Try special package at Four Seasons Hotel downtown

Chicago

Summer may be the best of the four seasons

Who doesn't want to summer in the Hamptons, but if the economy and the twins nearing college age are keeping you from a Fourth of July trip, take advantage of a new package at the Four Seasons Hotel Chicago, 120 East Delaware Place, Chicago. The Experience More package pays you to stay at the luxury downtown property. Reserve the package and receive a $100 to $200 room credit per night (based on room category) for a two-night minimum stay - it's the hotel's best two-night deal. With rates starting at $395 per night, you can enjoy five-star service and accommodations with stunning city and lake views beginning at $295 per night when the credit is applied (excludes tax). Take in the city's back-to-back lakefront fireworks displays on Friday, July 3, and Saturday, July 4, entertainment and food at the Taste of Chicago, free family activities at Lincoln Park Zoo, Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the scenic lakefront.

The Experience More Package is valid through Tuesday, Sept. 8. Call (312) 280-8400 or visit fourseasons.com/chicagofs.

Belly (dance) up to the bazaar

Get a feel for the Middle East during Chicago Arabesque, the city's 3rd Annual Arab Festival, featuring live music and dance, calligraphy, cuisine, a fashion show and shopping bazaar with exotic goods. Enjoy dance troupes including belly dancers, Egyptian dancers and performers demonstrating the national dance of the people of the Levant in Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Jordan and parts of Iraq. Musical performances include percussionists, classical, folk and contemporary music from the Arabic, Greek and Balkan traditions on a variety of instruments like the oud, Arabic tabla (darbukka), riqq (tambourine) and duff (frame drum). Sample Middle Eastern cuisine including handmade Syrian ice cream and coffee, spinach and cheese pies, pita bread, hummus, tabooed, kobbeh and babaganoush. Browse the bazaar's jewelry, ethnic clothing, Iraqi paintings, Palestinian embroidered purses, pillows and shawls, musical instruments, Palestinian olive oil, Jordanian artisan handcrafts, cookbooks, Moroccan bags, lamps and more.

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday to Friday, June 24-26, and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, June 27, at Daley Plaza, 50 W. Washington St. Call (312) 744-4115 or visit chicagoarabesque.com.

Eat, drink and be airy

For something completely different (and free), sample an Edible Audible Picnic presented by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Millennium Park. The noontime picnic is a sonic smorgasbord of cutting-edge music from rock bands, sound artists, electronic musicians and audio documentarians. Experience audio art pieces by local, national and international artists, reggae and rock music with the surround sound of the Jay Pritzker Pavilion's state-of-the-art sound system. Held every Monday (except July 13) on the Great Lawn, the event is suitable for all ages.

Noon on Mondays, June 22 to Aug. 24 (except July 13), at Millennium Park, Michigan Avenue and Randolph Street. Call (312) 745-0040 or visit egov.cityofchicago.org.

Midwest

Indiana jones for jazz

Some 150 national and international jazz musicians descend upon the serene town of Elkhart, Ind., wailing classic, swing, big band, bebop, contemporary, ragtime, Latin, Dixieland and jazz at the Elkhart Jazz Festival. Held on six stages, each of the fest's four sessions offers up to 30 different sets and with your ticket you're free to visit the different venues and see favorite artists. Venues are all within easy walking distance of each other and many hotels in Elkhart are served by the festival shuttle bus. There are ticket packages for single-session or all-session admission and children 10 and under free.

5:30 p.m. to midnight, Friday, June 26; noon to midnight, Saturday, June 27; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, June 28, at 319 S. Main St., in downtown Elkhart. Call (800) 597- 7627 or visit elkhartjazzfestival.com.

Ardor for Ann Arbor

There are summer festivals and then there's the Ann Arbor Summer Festival, an exhilarating celebration of performing arts and outdoor entertainment offering dozens of performances, activities and screenings of film and visual arts, eclectic music, dance, comedy and family fun. Celebrating its 26th season, the festival produces two concurrent programs, one indoor and one outdoor on the campus of the University of Michigan in downtown Ann Arbor. The indoor Mainstage series features ticketed performances of world-class music, dance, theater and comedy. Diana Krall, Gladys Knight and The Capitol Steps will be just a few of the performers. Top of the Park will offer 24 consecutive nights of outdoor admission-free concerts, movies, open-air attractions and family activities from tango lessons to films like "Twilight."

Hours vary by day. Festival runs Sunday, June 21, to Sunday, July 5. Call (734) 994-5999 or visit annarborsummerfestival.org/.

Worth the trip

If you catch yourself daydreaming about a trip to California wine country, but a whining child always snaps you out of it, you're dream may come true courtesy of the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa. During the month of July, kids get pampered at California's classic resort destination, which includes a new poolside arcade featuring Nintendo Wii and other popular video games. Poolside princess manicure/pedicure spa appointments will get little Paris ready for a night at the ice cream shop, plus there is a variety of scheduled family activities including movies, fitness and yoga classes for all ages, local hikes, pool games, tours and s'mores by the fire-pit. Take advantage of offers and discounts to a number of regional family-friendly destinations including Train Town, Safari West and Six Flags Discovery. The Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn's kids specialists create personalized family itineraries, which may include visits to Muir Woods, hot air balloon rides, the Petrified Forest, horseback riding, Jelly Belly factory tours and more. Summer Wine Country Family Packages start from $289 per night and there are no additional fees for sofa-bed accommodations, rollaways and/or in-room tents. Monday to Thursday, children under 17 staying in the same room eat free breakfast when ordering from the kid's menu.

Wine Country Family Packages are valid through July at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa, 100 Boyes Blvd. in Sonoma Valley, 40 miles north of San Francisco. Call (800) 441-1414 or visit fairmont.com/sonoma.