TRAVELOGUE

Ski free for one day only:

Eighty cross-country ski and snowshoeing locations nationwide are promoting winter sports with a free one-day event Jan. 10 called "Winter Trails."

Nordic skis, snowshoes and other gear, along with access to trails in participating locations, will be provided free. Some sites also are offering free mini-lessons, winter festivals, contests and other types of demonstrations and activities. It's the 14th year in a row that the event, sponsored by the Virginia-based organization SnowSports Industries America, has taken place.

If you've never tried snow sports, this is a good way to check them out or introduce them to your kids. Events are being offered in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Alaska, California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. For details, visit www.wintertrails.org.

Wynn resort opens in Las Vegas:

Entrepreneur Steve Wynn has opened a new $2.3 billion resort and casino in Las Vegas called Encore, with an Italian restaurant themed on the late crooner Frank Sinatra.

The restaurant, which is named for the singer, has Sinatra memorabilia and photos of him on display.

Sinatra's daughter Tina said the family had rejected similar plans from 12 restaurateurs. She said they agreed to Wynn's proposal because "he was his friend, and he loves and protects us."

Wynn and Sinatra worked together and were friends in the early '80s, when Sinatra sang for Wynn at the Golden Nugget hotel-casinos in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, N.J. The public caught glimpses of the pair's relationship through a series of humorous commercials promoting the Nugget casinos. Wynn was usually the butt of jokes, treated as a bellhop or other low-level employee by Sinatra.

Details at www.encorelasvegas.com.

Magazine names world's top hotels:

Fifty hotels made their debut on Travel + Leisure magazine's annual list of the 500 best hotels in the world....