Sun Valley’s mythical status has waned but not its skiing.

Skiers and snowboarders can finally rejoice over the season’s chill, but the long-delayed snowfall won’t make it any easier to traverse the steep cost of winter sports.

If you want to be spontaneous, here are some last minute Valentine’s Day suggestions.

Sun Valley’s mythical status has waned but not its skiing.

Snowcats carry skiers and snowboarders to Colorado terrain not served by ski lifts.

Skiers and snowboarders can finally rejoice over the season’s chill, but the long-delayed snowfall won’t make it any easier to traverse the steep cost of winter sports.

The relationship between skiers and snowboarders might still be a bit icy at times, but a versatile group has discovered there’s more than one way to get down the mountain.

If you want to be spontaneous, here are some last minute Valentine’s Day suggestions.

Thomas Jefferson wrote “all men are created equal” to declare U.S. independence from Britain, yet he was also a lifelong slave owner who freed only nine of his more than 600 slaves during his lifetime.

Knock, knock. Want to win some money? A couple of Hallandale Beach and Hollywood residents had the chance to be on a trivia game show, just by opening the door and answering some questions about Florida.

Vegas, baby, yeah! (Can you hear the Austin Powers accent?) At this point, the city of sin is pretty much synonymous with any night-time activity — gambling, dancing, drinking, grubbin — so it’s no wonder that Las Vegas hotels have stepped up their game when it comes to their room service menus. We applaud the hotels who already offer 24/7 service — personally, we think it’s essential everywhere — but for those who don’t, well, those hotels should probably take a peek at what our favorite properties are currently turning out.

It’s a matter of perspective. From aboard a 12-deck cruise liner, the sight of St. Mark’s Square, the Doge’s Palace and Bridge of Sighs gliding past from a cabin balcony is a breathtaking thrill.

Small ships can take passengers to islands where big ships can’t go and avoid the crowds at larger ports.

Disney Cruise line will move one of its ships to Miami for the first time this December, trading cruises from Los Angeles to the Mexican Riviera for cruises to the Caribbean, Bahamas and Caribbean Mexico.

Cruise safety is back in the spotlight in the wake of the Costa Concordia disaster.

If you’re old enough to remember the big-band era of music, and love to dance to that kind of music, several cruises can provide a nostagic fix.

The basic fare for a cruise on a luxury ship usually includes some things that cost extra on mainstream cruises, such as alcoholic beverages, gratuities and some shore excursions.

Passengers get authoritative presentations followed by visits to the remains of ancient civilizations. Sorry, there’s no waterslide.

Celebrity, Disney, Oceania and Carnival will launch new ships in 2012 that will sail all or part of the time from Florida.

Get your Mouse ears on. For the first time, a Disney ship likely will call Miami home.

On a pre-cruise adventure in Rotorua, stress and the rest of the world are far away.

It’s the year of minions at Universal Studios, and most other theme parks are launching new adventures in 2012 as well.

It’s never to early to party in Margaritaville — even if its years from opening.

A night-time show with fountains and pyrotechnics will project scenes from classic Universal Pictures movies onto waterfall “screens.”

This is the season I wait all year to enjoy — and not just for the cooler, dryer weather that makes it a joy to hike, bike and kayak.

Our first sight of Fort Jefferson from our excursion boat, the Yankee Freedom, was of a thin dark scratch across the teal surface of the Gulf of Mexico. As we drew nearer, the fort’s massive brick walls seemed to float on the sea, majestic and forbidding, filling almost the entire 10 acres of Garden Key, the largest of the islets known as the Dry Tortugas.

The Greeks started filing into church about 8 a.m., but I’m neither Greek nor churchgoing, so I spent the morning walking.

New Central Florida theme park draws some hard-core Lego fans, both kids and adults.

Wet and slimy hikes are the new ‘walk in the park’ for nature-lovers in the western Everglades and southwest Florida.

The former Splash Island Water Park at Cypress Gardens will be renovated and given a Lego theme.

