Help me pick my destination for a summer trip

Have you been to Niagara Falls?  They have GREAT wineries on the Canadian side, the area is similar to Napa/Sedona, but without the hype. I actually went to California in September and then Niagara in October, so had a very close comparison.  LOVED Niagara.   We stayed in Niagara on the Lake, which is an adorable town.    Of course, you need a passport...

While the Falls were neat, i wouldn't recommend it without the Canada part.  We actually flew through Detroit on Delta to get to Buffalo, so should be a really easy trip for you.

We're actually a short drive from Niagra Falls and I was there many times through my youth.  I think we want to get a little farther from home.  Great suggestion though, thanks 

Funny you should mention that.  Hubby actually has a work conference and we talked about rolling that into a trip to include backpacking Estes Park--free airfare for him with it being a work thing.

The convention dates are just not the best for me.  But now you're making me rethink it......

You could try somewhere like Miami or Key West.  The only issue is that time frame is the height of our humid season so early Sept. would be better than July or Aug.

How about the Cape Breton Highlands?  I've never been but my hubby raves about it. It's definitely on my list. Apparently the drive, hiking, etc are amazing. And people there are very friendly. There can be some decent whale watching there as well.

I also really enjoyed Gros Morne Park in Newfoundland. It's a bit off the beaten path but there's some cool geography, great hiking - it's not very populated but there are lots of cabins and such. And you're guaranteed to see a ton of Moose.

For one more Canadian destination - Quebec City. It's really lovely.  You get the old city, and feel like you're away from North America but you're also within reach of lots of nature type activities, biking, hiking, etc. 

There are so many great options.... you've got some great options already on the list.

I-DA-HO!

Rafting, hiking, camping, fishing, cycling, great things in the wine-area.  All an easy days drive from Boise; with has a pretty cheap cost-of-living.  Plus-our best weather is in Aug-Sept.

We did a super fun long weekend trip.

Wife and I flew to Portland, rented a car and made our way down to Yachats.  We drove along the coast the entire way, and stopped where ever we wanted.  We found great hiking trails, sand dunes, and a street market happening in that town where the Goonies was filmed.  (Drawing a black right now).  Loads of hikes and things to do along the way..

It's a bit longer of a trip, as you've got to drive to Copper Harbour and take a boat, but Isle Royal?  It might actually be quicker to fly to MSP, drive to Grand Portage and take the boat lol.  United also flys from DTW to Hancock, and then there is another plane out to the island.

Canoe through Boundary Waters?

White Mountains, NH?

Newfoundland?

Thanks for offering that to me... 

Vegas?  Everyone like Vegas.  And it's cool that time of year.

BTW, Red Rocks has some seriously good climbing, but at that time of year, the stone could be a bit hot to hold on to for long periods of time.

x2 on Victoria/Vancouver/Seattle area. Hubs and I did a trip a couple of years ago. We had a good mix of activity, eats (we love good food) and relaxing.  I also vote for all things Colorado in the summer. No humidity, great hiking, camping, outdoor sports, etc. You could make your way to Red Rocks for a concert if you are near Denver. Lots of good options.

Excellent, thank you!  I'll talk to the hubs tonight and if we're going in this direction, I'll be PM'ing you.

My suggestions would be:

1)  Pacific Northwest/Seattle area:  Aug/Sept are beautiful...you could also venture to the Eastern WA area where they have a bunch of wineries and the Columbia River.  OR you could do Vancouver (the BC one, not the WA one).

2)  +1 on Sonoma...we've vacationed there about a dozen times over the years and love it, and it's only an hour from San Francisco so you can do the outdoors thing plus have a day or two in the city.  We've done both the rustic stay (Timber Cove Inn in Jenner), and the hotel chain stay (lots of different ones, usually in Santa Rosa).  Good weather there is September, too (marine layer is less prominent).

3)  San Diego.  Learn to surf.

4)  Baltimore (just kidding...though September is the nicest time of the year to visit Maryland).

5)  Cancun.  Yeah, I know...spring break city.  However, in late August/early September the crowds disappear and you'll have your resort pretty much to yourselves.  There are some neat tours you can do (like Chichen Itza or Tulum for ruins, or the Jungle Tour or off to Cozumel for snorkeling.  Playa del Carmen is also an option if you're more into the boutique hotel/find your own restaurant kind of thing (as opposed to the all-inclusives).   And Mexico is cheap in September.