Where You're Really Going this Memorial Day

Where are you headed this Memorial Day? What are you most excited about doing over the long weekend? We reached out to all our loyal fans and readers on Twitter, Facebook, and the Forums to find out where you're headed and what you'll be up to over the holiday. Unsurprisingly, you guys have got enviable plans from jam-packed stay-cations to sun-drenched getaways. We're getting our inspiration from you this weekend.
STAYING PUT
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Some Fodor's fans are excited about staying put for fun events, like @Dayenu's son's wedding in the Bay Area. From the Forums, @Patty is planning to kick it in Carmel with their pup, while @Fra_Diavolo has the right idea with barbecue on the mind, and still another will be "soft" opening their nearby beach house to get it ready for other big summer weekends like the 4th of July. One family will be enjoying the great outdoors just outside their door with fun (and semi-alliterative) activities like boating, barbecuing, bocce ball, tennis, Frisbee, and anything outside.

One kid's going to have a ball at Sesame Place, where they host a big Memorial Day celebration with fireworks and Elmo, according to Twitter-er @michfalcone. While another lucky family lives just along the Erie Canal, so they'll be taking advantage of great country roads to explore.

But, tons of you are skipping town for your vacation homes—can we come?
GETTING AWAY IN THE US

Plenty of Fodor's travelers are hitting the (domestic) road this weekend. After our own hearts, @matnikstym is heading to Kona, Hawaii, to check out the "newly renovated Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa." Another will be Providence, Rhode Island-bound for a graduation ceremony. We're taking a page out of this book for a long weekend soon: @spirobulldog told us on the Forums that they're flying into DC and spending a few days at Lewis Cabins in Shenandoah National Park before exploring Monticello, Ashlawn Highland, and Montpelier. And Twitter follower @daileytravel mentioned spending the weekend on North Captiva Island, Florida, where there are no cars, just golf carts.
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@Ackislander has got the inside track on Nantucket events, like going out this weekend to watch the Figawi sailboat racers arrive from Hyannis. While a fun-loving Forums user is jetting to St. Louis (and Six Flags). Still more Fodor's fans and savvy travelers are skipping town for New Orleans, the Florida Keys (pictured), and New York City. (One reader is flying from San Francisco to New York to join her sister's dinner party—better be good!)
SKIPPING ACROSS THE POND

It may just be an extra day tacked onto the weekend, but some readers are taking any excuse to hop internationally. We got plenty of trips to Mexico (Cancun, Mexico City) and Canada (Montreal), but the two most ambitious trips you all told us about were to Italy and Nicaragua!

So, headed somewhere fabulous? Didn't get the chance to tell us your plans? Tell us in the comments—where will this long weekend take you?

Of course, take a moment to follow us on Facebook, on Twitter, and check out our Forums if you're not already commenting on them!
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Photo credits: Carmel via Shutterstock; Florida Keys via Shutterstock

Celebrating the Golden Gate Bridge's 75th Anniversary in San Francisco

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Nearly 25 years ago, on the 50th anniversary of the Golden Gate Bridge, a commemorative celebration closed the iconic landmark to vehicular traffic and opened it to pedestrians. But the event's popularity had unforeseen consequences: Crowds soared to an estimated 250,000—double the anticipated size—and actually flattened a section of the bridge, injuring some in the chaos.

This year, as the world’s most famous bridge approaches its 75th anniversary, bridge authorities have expanded the celebration to a broader, yearlong community focus, with the motto "Bridging Us All." On May 26 and 27, the Golden Gate Festival will feature a ton of bridge-themed events and activities from Fort Point, under the bridge’s southeast pavilion, all the way down Fisherman’s Wharf to Pier 39, with the landmark and its famous International Orange color beaming in the background.

But visitors who want to avoid the crowds of the anniversary weekend will have plenty of other opportunities to experience the milestone. Commemorative events (and bridge improvements) will continue throughout the year, including historical exhibitions, movie nights, and a major overhaul to the bridge’s southeast toll plaza that will unveil a new visitor center, trail renovations, and improved signage.

Most festival events are free and open to the public. Among the offerings: performances by the Oakland Symphony Chorus, a parade featuring historic watercraft, a display of classic cars from 1937 to the present, special tours of the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, and a visual exhibit of 1,500 shoes representing lives lost at the Golden Gate Bridge. (A sad fact that’s sometimes overshadowed by all the celebration hype: It’s the most popular place in the world to commit suicide.)

