Cedarburg Winter Festival (Cedarburg, Wisconsin)

February 4 to 5, 2012

During the dark days of winter, the Cedarburg Winter Festival just north of Milwaukee takes popular summerfest events and slaps them on snow and ice. It's a whole new game teeing off with a tennis ball in a snow-packed fairway during the Ice-Burg Open Golf Tournament. Stop in for a frosty mug at the festival's outdoor snow bar, or try racing a huge beer barrel across the ice without rolling over the competition. If you've never seen a Sleeping Beauty costumed bed race on ice, here's your chance. The contest is hilariously cutthroat. Expect locals to go all out with outrageous costumes for every event at this year's Brothers Grimm-themed festival.

Cedarburg is about a 30-minute drive north of Milwaukee, whose airport ranks as the third-most-affordable major U.S. airport, according to a Cheapflights survey. Search hotel deals at Visit Milwaukee.