French Quarter-Inspired Inn with Onsite Restaurant

Though it's in the heart of Texas Hill Country, Crescent Quarters channels New Orleans, the Crescent City, in both name and design. The hotel exudes French Quarter charm, from its wrought-iron balconies to the hanging planters and gas lanterns. N'awlins also inspired some of the guest rooms, including one decorated with the famous Blue Dog paintings of Cajun artist George Rodrigue and another furnished in festive Mardi Gras purples and golds.

The rest of the rooms and suites carry out much different motifs. The Far East room features Buddhist images against bamboo-covered walls, and the French room channels continental elegance with a fireplace, French boudoir, and life-size cardboard cutout of Napoleon Bonaparte. Some rooms come with other chic touches such as granite vanities and polished hardwood floors, and the two suites come furnished with hot tubs.

Complimentary breakfast is served every morning in the common room. For lunch and dinner, head to the in-house restaurant, Cypress Grille and Wine Bar, run by chefs who trained at the Culinary Institute of America and Le Cordon Bleu. The casual eatery serves comfort-food favorites with creative twists, such as dried-fruit ravioli and smoked barbecue pork sandwiches with grilled pineapple. As a bonus, Cypress Grille and Wine Bar will give Groupon customers a complimentary dessert with the purchase of an entree.

Boerne, Texas: Historic German Town in Texas Hill Country

A popular summer escape for Austinites and San Antonians, the Hill Country of west-central Texas usually enjoys cooler temperatures than surrounding areas thanks to its higher elevation. Among the region's towns, Boerne stands out for its unique history as an early 19th-century German settlement. Some vestiges of the old days are still around, including the bilingual, German-style street signs. Crescent Quarters overlooks Boerne's Main Street-or Hauptstrasse-which features a smattering of shops and restaurants that cater to the influx of out-of-towners that use the town as a convenient home base for exploring the Hill Country.

Boerne is also home to a few limestone caves that have been paved through with walkways and lights for public tours. Cascade Caverns, 4 miles from the inn, features a half-mile stretch of stalactite and stalagmite formations and plunging caves inhabited by a rare and endangered salamander. Tours of the caverns lead through narrow passageways and end with a view of a 100-foot waterfall cascading into a pitch-black pool.

Read the Fine Print for important info on travel dates and other restrictions.

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Spacious Rooms Overlooking St. Johns River

The St. Johns River-which neatly slices Jacksonville, Florida, down the middle-is one of the only rivers in America that flows north. Along its banks, the Jacksonville Landing has been attracting residents and visitors for more than 20 years with swanky shops, creative eateries, live-music clubs, and more than 300 special outdoor events held every year. The Wyndham Jacksonville Riverwalk occupies a prime spot directly across the river from the Landing and in the heart of the city's trendy San Marco entertainment district.

Each standard room in the hotel features contemporary and warm decor, with marigold-yellow walls and golden-hued linens. In the morning, you can head downstairs for a complimentary cooked-to-order breakfast in the Wyndham's St. John's Cafe, then snooze peacefully in the sun while suspended in a hammock next to the outdoor pool.

Jacksonville, Florida: Sprawling City with Public Parks and Open Squares

Located in northern Florida 25 miles from the Georgia state line, Jacksonville has the distinction of being the largest city, area-wise, in the United States. This doesn't translate to vast expanses of pavement and canyons of skyscrapers, however. More than 80,000 acres of parkland lie within the city limits, surrounding visitors with lush landscaping and squirrel networking opportunities. A particularly nice park is Tree Hill Nature Center. Located five minutes from downtown, this green space is crisscrossed with 50 acres of trails leading through shady forests.

The neighborhood where the Wyndham is located, San Marco, is one of Jacksonville's oldest. Noted for its 1920s-era Mediterranean Revival homes-featuring balconies, terra-cotta tile roofs, and elaborate carvings-the area rewards sightseers with interesting architecture around every turn. As the sun goes down, head over to the San Marco Square, an open piazza surrounded by upscale restaurants and an old-fashioned movie theater.

