In the 1870s, Washington residents would pay 50 cents for a six-hour boat ride from Georgetown to Great Falls in Potomac.
They would picnic and see the falls, enjoy a respite from the city's muggy heat, then head back on the mule-drawn canal boat.
Travelers an get a taste of 19th-century life with an hourlong ride on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. The Charles F. Mercer is a replica of the vessels used to transport tourists in those days, right down to its crew.
The canvas-topped boat departs from the Great Falls Visitor Center three times a day, four days a week, to take its passengers on a slow journey along a half-mile stretch of the canal and back. The center houses a museum with displays on canal life and is a short walk from the falls. It's easy to think you've traveled back in time, too, when surrounded by park staff and volunteers dressed in clothing that was common 150 years ago.
Mules pull the canal boat much of the way, but visitors get to travel through one of the canal's hand-operated locks as a guide explains how the system works to lift or lower the boat to different water levels. Passengers also learn the details of life in the 1870s and the effect the canal had on the city.
The trip departs from the Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center, 11710 MacArthur Blvd., Potomac, Md. Departure times are 11 a.m. and 1:30 and 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday through October. Cost is $5, ages 3 and younger free. Similar rides depart from 1057 Thomas Jefferson St. NW in Georgetown. Low water and weather can affect the boat schedule, so call ahead.
Details: 301-767-3714 or www.nps.gov/choh .
Foodies might know Mike Colameco as the host of the PBS show "Calameco's Food Show."
Calameco, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, has complied "Mike Colameco's Food Lover's Guide to NYC," an exhaustive and eminently authoritative tour of the city's most distinctive and deserving restaurants.
No trend-chaser, Coalmeco cautions readers to take restaurant blogs like Eater and RestaurantGirl with a grain of salt. A restaurant needs time to grow, he writes, and while it might be hip to be the first to blog about a new establishment, most bloggers lack the experience and credentials to critique a restaurant fairly. Colameco, on the other hand, knows the business inside and out. He displays an impressive knowledge of each establishment, its history, culinary philosophy, the unique personalities behind it, and the quality of the food. Of course, he also provides a brief description of the place, atmosphere and price range. He listed only restaurants that have a certain "New Yorkness" to them, as opposed to chains and theme restaurants. Try the legendary Carnegie Deli on Seventh Avenue for the pastrami, corned beef and cheesecake. If you crave cold Korean noodles, head to Dae Dong, on West 32nd St. To see and be seen -- and to drop a whole lot of money -- there's the reincarnated Le Cirque. Colameco also includes chapters on Bakers and Dessert Specialty Shops, Chocolatiers, Wine Shops and Markets. (Wiley; $19.95; 462 pages; softcover)
Are you mad as hell about airline fees⢠Well, there's a website where you can tell the world exactly how mad you are. And it's called, appropriately enough, Madashellabouthiddenfees.com .
Launched in September by the Consumer Travel Alliance, the Business Travel Coalition and the American Society of Travel Agents, the site offers a forum where travelers can tell their hidden-fee stories, create YouTube videos and sign a petition urging the Department of Transportation to require airlines to do a better job of disclosing fees. The three groups also have declared Sept. 23 to be "Mad as Hell Day!" and plan to deliver the petition to the Transportation Department on that date.
Travelers "are tired of arriving at the airport and finding huge unexpected costs for travel services they thought were part of the ticket price," Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Traveler Coalition said in a written statement. "It's time for consumers, corporate travel managers and travel agents to stand up and say, 'We're not going to take this anymore!' "
In a survey conducted by the groups during the two weeks before Labor Day, 66 percent of 1,396 respondents said they had been surprised at the airport by fees for services such as checking bags, requesting a seat assignment, getting extra legroom or flying standby. Almost all -- 99 percent -- said they think that airlines should be required to disclose all their fees in advance on every website that sells airline tickets. Those travelers eventually could get their way. The Transportation Department is considering new rules that would require disclosure of baggage fees and more transparent fare advertising.
