Travelsmartplanet

As you enter the side door of the Surratt House Museum you are walking in the path of John Wilkes Booth the night he killed President Lincoln, since he came here to retrieve a rifle, field glasses and supplies for his run from the law.

Built in 1852, this was a tavern, an inn, a post office and a polling place. It was a safe house for the Confederate underground. The massive search for Booth led them here to Mary Surratt’s house, and as a result she was tried in a military court and convicted of conspiracy to assassinate the President. On July 7, 1865 Mary Surratt was the first woman to be executed by the federal government.

In your visit to this famous house, a docent in 1860’s period clothing walks you through the typical middle class home.  History buffs can make reservations for the 12-hour “Escape Route” bus tour. Many of the same roads and houses used by Booth are still in existence and are visited on this excursion which is narrated by nationally-recognized authorities on the Lincoln assassination and John Wilkes Booth’s flight.  Tour Dates for 2018: Apr 14, 21, 28 and Sept 8, 15, 22.

If you’re in the Clinton area Sat, Dec 2 – Sun, Dec 10, stop by the Surratt House Museum for their special Christmas program- An Old Fashioned Holiday: Bringing Christmas Past to Christmas Present, celebrating the Christmas of yesteryear amid period decorations, special exhibits and seasonal histories. On the weekend of December 9 and 10, return to enjoy special activities for all ages, cookies, cider, and holiday discounts in the museum’s gift shop.

Location: Surratt House Museum, 9118 Brandywine Road, Clinton, MD 20735
Hours: Wed – Fri 11am – 3pm, Sat -Sun 12 – 4pm
The Surratt House Museum is closed from Dec 12th to Jan 17th.
Tel: 301-868-1121
surrattmuseum.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: visitprincegeorgescounty.com

The holiday season would not be complete stepping back into the Victorian era in Fayetteville Christmas tradition. Ever wish for a simpler time, when the pace of life wasn’t hectic and families still enjoyed spending evenings together? Roll back the clock with Fayetteville for A Dickens Holiday.

Horse drawn carriages roll up and down Hay Street, carrying shoppers the old fashioned way by merchants, artisans and vendors of all sorts of delightful treats. Joyful children pose with Father Christmas for memory laden pictures. Savor the inviting aroma of cider and gingerbread permeating the chilly air.

Throughout the day, sounds of the season fill the air as carolers and musicians stroll among the crowd. There is Ebenezer Scrooge himself, pursued by the ghost of Jacob Marley. Perhaps you will be greeted by Tiny Tim and his family.

As darkness approaches and the clock reaches 5pm,  join the townspeople for the candlelight procession to the Market House, followed by fireworks. After the fireworks, the festivities continue until 9pm. Enjoy this truly unique experience and create some lasting memories with your loved ones.

Photo Credit: Wick Smith

Location: Historic Downtown Fayetteville, Hay Street – Fayetteville, NC 28301
Date: Fri,  Nov 24, 2017
Time: 1pm – 9pm
Tel: 910-323-1776
theartscouncil.com/dickensmain
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: visitfayettevillenc.com

Turn Baltimore’s Inner Harbor into a giant game board with this fun scavenger hunt adventure. What a fabulous, unique and entertaining way for the whole family to see the city.  This amazing Scavenger Hunt Adventure combines the excitement of the Amazing Race with a three-hour city tour.

Guided from any smart phone, teams make their way among well known and overlooked gems of the city, solving clues and completing challenges while learning local history. The adventure begins in the Historic Inner Harbor and will take you on a journey along the water front, among museums and other historic buildings. You’ll explore interesting parts of Little Italy and see the location where the Star-Spangled Banner Flag was created.

This is an interactive tour, where your Smart Phone leads you on a fun and engaging walking tour of the city to complete challenges,  solve clues all while working together to unravel secrets of the city. Optional hints make sure that all teams can find a location or solve a challenge to move forward and earn points for correct answers.  See famous sights and hidden gems of the city while learning interesting facts and discovering unique history.

Mention promo code – Drivei95Blog to receive a 20% off discount.

Start: Outside the Maryland Science Center (Harbor side)
End: Star-Spangled Banner Flag House
Distance: 1.5 miles
Time: 2.5 – 3 hours
Challenges: 20
Bonuses: 4
Points of Interest: Inner Harbor, Maryland Science Center, USS Constellation , Baltimore WTC, Power Plant and Little Italy

Available 365 days a year, sunrise to sunset. Start when you want and play at your pace.

