Take a Vacation From Your Car

Getting there/around: Take an hour-long ferry from several spots (from $38 round trip; check http://www.catalina.com/ for a list) or via a 15-minute helicopter ride with Island Express (800-228-2566; $140 round trip). Around town, rent a bike or ride the Avalon trolley ($1.50 one way). (A few cars are allowed by permit only.)

Where to stay: Catalina has about 30 hotels and B&Bs. Author Zane Grey's 1926 home is the 16-room Pueblo Hotel (310-510-0966, http://www.zanegreypueblohotel.com/ ; from $85). The six-room Inn on Mount Ada (800-608-7669, http://www.catalina.com/mtada/main.htm ; from $320) is the former home of gum magnate William Wrigley Jr.

Don't miss: A trip to see descendants of buffalo brought to Catalina for a 1924 movie filming.

Info: 310-510-1520, http://www.catalina.com/ .

· Mackinac Island, Mich.

Perfect for: History buffs interested in the nation's military past, French fur-trading and fudge shops.

What's there: Mackinac Island -- in northern Lake Michigan between Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas -- hasn't changed much since Victorian days, when Michiganders retreated there during hot summers. Built by the British during the Revolutionary War, Fort Mackinac saw action during the War of 1812. The island is a top spot for art and architecture lovers, too.

Getting there/around : A 16-minute ferry trip from Mackinac City and St. Ignace runs year-round, except when ice makes the water impassable ($18 round trip; check http://www.mackinacisland.org/ for a list of providers). On Mackinac, horse-drawn taxis cart visitors around (from $4); call 906-847-3323 for a reservation.

Where to stay: The Inn on Mackinac (800-462-2546, http://www.4mackinac.com/ ; from $104) has period furniture and an on-site fudge shop. Sit and chill on the 660-foot porch of the 385-room Grand Hotel (800-334-7263, http://www.grandhotel.com/ ; from $205).

Don't miss: The island's designated pub crawl.

Info: 800-454-5227, http://www.mackinacisland.org/ .