Los Angeles, California
 
The entire world knows what Los Angeles looks like. It's a real-life version of one of those souvenir postcard folders that spill out images accordion-style: Tall palm trees sweeping an azure sky; the "Hollywood" sign gleaming huge and white against a shrub-blanketed hillside; freeways flowing like concrete rivers across the landscape; a lone surfer, silhouetted against the sunset's glow, riding the day's last wave. These seductive images are just a few of many that bring to mind the city that just about everyone loves to hate--and to experience, at least once in a lifetime.

Home to the planet's first amusement park, L.A. regularly feels like one, as the line between fantasy and reality is so often obscured. From the unattainable, anachronistic glamour of Beverly Hills to the earthy, often scary street-energy of Venice, each of the city's diverse neighborhoods is like a mini-theme park, offering its own kind of adventure. The colors of this city seem a little bit brighter--and more surreal--than they do in other cities, the angles just a little sharper. Everything seems larger than life. Los Angeles gleefully embraces individuality, weirdness, and change.

Acapulco, Mexico
 
The energy in Acapulco is nonstop, 24 hours a day. Acapulco Bay is an adult playground filled with water-skiers in tanga swimsuits and darkly tanned, mirror-shaded studs on Waverunners. Golf and tennis are also played with intensity, but the real participant sport is the nightlife that has made this city famous for decades.
When there was a definitive jet set, they came to Acapulco--filmed it, sang about it, wrote about it, and lived it. It is not hard to understand why: The view of Acapulco Bay, framed by mountains and beaches, is breathtaking day or night.

Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa, Mexico

IIxtapa and Zihuatanejo are side-by-side beach resorts that share a common geography, but in character, they could not be more different. Ixtapa is a model of modern infrastructure, services, and luxury hotels, while Zihuatanejo--or Zihua, to the locals--is the quintessential Mexican beach village. For travelers, this offers an ideal contrast and the best of both worlds. Those looking for luxury should opt for Ixtapa and take advantage of well-appointed rooms in a pristine setting of great natural beauty. You can easily and quickly make the four-mile trip into Zihuatanejo for a sampling of the simple life of this pueblo by the sea. Those who prefer a more rustic retreat with real personality, however, tend to settle in Zihuatanejo. It is noted for its long-standing community of Swiss and Italian immigrants, and its legendary beach playboys. Those who enjoy Zihua seem to return year after year.

The area, with a backdrop of the Sierra Madre Mountains and a foreground of Pacific waters, provides a full range of activities and diversions. Scuba diving, deep-sea fishing, bay cruises to remote beaches, and golf are among the favorites. Nightlife in both towns borders on the subdued, but Ixtapa is the livelier.

This dual destination is the choice for the traveler looking for a little of everything, from resort-styled indulgence to unpretentious simplicity. These resorts are more welcoming to couples and adults than families, with a number of places off-limits to children under 16 - something of a rarity in Mexico.

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
 
If you are looking for the ideal place for a fun and relaxing vacation, Puerto Vallarta is a perfect choice for many reasons. Referred to by many as the gay capitol of Mexico, Puerto Vallarta offers wonderful weather, exciting beaches, shopping, mountain activities, great restaurants and exhilarating nightlife.
 
Vallarta has a large and visible gay and lesbian community including both Mexicans and foreigners. Gay or bisexual visitors will find a wide range of gay-friendly hotels. Vallarta offers almost 20 different options for gay nightlife, including neighborhood cantinas, trendy martini bars, sidewalk or beach bars, stripper clubs, and discothèques. New businesses are opened by gay entrepreneurs in Vallarta every year, offering clothing and accessories, fine art and Mexican craft items, restaurants to suit every taste and budget, home furnishings and much more. With so much to offer, it is not surprising that Vallarta is the #1 most-returned-to vacation destination in the world. People discover Vallarta and they keep coming back.

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

The hundreds of luxury hotel rooms along the Corridor north of Cabo San Lucas have transformed this formerly rustic and rowdy outpost. Although it retains boisterous nightlife, Cabo San Lucas is no longer the simple town Steinbeck wrote about. Once legendary for big-game fish, Cabo San Lucas now draws more people for its nearby world-class fairways and greens. This has become Mexico's most elite resort destination.

Travelers enjoy a growing roster of adventure-oriented activities, and the nightlife is as hot as the desert in July. A collection of popular restaurants and bars along Cabo's main street stay open and active until the morning's first fishing charters head out to sea. Despite the growth in diversions, Cabo remains more or less a one-stoplight town, with most everything located along the main strip.

Aside from fishing, sports available in Cabo San Lucas include surfing, whale-watching, kayaking and boat trips to Los Arcos or uninhabited beaches. All-inclusive daytime or sunset cruises are available on a variety of boats, including a restored pirate ship. Many of these trips include snorkeling; serious divers have great underwater venues to explore.

Sports and partying are Cabo's main attractions, but there are also a few cultural and historical points of interest. The stone Iglesia de San Lucas (Church of San Lucas) on Calle Cabo San Lucas (close to the main plaza) was established in 1730 by the Spanish missionary Nicolás Tamaral; a large bell in a stone archway commemorates the completion of the church in 1746. Buildings on the streets facing the main plaza are gradually being renovated to house restaurants and shops, and the picturesque neighborhood has the most Mexican ambiance in town.