Start Location: Outside the Maryland Science Center (Harbor side), 601 Light Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
Date and Time: Daily, 10am – 7pm
Tel: 805-603-5620
urbanadventurequest.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: baltimore.org

Salem, MA Exit 47 to route 114: Salem is synonymous with Halloween and you are invited to a month long Halloween party. Throughout the entire eerie month of October, Salem offers the ultimate Halloween experience filled with fun, goosebumps worthy entertainment.

Monsters of all shapes and sizes are welcome. Kicking off with “movie monsters” themed Haunted Happenings Grand Parade on Thursday, Oct 6th, “Wicked Wednesday” family programs, Tales & Tombstones Trolley Tours and so much more.  Hundreds of events for all ages are scheduled during October.

Surrender to the spell of Salem, check out the information below from haunted houses, historic landmarks, hotels and lodging, restaurants and taverns to costume parties, ghost tours, historic tours, events, psychic and tarot readings, witch and magical shops and transportation.

Photo credits: John Andrews Photography

Location: Various
Date: Oct 5 – 31
Tel: 978-744-0004
salemhalloweencity.com
hauntedhappenings.org

For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: merrimackvalley.org
salem.org

The excitement of the fashion runway come to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts this spring with Yves Saint Laurent: The Perfection of Style. showcasing highlights from the iconic designer’s 44-year career.

Drawn from the collection of the Fondation Pierre Bergé—Yves Saint Laurent,  and other private acquisitions, this impressive compilation offers an intimate and extensive view at the lifetime achievement of Yves Saint Laurent, one of history’s most avant-garde  and influential fashion designers.

Featuring 100 examples of haute couture and ready-to-wear garments—some never shown publicly before—this exhibition reveals Saint Laurent’s artistic virtuoso, as well as his working technique, and the origins of his design inspiration. Witness his immersive operative process from his first sketch and fabric selection to the various stages of production and fitting before a final garment was realized.

In addition to haute couture ensembles and ready-to-wear clothing, Yves Saint Laurent: The Perfection of Style also includes accessories, photographs, drawings, films, and video from the Fondation’s vast archive.

Photo by David Stover © VMFA

The exhibition traces the trajectory of Saint Laurent’s style as it developed over the course of his career, beginning in 1953 with the Paper Doll Couture House that he created when he was a teenager, the exhibition is a journey from his first days at Dior in 1958, through his groundbreaking designs in the 1960s and 70s and the splendor of his final runway collection in 2002.                            

Location:Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, 200 N. Boulevard, Richmond, VA 23220
Dates: Until August 27, 2017
Hours: Daily: 10 am – 5 pm, Thu & Fri: Until 9 pm
Tel: : 804-340-1405
vmfa.museum
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: visitrichmondva.com

Celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday by visiting the our home and native land. Parks Canada is offering all Canadians a FREE 2017 Discovery Pass so there will be no cost to visit any of their sites. You have the option of visiting 148 locations everywhere in the country. You probably think  they’re all about national parks but Parks Canada is way more than that – their mandate includes marine conservation areas and national historic sites.

You could visit the wreck of the HMS Erebus and HMS Terror in Nunavut, view Canada’s highest peak, Mount Logan in Kluane National park, ice fields in Jasper, our country’s birthplace within the fortifications of Quebec, Alexander Graham Bell’s inventions,  walk amongst the flower pot rocks on the ocean floor in the Bay of Fundy, Haida Heritage sites, or even Anne of Green Gables‘ writer, Lucy Maude Montgomery’s house.

Here’s a challenge: See how many of their iconic red Adironack chairs you can find and Instagram them. If you want to drool – and – plan ahead, get copies of the National Geographic books Guide to the National Parks of Canada and Guide to the National Historic Sites of Canada.

Yes, you can camp, but you can also reserve a yurt, a goutte d’Ô which resembles a water droplet, a micro cube, large modern houses called oTENTiks or be one of the first to sleep in a hanging Cocoon in Cape Breton.

www.parkscanada.gc.ca
Tel: 888-773-8888

General William C. Lee Airborne Museum – This house was the home of the “Father of the Army Airborne”, so the museum charts his personal life as well as the growth of Army 101st and 82nd Airborne divisions. Exhibits include photographs, videotape, World War II memorabilia, historical documents and paratrooper equipment and uniforms.

General Lee was a relentless lobbyist to make the airborne a formidable part of our military might.

