Where is everyone going for Spring Break 2006? A variety of places, including the famous Grand Isle, Lake Verret, Destin, Panama City, South Padre Island, for their places of employment or the comfort of home and a local bar.According to Orbitz.com and Expedia.com, the top spring break getaways for 2006 are: San Diego, Calif.; Savannah, Ga.; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Phoenix, Ariz.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Riviera Maya, Mexico; South Padre Island, Texas; Los Cabos, Mexico; Charleston, S. C., and Reno, Nev.

Also in the “hot spot” list are popular locations in Florida including Orlando, Miami, Fort Myers, Tampa and Daytona.

These locations draw college students in with their theme parks, riverfront boardwalks, beaches, shopping, mouth-watering cuisine, nightlife and local attractions.

“I would love to go to the Florida Keys to get school off of my mind for a while, maybe learn how to surf or go bungee jumping or try something neat like that,” Katie Lirette, freshman from Houma, said.

Many of Nicholls’ students are opting to stay down south along the Gulf Coast, choosing to go to Grand Isle or Panama City, Fla.

“I want to go to Panama City, Fla., for spring break this year because when I went there for my senior trip, I had one of the best times of my life,” Douglas Walling, nursing sophomore from Houma, said. “I also plan on spending some of my spring break with my KA fraternity brothers.”

According to A World of Travel agency representative, most college students do not go through a travel agency to book reservations for spring break. Most college students just “go on a whim” or book hotels over the Internet.

Not all trips can be taken on a whim. Students are not able to jump in a car and go anywhere. Some trips have to be planned in advance, such as cruises and trips abroad. Though students do not have to go through a travel agent to book reservations for these vacations, they should at least make reservations online.

“I would really like to go on a cruise to the Cayman Islands for spring break,” Brian Mullen, freshman from Thibodaux, said. “If I can go, I will book reservations online. That would be a great way to get away from school for a while.”

Not all spring breakers go with friends to the beach and clubbing; some go on family vacations. According to Expedia.com, the top five spring break family spots are Orlando’s theme parks, San Diego’s beaches and zoo, Tampa’s Busch Gardens, Honolulu’s beaches and water sports and New York’s museums, shows, sightseeing and shopping.

Don’t have spring break planned yet? Interested in doing community service? New Orleans will be a hot spot for spring break this year, but this time not for Bourbon Street.

College students from all over the country are coming to Gulf Coast areas affected by Hurricane Katrina to help in the cleanup effort.

So far, these students include students from Howard University, George Washington University, American University Washington College of Law and Kansas State University.

Instead of spending spring break drinking and sunburned, these students are cleaning out homes, businesses and streets destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

A new feature on the ever-popular facebook.com is the Spring Break Plans section. Members of facebook.com can write where they are going and what they are going to do there for all of their friends to see.

Some facebook.com members posted that they will be working, staying home to listen to music, drinking with friends and going fishing at Bayou de Cade.

Others posted they will be visiting family and friends or going shopping out of state. The most popular location members posted that they are going is Panama City, Fla., where they wrote they will be drinking, tanning and relaxing.