The festival will conclude on May 27, the actual 75th anniversary date of the bridge’s opening, with a spectacular fireworks display.

To fully grasp the history, inspiration, and effort behind the bridge, stop at the San Francisco headquarters of the California Historical Society—a building that’s impossible to miss in the SOMA neighborhood, as it was painted International Orange earlier this year. Through October 14, CHS will house "A Wild Flight of the Imagination: The Story of the Golden Gate Bridge." It takes a look back at the natural history of the Golden Gate, which refers to the geographical region where the San Francisco Bay meets the Pacific Ocean, and chronicles the events leading up to the bridge’s conception to its completion in 1937.

Among the treasures of the exhibit, many of which have never been seen by the general public: the original Western Union telegram to San Francisco Mayor "Sunny Jim" Rolph, dated December 29, 1924, with news that the War Department finally approved the bridge; works from renowned artists including Ansel Adams and Maynard Dixon; and original tools, tool belts, and an actual rivet that visitors can hold.
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Another exhibit, at the Marin History Museum in San Rafael, shows the impact the bridge made on the communities across the bay in Marin County. Among the standout pieces are a steel tube used to send messages down cables, assorted carpenter’s tools, and historic photos showing the bridge at various stages of completion. "The Golden Gate Bridge: An Icon That Changed Marin" runs through September 1.

Currently a whirlwind of construction activity, the southeast plaza is undergoing a massive facelift that will eventually unveil a new Bridge Pavilion to house interpretive materials, memorabilia, and merchandise; renovated trails; improved signage and parking; restored vistas; and a new Bridge Café, featuring locally sourced refreshments.

Another noteworthy addition to the bridge area, look for the green-screen photo booth, located in the Round House. For $20, visitors can pose against one of three backdrops—climbing the cables, atop the South Tower, or backed by a crystal-clear shot of the bridge—an ideal solution for San Francisco’s famously foggy weather.

Guided tours of the bridgeare now on offer, and include a first-ever night tour with exclusive access to the bridge sidewalk during non-public hours. Offered seven days a week through the summer, tours will use headphones for visitors and a microphone for guides so they can speak in a normal, conversational tone while still being heard over the wind and traffic. Advance tickets will be available in mid-April, and walk-up tickets are subject to availability.
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There’s no more fitting spot to call home during a bridge-centric trip to San Francisco than the brand-new Inn at the Presidio. This charming, 22-room property on the Presidio—the 1,500-acre former military base and National Historic Landmark—officially opened on April 1 and is the only new hotel to open in San Francisco in 2012 (rates from $195 to $350, with weekend availability extremely limited throughout 2012). It’s also the first hotel on the Presidio, which will host bridge-themed exhibitions and movie nights.

Located in an exquisitely renovated, three-story building, which once served as officers’ quarters, the inn features well-appointed rooms, views of the bridge and bay, and proximity to the waterfront and the upscale Marina neighborhood. Nightly rates include a continental breakfast, internet access, and an evening spread of cheese and California wine. Grab a glass and a chair by the outside fire pit for a fitting toast to the City by the Bay, and, of course, its spectacular bridge.
THINKING OF A TRIP TO SAN FRANCISCO?

For up-to-the-minute hotel and restaurant recommendations, plus the best planning advice, check out our online San Francisco Travel Guide.

Photo Credits: Golden Gate Bridge via Shutterstock

Vote for Fodor’s in the Webby People’s Voice Awards

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We’ve been nominated for two Webbys. Now we need your vote to help us win!
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Fodor’s Travel Phrases has been selected as a 19th Annual Webby Awards nominee in two mobile categories: Travel (Handheld Devices) and Travel (Tablet & All Other Devices).

Fodor’s Travel Phrases is an essential app for every traveling situation, so leave the phrasebook and dictionary at home. With Fodor's Travel Phrases, all you need to converse abroad is a tap away. Powered by the experts at Living Language, this app features over 400 essential phrases in twenty-two languages for nearly any situation you may encounter while traveling, whether you want to ask for and understand directions around town, order food in a restaurant, or just make polite conversation.

Fodors.com has also been selected as an honoree in two website categories: Guides/Ratings/Reviews and Travel.

