A spate of renovations to hotels, restaurants, and old-fashioned main streets has given Connecticut River Valley towns like Essex, Ivoryton, and Chester a much-needed dose of modernity.

Mangrove-lined islands and backcountry rivers and canals attract a remarkable mix of fish species—and waterfront activities—to the coast and inlets of the Gulf of Mexico.

This season’s metallic leggings and T-shirt dresses may be gone by fall, but in the City of Light, yesterday's couture is still in vogue—and for sale.

The Second City fancies itself a purer theater town than New York, favoring acting over hype, and tiny gems over $100-a-seat blockbusters. Put that claim to the test by checking out some of this season's most promising shows.

With the Sundance festival behind it, Utah's tony resort town readies big discounts for its perennially snowy spring.

Where there are millionaires with remodeled mansions, there are furnishings at fire-sale prices. South Florida’s Antique Row is brimming with coveted castaways.

More than just a country-music mecca, the Tennessee capital also has an electric food scene powered by one of the nation’s oldest farmers' markets.

Long Island’s eastern shores are less crowded and more inclusive in the off-season, making them a bargain destination for families—at least until Memorial Day.

Better known for its devotion to beer, the Czech Republic is showing it can make some pretty great wines too. Taste for yourself in the country’s vinny-crazy capital.

An abundance of indie bookstores, noirish landmarks, and writerly watering holes make the City of Angels (a.k.a. the biggest book-buying city in America) a bibliophile’s paradise.