AOL Travel Ideas

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is Most Beautiful Place in America

Vilmarie Estrella — 2011-08-18T12:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Adventure Travel, Beach, News, Weekend Getaways

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, a relatively unknown national treasure located on the northwest corner of Michigan's Lower Peninsula, earned the title of "Most Beautiful Place in America," according to Good Morning America.

What was once a heap of glaciers that melted over centuries to reveal 64 miles of blue beaches surrounded by colossal sand dunes, now draws visitors with its picturesque landscape and small town charm. The 26 inland lakes and two islands at Sleeping Bear are the cherry on top (and speaking of cherries, the area boasts the title of largest cherry growing region in the world).

GMA's search, which began in June, called for their viewers to nominate the most beautiful places online. Also in the running were Cape Cod; Aspen; Lanikai Beach, Hawaii; Newport, R.I.; Point Reyes, Calif.; Sedona, Ariz.; Destin, Fla.; Asheville, N.C.; and Grand Teton National Park, Wyo. Tens of thousands of GMA viewers were seduced by photos and stories of Sleeping Bear's beauty and took to the polls, voting it the clear winner.

Grand Rapids, Mich., resident Jim Madole nominated Sleeping Bear. In his GMA submission, he wrote: "It is peaceful and serene, a place for gazing out into the world, night or day, and realizing that the universe is truly a magical, majestic mystery, and humans are just a very small part of it all. Here at Sleeping Bear, I sit in awe and wonder at the perfection of Mother Nature."

Even celebrity chef Mario Batali is a fan, spending his summers there to escape the New York hustle.

"I spend my entire summer here on Lake Michigan because it's beautiful, because it has farmers, because it has great food artisans," Batali tells ABC News. "It has great products. It has magnificent fresh water."

All of that fresh water provides a plethora of activities for Lakeshore visitors to choose from, including paddle-boarding, fishing, or simply taking a swim at one of the many beaches. Those who opt to stay dry can climb the colossal sand dunes or hike through the forest.

It looks like Midwesterners finally have something on East Coast and West Coast dwellers.

WATCH GMA's big reveal below:

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Drinks From Around The World That Really Aren't

Vilmarie Estrella — 2011-07-31T09:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Arts & Culture

mountainhiker/Flickr

Scotch and Russian vodka are not merely drinks in their respective homelands, they are the manifestations of tradition and deeply held beliefs. This is the appeal of the exotic drink - that it offers centuries of refinement and craftmanship and a window into a different culture.

Scotch and Russian vodka are not merely drinks in their respective homelands, they are the manifestations of tradition and deeply held beliefs. This is the appeal of the exotic drink - that it offers centuries of refinement and craftmanship and a window into a different culture.

But many cocktails are not what they seem. Given names that are more evocative than accurate, they trick barflies into believing they're having an authentic experience when, in fact, they're being treated to a bit of refreshment thought up by a mixologist in far-off Flagstaff.

Don't be fooled. The list below unmasks the origin of a few poseur drinks.

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Destin-Nation Guatemala: Treating the Tropical Troubles

Vilmarie Estrella — 2011-07-12T07:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Tips & Tricks, Arts & Culture, Destin-Nations

Getty

Forget Costa Rica. Guatemala's rough beauty and powerful history make it the desirable Central American destination for explorers with a philanthropic agenda.
Forget Costa Rica. Guatemala's rough beauty and powerful history make it the desirable Central American destination for explorers with a philanthropic agenda.

With a diversity of indigenous tribes, like the Maya and the Garifuna, the country has cultural appeal in addition to the obvious virtues of its landscape: volcanoes, mountains, wildlife, ruins and lakes.

Unfortunately, Guatemala also suffers from a wide variety of socio-economic ills. Poverty is rampant. Illiteracy and infant mortality rates remain high and malnutrition is a chronic problem. Organized crime and drug smuggling have also taken seed here, growing up between the cracks in an ineffective government.

Volunteer opportunities in Guatemala are endless, and following these tips should help travelers ensure that their hard work will genuinely help impoverished families, underprivileged children, endangered cultures or jungle wildlife.

