To live here, is to love the outdoors, and all it's beauty season after season. Get outdoors to see the landscape change into its winter clothes, and maybe, just maybe you'll learn to welcome the season that so many curse.

1. Snow tubing - Cranmore Mountain, North Conway, N.H.
While skiing is their forte, their snow tubing is a huge draw in their Arctic Blast Park. Offering seven lanes of fast fun, there won't be much sitting around. With 2 lifts, snowmaking and night time lights, there is plenty of opportunity to go. All ages are welcome. Children 42 inches and taller may ride solo; little ones may ride with an adult. Two hour ticket is $22. If this is a hit, then purchase a season-long tubing pass for unlimited slippin’ and slidin’ all winter long for $99 per person. [Photo courtesy of Cranmore Mountain]

2. Winter birding - Plum Island, Newburyport, Mass.
Yeah, so you don't even have to break a sweat to enjoy the season outdoors. Birding is for all ages, and all people. All you need to do is observe, appreciate, and identify our winged creatures that were not frightened into migrating south. On Plum Island, veteran birders host birding weekends for both the novice and the expert. In the winter you may spot a snow goose, mute swan, Great black-backed gull, snowy owl or red-bellied woodpecker. And if you haven't seen the dunes in the snow, I suggest you go and at least take in the landscape, letting the others identify all winged creatures for you! [Photo courtesy of Newburyport Chamber of Commerce]

3. Snowmobiling - Alpine Adventures, Lincoln, N.H.
No, you don't need to know how to ride, you don't need to know where you're going and you certainly can bring the kids! Alpine Adventures offers rentals, guided tours, and expert advice on how to make the most of your experience. Alpine Adventures has been touring Franconia Notch State Park and the White Mountain National Forest under special use permits for 12 years. Many guests return each year for family events, a quiet couples outing or group adventure. There are 3 different tours available, and prices range from $69-$134 per person. They'll also help you with lodging packages and other events taking place during your visit, so you can continue with your fun all weekend long. [Photo courtesy Kimberly Sherman]

Sleeping beneath the stars isn’t an option in wintertime, unless you are cultivating your survivalist instincts. An alternative is to break out the sleeping bags and head for the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, where families have the option of sleeping under, for instance, an enormous blue whale. This unique after-hours opportunity (no Ben Stiller sightings are promised) includes a screening of the IMAX film “Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure” and a spooky dinosaur-fossil exploration by flashlight. It’s designed for children ages 8–12 and their caregivers. Guests sleep either in the museum’s Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, under the 94-foot-long whale; beneath famous dioramas in the Hall of North American Mammals; or among the geological formations in the Hall of Planet Earth. The program dates are Friday, Jan. 9, and Friday, Feb. 6. The sleepover runs from 5:45 p.m. to 9 a.m., and the cost is $129 per person ($119 for AMNH members). It includes the movie and the fossil exploration, an evening snack and light breakfast, cots for all participants, take-home activities, and a live-animal exhibition (seasonal). To register, call 212-769-5200 or visit www.amnh.org/sleepovers for more information. Note: all participants must register in advance, and one adult is required for every 1–3 children attending. Space is limited and sells out quickly. The museum is located on Central Park West at 79th St. In Boston, the Museum of Science likewise sponsors overnight programs, but they are limited to museum members and their families (usually held in June), or to organizations such as Girl Scouts, Cubs Scouts, schools, and youth groups. For more information on their programs, which are also in high demand, families can call the membership department at 617-589-0180, and agencies can call 617-589-0350, or email overnights@mos.org.

The rest of America is finding out what New Englanders have known for a long time. Portsmouth, N.H., is one of the best cities of its size in the country. Its Seacoast location, historic downtown, and abundance of dining and shopping options have lured folks for decades -- we discovered it in the early 1980s and from what we can tell, it has only gotten better. Now the national honors are rolling in: No. 4 on Outside magazine’s Top 20 Towns in America; one of the dozen “Distinctive Destinations” for 2008 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation; one of “America’s Prettiest Towns” by ForbesTraveler.com. Here’s a perfect excuse to return to the “Port City”: Restaurant Week Portsmouth, from Nov. 10-16. This city of about 21,000 boasts 252 restaurants, giving it one of the highest concentrations of restaurants per capita in the nation. Restaurant Week will feature three-course prix fixe menus: $16.95 per person for lunch and $29.95 per person for dinner, which does not include beverages, taxes, or gratuity. Reservations are recommended, but not required. To book reservations, diners must contact the restaurant of their choice. For a list of participating restaurants, visit restaurantweekportsmouth.com or call 603-436-3988. Part of the proceeds will benefit Seacoast Local, Inc., a non-profit that promotes “Buy Local” and “Eat Local” initiatives. The Sheraton Harborside Portsmouth Hotel is offering a package that includes two Restaurant Week dinners in Harbor’s Edge restaurant and overnight accommodations starting at $199 (sheratonportsmouth.com). Organizers plan to repeat Restaurant Week in March 2009, but why wait?

