I knew I could make the move from New York City to San Francisco the moment I first laid eyes on Napa Valley. It felt like a wonderland to me, a spot of much-needed European charm and pastoral quietude just a quick hour down the road from the hustle and bustle of the city.

And now three years into my great California adventure, I have developed my way of enjoying Napa and Sonoma. Much like how Coloradans debate the relative merits of competing ski resorts, we here in the Bay Area enjoy holding forth about the "right way" to explore the wine country. There are two valleys to choose from, at least 10 quaint towns, and a huge variety of activities, including hiking, biking, wine tasting, gourmet dining, air ballooning, spa going, and more.

I'm all about getting sporty on my trips. When I was training for the NYC marathon, I had to visit Washington, D.C. at a crucial point of my training. Instead of halting training or spending hours running on the hotel treadmill, I hired a running guide through City Running Tours who took me on a sightseeing run through our nation's capital.

So when I heard about a physical fitness event  -- again, in Washington, DC -- coming up on October 11, I thought I would share it with you. Bike for the Heart is a day-long event put on by the Sister to Sister organization, a group dedicated to educating women about heart health and risk prevention and providing free heart health checkups.

The day consists of four events:

 - a family-friendly five-mile bike ride around our nation's capital (this would be my choice)

Have you heard the news? The economy stinks. I know, you're shocked (shocked!). But despite what some reports would have you believe, people are still traveling. Maybe not at the same rates or with the same budget as in past years, but they're still going. After all, what would summer be without vacation? Like a day without sunshine? Or like a gnome without a garden?

Travelocity has just released a list of ten summer hotspots for 2009. Think of it as a "most improved," rather than a "most popular" list. These ten domestic destinations are seeing a rise in popularity despite one-third of travelers cutting back on their summer vacation budgets. Good news in tourism alert! The local economies of these destinations should benefit from their improved rankings.

Please don't use the "S" word in my presence. You know the one. Starts with "S" and ends with "taycation." It positively chills me to think about would-be travelers staying home. Like, in their houses. Watching TV and eating chips or something. When they don't have to! People, I don't know if you've heard, but a close friend of yours (me!) coined 2009 the "year of the travel deal." You see, I have insider information, so I'm allowed to make such statements.

photo courtesy of IgoUgo member RobAA

On Saturday morning, I appeared on WCBS here in New York to share some ideas for last-minute Valentine's Day getaways for New Yorkers. Yes, I realize many of our readers don't live in New York, so these suggestions might not apply to you. The overall point of the piece though, is that with Valentine's Day falling on a Saturday this year and also coinciding with Presidents' Day (read: extra day off from work) weekend AND the amazing hotel deals out there -- well, it's a perfect recipe for a weekend getaway. You can watch the video here.

On that note, Travelocity recently named 12 top amazing hotels for romance based on member feedback. You can see the complete list here.

But back to New York. Here's my list -- please chime in with great ideas for weekend getaways from your city.

With all the excitement surrounding the inauguration of the 44^th president, travelers looking for ways to keep the momentum going should visit one of the President’s favorite spots. With Presidents’ Day weekend (February 14-16) fast approaching, we've come up with five destinations near and dear to the President that are worth visiting.

I’m a shopaholic by nature, and I often participate in retail therapy.

If I have a bad day at work, I just buy a new outfit! If it’s dreary outside, some fun new eye shadow will brighten up the day! If I feel fat, it’s nothing new shoes won’t fix! (After all, my feet don’t gain weight.) Even though the act of purchasing makes me happy, I have never, will never, camp outside a retail store on Black Friday in the wee hours of the morning to snag that oh-so-great deal, but I will shop for deals online. Black Friday exists there, too!

Knowing that the day after Thanksgiving is the best day to shop for retail deals, I analyzed data from lastminute.com to find out if shoppers can find travel deals, too. My conclusion: it is the best time of year in terms of both availability and price to find last second deals.

I recently took a look at travel patterns on the days leading up to the three Presidential and one Vice Presidential debates and found a significant uptick in travel to host cities. Nashville (up 54 percent), Oxford (up 56 percent), St. Louis (up 72 percent) and New York (up 16 percent) all saw an increase in arrivals when compared to last year.

With the election less than three weeks away, more people are expected to visit the “swing states” in a final attempt to win votes for their candidate. Whether you’re looking to fly to a destinations or drive to a political battleground closer to home, for those passionate about politics, here is a sampling of last-minute deals travelers can find to Florida, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia:

photo courtesy of IgoUgo member ArnyZona

Not too long ago, I won a gift certificate for a last-minute weekend getaway. Problem is, the dollar amount that I won stretches about as far as…Pittsburgh, PA. Or, if I go during off season, I may be able to swing exotic Topeka, KS!

As I started researching my options, I was reminded of an acquaintance’s ongoing tour of America’s underappreciated cities. Once a year, he meets his buddies in a second- or third-tier city that tourists may not clamor to visit: think Bangor, Cleveland, Raleigh. Kansas City was apparently a big hit.

Cleveland photo courtesy of IgoUgo member RoBoNC

As much as I try to be an organized and semi-responsible adult, I always manage to leave everything to the last minute, which is why I found myself being patted down the other day by security at the San Francisco passport agency. This was a visit I’d been dreading, delegating it to the ranks of the DMV and cleaning the litterbox. And with this attitude I let myself get “wanded” by a guy with a handlebar mustache and took a number (23, to be exact) to wait with the hurried masses to renew my passport on the fast track.