In West Virginia, one of the nation’s first ‘spa resorts’ has rejuvenated itself for another historic century.

The biggest challenge when visiting this historic coastal town is not deciding what to do. For me, at least, the problem was figuring out what to reluctantly omit.

My daughter circled the sun, bobbing around the yellow mosaic tile work at the bottom of the pool. Everywhere in the Royal Baths, the water was no deeper than 3 feet, which meant that my 9-year-old could touch the bottom wherever she happened to float.

Take it from me, first impressions aren’t necessarily the best impressions when you arrive at an all-inclusive resort after a long day of traveling. After a seven-hour trip on two flights from our home in Boston, my family and I were famished by the time we got to the Riu Palace Tropical Bay Resort in Negril, Jamaica. We headed straight for the snack bar, where the pasta had gone soggy. What looked to be busloads of Canadians stood in the water at the swim-up bar, drinking gallons of alcohol in oversize mugs.

Dutch burghers from the 17th century would feel right at home on this two-block stretch once called Brewers Street.

As our culture learns more and thinks differently about the past, Williamsburg has grown with us. Since 2006, that enterprise has taken a turn for the theatrical.

She likes sweet wine; I like dry. She enjoys lying in the sun; I prefer to stroll the shoreline. She’s cold-natured; I’m warm.

Amelia Earhart may have been the best-known woman pilot of her day, but she wasn’t the first and arguably wasn’t the best.

Narrow cobblestone streets, imposing city walls and centuries-old buildings and squares are reminders of the city’s past under the Spanish Crown.

Taking it slow in the Abacos, where one of everything is just enough.

The popularity of the tequila has spawned a tourism boom in the farm country where it is made.

My daughter circled the sun, bobbing around the yellow mosaic tile work at the bottom of the pool. Everywhere in the Royal Baths, the water was no deeper than 3 feet, which meant that my 9-year-old could touch the bottom wherever she happened to float.

Take it from me, first impressions aren’t necessarily the best impressions when you arrive at an all-inclusive resort after a long day of traveling. After a seven-hour trip on two flights from our home in Boston, my family and I were famished by the time we got to the Riu Palace Tropical Bay Resort in Negril, Jamaica. We headed straight for the snack bar, where the pasta had gone soggy. What looked to be busloads of Canadians stood in the water at the swim-up bar, drinking gallons of alcohol in oversize mugs.

The Caribbean coast of Costa Rica is known for reggae music, Jamaican food and an edgy vibe that occasionally spills over into violence.

The country is a jigsaw puzzle of safe and unsafe places. Here’s advice on where to visit and where to avoid.

It’s time to discover alternative Caribbean beaches that aren’t so well known — or well trod.

Narrow cobblestone streets, imposing city walls and centuries-old buildings and squares are reminders of the city’s past under the Spanish Crown.

Taking it slow in the Abacos, where one of everything is just enough.

Ships of all sorts line up each day to take their own historic journey through the Panama Canal, which, almost a century after it opened, is still a wonder.

The puma is a predator of Magellan penguins, but the biggest threats to the bird are commercial fishing, pollution and disease.

Take care of business and baby (or at least the equipment for both) with one of the snazzy new double-duty baby bags from OiOi Baby. Fashioned in bright patterns and muted shades in cotton or leather, with water-resistant linings, many of the styles are appropriate for both men and women. They have space for a laptop computer in addition to pockets and pouches for diapers and the included matching baby bottle holder and padded changing mat. A favorite unisex model is the 11-inch by 15-inch by 6-inch-deep Chocolate Waxed Canvas Satchel, with a range of compartments inside and out, an adjustable shoulder strap, fixed stroller straps, insulated bottle compartments, and antique metal accents.

The super models are back

Formula fun

It’s the year of minions at Universal Studios, and most other theme parks are launching new adventures in 2012 as well.

In West Virginia, one of the nation’s first ‘spa resorts’ has rejuvenated itself for another historic century.

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