Insider Travel Blog: information from The Insider Travel Guides for New York City, Boston, Hawaii, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Bermuda

Capturing Vacation Memories

We've blogged quite a few times on the subject of photos because for many people, capturing memories is a key component of travelling. But while it is important to know how to take good photos (and we hope our insider guide on this subject will prove to be helpful), it is also useful to know what to do once you've snapped plenty of pictures. In this regard, we love online photo sites like Shutterfly.com, which help you organize, print out, and share your photos. And just in time for summer vacations, Shutterfly is offering special enticements to get you to use their site. So we encourage you to check out Shutterfly - you'll get 50 free prints and a free Collage Poster to get started. Plus, you'll enjoy free photo share and unlimited photo storage!

Going to the Dogs

New Yorkers love their dogs. They smuggle their pups into stores and restaurants, blatantly ignoring signs that announce laws against doing so. They dress Fido in fashionable sweaters and colorful canine booties. They hire pricey dog walkers (and sometimes, if their puppy needs extra exercise, dog runners). They lobby local legislators for dog runs in parks all over the city, where dogs are often segregated by size so that doggy "play dates" don't get out of hand. They suffer the daily indignity of picking up dog poop. They even make monthly grooming appointments to be sure their pampered pooch always looks his best. So it is hardly a surprise that dog-themed restaurants are a perennial favorite. Lines for weekend brunch are always long outside the two Upper East Side Barking Dog locations, which features doggy decorations galore; the Murray Hill outpost does a brisk business, too. Fetch, also on the Upper East Side goes one better, with it's "adoption wall" and Animal Haven partnership.

Skipping the Surcharges

Now that several other carriers have followed American Airlines' lead in charging a fee for checked baggage (as reported in the New York Times today), it seems time to repeat the suggestion we made back in March: why pay to lug your luggage around when shipping it directly to your destination is becoming an increasingly cost-effective strategy? Other benefits: you'll avoid the petty pilferage that seems rife among airport baggage handlers, as well as the danger of arriving and finding your personal belongings have been lost, damaged or delayed since you can make sure everything has arrived safely before you even walk out your front door.

Lowell, MA

Not too far from Boston is the riverside town of Lowell, MA, famous as a planned mill town that played a key role in U.S. industrialization. Thirty years ago, the mills were given a second life as part of the Lowell National Historic Park, which has revitalized this industrial area and turned it into an educational and cultural attraction.

We recommend that you begin your visit to Lowell by watching the video program, called Lowell: The Industrial Revelation, at the visitors' center. This presentation, while a bit slow and repetitive by today's standards of quick cuts and multi-sensory bombardment, provides a good overview of the reason the mills were established, how they thrived, and what ultimately brought them into decline. Then take a ranger-led trolley tour or canal ride to learn more about how the mills worked and how the mill girls lived.

Not far from the Visitors' Center is our favorite Lowell museum, the Brush Art Gallery, where you can observe area artists at work and talk with them about the creative process and their current works-in-progress. We love that the artists work in a variety of different media, often approaching the same topic from different perspectives. This was particularly evident in the recent exhibition, called Going to the Dogs.

For Health's Sake -- Take a Vacation!

Not long ago, we blogged about the health benefits in taking regular vacations. Today, the New York Times had an article in the business section that cited many of the resources we pulled from. Nice to know that we're thinking along the same lines (but ahead of!!) the big guys!

Celebrating the Summer Solstice

Make Music New York is a live, free musical celebration across New York City that takes place each June 21 -- the longest day of the year. Public spaces throughout the five boroughs including sidewalks, parks, community gardens, and more -- become impromptu musical stages, dance floors, and social meeting points. Thousands of amateur musicians, in every genre, perform, often for the biggest crowds of their lives. Professional musicians perform for new audiences, who come out from under their headphones to hear unfamiliar groups risk-free. And everyone is invited to sing along and enjoy the first day of summer.

This year, on Saturday, June 21st, Make Music New York is back -- and it promises to be even bigger and better!