Read the Fine Print for important info on travel dates and other restrictions.

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Museums instill wonder in children who have become bored with their own closets full of skeletons. Discover a body of knowledge with this Groupon.

Choose Between Two Options $5 for two museum admissions (up to a $10 value) $30 for a one-year family membership (a $60 value)

O. Winston Link Museum

While stationed on Long Island to conduct secret war research for the U.S. government during World War II, O. Winston Link started snapping photographs of the Long Island Railroad tracks behind his lab. Eager to capture large-scale railroad pictures at night, he built his own customized flash equipment. After the war, Link harnessed that creative curiosity by spending five years photographing the Norfolk and Western Railway, the last large steam-powered American railroad. From his 20 trips to the railway's tracks in four states, Link collected 2,400 pictures.

His work didn't garner attention until the 1980s, when he published his first collection of railroad photos in the lauded book Steam, Steel & Stars. The West Virginia Historical Society continues to preserve his legacy with the O. Winston Link Museum, which showcases Link's Norfolk and Western project while filling in its historical context. Throughout seven galleries, patrons hear the sounds of bustling locomotive engines, adjust the lighting of an interactive diorama's photograph, and ogle Link's original photographic equipment, including flashbulbs, power boxes, and super power boxes. The museum underscores its edifying galleries with a plentitude of tours, workshops, and ongoing photography programs.

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In the Victorian era, extreme sports were limited to teatime without doilies, writing witty satires about earnestness, and riding a penny-farthing down a mild incline. Shock such staid sensibilities with this Groupon.

Choose from Three Options $25 for a half-day whitewater-rafting adventure on the Ocoee River (up to a $53 value) $50 for the above option with a CD of photos from the experience (up to a $102.95 value) $80 for a weekend escape for two, including a half-day rafting adventure, photos on CD, and one night of camping at Ocoee base camp (up to a $167.95 value)

Adventures Unlimited

Foaming white rapids rush down the Ocoee River as birds chatter from within the leaves of towering trees. For nearly two decades, this has been the home of Adventures Unlimited, an environmentally sustainable full-service resort rolling with 30 acres of campgrounds, cabins, and whitewater-rafting facilities. Landscaping and gardens highlight native plants and animals, vehicles run on biodiesel fuel, and any construction efforts use sustainable materials or rocks that everyone was always tripping over anyway. The family-operated adventure company launches groups on whitewater-rafting trips through the tumultuous currents of the local Ocoee and Hiawassee Rivers or further afield in Costa Rica.

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Visiting a historical site lets families experience history more powerfully than reading aloud from Grandpa's diary or re-creating early cinema by taping down the mute button. Honor the past with this Groupon.

$10 for Admission and Walking Tour for Two (Up to $20 Value)

Group walking tours circle the grounds every hour on the half-hour from 10:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Admission to the memorial also lets pairs wander at their leisure.

Children 6 and younger get free admission. Students and children younger than 18 get discounted admission, but this Groupon still represents the best value for adults.

National D-Day Memorial

Every year, thousands of visitors wander the paths at the National D-Day Memorial, where 88 acres of verdant grass and lush forests at the foot the Blue Ridge Mountains stand in for the coastlines of Normandy on June 6, 1944. After passing beneath a 44-foot stone arch inscribed with _Overlord_-the official name of the military operation-visitors immerse themselves in a re-creation of the beach landing on that fateful day. A reflecting pool commemorates the battle itself with statues of soldiers marching through the water, struggling along the beach, and standing to face the enemy. A military plane sits nearby, emblazoned with markings of the Allied Forces. Plaques also dot the grounds, honoring the soldiers and sharing more about World War II history. Though the scene may be solemn, lush gardens and rippling flags remind visitors of the world that the soldiers fought to protect.

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