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5 Tips for Viewing the Atlantis Shuttle Launch

Vilmarie Estrella — 2011-07-06T14:36:00+00:00

Filed under: Tips & Tricks, Arts & Culture

Official U.S. Navy Imagery/Flickr

A million spectators are expected to flock to Cape Canaveral to watch the final launch of the space shuttle Atlantis, which is set to take off on Friday at 11:26 a.m. The highly publicized event will result in bumper-to-bumper traffic and overbooked hotels, forcing some unprepared travelers to go home without witnessing history.

Here are some tips to help last-minute shuttlers attend the launch and leave unscathed.

Get there early

The trip from Orlando to Cape Canaveral, usually 45 minutes, can take anywhere from 6 to 8 hours on launch day. If driving, carpool with friends to make the hunt for parking easier and allow an extra hour or two to find a spot. Try to leave the road rage at home.

Stay in Orlando

Launchpad adjacent hotels in Titusville, Melbourne and Cocoa Beach have been sold out for weeks and forget any hotels near the airport. Luckily, there is still room in some parts of Orlando, a city that lodges throngs of families every day thanks to Disney World.

Prepare for weather

Thunderstorms are apparently on the way, so it will pay to be flexible. Shuttle flights through harsh weather conditions is prohibited because lightning can damage important electronic equipment on board. If rain clouds loom over the cape at dusk, the drive there will take even longer with cautious drivers behind the wheel.

Find a good spot

If visitors didn't nab tickets during NASA's lottery last month, they should forget about watching the launch from the on-site visitor complex unless they are willing to pay scalpers a hefty sum. The next best thing is to view the launch from one of the several parks along U.S. 1: Manzo Park, Rotary Riverfront Park and Kennedy Park in Titusville. NASA's website offers a list of other viewing locations.

Set up the camera

Don't forget to charge the batteries and clear space on the memory card. Use a tripod to steady the camera and choose a fast shutter speed to capture as many images possible. Set ISO to 100 if it's sunny to avoid overexposure. Remember to take the lens cap off, then remember to actually look up.

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5 Amazing Castles To Visit In The United Kingdom

Vilmarie Estrella — 2011-07-06T05:20:00+00:00

Filed under: Family, Arts & Culture

Bernt Rosad/Flickr

Hundreds of years ago and across the pond, an English man's home was his castle, literally. There were enough royals, bishops and conquerors in the United Kingdom once that the country is now dotted with lavish castle estates and expansive gardens. It's the stuff of fairy tales.

Deciding which castles to visit can be an overwhelming task. The country boasts well over 3000 castles, ranging from historic ruins to medieval strongholds to Victorian beauties.

We've highlighted five noteworthy castles spread across Wales, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. A visit to any of these will leave tourists with a good sense of what it was like to live in a more romantic, if less sanitary (bubonic plague anyone?), time.

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Solar-Powered Plane To Make First Trans-Mediterranean Flight (VIDEO)

Vilmarie Estrella — 2011-07-05T09:10:00+00:00

Filed under: Air Travel, News, Video

Melissa_bel/Flickr

A team of Swiss engineers have announced their plan to fly the world's most advanced solar-powered airplane across the Mediterranean in 2012, then around the world in 2014.

Encouraged by a recent flight to Belgium and France, the team is considering flying to Morocco next year.

The pilot and engineers on the Solar Impulse team will be challenged by the trans-Mediterranean trip as the plane is very sensitive to turbulence. It will also have to remain airborne for 48 hours.

Pilot Andre Borschberg told the Associated Press: "We'd like to be able to do flights of a duration of two days, two nights, which is a big challenge for only one person on board."

Borschberg added that if the 1,200-mile trip to Morocco from Switzerland is successful, the team will attempt flying onward to Turkey before returning home.

Last year, Borschberg completed a 26-hour nonstop test to prove that the 12,000 solar cells attached to the Solar Impulse's 207-foot wingspan can absorb enough sunlight to keep the four-engine plane in the air through the night. What is one more day?

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Airplanes Find Second Careers As Homes, Hotels (PHOTOS)

Vilmarie Estrella — 2011-06-29T07:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Air Travel

Webbaliah/Flickr

In the eco-conscious era we're living in, nearly everything gets recycled, even airplanes. Old planes are no longer tossed aside like so many beer cans. The construction possibilities are too tantalizing and too numerous.

Airplane wings become roofs and decks as fuselages become hotels and restaurants. Turns out airplanes become modular homes when they fall into the hands of the junk-yard avant garde.

Variations are nearly endless, but compiled here are some particularly impressive entrees in the hopefully growing genre of aerocycling.

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