My wife and I visited the Smokies last year. We thought the amount of overdevelopment around Pigeon Forge was sickening. We drove 2 hours north, to an area near Tazewell. Beautiful scenery, real people, we got to see everyday people in a new part of the country (for us) living their life the way they do.

I want your opinions on great, out-of-the-way places where we can get the REAL taste of a region, not the disney-version.

Southeastern corner of Minnesota. Several pretty little towns, rolling farmland, and dramatic views of the Mississippi River and it's Bluffs. A very underrated area.

My vote in New England goes for Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. This area of Vermont is gorgeous-It's exactly the way you described the area in the smokies you visited. No fancy inn's, tacky tourist traps etc. It's full of people who enjoy a simple way of life. The area's largest towns are St. Johnsbury and Newport. Check out www.1-800-Vermont.com, click the Northeast Kingdom section, and you'll find a lot of good info.

My vote would be for the north-central to north-eastern part of Washington State, from the east slope of the North Cascades through the Okanagan and Grand Coulee areas (big dam, that) and over to the Pend Orielle country north of Spokane. The Canadian side of the border is equally wonderful, too. Snowy mountains, big sky, greengreen valleys, fruit orchards, red rocks, a certain big river, fun towns, colorful native heritage, not many cars on the road, precious few drive-thru anythings. Even the foothills of the Rockies are reachable.

The area outside of Charleston, SC, is great for a 3-4 day drive. Wander up into the foothills and you will see the way the south really is. Reminded me of the book "Cold Mountain" by Charles Frazier.

For a great city that's not too big, try Indianapolis....it's clean, safe, inexpensive. Nice restaurants, museums. Stay right downtown any you can walk anywhere.

A tiny town in NW Pennsylvania. Conneaut Lake has about 1,000 people and the largest natural lake in PA--good for skiing and fishing, and there is one public beach. The town also has a little amusement park. I think an all-day ride pass is something like $10. Maybe $15.

Things get a little busy in the summer, as families from Pittsburgh and Cleveland often vacation there (about 2 hr. drive both either), but for Conneaut Lake, busy means you might have 10 cars in front of you at a stop light.

Great little town with no pretensions. Stop at Mamma Bear's diner.

Thanks for the replies. Vermont sounds perfect for us. As far as Indianapolis - thanks but no thanks. Been there, not what we are looking for.

Keep the ideas coming. Anyone ever been to the bayou of Louisiana?