But while the Academy chooses the Webby winners for each category, every nominee is a contender for a Webby People’s Voice Award, which is voted for by the public. So we need your help! Vote for Fodor’s Travel Phrases for Handheld Devices and Tablet & Other Devices.

Voting for People’s Voice is open from April 7 to April 23 at 11:59 PST.
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Eurostar Introduces New Routes to the South of France

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May 1 marked the maiden voyage of Eurostar's new direct trains to Lyon, Avignon, and Marseillefrom London and Ashford, England.

Eurostar's high-speed service to Paris, inaugurated in 1994, streamlined trips between the two capitals, decreasing an arduous six-hour ground journey—that included multiple slow trains, buses, and ferries—to two hours and fifteen minutes station to station. Although London-Paris flight time is only an hour and fifteen minutes, Eurostar, which runs direct from city center to city center, significantly reduced the time, expense, and frustration of rides to and from airports, baggage check-ins, and security checks. It was an evolution that significantly increased travel betweenFrance and England and popularized the London-Paris weekend jaunt.

The new routes, which bypass Paris, shine a well-deserved spotlight on France's second cities—both Marseille and Lyon vie for the title—with new opportunities for faster, more direct access and weekend trips to and from London.

Lyon and Marseille, both magnificent in their own rights, are often overlooked, or altogether forsaken, for the more glamorous capital. This disregard is a big mistake, as both cities offer a view of France you won't get from Paris.



Dramatically set between two steep hills with the mighty Saone and Rhone rivers crossing through, Lyon possesses a cinematic beauty. A major strategic point for thousands of years, the city's unparalleled historical legacy—it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1998—includes France's Théâtre Romain and a superb historic Old City.

As France's gastronomic capital, Lyon's rich culinary heritage is singular in France. Home of the legendary chef Paul Bocuse, the originator of nouvelle cuisine, Lyon offers scores of world-class restaurants and bouchons—the traditional local brasserie specializing in Lyonnais charcuterie and the famous red wines of neighboring Beaujolais and the Côtes du Rhône.

Lyon is also the entrepreneurial center of France, with a youthful outlook and a vibrant art scene, including the marvelous festival of lights (Fête des Lumières) at Christmastime. For the last several years, the city has been undergoing an extensive redevelopment of its riverbanks, opening the soaring new Musée des Confluences, which was designed by superstar architect Jean Nouvel last winter. To promote its new routes, Eurostar is offering two-for-one entry with your train ticket to the Confluence and to Marseille's new MuCEM.

Train times from London to Lyon are less than five hours, and prices start at £89 round trip (about $136).
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As anyone who knows Marseille will tell you, this deeply Mediterranean port city—the oldest in France—is a diamond in the rough. Its shimmer is finally showing through after significant polishing since its designation as the European Capital of Culture in 2013. Three new cultural centers (MuCEM, the Regards de Provence Museum, and the Villa Méditerranée) and the restoration of several more (the Musée d'Histoire de Marseille, Le Corbusier's Cité Radieuse, the Marseille Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Château Borély) qualify the city, in alliance with its neighbor,Aix-en-Provence, as France's most important southern intellectual and artistic hub.



An exciting new culinary scene has also sprung up in Marseille in recent years, drawing a new generation of chefs who riff on the city's Mediterranean influences. The gleaming Hotel Intercontinental, housed in the city's iconic Hôtel Dieu, has added world-class luxury, complete with a pool, spa, Michelin-starred restaurant, and glorious views of the picturesque old port and theNotre-Dame de la Garde Basilica.

Marseille is a glorious melting pot of cultures, which you'll find everywhere from its colorful markets and eclectic shopping to its local dish, the wonderful bouillabaisse.

Although Marseille is a much larger city than Paris, the old port and central neighborhoods can easily be explored over a long weekend. The city is an excellent starting point for your Provencevacation, set within a half hour of Bandol, Cassis, and Aix-en-Provence.
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Round-trip Eurostar tickets to Marseille start at £99 (about $151). The trip is six hours from London's St Pancras International to Marseille's Saint Charles. Trains depart once a day, four times per week.

In November, Eurostar will introduce its new, state-of-the-art e320 trains to Lyon, Avignon, and Marseille. With speeds reaching 320 kilometers per hour (about 200 mph) and a 900-seat capacity, the luxurious trains will be the first of their kind to run in France.

Tickets can be booked six months in advance, making now a perfect time to plan for fall getaways.


Courtesy of Eurostar