Thanks to the folks at Worldhum.com for pointing out some maps at the online site of the Telegraph in London. The map above skews nations according to which are the largest tourist destinations.

The map above shows the countries in which people tend to travel by plane.

And this, the countries in which they tend to ride mopeds and motorbikes.

Plenty of other interesting angles to look out. Wondering, for example, who has the nukes?

When you visit Cape Cod for that much-needed “staycation” this summer, you may grow tired of lolling on the beach and trolling for fried seafood. Why not break the monotony by making a break for Monomoy Island, where you can watch seals as they loll about and troll for food? For the 20th year, the Mass. Audubon Society’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary is offering cruises to see the seals off the coast of Chatham. The seasonal cruises, which are guided by a naturalist, start Tuesday, June 17, and provide a close-up look at hundreds of gray seals. There are harbor seals around and about most of the time as well. These creatures can make the ordinary pastimes of resting and swimming very entertaining. The cruises are about 90 minutes long and will be held every Tuesday at 9 a.m. through Sept. 2, and every Sunday at 2 p.m. from July 6-Aug. 31. The cost is $40 for members of Mass. Audubon, $45 for nonmembers, and children 12 and under pay $5 less. Registration is required, and the trip are limited to 17 participants. Contact the wildlife sanctuary at 508-349-2615 or go here for more information.

If you're a golfer and planning on traveling in southwestern Ireland on May 14, here's an opportunity. County Limerick's five-star castle hotel, Adare Manor, is hosting the Irish Open May 15-18, and Irish golfer Padraig Harrington is returning to defend his title on the Robert Trent Jones Sr.-designed parkland course. Purchase a ticket to the event online prior to May 10, and you're automatically entered into a draw to play alongside Harrington in the Irish Open Pro-Am on Wednesday, May 14. Fine print: Men must have a certified GUI handicap of 24 or below; women 36 or below. Tickets for the event begin at 25 Euros; ages 15 and younger are free when accompanied by an adult.

If playing this course is too rich for your blood, consider the adjacent, but independent (despite its name) and far less expensive Adare Manor Golf Club, which wraps around ruins of a 13th-century castle, 15th-century Franciscan priory and church cemetery and provides views of another priory-turned-school and Adare Manor itself. Not too shabby.

Okay, foodies (and you know who you are), take out your credit cards and book a flight to Miami. Today. Forget the beach, the palm trees, the cute spring break lads and lassies. Rent a car—or hail a cab—and head straight for Brosia in the Design District where Chef Arthur Antilles turns simple foods from the Mediterranean into conversation-stopping wonders. This sounds like I’m exaggerating but I’m not. You know how sometimes you’re in a restaurant and someone is telling a story and someone else takes a bite of something and says, “Oh. My. God. Have you tasted this?” And then all talking stops—no matter what was being said—and then everyone is eating and kind of moaning in delight? That’s what happened at Brosia this week—with every dish we sampled.
Chef Arthur Artiles worked at Norman’s for eight years, and thus knows his way around a kitchen. He also seems to know his way around the cuisines of Italy, Spain, France, Greece, and Morocco, saying he likes to “keep it simple” while “playing with fusing the five main regions.”
At Brosia, you can eat your way across the Continent without spending a Euro. Highlights: Piri-piri shrimp (lip-smacking spicy with cooling cucumber sambal), gazpacho caprese (pureed with a touch of aged sherry), Catalan-style shrimp and clams (with grilled bread and sublime dipping sauce), seared ahi tuna (with Spanish ratatouille and Tuscan white bean puree), grilled pork tenderloin (French bistro style with sautéed chicory and crab apple mustard), and last and maybe the most conversation-stopping, grilled New York strip steak with blue cheese and caramelized onion stuffed Spanish piquillo peppers. For dessert: Illy coffee panna cotta with vanilla espuma and chocolate cookie.
With food like this, who can talk? (Ahhhhh…Mmmmmm…Oooooh.)

In England’s Lake District, fans of Beatrix Potter will find two sites celebrating the creator of such children’s book characters as Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle-Duck

The first is Hill Top in Near Sawrey, the home from which the author wrote many of her classics. It’s a modest two-story 17th-century cottage with beamed ceilings, stone floors, and original furniture. In Potter’s room, we saw her desk, copies of her manuscripts and sketches, and letters of acceptance and rejection from various magazines of the time. In many rooms, books are opened to an illustration showing that setting. Some children bring their own books and sleuth for their real-life settings.

