Even though those of us at TravelMuse would love to be able to cover every place and event that we find interesting, there’s clearly no way we can, with all of two full-time editorial staffers and a handful of contractors and interns. So I’m starting a new weekly post called Friday Favorites: Travel Articles From the Web, in which we link to the items that caught our eye the previous week, or month, as the case is for this post. I hope you enjoy our first bit of armchair travel recommendations!

36 Hours in Carmel-by-the-Sea

The New York Times, Jan. 25, 2009

Photo: vtsr

Carmel is one of those relaxing California-coast destinations that never fails to please, whether visiting on a day trip or for a long weekend. The New York Times article captures much of what makes this seaside town great, including its wine culture, excellent dining scene and stunning coastline. What I’d add to the list is KMRL 1410 AM Jazz & Blues Radio, the great local jazz station in town that also has a retail store, where you can snag hard-to-find recordings, posters of past Monterey Jazz Festivals and more.

Read the article>>

Read more about Carmel on TravelMuse>>

50 Ways to See Alaska

National Geographic Traveler, Jan./Feb. 2009

OK, so you got all caribou-ed out during the election, but don’t punish Alaska for bringing us Tina Fey’s evil twin sister. The place is beyond beautiful, and pretty darn extensive too. Plus she’s celebrating her 50th birthday this year, so be nice. There‘s a lot on offer, from wildlife watching and glacier hiking to camping and dog-sledding. The article covers the usual suspects, as well as some, er, unique events and festivals that I’m adding to my trip list: the Talkeetna Moose Dropping Festival and the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics. Hey—both are held in July, so I can make it a two-for-one vacation!

Read the article>>

Read more about Alaska on TravelMuse>>

See Seriously Weird Madagascar While You Can

San Francisco Chronicle, Jan. 4, 2009

I’ve been wanting to get to Madagascar for some time, and not just because it’s one of the world’s top producers of vanilla beans, which I hoard (sort of). Naturally there’s the rare flora and fauna, beautiful landscapes and a distinct culture that seems to still be relatively unspoiled by excessive tourism. And it’s a former French colony. For some reason, most of my favorite spots in the world are related to the French somehow: French Polynesia, Vietnam, Laos, St. Barth’s, Monaco … Plus, the author’s tale of getting peed on by a lemur made me laugh, and reminded me of my monkey shower during a trek through the jungle in Nicaragua several years ago.

Read the article>>

What have been your recent favorite travel articles?

Can’t wait to plan your next rejuvenating weekend vacation for those warm summer days? You’re in luck. Bikram Yoga Pittsfield in Vermont is offering a three-day Bikram Yoga Retreat. The retreat will be supervised by Liz Cotter, a Certified Bikram Yoga Instructor since 2002, and the owner of Bikram Yoga Pittsfield.

The $400 retreat (scheduled for June 26 to 28) includes five yoga classes (for all ages and levels) taught by certified teachers, all organic meals, meditation sessions and evening programs with guest speakers and movie showings. For an additional $60, participants can add a one-hour massage session that is available throughout the retreat weekend.

Although the retreat does not include lodging, visitors can book a stay at the recently opened Amee Farm with rates between $25 for a tent space to deluxe rooms for groups of 10 or more people for $150. For more information, or to book a spot in the retreat, contact Liz Cotter at 802-282-9880 or lizriverside@gmail.com.

Maybe it’s because I’m going to New Orleans for Mardi Gras in less than a month, but I have food and drink on the brain. Last week, I blogged about the Napa Valley Mustard Festival. This week, it’s the 2009 South Beach Food & Wine Festival you should add to your list.

A four-day fiesta of food and wine (Feb. 19 to 22) awaits you in Florida’s South Beach. Festival highlights include the Perrier-Jouët BubbleQ hosted by Tom Colicchio ($350), Wine Spectator “Best of the Best” ($350) and the Whole Foods Market Grand Tasting Village ($212.50). Get your event tickets soon, however, because popular events such as the Amstel Light Burger Bash hosted by Rachael Ray and the Barilla Interactive Cooking Lunch hosted by Guy Fieri are already sold out.

Those of you with money to burn can get tickets to Viva España: The Wines and Foods of Spain celebration, held in the presence of the King and Queen of Spain. It’s only $1,000 per person, so what are you waiting for?

With food personalities such as Emeril Lagasse, Rick Bayless, Paula Deen and Mario Batali, how can you not go? My excuse is that I’ll be in New Orleans. What’s yours?

Are you mildly jealous of the contestants on Amazing Race? Come on. Admit it. Yeah? I am too.

