korchiki;1409885; said:
I am definitely a fan of good beer. I have been skiing since I was 2 and love the cold weather. My girlfriend is content with sitting at a beach and doing nothing. I prefer to be active and go on excursions etc.
Basically I am in for just about anything. I am interested in everything from skiing in the rockies to beaches in FL to anything else. The budget for any of these trips can be from $500-$1500.
My only rule is I don't want to be the guy who arrives at the destination, stays in an amazing hotel, and can't afford anything but McDonalds for meals.
Ok, a couple of suggestions:
1) Burlington, VT. Really cool little town with a heavy college influence. The Magic Hat brewery is just outside of downtown and right downtown near Church Street, where there are tons of good restaurants and shops, is the Vermont Pub and Brewery. Right on Lake Champlain and absolutely picturesque. Mountains and ski slopes all over the place. VT is cheap compared to other areas of New England like Boston/Mass, Connecticut, and even Maine. I can give you a few recs if you decide you're interested. Would really be a great fall destination. A few pics:
2) Consider Canada (all you need is a passport). Right now, we're back on the right side of the exchange rate, so you get a bit of a boost right out of the shoot. I would recommend Quebec--either Montreal or Quebec City. Both great cities; both sit on the St. Lawrence. French is typically the first language, but almost everyone speaks English and there is no negative stigma to being an English-only tourist, as there often is in France. Montreal is much more metropolitan and probably has more nightlife. Quebec City, however, is a really great venue if you're going with your girlfriend. My girlfriend and I just got back from a 3-day weekend there and had a great time. You can go as expensive or inexpensive as you like on food in either city. We had a cheap meal of cheeses, meats, and wine last night, but had extravagant 5-course, world-class meals the first two nights. Some of the best food I've ever had. In either city you'll have great slopes, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing all around the city. There are several regional breweries whose beers dominate the bars, pubs, and eateries, the most notable being Unibroue. Here are some pics of Quebec City:
That's the Hotel Frontenac that dominates the landscape (don't stay there if you're on a budget, but do stop in for drinks). We stayed at a great B&B in the old city, within walking distance of anything you could want, for $140 Canadian a night (right now I think that's around $120/night). You could probably do cheaper, but I would suggest staying in the old city so you can walk everywhere. Here's the place we stayed, which I would highly recommend:
Bed & Breakfast quebec city B&B / G?te au coeur du Vieux-Qu?bec
Other suggestions:
3. Savannah, GA or Charleston, SC are cool southern cities, on the cheaper side of things, that are really a lot of fun and a good destination for couples.
4. If you want to do Florida, I lived in various spots over the years and my favorite area was the Tampa/St. Pete region. Much, much cheaper than SoFla, and much, much more going on than North Florida (though St. Augustine is pretty cool).
5. Places I haven't made it to yet but may fit your needs (I plan on visiting each soon), all of which would probably be cheaper than Boston:
Newport, RI (best as a summer destination--it's quintessentially New England and has a pretty famous yacht and boating scene)
Portland, ME (skiing nearby; Dogfish Head, Shipyard, and Allagash breweries; on the water; supposedly a great food scene)
Portsmith, NH (skiing nearby; Smuttynose Brewery; on the water; quaint New England town)
Give me a PM if you're interested in any of these places and I'll help as much as I can.
