Imagine taking a vacation, during your next vacation, from high gas prices, traffic congestion and the need to circle for parking. Amy Graff, who pens content for the travel blog www.OntheGoWithAmy.com, says there are a number of vacation-worthy destinations where travelers can forgo the rental car fees and high prices at the pump for an adventure by foot.

“Cut costs on your next vacation by visiting destinations that are easy and fun to explore by boat, foot or public transit,” said Amy. “Fall is the perfect season for visiting many of America’s best cities, and there’s no better or more scenic way to explore them than by foot.”

Amy offers the following tips when planning a visit to a walkable destination:

1) Do your homework: Visit the city’s public transportation Web site in advance and print out any maps or guides to help you find your way.
2) Let loose: Walkable destinations provide tons of freedom so use this to your advantage! Stroll down a particularly charming street on a whim or check out a local hideaway that you see along your walk. Making your own way allows you to see new sites that you have might otherwise missed in a car.
3) Keep those coins: It’s best to have a good stock of small bills and coins when planning to take public transit as most systems accept exact change only. Or, consider buying a transit pass. You can usually find information on these by visiting the city’s Convention and Visitors Bureau Web site.

Amy offers up the following cities as great walkable destinations:

Boston: Small, safe neighborhoods and an effective public transportation system have deemed Boston the friendliest walking city in the country. A march along the Freedom Trail will guide you–follow the red line–around the city’s historical sites, including Paul Revere’s House and the USS Constitution. You’ll also want to take a jaunt along the waterfront, starting at the North End Parks and making your way to the Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park. Burnt out on walking? Take the “T” train throughout the city or rent a bike and cruise through Stony Brook Reservation, an actual forest in the city.

Chicago: Walking is a great way to take in the Windy City but it’s not always practical when visiting distant neighborhoods and on harsh winter days or hot, muggy afternoons. In these situations, the public transportation system can get you anywhere. Hop on board one of the free trolleys, traveling between Navy Pier and the Grand/State “El” train station on the Red Line, and between Michigan Avenue and the Museum Campus, which is the site of the Field Museum of Natural History and the Shedd Aquarium. Also, you can easily ride the El, the elevated train running throughout town; the best bet for sightseers is the brown line, which runs around the downtown Loop and then north through residential neighborhoods. For a great “walker-friendly” hotel, the Best Western River North Hotel, conveniently located just minutes from Navy Pier, Michigan Avenue/Magnificent Mile shopping, Sears Tower and Wrigley Field. As an added bonus, Walk Score, which promotes walkable communities, gives this hotel a score of 95 - a walker’s paradise!

San Antonio: The three miles of river that winds through the heart of San Antonio is known as the River Walk. Visitors love this stretch as it’s lined with cafés, boutiques, narrow walkways, shady parks and stone bridges. You can easily spend your days wandering up and down the river and hopping on a barge or in a gondola if your feet tire. A perfect spot to stay is the Best Western Sunset Suites Riverwalk, centrally located in St. Paul Square near the San Antonio Zoo and Riverwalk. A short trot from the River Walk, you’ll find The Alamo; the Tower of the Americas - a 750-foot-tall tower built for HemisFair ‘68; and Blue Star Arts Complex, a historic warehouse filled with art studios and galleries.

San Francisco: Don’t let the steep hills scare you. The city by the bay is compact at only 49 square miles and very easy to get around. You’ll want to hike up the Filbert Steps on Telegraph Hill to Coit Tower, stroll along Crissy Field to take in views of the Golden Gate Bridge, and, of course, ride the cable car - try to avoid the crowds and hop on the California Street line running between the financial district and Nob Hill. More things to do: Hop on the ferry to Angel Island; walk the Lands End trail from theCliff House to the Legion of Honor; cruise along the waterfront on the F Line train, and ride the Bart train to the Mission District where you’ll find a plethora of restaurants dishing up fresh California cuisine.

OnTheGoWithAmy.com was created to celebrate the joys of travel and everything that goes with it - from flat tires and screaming children in the backseat to an amazing view of the New York skyline at the top the Empire State Building. Seasoned travel expert and journalist Amy Graff takes readers on the road with her husband and two children, her girlfriends and sometimes alone. Amy posts stories, pictures and videos from her family adventures, as well as helpful and unique tips she’s picked up after traveling the world with her family.

