Atlanta's new World of Coca-Cola provides oversized balls, frisbees, and horseshoes to occupy kids while their parents wait in line to get in. That's Doug, my 3-year-old, on August 3, 2007.

by Wendy Perrin

Just back from Hotlanta, where my family and I spent several days trying to beat the heat with a variety of air-conditioned indoor, and the breeziest possible outdoor, activities.  Four train/tram rides, three 4-D movies, two trained-animal shows, and one planetarium later, I can assure you that the best thing to do with kids in Atlanta is still The Georgia Aquarium.  Since I reported on that last summer, however -- and Stephan just added his report last month -- instead I'll list the top three other activities I'd recommend to families with more than one day to kill and preschoolers in tow:

1. Ride the Ducks at Stone Mountain Park.

The "Ducks" are actually DUKWs -- 1940s-era amphibious trucks used in World War II.

You start out riding through the park and then splash into Stone Mountain Lake, where each kid onboard gets a turn in the driver's seat. That's Doug and me, August 1, 2007.

Every rider gets a duck necklace that quacks loudly when you blow into it. You get to keep it as a memento. My kids accidentally "lost" theirs (ha!) soon after the ride ended.

Touch a skate at the Georgia Aquarium. It won't sting.

by Stephan Wilkinson

     An update to Wendy's review last year of the fabulous new Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta:  A visit on a sunny Monday late this June suggests that the initial crowding and gotta-be-there hysteria has slowed down, and that visitors can now be more casual in their planning.  We showed up at 10:15 a.m., and the ticket line to several automated credit-card kiosks was almost nonexistent, with no specific entry times required.  The security line was slightly longer, but I'm sure the Aquarium is well aware of what a backpack bomb could to to the enormous viewing window of a fish tank the size of a hockey rink, which is the Aquarium's main attraction.  (Hollywood, are you listening?)
     I'm sure it's different on weekends and holidays, but it looks like there are plenty of times to visit the Aquarium when you'll find it...well, busy and crowded, but not stressful.
     Tip: there are plenty of private parking lots just a block or two from the Aquarium that will take your car for half the price of the Aquarium's own $10-a-car garage.  Look for the touts flapping red flags.

     Why am I so enthusiastic?  Read on...

One of my favorite Florida hangouts is on U.S. 1 in Hobe Sound. Feb. 25, 2007

By Wendy Perrin

As I sit here in snowbound N.Y.C. dreaming of the Sunshine State I just left, I realize I neglected to post photos from Harry and the Natives, one of my favorite roadside breakfast and burger joints. I'm no food critic--colorful local atmosphere matters more to me than gourmet cuisine--so for a reliable review you can read TCPalm or PalmBeachPost. (Why there's only one measly mention of Harry's on Chowhound is a travesty.)

At Harry's they've transformed the hood of a 1950s Ford pick-up truck into a barbecue grill.

The alleys and courtyards of Palm Beach, Florida, have always reminded me a bit of Capri's (with Venetian-style architecture and Iberian-style tile thrown in).

By Wendy Perrin

Now we're farther up Florida's Treasure Coast, visiting my friend Mary near Palm Beach. Mary and I were crazy enough yesterday to take the kids window-shopping in the Italianate courtyards off Worth Avenue.

Doug checking out a fountain in a Venetian-style courtyard, Feb. 23, 2007

The kids got a kick out of the "dog bars" that are a signature of this elegant winter beach resort.

Only on Worth Avenue.

Inside the cockpit of a DC-9 at the Museum of Discovery and Science in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Feb. 22, 2007

By Wendy Perrin

Regular readers of this blog know that the kids and I rarely miss a children's museum. Yesterday we hit the Museum of Discovery and Science in Fort Lauderdale. The highlight for Charlie and Doug was the MarsQuest exhibit, on display through April 30:

Plying the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway and its canals in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Feb. 20, 2007.

By Wendy Perrin

Now THIS is my kind of cruise!

Life is easy and breezy here in Fort Lauderdale, where the only way to sightsee is by boat. Sailing along the city's canals, you see  . . .

. . . gorgeous house after gorgeous house . . .

. . . gorgeous boat after gorgeous boat . . .

. . . and gorgeous tree after gorgeous tree.

Me and a "Seafood Martini" at the restaurant Barton G. in Miami Beach.

By Wendy Perrin

How many calories can one consume in a day?  If you're judging a Bacardi Bartender & Chef Cruise Competition in Miami, about 10 million.

By Wendy Perrin

Question from a reader:

"I read that when shopping in certain countries abroad you can get a Value Added Tax (V.A.T.) or Goods & Services Tax (G.S.T.) refund. Does the United States have any similar tax refunds for visitors to the U.S.?"

Louisiana is the only state I know of that offers tax-free shopping specifically for foreigners. Anyone know of other states that do?  Please educate me by clicking on "Post a comment" below.

Of course, foreigners can buy from duty-free stores at U.S. airports.  And certain U.S. states and cities promote tax-free shopping for everyone, including locals.

To learn about getting a V.A.T. or G.S.T. refund when you travel abroad, click here.

By Wendy Perrin

I see in the news that one of Atlanta's biggest conventions, which starts today, will draw close to 43,000 attendees because of the huge tourist lure that is the new Georgia Aquarium, the largest in the world.  Atlanta-bound and angling to be fully awed by the world's most gobsmacking fish tank?  Here's a tip:

Go at 8:00 a.m. (the Aquarium is so popular that you must buy tickets in advance for a specific entry time) so you're among the first visitors to enter the building.  Head straight for the Ocean Voyager exhibit to the right, but enter via the exhibit's exit rather than its entrance.  The exit is an unmarked passage just to the right of the restrooms.  It leads to the Aquarium's piece de resistance: a 61-foot-wide by 23-foot-tall glass (well, acrylic) viewing wall--one side of a tank that holds 6 million gallons of salt water and 100,000 sea creatures.  Talk about a room with a view.  And last month, when Tim and the kids and I strolled into this room at 8:05 am, we had it entirely to ourselves!

Charlie and Doug at the Ocean Voyager viewing wall

By 8:20 the room had grown crowded and noisy, its majesty diminished, so we left for the exhibit's entrance: a 100-foot-long underwater tunnel that runs below the giant tank. Here again we gawked at the four whale sharks (the world's largest fish species), hammerhead sharks, stingrays, and giant goliath grouper.

Me and the kids in the underwater tunnel