Lena Hollis

Where do North Carolinians go when the flatlands hit 96? Up. At 4,000 feet, breakfast comes with sleeves and a breeze, and nobody apologizes for either. These are the North Carolina mountain escapes built for the hottest months. Blowing Rock North Carolina’s oldest attraction is a cliff that throws things back. The Blowing Rock hangs 4,000 feet above Johns River Gorge, and the walls below funnel wind straight up, hard enough to return a hat tossed over the edge.

You don’t always need a passport to feel far from home. Sometimes, you just need to cross a state line. These are the spots that make even lifelong New Yorkers double-check the map and ask, “Wait… are we still in the U.S.?” New Orleans, Louisiana If France and the Caribbean had a baby and let it grow up in the Deep South, it’d be New Orleans. The city’s got French street names, Creole cottages, wrought-iron balconies, and an accent that’s somehow half-French, half-gumbo.

Airports are basically the Hunger Games with rolling suitcases. Lines everywhere, overpriced food, and gate announcements that sound like they’re coming from underwater. Still, it doesn’t have to be that way. With the right tricks, Indianans can glide through like they’ve been doing this for years. Here are the little tricks seasoned travelers swear by when they’d rather keep their sanity than sprint across Terminal C. Download the Airline App Forget juggling paper boarding passes.