Although after thinking about it, the entire situation does leave much to be desired: Racing through beautiful, foreign destinations when you should be savoring the location; cameras focused on you 24/7. If those are the two things holding you back from submitting your application (or maybe you did submit one but to no avail), a new travel competition, Competitours may have the adventure of a lifetime that you’ve been waiting for.

Competitours is Amazing Race, minus the cameras, the rush and the free trip. You and a teammate will compete against 16 other teams on a two-week, five country European vacation. It offers “a more immersive and genuine interaction.” Instead of speeding through destinations, careful consideration into the game schedule, point system and routing ensures that the teams will be able to get close to the European culture, people and places. The best part? No one gets eliminated!

Challenges focus on teams’ mental abilities, like creativity, resourcefulness and inventiveness. The grand prize, while it may not be $1 million, is up to 40 nights at any of the 115 Starwood hotels around the world, up to four economy seats and spending cash that could be as much as $6,500. A standard trip costs $2,950, including international airfare, double-occupancy lodging, Eurail pass and game registration.

Don’t have 14 days or $3,000? Competitours offers express and budget options, so you too can have the adventure of a lifetime. Dates for the standard trip are July 9-July 23, but express and budget dates vary, so check the very fun and interactive website for Competitiours at www.competitours.com.

So, who’s comin’ with me?

With all the excitement of choosing a baby name and planning a shower, what better way for expecting moms to release the stress than a relaxing spa vacation? Sandos Hotels and Resorts in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, is now offering the Mom to Be package so moms can nurture themselves with three spa treatments. When moms book a room at one of the Sandos hotels with rates starting at $124, they can add the spa package for an additional $196. Each of the treatments, which can be scheduled upon arrival, are specifically designed to relieve prenatal stress and discomfort.

• Prenatal Massage: Relaxes sore muscles in the back, legs and feet caused by pregnancy.

• Vitamin C and Royal Jelly Facial: Releases the natural mommy glow by smoothing out premature wrinkles and nourishing the skin.

• Reflexology Treatment: Relieves pressure in the feet and calves.

The company has four hotels in the Riviera Maya area that are divided in two separate resort complexes, each of which share a spa facility. The Playacar Complex includes the Sandos Playacar Beach Resort and Spa as well as the Sandos Playacar Riviera Hotel, which recently built the 23,000-square-foot Spa Sandos facility with 22 indoor treatment rooms. The Caracol Complex houses the Sandos Caracol Eco Resort and Spa and the Sandos Select Club Beach Resort and Spa which offer spa services such as a wellness program and a beauty salon.

To book the Mom to Be package, visit www.sandoshotels.com or call 866-887-5601.

A walk through Washington, D.C., to check out the scene near the Capitol showed a city in serious preparation and crowds ready to celebrate the Inauguration. People were snapping pictures, listening to a choir practice on the Capitol steps, buying and selling Obama souvenirs, and smiling and chatting with strangers. I headed to the City Club for the One People, One Nation party at 6 p.m., where the theme was appropriately enough, diversity. The entertainment was reflective of this: Chinese Gu-zheng music, the Mariachis Sin Fronteras, the Native American Red Was Pony Dance Troupe, the Higher Praise Gospel Chorale from the Asbury Methodist Church, and music and dancing by Bill Kirchen.

The 200-plus guests were happy and upbeat. Over and over again, I heard people exclaim they thought this day would never come. Helen Hernandez, the founder of Imagen, is a friend of the new Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, who stopped by for awhile. Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers, also came by and danced up a storm. After the party, a group of us headed to U Street to try to sample some food at famous Ben’s Chili Bowl, which Bill Cosby put on the map, but it was as busy at two in the morning as rush-hour is in New York City. Getting a cab proved to be a challenge, and I got into a battle of wills with a cabbie who didn’t want to drive us back to Virginia. Eventually I prevailed.

If you’re getting cabin fever this winter (except those of us in California with unseasonably warm weather this past week), it’s time to pack your bags and head to the Napa Valley to celebrate the yummy mustard season.

The Napa Valley Mustard Festival runs from Jan. 31 to March 28 this year, during the time when golden wild mustard flowers blanket the area.

Kicking off the festival on Jan. 31 is the grand opening event: Mustard Magic, held at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone. Tickets are $150 in advance and $175 at the door,for this evening of mustard festivities with food, wine, dancing and a live auction.

Or, choose to jazz up your culinary fiesta and attend the Mustard, Mud & Music event, held at the Calistoga Jazz Festival on March 7 and 8. Get your food and music fix, and end the day with a relaxing mud bath.

Procrastinators need to hustle to get tickets to the regularly sold out grand finale event: The Mumm Napa Photo Finish, held at Mumm Napa on March 28. Check out the Napa Valley Festival Photography Contest Exhibit while you nosh on tasty treats and drink Napa Valley wines. Tickets are $95 in advance and $125 at the door.

