hookedtogo

My Husband and I have found ourselves child free with time to get away for a week. We are in our 40's and live in California. We can fly or drive and would like to stay in the US. We are up for anything as long as it does not land us in a large resort. We like the East coast, never been to the South, or possibly a cabin in a beautiful spot. Any ideas? We are adventurous but do not like great "risk".

LG2

I have found that Fodorites are very helpful when questions are more specific. Don't know your interests. I suggest you do some web searching to narrow your preferences. You can start with these:
http://www.new-england-vacations-guide.com/
http://www.travelsouthusa.com/trip-ideas/
http://www.nps.gov/

escargot

let us know what you would like
we know you don't want a large resort -
a small resort?
a B & B/or inne?
cabins mentioned/ on a lake, ocean -
do you want to hike, beach, rent bikes, mopeds, small towns/large city nearby?
seclusion?
want nat'l parks, or museums and fine dining?
do you want to sit, read books, canoe, kayak, light hikes, etc
and
waht is the approximate budget?

beach_dweller

hookedtogo,

you had me at "never been to the South."

If it weren't July, I'd say to go to Charleston SC. However, the heat & humidity will likely make that problematic.

But as you mentioned a cabin in a beautiful spot, I say head to the North Carolina mountains. In or around Asheville NC will provide a nice week's vacation. You can fly into Charlotte NC, and it's a relatively short drive to Asheville (a few hours).

escargot

I saw a recent thread here on Asheville I thought, plug "asheville nc" into the search bar and that one and several others pop up

bashfulLV

Without knowing much about your interests or budget and since you're in California, Id' suggest Hawaii. You could probably get a great fare from California and the biggest problem would be in deciding which island you'd rather go to as they all are so different. Any place on the east coast or in the south would be brutal (humidity-wise) in July, but Hawaii would be beautiful - hot/humid but with wonderful trade winds, and not nearly as uncomfortable as the east coast or the south. It's also full of adventures - as many or as few as you may want - as laid back or "busy" as you may want to be. Of course there are lots of resorts, but there are many other choices as well that could provide you with the absolute perfect vacation.

Let us know more of what you're looking for and you'll get more responses.

escargot

don't discount the northeast b/c of humidity in July - I wish I could remember a July that was full of humidity - yes, it can be hot, but most people who visit the east coast in July come to be on the coast or one of the coastal islands and it is not like being inland where you may feel the heat and humidity more - this is why July and August are high season on the east coast, everyone comes here.