• Best for: Anyone with an eye for design and an appreciation of neighborhoods. Better for adults, though my traveling companion this time was my 19-year-old niece. Also good for history lovers and couples.

• Cost of a two-night visit: With meals and museums, plan on $650 to stay in historic digs, $450 if you stay in budget lodging. Figures don't include roundtrip airfare, which starts at $160 from Four Lauderdale, $265 from Miami.

• Getting there: Most major and budget airlines fly there from South Florida, although only AirTran (from Fort Lauderdale) and American (from Miami) fly there nonstop, a flight of about 2 hours, 45 minutes. www.flypittsburgh.com.

• Information: Greater Pittsburgh Convention & Visitors Bureau, www.visitpittsburgh.com, 412-281-7711 or 800- 359-0758.

WHERE TO STAY

• Once a home for Benedictine priests, The Priory is now an elegant, 24-room European-style boutique hotel with a certain monastic charm, but also providing amenities such as fitness room and WiFi internet service in public areas. 614 Pressley St., 866-3-PRIORY or 412-231-3338, www.thepriory.com. Rates are $125-185 for a standard room, to $230 for a suite including continental breakfast and evening wine.

• Another premier landmark, the 1906 Building, is reborn as the Renaissance Pittsburgh Hotel, the city's only four-diamond lodging. Perched along the Allegheny River, the Renaissance is a short walk from sports stadiums and the Convention Center. 107 Sixth St., 412-562-1200 or 800-468-3571, www.renaissancehotels.com/PITBR. Rooms $219-279.

• If you're bringing kids, consider Residence Inn Pittsburgh University/Medical Center, with plenty of space, pool and fitness center. Suites include full kitchens (pots and pans, dishes and flatware provided) and full complimentary breakfast. 3896 Bigelow Blvd., 412-621-2200 or 800-513-8766, www.marriott.com. Rates from $195.

• The grand dame of Pittsburgh is the Omni William Penn Hotel, a historic landmark in the heart of the business district. Internet access is free, the fitness center is new and the Convention Center is four blocks away. 530 William Penn Pl., 412-281-7100, www.omniwilliampenn.com, rates from $229.

WHERE TO EAT

• Pardon our gushing, but we'd never tasted blue cheese dressing as good as Chef Rosato's at City Grill in the South Side neighborhood. People around us raved about their burgers; we wolfed down great steaks and grilled veggies. 2019 E. Carson St., 412-431-1770. Entrees $9-26.

• You haven't been to Pittsburgh until you've eaten at the Grand Concourse in the restored Station Square complex. Look up from your fresh seafood or homemade pasta to admire the skylights and other impressive architectural details. 125 W. Station Square Dr., 412-261-1717, www.stationsquare.com. Entrees $19-43.

• Pamela's is a wildly popular Strip District icon -- which you'll learn if you try to get a table for Saturday breakfast. Famous for its succulent pancakes (try the banana walnut) and diner lunches, Pamela's serves breakfast all day. 60 21st St., 412-281-6366. Most breakfasts and lunches $5.95.

WHAT TO DO

• Mattress Factory, 500 Sampsonia Way; 412-231-3169; www.mattress.org. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; 1 p.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. Admission: Adults $10, students $7, seniors $8, kids under 6 free. House Poem is at 408 Sampsonia Way.

• Andy Warhol Museum, 117 Sandusky St.; 412-237-8300; www.warhol.org. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday and Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday. Admission: Adults $15, seniors 55+ $9, students $8, children 3-18 $8.

• Duquesne Incline, 1220 Grandview Ave.; 412-381-1665; http://incline.pghfree.net/. Open 5:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 7 a.m.-12:45 a.m. Sundays and holidays. One-way fares: Adults $2, children 6-11 $1, children 5 and younger free, seniors 65+ free.