For more information on Napa Valley Mustard Festival events, check out the calendar or view the official Web site for the festival at www.mustardfestival.org.

Super Bowl XLIII, taking place at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., on February 1, is a mere two weeks away. The teams to make it to the final game of the football season will be decided this weekend, but if you already have tickets to the big event, you can start your Tampa travel planning now.

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The Tampa skyline at night.  © DoxaDigital

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TravelMuse covered Tampa as a featured destination a few months ago, and if you’re looking for ideas on where to stay and what to do before and after the game, check out these articles for the inside scoop on what that other “city by the bay” has to offer.

Tampa and St. Pete Family Vacation

Get the local lowdown on everything you need to know for your Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg travel: where to go, what to see, getting around, the best beaches, top family attractions and nightlife.

Ybor City: Tampa’s Cuban Cultural Community

Head to this Latin Quarter for everything from scrumptious Cuban sandwiches and fresh hand-rolled cigars to historical walking tours and evening entertainment.

Tampa Bay Tours: Canoes, Cats and Crabs

Even though there won’t be any big cat teams in this year’s Super Bowl, you can check out lions, tigers and other large felines at Tampa’ Big Cat Rescue.

Busch Gardens Tampa

If the kids are tagging along, a visit to Busch Gardens is a must. Read our writer’s inside scoop on the new Jungala attraction.

Restaurants and Hotels in Tampa and St. Pete

Check out the best places to eat and sleep during your Tampa Bay vacation. The venerable Don CeSar Beach Resort, a Loews Hotel known as the Pink Palace, is gearing up for gourmet tailgating and will offer special "team tini" cocktails and signature spa treatments at its new, three-story Spa Oceana, which features a rooftop terrace overlooking the Gulf of Mexico.

Will you attend the Super Bowl in Tampa? Tell us your plans!

Think that being a single parent means you have to limit your family vacation to amusement parks near home and short camping excursions? Not according to a recent survey by Single Parent Travel conducted in fall 2008, which queried more than 1,000 single parents about their vacation habits.

Last conducted more than 10 years ago, the new survey revealed some interesting results. About 65 percent of single parents prefer vacations lasting between five and seven days, and 80 percent desire to visit the Caribbean and Central America, beating out demand for U.S. destinations, even though 90 percent of respondents have ended up booking a domestic vacation. Nearly 92 percent of the respondents were women.

“In 1998, the Caribbean was exotic. Now we are seeing desire to go to Europe, Africa and South America. That was almost unheard of in the previous survey,” says John Frenaye, chief single dad of the site, who also is a TravelMuse contributor.

There’s also been a dramatic increase in income—70 percent earn more than $50,000 annually—and education levels—73 percent have a college or post-graduate degree—compared to 21 percent and 54 percent, respectively, from the 1998 survey.

Additional results include:

• 61 percent of those surveyed are divorced while 30 percent are single by choice.

• 59 percent have one child, 31 percent have two children.

• 30 percent earn between $50,000 and $75,000 annually.

• 55 percent prefer to book vacation packages and want resorts in vacation "hot spots."

• vacations that centered around culture and history or national parks outranked theme park vacations.

• nearly half say that their ideal length of travel to a destination is less than three hours.

• 16 percent spend roughly $2,000 annually on family vacations.

View the full results of the Single Parent Travel Survey, which included some entertaining “tongue-in-cheek” questions, so to speak (62 percent of respondents say that they can roll their tongue, but 90 percent cannot touch the tip of their nose with their tongue).

Frenaye believes that the results of the survey will help Single Parent Travel determine the destination, duration and cost of its future trip offerings. Frenaye recently took over the company, which was founded in 1983 by single mom Brenda Elwell and is dedicated to making single parent vacations with children easier by offering travel tips, organizing annual group trips and encouraging single parents to share their travel experiences on its Web site.

“I think the results will open some eyes to some of the destinations and trips that we can provide. It might get people dreaming and thinking about a trip down the road,” says Frenaye, adding that his favorite single-parent travel experiences were when each of his kids was in third grade.

“They got the opportunity to pick a destination with very little guidance from me. It is a one on one trip and the other two kids stayed with their mother. My son and I went to China, my middle daughter and I went to Spain, and my youngest and I went to Italy. They were all fantastic one-on-one time and some great memories in some great destinations.”

Read more about One-on-One family vacations and other Single Parent Travel articles.

Now that the busy holiday season is over, it’s time to turn our attention to one of the next things in the event calendar: Valentine’s Day. I always thought it was an odd holiday—only one day a year to celebrate love, when we probaby need many more days.