At tank school in Versailles, France in the ‘30’s he observed German military airborne experiments. He saw the promise of this, and started with test platoons doing parachute jumps (practiced from parachute towers in Hightstown, NJ).

By August 1942, in 26 months, he shepherded the airborne from a test platoon of 50 men to 2 divisions of 8,300 men, and was in charge of the sky: parachutes, air landing battalions and eventually the glider units.

He suffered a major heart attack on the eve of D-Day, and missed his chance to lead it. You have probably heard of his famous saying “the 101st has no history, but it has a rendezvous with destiny”.

Location: General William C. Lee Airborne Museum, 209 West Divine St., Dunn 28334
Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30-4:30, Sat 11-4 (Closed Sundays and Holidays)
Tel: 910-892-1947
generalleeairbornemuseum.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: dunntourism.org

The Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is an oasis on a driving trip – 82 magnificent acres which started life as Powhatanhuntinggrounds and was at one time owned by patriot Patrick Henry.

In 1884, Lewis Ginter, who was orphaned at 17 and later became a millionaire from tobacco and real estate, developed a Wheel Club House here for Richmond bicyclists (now Bloemendaal House). His niece, Grace Arents, developed the gardens, and her original design is still here.

There are more kinds of gardens than we ever knew existed: four seasons, healing, Asian, rose, wetland, azalea and a community kitchen one where they grow food for the hungry. The children’s garden offers up a tree house and an activity center; there’s sidewalk chalk, hula hooping, digging and watering opportunities.  They love the Kids Quest treasure hunt. For walkers, there’s a “walk on the wild side” and a bird trail, and as if all that wasn’t enough, there’s a lush indoor conservatory with exotic plants from around the world.

Featured Events:

A Million Blooms

Location: Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, 1800 Lakeside Ave, Richmond, VA 23228
Hours: Daily 9am – 5pm
Tel: 804-262-9887
lewisginter.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: visitrichmondva.com

What started out as a family get together has turned into a great community event. The  12th annual Uncle Gary’s Rock & Rib Fest is a labor of love. Uncle Gary’s lost his 3-year-old daughter 14 years ago to cancer and Started this BBQ event in her honor and to benefit the Kids Cancer Foundation.

This feel good festival has fun for the whole family including: great live music featuring three live bands throughout the day, dancing, bounce houses, kid’s Fun-zone, face painting, balloon artist, playgrounds, grab bags, games and prizes for the kids and adults, raffles, auction, Pet Rescue Puppies petting zone, princesses and super heroes.

Don’t forget the delectable BBQ foods: yummy baby back ribs, smoked pork tenderloins, burgers, chicken, hot dogs, side dishes and cold beverages.

Bring your lawn chairs, blankets, sunblock and kids to this  admission free event that is so much more than just a chance to have fun with the family, eat ribs and barbecue and listen to local bands. All proceeds will be donated to the Royal Palm Beach-based Kids Cancer Foundation.

Location: Wellington Amphitheater. 12100 Forest Hill Blvd., Wellington, FL 33414
Date: Sat, April 1, 2017
Hours: 2 – 9pm
unclegarysrockandribfest.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: palmbeachfl.com

If you are looking for fresh local seafood near Coastal Georgia, head to Clay’s Sapelo Station, where the locals eat. Though this place is small in size they say its big in service and taste. Stop in the heart of historic McIntosh County and enjoy dinner in charming, rustic coastal ambiance.

Your experience starts with the owner greeting you at the door. Treat your taste buds to the local seafood, including sweet Georgia shrimp, scallops, Sapelo Clams, oysters and a variety of fish. Or you can devour steam fresh crabs, freshly caught and steamed to order. The celebrated McIntosh County Buffalo Steaks are grilled to perfection, taking the South’s flavor and the North’s flair: Treat yourself to a tender buffalo steak and you’ll see why this is a house favorite.

Standouts are Boom Boom Shrimp, Pecan Crusted Fish, Shrimp and Grit Cake, Crab Stew, Fish Tacos and the LCB (low country boil). Eat in the dining room, the bar area or one of the porches. Often you can enjoy live music and that’s when the place gets packed with lots of dancing – and fun. Why not take a break from the road and savor their authentic warm Southern hospitality.

Location: Clay’s Sapelo Station – 15600 US Highway 17, Townsend, Georgia 31331
Hours: Wed – Sat 5pm – 10pm,
Sun 12pm – 10pm
Tel: 912-832-2013
clayssapelostation.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: visitdarien.com
mcintoshcountyga.com