After a day of sun, surf and sand, it's good to sink into an old- fashioned bed steps from Newport's pier.

"It's nice to know there are still some quaint and out-of-the-way places even in the O.C. The location offers good access to lots of iconic SoCal sites," says reader Caitlin Tusher of Placentia, in her nomination letter.

Readers weigh in on places that let them down but also share some pleasant surprises.

You know those destinations you feel obligated to visit but don't really want to? Travel section readers do. We asked them to tell us about some of the places they were certain weren't right for them, and here's what they said. Sometimes, the destination was a wonderful surprise; other times, not so much. Read more online at latimes.com/placeswehate .

A family happens upon adventures small and large in Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg and Belgium.

We're packing the mobi for a madcap trip across Europe to see as much as we can in 18 days. If this trip goes badly, it's our daughter's fault. This is her idea, pitched from her apartment in downtown Antwerp during a call months earlier.

Tag along with a Metro-riding native who visits parks, restaurants, galleries and other favorites, all for less than $20 a day.

Boasting posh restaurants, luxury boutiques and a flock of millionaires who indulge in them, Moscow is considered one of the most expensive cities on the planet. Just take a walk through the rows of tinted Range Rovers and Bentleys parked behind the Bolshoi Theatre and you'll understand why this is the city that hosts the conspicuously named Millionaire Fair.

A casual trip from Corfu, Greece, to Sarande, Albania, is more delightful and history-filled than you might expect.

Somewhere on Earth there must be a cheaper, easier, more exotic cruise, packed with even more beautiful sights and filled with more history, providing even tastier food, but for now, I'm happy to settle on this one: Ionian Cruises' daily excursion from Corfu, Greece, to Sarande, Albania.

If you go THE BEST WAY TO MOSCOW From LAX, Air France, KLM, Lufthansa, Delta, British and Swiss offer connecting service (change of planes) to Moscow. Restricted round-trip fares begin at $602.

The best way to find a good meal on the road: Eat where the locals eat.

For the 13th and final week on the road, the agenda includes Birmingham, Ala., Savannah, Ga., and Washington, D.C.

Some passengers and experts are concerned about radiation, and about what happens if they refuse a scan.

With live music, food offerings and other activities, Maryland?s wineries offer a good time as well as a good sip.

Armed with a map, compass, hiking boots and a blue Honda, a hiker tackles the highest point in each New England state.

A craze for revamped macarons has swept Paris and Tokyo and now lands in London.

Want to discover the heart of Buenos Aires? Eat like a local. There's good food everywhere.

Feast your way to a new understanding of Los Angeles' Little Tokyo.

Indian Food: The spicy Vada Pav - a vegetarian food that is heavy as a baseball and dripping with chutney - costs 22 cents in Mumbai.

Visitors who fall in love with the park may return to help preserve it for all.

Get away from it all and help others, too? 'Voluntourism' grows as a travel option.

It wasn't the BP oil spill that was keeping me from taking a dip in the Gulf of Mexico. It was the rain. The weather had been perfect on my first night of exploring the seaside towns along Florida's scenic Highway 30A, where most buildings are no more than four stories tall. I'd had dinner in Seaside, the picturesque town of pastel homes and carefully designed pavilions where ``The Truman Show'' was filmed. On a chalkboard near the bar on the deck of Bud and Alley's, diners had written their predictions of when the sun would set. At 7:11 p.m., the bartender rang a bell, and the winner got a free drink.

A surprising painting hangs in the office of Hollywood director Steven Spielberg. It shows a small boy cowering at the end of a diving board. The artist is Norman Rockwell, whose old-fashioned world of the 1940s and '50s might seem far removed from Spielberg's glamorous, high-tech universe. Yet Spielberg sees himself in this portrait, saying it exactly captures the way he feels in the moments before he agrees to direct his next film.

Colorful autumn foliage used to be the main reason people took fall cruises along the coasts of New England and the Canadian Maritimes. No more. The cities and villages there are now a big draw, as is the rugged scenery.

<ul class="story_list"> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/15/1771074/mexico-is-seeking-more-tourists.html">Is Mexico really safe?</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/08/1760615/climbing-concepcion-a-hike-to.html">Climbing Nicaragua's Concepcion</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/08/1760609/bienvenido-to-welcoming-puerto.html">Gay-friendly Puerto Vallarta</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/07/04/1708236/uruguay-one-of-south-americas.html">Tiny Uruguay: Home to treasures</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/05/02/1602433/underwater-adventures-top-caribbean.html">Top Caribbean dive sites</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/05/02/1602443/exploring-the-depths-without-getting.html">Snorkeling in the Caribbean</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/05/02/1602450/quiet-and-charming-just-one-thing.html">Montserrat and the volcano</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/04/18/1578711/in-argentina-youre-never-too-young.html">Learning the tango in Argentina</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/03/07/1509862/honduran-adventure-someone-said.html">Honduran adventures</a></li> </ul>

LAS VEGAS -- It's the first time a woman naked from the waist up has ever initiated a conversation with me at a swimming pool -- well, not counting my daughters when they were toddlers.

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