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We try to get away for a 4-day weekend in late January or early February with our husbands to recover from the hectic holidays and to have some quiet time together. Over the years we spent memorable long weekends in New York City, browsing through the museums, shopping in SoHO, and seeing a couple of new Broadway shows; a quick trip to London where we were greeted with unseasonably warm weather -- tulips and chestnut trees blooming in front of Buckingham Palace and days so mild we could wander around Piccadilly Circus without a jacket; a stormy, yet warm, sojourn to Bermuda where we spent much of our time under umbrellas as we wandered around the shops of Hamilton and St. George; a getaway to New Orleans where we stayed in a quaint bed & breakfast in the heart of the French Quarter; a marvelous weekend in Sint Maarten where we snorkeled the coral reefs and enjoyed the nightly crab races on the beach.
This year, we are waffling between several choices that we've carefully researched. Reservations will be made as soon as we finalize our choice, but here's some interesting destinations that might interest you, depending on where you live; if your favorite getaway is not among them, e-mail us and we'll write a follow-up for spring.
Western Destinations
If you live in the west (or have lots of frequent flier miles racked up), a long weekend in Carmel (a terrific shopping getaway), a beach rental in La Jolla (one of California's most stunning seaside coves with riveting sunsets), a luxury hotel in Palm Springs (warm days for golfing and sitting around the pool), an Ojai inn where we can stretch out in front of the fireplace (Ojai is a high desert valley where the mountains turn pink at sunset), a plane ride to the one of magnificent resorts of Scottsdale, Arizona (also, warm days for golf, tennis, and taking in the Desert Botanical Gardens in nearby Phoenix), or a skiing weekend in Taos, New Mexico (giant fields of moguls, daunting ski-through forests tempered with Land of Enchantment sunshine every day) would get our vote.
Northern Region
People in the northern United States can easily get to Seattle (be sure to visit Pike's Market and at least one of the fabulous coffee houses), St Paul, Minnesota for the Winter Carnival (call 612/223-4700 for dates and information), or Superior, Wisconsin, for their Icescape (ski through a forest by candlelight, join in a frosty tailgate party, or watch the figure-skating demonstrations -- call the Chamber of Commerce, 800/942-5313 for event fees and lodging information). Over the border in Canada, Lake Louise, Banff, and Jasper all offer luxurious lodgings and memorable winter fun.
Midwest Getaways
In the midwest, the riverfront town of St. Clair, Michigan offers three blocks of antique shops, art galleries, home furnishings stores, and the world's longest freshwater boardwalk from which to watch the giant ice flows drifting down the river. Are you a interested in classic cars? Auburn, Indiana (20 miles north of Ft. Wayne) is the home of the Auburn Cord Dusenberg Museum which displays more than 130 shiny-as-new luxury touring sedans from the 1920s and 30s. View the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as you stay in a luxury hotel that's housed in the adjacent shopping complex in downtown Cleveland Ohio. Hannibal, Missouri has an annual Winter Bluegrass Festival in February (call 573/853-4344 for details) and Branson, MO is always a fun and bustling town for anyone who likes country music.
Down East
Back East, we'd opt for a weekend rediscovering The Freedom Trail in Boston; a skiing and shopping holiday in Stowe, Vermont; sitting on a balcony (snuggled in a warm wool blanket) overlooking Narragansett Bay in Newport, Rhode Island; a quiet weekend touring Williamsburg, Virginia; a weekend on Hilton Head, South Carolina (the resort is home to 25 golf courses, 300 tennis courts, and dozens of bicycling paths), or a visit to the Civil War battlefields and museums in western Pennsylvania. Don't miss the glorious Longwood Gardens in the historic Brandywine Valley, 30 miles west of Philadelphia. Visits any time of the year guarantee a wide variety of sighs and fragrances.
Southern Sojourns
Southerners can easily get to Key West (spectacular shopping and sunsets) or Naples, Florida (a great place to fish the Gulf or just hang out at the pier in virtually "jacketless" winter weather. Daytona Beach has year round golf (check their golf getaways out on www.golf-daytona.com). Travel the streets of Savannah, Georgia (a secluded city on the Georgia coast) by horse drawn carriage or read a book sitting on a bench beneath an ancient oak draped in Spanish moss and you'll be sure to forget the worries back home. Louisiana is fraught with Southern mansions open for viewing -- Cajun country is nearby. A long weekend in Nashville, Tennessee, is sure to bash away winter doldrums.
Back in Texas
Closer to home, my husband and I are vacillating between a trip to historic Galveston, a junket to the beaches of South Padre Island, or a weekend in the Texas Hill Country. Actually, the Hill Country is probably going to win out with a quick trip to a 35-acre guest complex between Fredericksburg and Luckenbach. After four days of watching the resident sheep and one donkey graze behind the split-rail fence, reflecting on the past hurried holidays as we gaze into the fire in the guest house, or shopping for a refrigerator magnet in the Luckenbach General Store, we'll be ready to head home to the hustle and bustle of daily lives. But, then, watching the capuchin monkeys swinging in the trees and staying in a snow-white villa above a secluded Pacific beach in Costa Rica would be lovely and restful. Wonder if there's enough frequent flier miles? Whatever! Have yourself a great weekend getaway!
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