The desert southwest comes to mind for April / May. The area around Moab, Capitol Reef or Zion National Parks.

Or how about Santa Fe / Taos area? Lots of options around there.

You could do an Anasazi themed vacation and hit places like Mesa Verde and Chaco Canyon.

My wife and I have done all of the above in April / May and it's been great.

To stick with the theme concept how about a Civil War sites tour in the south? Draw a circle around say, Shiloh, and see what other sites you might hit. We have not done this but it's high on the list!

Have fun planning.

I went to Banff and Jasper the first week in May for a librarians' conference several years ago. Lake Louise was completely frozen as were the famous waterfalls on the way north and Maligne Lake outside Jasper. You did get to see lots of wildlife because the sheep, in particular, were sleeping on the roads to stay warm!

Nelson's suggestions are excellent, and this is of course the season for gardens in Savannah, Charleston, and Richmond, though you may need to start taking allergy pills a month or so in advance because the pollen load from the explosions of flowers and trees can be hard on some people.

Head for Utah. Visit Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands. If you get a good book on some of the out of the way places to find ruins and rock art you can have a real adventure.

Charleston SC? Food, history, walking, beach, bird refuges, beautiful weather, azaleas in bloom maybe or just done.

Wow, thanks for the great suggestions! My husband loves gardens so Charleston SC would be cool, and we have friends we could visit in Albuqerque and then head to Santa Fe and Taos. Going to check on these on Fodor's now...THANKS!!

We spent a week or so in Virginia and along the Blue Ridge Parkway in April 2011 and absolutely loved it. Scenery, history, natural beauty... Trip report: http://www.fodors.com/community/united-states/an-appalachian-spring-break.cfm

As TS Eliot wrote, "April is the cruelest month". While driving to pick up my kids from university, I stopped at Peaks of Otter on the Blue Ridge Parkway to bag the summit (easy-peasy). It was snowing. It was May 1.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is wonderful; there are lots of cabins to rent in the area. The Cherokee Museum on the North Carolina side is excellent. Except for the arts & crafts loop, we didn't care for the rest of Gatlinburg, but found it was easy to avoid spending time there.

April is a good time to visit San Antonio, Austin and the Hill Country in Texas. It would be very different than some of the places you've been recently, but still very enjoyable.

You might even consider adding a visit to Big Bend National Park if you're up to it. You certainly won't have to worry about snow interfering with your plans here, although it might already be getting too hot.

More great suggestions. Have never been to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Think we need to consider areas I would normally consider "too hot" for this April trip. We're seriously considering the Santa Fe/Taos suggestion above. Thanks!!

leslie,

If you have never been to Utah, go. You don't say how long you have, but a week in the red rock playgrounds around Moab would be fantastic in April/May. Prime time.

You can hike, bike, raft, off road, ATV, photograph, see wildflowers and wildlife. A week would not be enough. There are a couple of very nice B&Bs in Moab - Sunflower Inn & Calle Cochita are nice.

If you have time, you could include Valley of the Gods and Monument Valley. Valley of the Gods B&B is one of a kind. Do a search here as many Fodorites have stayed, including me.

Happy Planning!

Hey, thanks Dayle and a very happy New Year to you! We're having a quiet evening at home so will check out your suggestions right now...!