Rand McNally Introduces Best of the Road Awards; Annual Awards Program Honors Road Trip Top Stops In the United States and Canada.

Business/Travel Editors

SKOKIE, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 4, 2001

It's lunchtime, and Carolina Beach State Park in North Carolina is alive with diners munching on flies. Yes, flies. That's because meat of the small, winged variety is the main course on the park's Venus Flytrap Trail, where the diners are carnivorous plants. The plants are native only within a 75-mile radius of Wilmington, North Carolina. It's a place that's definitely worth the trip.

Rand McNally today introduced Best of the Road(TM), an annual awards program that designates top stops on the road, such as the Venus Flytrap Trail, that the Rand McNally editors deem to be "worth a drive." The 2002 Best of the Road(TM) program honors 29 food venues, shops, events and attractions, highlighting five regional road trips in the United States and Canada.

The Best of the Road(TM) program debuts in Rand McNally's new 2002 Road Atlas, available this month at retail stores nationwide. Descriptions and addresses of the Best of the Road(TM) establishments and regional trips are also featured on randmcnally.com.

"It's easy to find a scenic drive. But what really makes a trip worthwhile are the unique things to see and do along the way," says Laurie Borman, editorial director at Rand McNally. "We've chosen some beautiful trips that have the makings of vacation memories for travelers."

Here are the Rand McNally 2002 Best of the Road(TM) trips and top roadside stops:

1. Mountain bikers, history buffs, ice cream, cheese or music lovers can indulge their passions on the Quintessential New England trip from Burlington, Vt. south to Stockbridge, Mass. Best of the Road(TM)award winners include Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, Vt.; Factory Shops of Manchester Center, Manchester Center, Vt.; Sonny's Blue Benn Diner, Bennington, Vt.; Hancock Shaker Village, Pittsfield, Mass.; Tanglewood, Lenox, Mass.; and Red Lion Inn Dining Room, Stockbridge, Mass.

2. Experience the mystery of shipwrecks, buried treasure and a lost colony that envelops so much of North Carolina's coast on the Outer Banks and Southern Shores from Kitty Hawk south to Wilmington and Carolina Beach. Top stops in North Carolina are Kitty Hawk Sports' (of Nags Head) kayak tour of the ship Elizabeth II, Manteo; The Black Pelican, Kitty Hawk; Teach's Hole, Ocracoke; Shackleford Banks' Wild Horses, Cape Lookout National Seashore; Screen Gems Studios, Wilmington; and The Venus Flytrap Trail, Carolina Beach State Park.

3. A Shore Thing awaits in Michigan with picturesque old fishing and lumbering villages dotting the shores in Michigan's quiet vacationland stretching from Benton Harbor north to Petoskey and beyond. The Best of the Road(TM) in Michigan are Sherman's Dairy Bar, South Haven; U.S.S. Silversides, Muskegon; dune scooter rides at Mac Wood's Dune Rides, Mears; cherry products at Cherry Republic, Glen Arbor; and Chateau Chantal Winery, Traverse City.

4. Moguls, Mining and Mormon Territory are highlights on the loop through the pioneer land of Northern Utah from Salt Lake City north to Ogden and down to Park City. See historic temples, wild bison and the 2002 Olympic Games this winter. Best of the Road(TM) stops along Utah's canyon roads are 9th and 9th Shopping District, Salt Lake City; R & G Horse and Wagon horseback tour of Antelope Island; Cox Honeyland & Gifts, Logan; Hometown Drive-In, Garden City; Shooting Star Saloon, Huntsville; and Utah Olympic Park, Park City.

5. Fantastic Creatures: Totems, Geoducs and Giant Trees are some of the diverse culture and beauty of Canada unfolding on the road from Victoria to Parksville and west to Tofino on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The Best of the Road(TM)winners on Vancouver Island: Murchie's Tea and Coffee Ltd., Victoria; The Malahat Mountain Inn, Malahat; Quw'utsun' Cultural and Conference Centre, Duncan; Old Country Market, Coombs; Long Beach and Clayoquot Sound, Tofino and Ucluelet; and The Pointe Restaurant at the Wickanninish Inn, Tofino.

The Best of the Road(TM) trips represent different areas in the United States and Canada and each span about 150 to 200 miles that can be driven in two or three days. "We selected places that are distinctive and which capture the local character in the food, shopping, events, or attractions. Instead of choosing the best-known places, we looked for unique spots that might be overlooked but are really special," says Borman.

About Rand McNally

Rand McNally & Company, founded in 1856, is the world's premier provider of mapping, routing, and travel solutions for consumers and businesses via print, software, the Internet and handheld devices. In addition to publishing the flagship Rand McNally Road Atlas, the company operates 28 Map & Travel stores across the United States and provides online travel services at randmcnally.com. The company includes Thomas Bros. Maps and Rand McNally Canada and also creates geographic information for reference and education. For more information, visit www.randmcnally.com.

Editor's Note: For more information or artwork, please contact Christina Goodwin at PAN Communications, 978-474-1900 or [e-mail].

Rand McNally and Best of the Road are trademarks of Rand McNally & Company.