Okay, so it's not quite a hotel. But it's not quite traditional camping either. For something different, escape to Georgia and book your bed inside an authentic teepee decorated with Cherokee symbols with North Georgia Canopy Tours, an adventure outfitter offering zipline tours in Lula, Georgia. The three teepees available for nightly stays include a couples-sized one in a secluded location with a queen bed, the family-sized Dream Catcher teepee that can sleep up to five, and a group-friendly teepee with room for ten people on bunk beds.

It's guaranteed to be something out of the ordinary and adventurous for the whole family!

Friends of mine just got back from vacationing in the historic town of Cartagena on Colombia's Caribbean coast and had only good things to say about the food, nightlife and general hospitality. Things are changing quickly in the South American nation that was once considered off limits for many American travelers, and I've put a visit to Cartagena on my bucket list. Hotel openings here are seriously on the rise--between 2009 and 2011, more than 1600 new hotel rooms opened in Colombia, including at top international chains. A new JW Marriott recently opened in Bogota and plans are in the works for a Hyatt to open in the cosmopolitan capital soon, too. The Sonesta Hotel Cartagena recently opened its doors in the colonial city, and a new InterContinental is coming to Cartagena in 2013.

More fine hotels to consider in Colombia:

• Hotel Spiwak Chipichape in Cali is the city's first five star property
• Four Points by Sheraton is new in Medellin, Colombia's second largest city
• And if you want to be in paradise, defined, book in at the Sofitel Cartagena Santa Clara, one of the most spectacular properties on the planet.

Did you celebrate the Fourth of July in one of American Express Travel Services' top U.S. cities for fireworks and patriotic parties? Spots like New Orleans, Orlando and Philadelphia made the list. Also Boston--where 200,000 people lined the shores of the Charles River to watch the sky light up--and of course New York City, where some 3 million people converged along the Hudson River to see a whopping 40,000 pyrotechnics explode. Some of the more surprising places that made the patriotic list were Lake Tahoe, which hosted one of the largest light shows in the west, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, where marching bands and dance troupes took over Cruz Bay for the big day. In case you find yourself in any of these All American towns again sometime soon, here's where to stay:

• Snag a room on the waterfront at the Boston Bay Hotel
• Take your pick from New York City's top hotels
• Check in at one of Chicago's top hotels where there's always a festival happening on Lake Michigan during the summer
• No place proffers traditional patriotism quite like Washington DC
• Lake Tahoe's Squaw Valley Lodge is as much a summer destination as a winter one
• Choose your own New Orleans hotel adventure with this map of French Quarter hotels
• Have an All-American Orlando vacation at Disney's BoardWalk Inn
• Keep it contemporary in San Francisco at the Clift Hotel
• Paradise awaits away from the mainland at Frenchman's Reef & Morning Star Marriott Beach Resort

It's always a good time to celebrate the USA!

There's no place like Northern Europe in the summer time. And if anybody knows how to make the most of a sunny summer day, it's the seasonally sun-starved Danes. Copenhagen really shines in the summertime--the cafe terraces fill with people hanging out, boats ply the canals and there's a festival for practically every day of the week. Add to that the contemporary coolness of the Danish capital's many design hotels, and you've got all the makings for a perfect European vacation. One of my favorite Copenhagen Hotels is Hotel 27, a short walk from the central train station in the historic center. It's a chic little spot with modern art, brightly colored furnishings in stark white rooms and three very appreciated perks--complimentary breakfast and dinner buffets and free wifi. Here are some more divine Danish addresses:

• Hotel Fox has 61 unique rooms designed by 21 different artists
• First Hotel Skt. Petri tops the list of Danish design hotels and has outposts throughout Scandinavia
• In the Tivoli Gardens, Hotel Nimb has just 12 exclusive rooms
• And explore more luxury hotels in Copenhagen

^{Image courtesy Terry Ward}