NASCAR Street Tour at River North,
originally uploaded by Best Western River North Hotel Chicago.

This July the NASCAR Street Tour makes River North Hotel it’s home away from home while in Chicago. The NASCAR Street Tour visits festivals and events to expose and educated attendees about the excitement of NASCAR. Here we see River North Hotel employee Antonio Enochs with the Street Tour Ford F150.

Best Western is the Offical Hotel of NASCAR.

camprock5,
originally uploaded by Best Western River North Hotel Chicago.

We had a rockin’ time at Radio Disney’s Camp Rock Premier Part on June 20 at Brookfield Zoo. Hundreds of people waited in line to see the Disney Original Movie, Camp Rock, on the big screen at Brookfield Zoo. Best Western River North Hotel was also there to greet them.

This summer you can earn a $50 Camp Rock collectable Best Western Travel Card by staying at Best Western Hotels throughout the summer. Visit www.bestwestern.com for more details.

Please check us out on You Tube and MySpace!

www.youtube.com/bwrivernorth

www.myspace.com/rivernorthhotel

Best Western International is a presenting sponsor of the highly anticipated Disney Channel movie Camp Rock starring the Jonas Brothers  premiering on Disney Channel June 20, 2008.

Now you can join Best Western River North and Radio Disney at a Camp Rock Preimer Party on June 20 at Brookfield Zoo. The Radio Disney Party Patrol will be on hand and a special viewing of Camp Rock will be shown on an outdoor large screen.

Best Western River North Hotel will there with give-aways for the kids and an opportunity for parents to win a $50 collectable Camp Rock Best Western Travel Card.

To find out more, visit us at Brookfield Zoo on June 20!

 If there are three foods that Chicago is famous for, they are pizza, hot dogs and Italian Beef. Talk about a “taste” of Chicago and yet still reasonably priced.

Al’s Italian Beef located two blocks from River North is Chicago’s #1 Italian Beef since 1938. A regular (6″) Italian Beef is only $3.59.  Visit www.AlsBeef.com.

At Portillo’s Hot Dogs a Chicago Style Dog starts at $2.45. Portillo’s is located just one block from River North Hotel.

A deep dish Chicago Style Pizza, while worth every penny, can sometimes become costly. We’ve found the perfect solution: At Pizzeria Ora,  located at 545 N LaSalle, you can get traditional deep dish pizza by the slice. The right amount of food at the right price! Visit www.pizzeriaora.com.

Start your day off right at the Ohio House diner. Just across the street from River North Hotel you can enjoy a breakfast of two eggs, two pancakes, two sausages and two bacon strips for only $4.55.

Historic Navy Pier® is Chicago’s lakefront playground. And it’s the Midwest’s #1 tourist and leisure destination, attracting more than 8.6 million visitors a year.
Navy Pier is the place where all of Chicagoland and tourists from around the world have come together since 1995 to enjoy the beauty and the thrills of a day on Lake Michigan. From rides to restaurants, exhibitions to entertainment, shopping to dining cruises and tour boats Navy Pier has it all - in a location unlike any other!
There’s so much to do in our 50 acres of parks, promenades, gardens, shops, eateries and attractions.

There is no admission to Navy Pier you are free to stroll about as you please. All summer long Navy Pier offer twice weekly free fireworks displays.  Chicago’s FREE Navy Pier trolley can be boarded just three blocks from Best Western River North Hotel. There is a charge for some Navy Pier rides and attractions. The food court at Navy Pier offers a variety of affordable selections.

Lincoln Park Zoo is a world of wildlife in the shadow of skyscrapers. Located within a verdant park just minutes north of Chicago, the zoo has been a natural, free oasis for generations of animal lovers, who come to hear a lion’s roar echo off nearby apartment buildings, see gorillas climb trees as the Sears Tower looms in the distance, or forget where they are as they immerse themselves in tropical rainforests, dry-thorn forests or spacious savannas.

We invite you to the wildest spot in Chicago, where each year millions of visitors marvel at wild wonders as they play and learn about the natural world in a living, breathing, roaring classroom. Visit lpzoo.org for more information. Lincoln Park Zoo is a short bus or taxi ride from Best Western River North Hotel.