9 Highlights of Madison, Wisconsin

Madison's outdoorsy culture has helped earn the city a slew of livability awards. On warm days, sailboats and canoes drift across lakes, replaced in winter by ice huts and cross-country skiers. Bike lanes flank traffic on many main drags. Hiking trails wind through the nearly 1,300 green acres of the University of Wisconsin Arboretum.

Visitors can check out boat rentals on Lake Wingra, where kayaks, rowboats, sailboats, canoes or paddleboats are available from Wingra Boats (wingraboats.com). To explore the city's 200 miles of bike trails, try renting from Budget Bicycle Center (budgetbicyclectr.com) or Machinery Row Bicycles (machineryrowbicycles.com).