The Surf & Sand Resort in Laguna Beach, Calif., is making the holiday a month-long celebration for its guests with the All You Need Is Love package. The package includes deluxe accommodations for two nights (all guest rooms have private balconies and coastal views), a three-course dinner for two at the hotel’s Splashes Restaurant and luxury turn-down service—including Champagne, candles, rose petals and chocolate-covered strawberries. Offered from Feb. 1 to 28, the package costs $699 per night (not including taxes and gratuities). Rates for Valentine’s weekend, Feb. 13 to 15, are $775 per night.

Watch the views from your room, roam the beach, shop in Laguna Beach or get a spa treatment with your honey at the hotel’s Aquaterra Spa. Any idea is a good one.

For more information, or to book the All You Need Is Love package, call 888-869-9299 or visit www.surfandsandresort.com.

Chocolate fanatics beware—there’s a new cocoa fix in town.

The Hershey Story, The Museum on Chocolate Avenue opened today in downtown Hershey, Pa., the town with a name that means chocolate. The $23.5 million museum celebrates the life and legacy of chocolate magnate and philanthropist Milton S. Hershey.

“The Hershey Story celebrates Milton Hershey’s vision and legacy of human service,” said Don Papson, interim director. “Whether it’s the town he built or his greatest gift, Milton Hershey School, you will be touched by his incredibly balanced life. Through his success in creating the ‘Great American Chocolate Bar’ he was able to do so much for so many.”

Visitors can create their own exhibit experience with three audio listening stations, advanced mini-theaters and 11 interactive touchscreens, including stories about Milton Hersh  ey’s innovation and how he revolutionized the production of milk chocolate. The Hershey Story also features a Chocolate Lab, inspired by Milton Hershey’s candy-making apprenticeship and “his flair for experimentation.” Participatory classes include grinding cocoa beans by hand, tempering, molding and dipping. School children can use chocolate’s raw ingredients and various tools to learn about geography, history, economics and science.

Take home a piece of chocolate history (as well as pieces of chocolate!) from the Museum Shop, and indulge in a chocolate tasting at the museum’s Café Zooka. The Hershey Story is open daily, year-round. Hours vary depending on the date. Visit www.HersheyStory.org for more information. 

The winter months provide the opportunity to enjoy festivals and gatherings that celebrate all things icy and cold. Looking for an adventure where you can  chill out with carvers and climbers? Try these spots:

Ouray, Colo.

This southwestern mountain town, known for its picturesque jagged peaks, is home to the country’s premiere ice festival. In its 14th year, competitors of all levels, climbing companies and spectators gather for the Ouray Ice Festival. The Kids Climbing College offers free instruction to youngsters interested in learning and testing their skills in the Ouray Ice Park where nine routes have been established for beginners.  All equipment is provided and prizes are awarded to every child who climbs. Jan. 9 to 11, 2009. Tel. 970-325-4288, www.ourayicefestival.com.

Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada

Enjoy the beauty of Lake Louise and the glacier-clad Mt. Victoria during the Ice Magic Festival held Jan. 23 to 25, 2009. Professional carvers go to work on 15 blocks of ice, weighing 300 lbs. each, and transform them into elaborately designed, seven-foot-tall world-class ice sculptures in three days.  Spectators may cast their votes in the People’s Choice Award and Children’s Choice Award competitions and thus are entered to win prizes. Weather permitting, the sculptures remain on display through March. Tel. 403-762-8421, www.banfflakelouise.com.

Stowe, Vt.

The 35th Annual Stowe Winter Carnival offers a winter wonderland of family fun. Tours of the historic town, a Village Night celebration, ski races, a kid’s carnival and the chance to see the pros at work during the ice carving competition make for a great winter getaway. Jan. 22 to 25, 2009. Tel. 802-253-7321, www.stowewintercarnival.com.

Aspen, Colo.

Now in its 58th year, Wintersköl, Aspen’s annual toast to snow, will be held Jan. 8 to 11, 2009.   Wintersköl is four days of festive events, including a quirky canine fashion show, torchlight ski parades and fireworks over Aspen and Smuggler Mountains. With activities for visitors of all ages, it's a favorite among locals. Tel.  970-925-1940, www.aspenchamber.org.

Whitefish, Mont.

The 50th Annual Whitefish Winter Carnival kicks off with a Penguin Plunge (a hole is cut into Whitefish Lake and participants take a dip to raise funds for charity). Visitors will also enjoy an old fashioned Main Street parade, ice sculpting contest, a kiddie carnival, battle of the bands, pie social, torch-light ski parade, cross-country ski race, hockey tournament, a figure skating demonstration and more. The festivities are open to the public and most are free. Feb. 6 to 8, 2009. Tel. 877-862-3548, www.whitefishwintercarnival.com.