Would like to spend New Year in the States, approx. 1 week from 27th December. Any suggestions where - thought of LA/Las Vegas but it seems that particularly week in LV is the busiest of the year. Not into skiing so NO SNOW. I am a bit incapacitated walking wise so no where too hilly!!! A tall order but can anyone have give me some useful suggestions. Also would eb flying from London, providing we can still get some seats!

We once spent New Year's Eve in San Antonio. It's a nice place and "relatively" warmer than much of the US. The Riverwalk is a fun place with hotels lining the river, lots of restaurants, etc. You can do a side trip across the border into Mexico. The year we were there was a big celebration at the Alamo, but I'm not sure if that's every year or not. I think New Orleans would be a fun place to spend the holiday also. And easy to get to and warmer would be Miami!

What a fun question! Assuming you have ruled on New York/Times Square, some places to consider would be below.

1. New Orleans as suggested above, with a week you could also drive up into the Natchez Trace area along the Mississippi which has numerous antebellum mansions

2. Phoenix, Arizona or other desert areas like Scottsdale, or Albuquerque or Santa Fe in New Mexico

3. Montreal Quebec Canada (not the US, and cold but would be wonderful I think)

4. Savannah Georgia; lots of charm and a fun place, good restaurants, not hot but OK temps

5. Key West Florida or most anyplace in Florida (not warm but temperate); most hurricane ravaged parts should be back and running by New Year's

6. Washington DC, so much to see and do, although bound to be cold

7. Chicago; again a lot to see and do but really cold, although they know how to have a good time in the cold! Absolutely no hills either.

6. California: San Francisco or parts north along the coast, Santa Barbara, Newport Laguna Beach; perhaps inland in the Sonoma wine country north of San Francisco; Lake Tahoe; all might be a bit hilly.

Honestly, there is no place better than Florida for that time of year. That's where the weather will be the best. Key West will most likely be rowdy. I'd go for Miami, Tampa-St. Pete, St. Augustine. The beaches will be great for morning walks.

My recommendation is LA. More precisely, Pasadena. IMHO (okay, no H - who am I kidding?) everyone should see the Rose Parade once, and spending the night out on Colorado Ave. is a lot of fun - no spectacular fireworks or balls dropping, but plenty of folks celebrating and all waiting for the (7 AM) parade, which is, for the eleven people in the world who've never heard of it, one of the biggest and most elaborate parades anywhere. LA is typically very pleasant around New Years, obviously lots of things to do and see, and if you're mobility-challenged, there are numerous tours, packages, and other ways to see the parade comfortably. Football (US style) game, too, if you're inclined. You can buy seats in the grandstands for US$50 or so i.e., around eleven shillings tuppence at current rates - see http://tournamentofroses.com/current/tickets.htm#parade for links to the ticket sales. Otherwise you can join the one million or so people standing/camping/sitting on the streets for the big parade. Lots of fun, and more flowers than you can imagine in January.