For local travelers looking for an experience in their own backyard, Day Trips (R) from Austin is the essential guide to things to see and do around Austin-from Waco's Texas Ranger Hall of Fame to Museum of Handmade Furniture in Braunfels. With a population of nearly 700,000, and a metro area of 1.7 million and growing, America's #1 College Town (Travel Channel) is an ideal starting point for these and other activities:

* Do something sweet: Visit Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham to see the making of ice cream and you can enjoy a free scoop at the tour's end.

* Do something wonderful: Take a ride on a miniature train for a tour of Texas's largest petting zoo, and have your mind bent in the Anti-Gravity House at Wonder World in San Marcos.

* Do something outdoorsy: Vacation at one of the many dude ranches that dot the landscape around Bandera for horseback riding, cookouts, fishing, hiking, and even country-western dance lessons.