Repost from CNN
Price: $220,000
Beds: 2
Baths: 2
The cool, rocky Maine coast has been a favorite summer destination for generations of boaters, recreational fishermen and nature lovers. This year-round home perches on 700 feet of shore on Cobscook Bay, where huge tides flood in and out four times a day. The two-story Cape Cod features a wood-burning stove, galley kitchen, an artist studio and a workshop. It's fully insulated so off-season stays are possible as well.
This part of Maine, hard on the Canadian border, is quieter and less touristy than the parts closer to population centers. Recreation mostly focus on the outdoors, with whale watching, sailing and birding all popular. There are also great hikes and lobster pounds and lighthouses to visit.
Price: $1.199 million
Beds: 4
Baths: 5
This 2,400-square-foot Victorian is on a quarter-acre lot facing seaward toward Onset Bay, a lovely little cove of Buzzards Bay. Besides the main house, with its rocking-chair porch, two balconies and modern kitchen with breakfast nook, it has a separate carriage house with two two-bedroom apartments. The summer is prime time for this vacation home, with its private beach and easy 10-minute walk to town shops. It's on the mainland side of the Cape Cod Canal, so those long drives up the Cape in Friday night traffic won't trouble residents of this house.
The beach and the sea are the big recreational attractions. Shore communities all over the state swell with refugees from Boston, New York and other cities.
Price: $219,900
Beds: 5
Baths: 2
This lovely 1923 vacation home is a block from Lake Michigan's northeast shore. The lake is a freshwater inland sea with shorelines too distant to see from the opposite sides and with shipping lanes filled with great cargo ships. Some 12 million people live beside the lake, but not many of them this far up in the Lower Peninsula. This vacation house has a tumbled-stone front porch, hardwood floors, large rooms, formal dining room, fireplace and a three-car garage. There's a second kitchen upstairs for convenient late night snacking.
In additional to the boating, swimming and fishing, which headline the recreational opportunities, there's nearby casinos and some of the state's best ski resorts. It's about a four hour drive from Detroit.
Price: $240,000
Beds: 2
Baths: 2
The mountains north of San Bernardino and the lakes tucked into the valleys there have lured refugees from Los Angeles for decades. The cool, dry mountain air at more than 5,000 feet elevation and shady hillsides of pine and cypress trees are a welcome relief from smog and heat. This cabin is near the western edge of the area, an easy 90-minute drive from central L.A.. It's walking distance from Lake Gregory and from the shops and restaurants of Crestline.
The charming cabin is roomy, about 1,400 square feet, and its layout affords residents privacy with the guest room on the first floor and the master suite on the second. Visitors here can boat, fish, hike and enjoy great mountain bikes. In winter, there's plenty of good skiing.
Price: $1.495 million
Beds: 5
Baths: 4.5
Brigantine is not the Jersey shore made notorious by Snookie, The Situation and the rest of their crowd. It's a quiet, scenic, family oriented place. There's a wildlife preserve that attracts nature lovers from all over.Most Americans don't realize how far south New Jersey reaches: Brigantine is about the same latitude as Baltimore, meaning the waters warm quickly in early summer and stay comfortable for swimming late in the season.
The beach at Brigantine is quite pristine and this house is just steps away. There's also a gorgeous in-ground pool with waterfall. Inside the house are a gourmet kitchen, cathedral ceilings and a great room with fireplace.
Price: $1.237 million
Beds: 6
Baths: 6
South Padre is a barrier island on the Gulf Coast and is about as far south as you can go in Texas and still be in the United States. The beach here goes on for miles and there are extensive areas of sand dunes and salt marshes.It's a prime destination for "Winter Texans" -- northerners, mostly retirees, who flee south to escape the deep freeze.
Here they can boat, fish, swim and enjoy wildlife viewing that includes resident dolphin pods and an annual bird migration of warblers, tanagers, orioles and other songbirds.
This luxury property sits right near the water and has beach views from its twin balconies out front. There's more than 4,300 square feet under the roof, with such features as a curved, marble staircase, cathedral ceiling and an elevator.
Price: $229,000
Beds: 3
Baths: 2
This part of Kentucky is physically and culturally part of Appalachia and the lakes, stream and heavily wooded hills here attract fishers and hunters. Its proximity to Lexington, Louisville and Cincinnati, make the house very accessible. The home itself is a modern lake chalet with wood siding, a wrap-around deck, fire pit and hot tub on a 1.3-acre lot. Inside there's central air, cherry floors, a stone fireplace and wiring for satellite TV and high-speed internet service. The wood paneled great room with its triple-story ceiling add to the home's rustic look.
It overlooks a crystal clear five-acre lake where whitetail deer and wild turkeys are regular visitors. Nearby is the Daniel Boone National Forest.
Price: $149,900
Beds: 3
Baths: 2
This compact cottage may be small, but it's cute and there are three bedrooms and two full baths. Who needs to rattle around in a lot of extra space on vacation anyway? The beach is steps away and offers beach chair and umbrella rentals. In addition, the community has swimming pools, miniature golf, oceanfront playgrounds and security.
The whole Myrtle Beach area has become a huge vacation destination for the thriving inland cities of South and North Carolina. Both Charlotte and Raleigh are not much more than three hours distance.
In addition to the beach and amusement park culture, the area offers more than 250 golf courses. With the mild climate, these attract golfers throughout most of the year and make a big contribution to the 15 million annual visitors Myrtle Beach pulls in.