The World of Beatrix Potter in Bowness-on-Windermere (pictured) is a more Disney-esque shrine. Visitors follow a path through a maze populated by realistic, life-size models of Potter’s characters set in pastel-washed dioramas of familiar scenes from her books. The attraction includes all 23 tales by Potter, complete with sights, sounds, and even smells.

Surprisingly, in Cumbria, Potter is loved most not for her stories, but for her dedication to conservation. In her later years she bought up all the land she could in the Lake District to protect it from development. When she died in 1943, she left 1,619 hectares (4,000 acres) to the National Trust.

Posted by Ellen Albanese, Globe Staff

If the Wicked Witch of the West was actually a spa therapist at the Montage Resort and Spa, then Dorothy might have reconsidered her decision about rushing back to Kansas. The hotel spa offers a treatment called “Surrender,” and after a five-hour flight to L.A. and an hour in the car to Laguna Beach, surrender was what I intended to do.

Each “Surrender” treatment is geared to the specific guest. (Before arriving, I had filed out a four-page questionnaire about my diet, family medical history, and exercise habits.) My therapist, Diane, explained her plan and I nodded in agreement. The treatment started with hydrotherapy (in an algae, salt, and bergamot-scented tub) and continued with a post-travel compress (my abdomen rubbed with cool mud and wrapped in a warm blanket) and proceeded to a deep-tissue massage followed by a hot-stone treatment. Stress? What stress?

Sometimes it seems that every city wants to be like every other city, with a Starbucks on each corner and a Gap just down the block. As the once-interesting Lincoln Road in Miami Beach morphs into a version of the Chestnut Hill Mall I start to wonder why anyone bothers to go anywhere. (We used to ask my Irish-born grandmother if she yearned to go back and see the beautiful landscapes of Ireland, and she’d reply, “I have a lake and trees at the bottom of my street. Why would I want to go all the way over there?”)

The one thing I’ve noticed that distinguishes one place from another is the way people drive. When I first moved to Miami I was told, “Here’s the way it works on the highway: The extreme right lane is for passing; the left lane is the slow lane.” Of course this isn’t the law; it’s just the way it works. People say Boston has the world’s worst drivers but I disagree. Sure, we’re aggressive but we’re smart when we drive — always thinking ahead. In Miami, people are aggressive and stupid. On a typical day on I-95 you’ll find 90-year-olds cruising way below the speed limit, 18-year-olds whizzing past in a death-wish frenzy; people on cell phones weaving in and out of lanes, plus recent arrivals from places like Caracas or Rome where “driving” and “laws” are never used in the same sentence. Add to that mix your “snow birds” — winter visitors from the north who don’t know which exit is what — and it’s a wonder anyone gets anywhere.

(Posted by Necee Regis, Globe Correspondent)

When you have a kid obsessed with geography, something is bound to rub off. Now I’m the one flipping through his atlas and almanac of world facts, trying to find out what the world’s
smallest continent is. (Australia.) So when the Fandex Family Field Guide came out with ‘‘The Wonders of the World’’ (Workman Publishing, 2008) I was intrigued. Forty-six monuments of civilization are neatly bound at one end in a portable deck of cards that fan out. The fun, accessible format keeps kids’ attention, and it’s packed with enough information, photos, and facts to keep an adult interested. Along with the requisite Taj Mahal, Great Pyramids, and Parthenon, I was surprised to find the Himeji Castle in Japan and the hidden caves of Ajanta in India. Even the skyscrapers of New York, a marvel in their own right, get their props. Keep it handy for reference or read it with a child — neither of you will be disappointed.

A few weeks ago we wrote a Checking In review on Inn Victoria, a truly splendid B&B in Chester, Vermont. Seems we weren't the only ones who were impressed. Innkeepers/owners Jon and Julie Pierce (see photo) recently wrote to tell us that the inn placed #7 in the list of Top Ten Bed and Breakfast Inns in the US in the TripAdvisor Travelers Choice awards.

But any glow over their accomplishment that the Pierces enjoyed was short-lived. They happen to be British citizens. "We have been having some issues with our visa and the US Immigration services do not believe we are doing well enough to qualify for a visa renewal next year," Julie wrote to us in an email. "As we could find ourselves removed from the US next November, we have no choice but to cut our losses. We are considering relocating to Nova Scotia and buying a B&B there when we sell (because contrary to the USCIS belief we ARE great innkeepers!)."

