“Summertime Blues” is one of the most covered songs in pop music history. Perhaps because everyone knows what it’s like sitting indoors and staring at a ceiling fan, waiting for school to start and praying for a cold front. Louisiana summers make us dream of exotic locales and tropical getaways – anything to beat the humidity. But you can blow those blues away with just a step out your front door. They might not be Disney World, but hey, some destinations are just a wish upon a star away.

Dollywood1020 Dollywood Lane, Pigeon Forge, Tenn. 37863www.dollywood.com

Giddyup, little doggie!

If you’re looking for a land full of thrills, then come and ride along Dolly Parton’s curvacious hills

No really, Dolly Parton has her own theme park

Located in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., Dollywood offers visitors amusement park thrills, music festivals and concerts, crafts, specialty gift shops and dining-all for $50.20.

Cowboys and girls can ride along the Dollywood Express, an authentic steam-engine that rides five miles along the foothills of the Smokey Mountains, or travel down the abandoned Mystery Mine with vertical drops plunging risk-takers into the dungeons of darkness.

You can even get wet in the River Battle, Dollywood’s newest water ride, complete with soaker guns to spray passengers with while riding along river rafts.

Dollywood also hosts five of the South’s largest festivals including the Festival of Nations, which showcases international dances from Latin America’s sexy salsa to Ireland’s traditional step dancing.

Music lovers can be treated to live performances by some of country’s favorites such as Jim Ed Brown and Paulette Carlson during the Great American Country Show

To round out an action filled day of fun, visitors can dine on some down-home southern cookin’ at Granny Ogle’s Ham ‘n’ Beans and then buy souvenirs from over 40 shopping locations including the Dollywood Emporium and Uncle Bill’s Valley Music Shop

Yeehaw!

– Briana Prevost

Wildwater Ltd. RaftingHighway 64 WestDucktown, Tenn. 37326www.wildwaterrafting.com

You can find refreshing wide open spaces and rejuvenation in Ducktown, Tenn.

Enjoy the ambiance of this overwhelmingly picturesque city by taking an afternoon ride with the windows down, the radio loud and your hair blowing in the perfect mountain air.

Home of the 1996 Olympic White Water competition, Ducktown is known for its nature-oriented activities. Swimming in the Ocoee River, hiking and horseback riding in the Smoky Mountains and white water rafting are all major attractions.

You can make memories and keeps costs to a minimum by camping in tents and cooking over bonfires. Wildwater Ltd. Rafting offers lodging and numerous excursions including hiking along 22 miles of the scenic Nantahala Gorge Excursion, rock climbing along the Wildwater Climbing Wall, or the most popular adventure-white water rafting. Ride the gushing waters of the Ocoee River for three hours in a white water rafting expedition for $44 Monday through Friday and $49 on Saturdays. All equipment is provided and no experience is necessary, however, reservations are recommended.

Steamboat Natchez Cruise #2 Canal Street, Suite 2500New Orleans, La 70130www.steamboatnatchez.com

Let’s face it,: a conventional weeklong trip may be exceedingly ambitious.

Between summer school, jobs and internships the closest thing resembling a vacation may be that cliché beach screensaver you enviously gaze at on your laptop.

You may not have a week, or even a weekend to invest- and that’s fine, because all you need is two hours.

A day cruise aboard the Steamboat Natchez is a relaxing, yet adventurous way to view New Orleans. The Natchez departs daily from the heart of the French Quarter and sails down the Mississippi River for two hours. Standard Cruise tickets are $19.50, and for an additional $10 you can indulge in the ships Creole cuisine. Group rates also apply for 10 or more people if you deposit and reserve them in advance. You can purchase tickets in the box office at Toulouse Street and the River.

– Rita West

Pensacola Beach22 Via DeLuna Drive Pensacola, Fla., 32561

If a blue-sky holiday is your forte, it’s time to hit the beach.

Beaches are relaxing and above all free. Nothing can be more liberating than digging your toes into the warm summer sand and soaking up sunlight after a long semester.

And If a clear-water beach with an active nightlife is what you’re after, look no further than Pensacola Beach, Fla. From New Orleans, it is the closest white-sand beach, with a travel time of approximately three hours.

The boardwalk is a popular location overlooking the Gulf that offers a hodgepodge of restaurants, shopping boutiques and nightclubs. Rendez-vous over sultry Mexican cuisine at Margarita’s Mexican Restaurant & Cantina then hit the dance floor at The Dock.

The beach may be free, but the trip still costs. Two major expenses are travel and lodging, both of which can be minimized by traveling in groups. Standard beachfront rentals such as Emerald Isle Resort Condominiums are in walking distance to the boardwalk and average $40 a night per person for groups of six.

– Rita West

Blue Bayou18142 Perkins Rd., Baton Rougewww.bluebayou.com

Everything might be bigger in Texas, but when it comes to water parks, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. As the self-proclaimed Land of the Giants, Baton Rouge’s Blue Bayou Waterpark exhibits true American pride when it comes to everything being bigger and better, including water slides.

Many of Blue Bayou’s names top the world’s largest list – including its tornado slide, water racer, and “dark Behemoth Bowl.” Their latest addition, “Racers,” is the world’s fastest water slide.

With names like “VooDoo” and “Flyin’ Pirogues,” Blue Bayou’s slides are just big enough to cool down swimmers in Louisiana’s oppressive summer months.

Plus the entertainment they supply is top notch. Who could say no to performances by Vanessa Hudgens, Drake Bell, and Lifehouse? If Disney, Nickelodeon, and pain-filled heartbroken rockers gets your musical adrenaline going, Blue Bayou’s the perfect place to take the perfect concert plunge.

And if you can bear the heat, just next door is Dixie Landin’ Family Theme Park, featuring 26 rides and attractions.

Enter both parks for $34.95 plus tax for those 48 inches or taller, or $27.95 plus tax for those under 48 inches

TubingWayne’s World Canoeing and TubingEnon, LABogue Chitto Riverwww.canoelariver.com

The phrase “going tubing” may be more Louisiana than Louisiana can handle.

Its residents might not always eat what others shoo out the front door, or drink at what could be considered inappropriate times of day, but all Louisianians will agree that tubing – the marine equivalent of riding an oversized car tire hitched to the back of a pickup truck – is the state’s ultimate summer pastime.

You will need to borrow a boat to navigate Lake Pontchartrain for the fast-paced, beer-in-hand experience. But if you’re willing to go a little further, boats won’t be necessary.

For some lazy drifting on the isolated Bogue Chitto River, Wayne’s World Canoeing and Tubing in Enon will send you and your inner tube down the river for $15 per person.

Be sure to bring a cooler, because let’s face it – when you’re drifting for two to four hours, you’ll need something to numb that inevitable sunburn.

– Alex Woodward

Briana Prevost can be reached at [email protected]

Rita West can be reached at [email protected]

Alex Woodward can be reached at [email protected]