New guide offers tips for studying abroad

New York — Studying abroad has become a rite of passage for many college students.

Now there’s a new guide for American students interested in spending a semester, a year or even their entire college experience in another country.

“Study Away: The Independent Guide to College Abroad” (Anchor Books, $13.95) includes information on which schools offer English-speaking classes, which universities are friendly to Americans and which aren’t, and how you can get an American-style liberal arts education for less money overseas than at a private college in the United States.

Magazine ranks spas

New York — Spas in Arizona, California, Massachusetts, Mexico, New Mexico and St. Lucia have won top honors in a new reader survey by Travel + Leisure magazine.

Miraval, in Catalina, Ariz., was named top spa worldwide. Next on the list was the Golden Door, in Escondido, Calif., followed by Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Ariz.; Canyon Ranch in Lenox, Mass.; Oaks at Ojai, Calif.; Mii Amo in Sedona, Ariz.; Rancho La Puerta in Tecate, Mexico; Ten Thousand Waves in Santa Fe, N.M.; BodyHoliday in St. Lucia and Palms at Palm Springs, Calif.

Top hotel spas in the United States also included the Hualalai Sports Club in Hawaii and the Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va.

Complete results are available in the magazine’s October issue.

Fort Walton Beach area among top attractions

Fort Walton Beach, Fla. — The Panhandle’s Fort Walton Beach-Destin area, famous for its sugar-white beaches, has become the state’s second most popular destination for tourists who drive to Florida, a new survey shows.

Orange County, which includes Orlando, retained its top ranking, but Okaloosa County surpassed Miami-Dade, Pinellas, Volusia, Duval and neighboring Bay counties.

Tourism officials credit an aggressive marketing campaign that began in 1991 to raise the profile of the area, also known as the Emerald Coast because of the blue-green waters of the Gulf of Mexico.