Hello all

I'm a New Zealander planning a trip to the East Coast of the USA in August. Firstly, I will be doing three days' professional development (environmental education) at Sewell in New Jersey, then travelling to Cape May, Assateague, Chincoteague, Virginia Beach, Richmond, Charlottesville, Charlotte, Savannah, Jacksonville to Florida before returning home.

I will be travelling with a friend and we will be hiring a car while there. We are particularly interested in looking at gardens and wildlife/wilderness areas.

We would prefer to stay in B&Bs and meet the locals than large hotels or commercial motels.

Would appreciate ideas from the locals. Thanks in advance!

How much time are you going to have?

Hmmm. Where to stay ....

A lot of those small B&B's don't have websites ... you can find them by just driving around in the right neighborhoods and looking for a sign that says ROOMS in the front window door (often there is a lawn sign), but that might be risky in a beach town in August (since it will be crowded).

Try doing a web search for lodging in the towns you want: the chamber of commerce may show a list of places and their phone numbers. Or join AAA and pick up some of their comprehensive lodging guidebooks when you arrive in the US.

You're skipping Charleston?

In Richmond, there is the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens. www.lewisginter.org I'm not knowledgeable about this sort of thing, but have been told it's impressive.

Amelia Island, Florida is just north of Jacksonville, and south of Savannah. It is about 40 minutes from the Jacksonville airport (the airport is on the very north side of Jacksonville). I would suggest staying there instead of in Jacksonville.
It has a lovely state park called Fort Clinch. There are also miles and miles of beaches. You could also do a backwater type boat tour.
There are many bed and breakfasts.My favorites are the Elizabeth Point Lodge which is right on the ocean, and the Fairbanks house which is more located near downtown.
Both Savannah and Amelia Island have nice Hampton Inn and Suites hotels if you do decide to go that route.

Most cities have a "chamber of commerce" which has tourist information. I would think it would be helpful to you to contact the Chamber for each of your destinations.

You definitely need to book ahead for Cape May, NJ in August.

If you go to http://www.capemay.com you can follow the links to all types of accommodation (B&Bs, guesthouses, motels, hotels, home/apartment rentals), see some of the restaurant listings and also check the calendar of events for August.

Kia ora! Have a great time - Cape May is great if you are into birding and environmental studies. Plus there is a lot of beautiful architecture there.

Clifton Country Inn(B&B) in Charlottesville is great. Thomas Jefferson built it for his daughter. Minutes from Monticello and downtown Charlottesville.

I hope you know about maps.google.com

Some gardens to visit
http://www.longwoodgardens.org/PlanYourVisit_1_3_1.html

http://www.winterthur.org/visiting/visiting.asp

http://www.monticello.org/

You are coming at a very hot time of year and spending most of your time in the south where it's hotter. I suggest you make sure about air conditioning and chose comfort over charm.

Some websites to check

http://www.1bbweb.com/usa/southern_u...tml#searchform

http://www.bnbfinder.com/

tripadvisor.com has reviews of hotels and some b & b's.