They're also incredibly civic-minded folks who have contributed immeasurably to their local community. When they sell Inn Victoria and move on, New England's loss will be Canada's gain.

Posted by Patricia Harris and David Lyon, Globe Correspondents

Did you know the top marriage proposal season is between Christmas and Valentine’s Day? If you’re pondering how exactly to pop the question and your loved one happens to be fond of Ireland and expensive timepieces, pay attention here: The luxurious Merrion Hotel in Dublin is offering a Will You Marry Me package for about $7,000 per couple that includes a deluxe room, a welcome bottle of champagne, a full Irish breakfast for two, and rose petal turndown service (spelling out ‘‘will you marry me’’ if desired). But wait: You also get a Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Lady watch with case, engraved with ‘‘will you marry me.’’ The hotel says the watch has a retail value of about $7,000, thereby canceling out that chunk of change you just spent on rose petals. An engagement ring is not included, but the hotel says it will scheme with grooms about the creative delivery of one. Who says romance is dead?

I am a serious off-season adventurer, which is reason enough to mention Block Island's island wide, 18th Annual Christmas Shopping Stroll Nov. 23-25. Everyone gears up for early bird 4am shopping on Black Friday any how, so why not pack some turkey sandwiches and hop the ferry on over to Block Island for some carefree holiday shopping that poo-poos any big box store sales. Over 25 unique shops are open and decorated for the holidays, offering special sales for this three day occasion. Shops will be open from 10am to 5pm each day, and are an easy stroll from the ferry landing - so no worries about the typical holiday parking woes!

Best of all, shoppers can stop by the Chamber of Commerce office at the ferry landing on Nov. 23-24 between 10 am and 3 pm to pick up a sheet that makes them eligible for great prizes that will be raffled off on Sunday at noon. (You do not need to be present to win.) Check out the following list for superb island accomodations!

Don't fret about those pies for Thanksgiving...plan your day around the Upper Cape Family Networks' famous Pie Auction Fundraiser on Saturday, Nov. 17 at 10am at the Oak Ridge School in Sandwich. This event gains in popularity each year as those around the Cape have found the secret to their Holiday success - pack their apron away, go bid on over 60 pies and hear their Thanksgiving guests ooh and ah. [Not to mention the money for those oohs and ahs goes to incredible family programming!]

Some pies offered are in disposable tin pans and others are offered up in handmade ceramic pie plates, shrink wrap and ribbons - the selection abounds and presentations are surprisingly creative which makes for even a better dessert to bring over to Aunt Elizabeth's on Thanksgiving. Don't have time to stick around and raise your bid card?...no problem, visit the sale table and buy from over 100 pies and get on to the rest of your errands! And no fundraiser is complete without a silent auction table, and here you can find bountiful baskets from local businesses and families, gift certificates and of course, more pies! Love to bake? Even better - call the Mastermind of the event, Tina Toran at 1.508.548.0151 ext. 172 to donate your own pies, then go and pick up someone else's culinary treat.

This auction is devoted to raising awareness, raising funds of course, but also as a family fun day as the Toe Jam Puppet Band is the entertainment, and let me assure you, this is a show your kids will cherish - heck, adults will cherish this performance too! Everyone even has a chance to play with the band. Bring your wallet, your kids, other's kids and if you can manage, other people's wallets? and have some fun for a great cause.

It's the season for art shows. Nov. 23-25 come celebrate some 55 of Maine's premier artisans at the United Maine Craftman's 33d Annual Arts & Crafts show in Rockland. Don't deny any show with free gift giveaways every hour! This show is three days long so plan to spend a night in this gorgeous coastal town. Many historic inns and B&Bs dot this region - try The Berry Manor Inn [Bobby Flay was here with the Pie Moms!], the Captain Lindsey Inn, or the LimeRock Inn for starters. And if your shopping is still not done, swing on over to Camden, one of my all-time favorite places in New England.

Bradford, NH's Rosewood Country Inn is offering an enticing 4-night Harvest Home Thanksgiving Package from November 21st-25th. The elves must be working extra early this year, as the Rosewood Inn has made an exclusive arrangement with the popular Tanger Outlets in Tilton, offering guests more than $300 [yes that means a lot of free Christmas presents!] in store discounts. And if that's not enough, the Inn will also provide ribbons, wrapping paper and bows to wrap all those gifts for Aunt Betsy, Cousin Rachel and Uncle Jimmy. You'll need to put your feet up and fill the tummy after all that shopping, and that's when you'll visit a nearby Inn for a full course Thanksgiving dinner. Forget about basting that bird this year - the Holidays just don't get any easier than this - book your room today!