NEED TO KNOW

Skiing under the Big Sky

This winter, big-snow fans can fly directly from Los Angeles International Airport to Bozeman, Mont., every weekend to indulge in fluffy powder at resorts such as Big Sky, Bridger Bowl and Moonlight Basin. On Dec. 20, United Airlines will start flying to Bozeman on Saturday afternoons and offer return flights on Sunday mornings, so you can stay eight days or fly home on a midweek flight that connects in Denver. What’s so great about Bozeman? How does 400 inches of snow per year sound? United is partnering with Big Sky Resorts, which will soon offer lodging, airline and lift-ticket packages. Info: (800) 241-6522, www.united.com.

-- Hugo Martin

Helpful digs

San Francisco’s new Good Hotel aims to do just that, with eco-friendly design and a “philanthropy concierge” to help guests help others. Even the buildings, in the city’s hip SoMa area, are recycled. The Joie de Vivre boutique chain spent months renovating the former Hotel Britton and Flamingo Hotel floor by floor, outfitting 117 guest rooms with furniture from reclaimed wood, lamps made of recycled water bottles and pillows covered with vintage fabric from the former hotels. To do even more good, guests can participate in a carbon-offset program, donate to local charities or volunteer at the concierge desk with One Brick, a nonprofit group that recruits helpers to restore wetlands, support charity events and perform other services. Rates start at $89 weekdays, $99 weekends, according to the hotel’s website. Info: (800) 738-7477, www.jdvhotels.com.

-- Jane Engle

Trivialand

Disneyland trivia: Did you know the Latin motto on Mr. Toad’s coat of arms reads “Speeding with Toad is always absurd”? Or that Walt Disney envisioned exotic animals roaming the banks of the Jungle Cruise? The new 128-page pocket-sized “Imagineering Field Guide to Disneyland” takes readers through the Anaheim theme park land by land, offering anecdotes, history and trivia from Disney Imagineers as well as early concept art, sketches and schematics of many rides and attractions. How else would we ever know that the New Orleans Square train station depot taps out Morse code of Disney’s opening-day dedication speech? The guide costs $9.95.

-- Brady MacDonald

Hope-full

If you’ve never laid eyes on the money clip the PGA gave Bob Hope in 1942 or the driver he used during his many USO tours, head to the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine, Fla., to take in “Bob Hope: Shanks for the Memory.” The museum claims to be displaying the “largest collection of Hope memorabilia” in the 300-piece exhibit which will continue throughout 2009. The online components at the hall of fame’s website are fun too: a jokes page and a photo gallery. Tickets cost $19.50 for adults, $17.50 for seniors, students and military dependents. Info: www.wgv.com.

-- Mary Forgione

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