If you’re going to skip town on your family for Thanksgiving, you might as well go somewhere warm. Heading down to the Florida Keys is a good bet for nice weather and beach time, and the relaxed atmosphere doesn't allow for Black Friday insanity.

For dinner, head to Pepe's on Caroline Street. This is one of the oldest restaurants in Key West, and the place serves up a Thanksgiving-style meal every Thursday.

Then, instead of watching the parade on TV, head out to the water where kiteboarders are planning to congregate during the holiday weekend to put on a show for anyone watching. If the winds are blowing the right way on Saturday, a group plans to ride about 80 miles through the water from Islamarada to Key West.

Related Stories:
· Pepe's Cafe [Yelp]
· Thanksgiving in the Florida Keys? [Kiteboarding Magazine]
· Thanksgiving coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Stig Nygaard]]]> kjb 2008-11-21T13:03:36-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/20/165145/87

Most of the year, riding horses in Arizona sounds like a great way to get heat stroke. But just as the Northeast settles in for a long winter, temps in the Grand Canyon state are in the balmy 70s, making the choice to pull on jeans and boots seem less horrible. Spend Thanksgiving weekend letting someone else do the walking at the Grapevine Canyon Ranch in Pearce.

Ride through fields of cacti near this small town southeast of Tucson, then after you get back from the dusty trails--6 to 7 hours of riding a day are included--kick back in a hot tub in your villa before tucking into Thanksgiving dinner. No TV and no in-room phones means you can concentrate on... Well, whatever you do when you're not reading Jaunted. (We'll miss you, but you could use the break!)

Related Stories:
· Cruise, Ride, Fly, Eat and Relax This Thanksgiving: Last-Minute Deals and Discounts [Frommers.com]
· Horsing Around on Beautiful Back Roads [Jaunted]
· Thanksgiving coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: GCranch.com]]]> egw 2008-11-20T17:20:16-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/18/173432/45

President Bush made his now-annual announcement today that "military airspace" would be opened up to commercial traffic to ease Thanksgiving travel in the US this year.

Of course, as was pointed out last year, the move doesn't guarantee a trouble-free holiday travel season. Still, the announcement gave the outgoing president the chance to try out a joke:

The past eight years I have not seen a traffic jam, waited for an airplane or had my bags lost.

Hilarious.

Related Stories:
· President Bush Tells a Joke [Airline Biz Blog]
· Bush Opens Military Airspace [WaPo]
· Bush Opens Airspace for Thanksgiving Travelers [Peter Greenberg]
· Bush Moves to Open More Flight Lanes for Holiday [AP, via Google]

[Photo of JFK: Carl Puentes Photography]]]> pbb 2008-11-18T17:34:32-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/14/10552/670

If you need any further evidence of Christmas Creep, here it is: The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree arrived in Midtown this morning, almost two full weeks before Thanksgiving. Say what you will about the commercialization of Jesus' B-day, but the 8-ton, 72-foot-tall, 80-year-old Norway spruce is pretty impressive.

Crews will now string the tree with five miles of wire and 30,000 solar-powered LEDs in advance of the December 3 lighting ceremony, which promises stars like Beyonce, Tony Bennett and the Jonas Brothers. The spruce will be topped by the massive Swarovski star unveiled by Fergie earlier this week.

Related Stories:
· Fergie Presents the Rockefeller Center Star [Newsday]
· Stars Lined up for Christmas Tree Event [Chicago Sun-Times]

[Photo of last year's tree: pbb]]]> pbb 2008-11-14T10:15:13-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/13/125352/48

Traveling on Thanksgiving is like competing in the Olympics--if the games were populated by knuckleheads who hadn't taken a flight since we started taking our shoes off for the TSA. If you're reading Jaunted, you're already ahead of the pack, but maintain your lead through hurdles like involuntary schedule changes and forgetfulness with our super-guide to the airport.]]> egw 2008-11-13T13:32:51-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/10/113831/74

New York City's gets all the glory, but if you can't get excited about standing around in the cold waiting for a Thanksgiving parade to start, set your sights on SoCal. The Mother Goose Parade in San Diego County may never inspire a Super Bowl ad, but it would make for a great game of "Hey! It's That Guy!"

Grand marshals for the 2008 parade, which begins at 10 am on Sunday, November 23 are Tori Spelling (Hey! It's that reality star who was on the original 90210!) and KayCee Stroh (Hey! It's the break-dancing nerd from "High School Musical"!) Other slots for your Celebrity Bingo card should go to Chris Knight (see Spelling, only substitute "The Brady Bunch" for 90210), Mason Vale Cotton (Hey! It's that kid from "Desperate Housewives"!) and Lou Ferrigno (Hey! It's that Hulk!)

Guess in this case the parade's proximity to Hollywood brings all these guys and girls out of the woodwork. Snoopy, that's your cue to move.

Related Stories:
· Morally Ambiguous Travel: Just Relax And Enjoy New York's Columbus Day Parade [Jaunted]
· Macy's Parade Hotels [HC]
· Thanksgiving coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo from the 2007 Mother Goose parade: Bisayan lady]]]> egw 2008-11-10T13:50:10-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/6/155553/533

Guess who's coming to dinner: Maybe not your relatives! A Travelocity survey released Thursday trumpets the fact that Thanksgiving weekend fares are going down, but really--who are they kidding?

With holiday weekend travel expected to drop in the face of the R-Word, the airlines would do well to lower fares before the big day gets here. But the big news, according to Travelocity? Fares are "only" up 9 percent over last year--though with a checked bag fee, it's more like 15 percent. (And that's without paper ticketing fees, phone reservation fees, change fees... or drinks if you're unlucky enough to be flying US Air.)

So do we strap ourselves in and buy Thanksgiving tickets early on November 22, in the classic low-fare hour? What, and get stuck in middle seats all the way to Fargo? No thanks. Don't count on the major carriers to lower fares by much more; besides, with some 3,000 flights cut, there's no guarantee those seats will be there.

Whether you're already booked or planning to staycate, Jaunted promises to improve on your holiday without confusing "down" for "up." But for now we ask: What are your plans for Thanksgiving this year?

Related Stories:
· Save On Airline Tickets, Shop On Saturday Morning [Consumerist]
· Thanksgiving coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: osheas]]]> egw 2008-11-07T09:50:08-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/