Here, there, and everywhere

Boston’s distant past at your fingertips
<br>History buffs will love BiblioBoard’s new anthology, “Boston: A Historical Collection Celebrating the Olde Towne,’’ which includes more than 60 books, images, and articles on the city’s rich history and cultural heritage. Download the free BiblioBoard app to your iPad. Then pay $15.99 for the Boston anthology and gain access to a trove of information and documents dating four centuries including political pamphlets, copies of public addresses, travelogues, and more.
 www.biblioboard.com

A start-studded event in Maine
<br>View the night sky from an inflatable planetarium, go on an evening cruise along the coast, take astronomy lessons, and attend a star party during Maine’s Acadia Night Sky Festival. This family-friendly event, held at venues across Mount Desert Island and the Schoodic Peninsula, including Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park, runs from 7 p.m. Sept. 13 through sunrise on Sept. 17. Many events require advance registration and some include a fee.  207-404-2921, www.acadianightskyfestival.com

Open Lighthouse Day
<br>Twenty-three lighthouses will welcome visitors rain or shine for tours and special activities on Sept. 15 for Maine Open Lighthouse Day, the largest event of its kind in the country. Take a guided or self-guided tour of keepers’ houses and light towers on the coast, along rivers, and on islands across the state. Most facilities will be open 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
www.lighthouseday.com

San Juan Island’s high-end homey inn
<br>The Island Inn on Washington’s San Juan Island feels like home for good reason: Its super-comfortable penthouses were originally built as condos. The units have a classy, modern, retro feel, and most have fabulous views of the marina at Friday Harbor, snow-capped Mount Baker to the east, and the area’s glorious sunrises. The inn, formally the Island Inn at 123 West, sits just steps from the ferry dock and Friday Harbor’s charming downtown. Euro-style units start at $179; suites $299; and penthouses $379.  877-512-9262, www.123west.com

Free rentals through National
<br>Members of National Car Rental’s loyalty program, Emerald Club, can get free car rental days through the company’s current One Two Free promotion, which runs through Jan. 31. If you’re not a member yet, sign up for no charge and you can get one free rental day for every two qualifying rentals of two or more days, with no limit on free days earned. To be eligible for the promotion, register at www.emeraldclubpromos.com. Redeem up to three free rental days at any time, including weekends, between Sept. 10 and June 16, 2013. Some restrictions apply. 800-328-1234, www.nationalcar.com

The best of Germany in an app
<br>Overseas trips can be exciting and busy, and you don’t want to miss the highlights while you’re on the road. Download the Top 100-Germany’s Sights app before your next trip and discover the country’s most popular sights and destinations, as voted by international travelers in a survey taken earlier this year. The app, launched by the German National Tourist Board, includes detailed information on cultural and natural highlights nationwide, and provides mobile discount vouchers for some sights. The app works on Android and Apple devices and is available in German and English.
www.germany.travel/top100

Track travel points, miles, credits
<br>How many free flights, discounted car rentals, or complimentary hotel stays have slipped away because you lost track of your miles or points? Usingmiles.com, a simple but wonderfully useful site with an accompanying app, gives you a way to view all your information in one spot for more than 170 loyalty programs. Record all your miles, points, and credits related to airlines, car rental companies, credit cards, supermarkets, hotels, restaurants, and even office supply stores. The basic service is free; upgrade to premier service for $29.99 per year. 303-645-0531,  usingmiles.com

Packable, feather-light hiking poles
<br>Black Diamond’s Ultra Distance hiking poles weigh less than 10 ounces per pair and pack so small, you can fit them in your carry-on bag or backpack. The durable carbon fiber poles make use of a funky Z-Pole folding system, much like a traditional tent pole, that lets you collapse the pole down to 13 inches (for 100 cm model) or 17 inches (130 cm). To set up a pole, you unfold its three sections, attach them, and then pull on the handle, which causes a hidden cord that runs through the pole to tighten and lock the sections into place. The poles currently sell for $112.46 a pair through Black Diamond.  800-775-5552, www.blackdiamondequipment.com