The following information was disseminated by the Travel Berkeley Springs office:

Berkeley Springs celebrates Labor Day with family fun and a long weekend break from the hectic pace of getting back to school. It harkens back to the recent past when Labor Day was the official end of summer. It still is for the lake at Cacapon State Park and the outdoor pool at Berkeley Springs State Park which are available for water sports fun for the final weekend of the year.

There is exciting art activity as might be expected in America's #7 art destination among small cities and towns. On Friday, there is an Artwalk which begins at Mountain Laurel Gallery on the main square from 5 to 7:30pm. At 7:30pm, the excitement moves to the Ice House for the opening of the much-anticipated "bringing peace home" multi-media gallery show complete with great food, wine and the peaceful music of Roger Aldridge, blues and jazz sax player. Centerpeace of the show are several 1000 Points of Peace stained glass peace signs as well as the interactive Peace Mountain installation where you can add you own peace rock to the pile. They may be celebrating the Civil War in other parts of the region, but in Berkeley Springs it's all about peace. The show can be seen during Ice House Gallery hours -- 11am to 5pm Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

On Saturday, it's a downhome yard party at the Fire Hall -- South Morgan Fire Hall, that is. There are fire department water games at noon, ham and chicken dinners starting at 1pm, bluegrass music and then an auction at 7pm with more games and contests all day. On Sunday, it's a Homecoming Celebration at Cacapon State Park starting at 10am and including everything from lots of great local music to a fun auction and games. Bring your picnic!

The longest running fun this weekend is at the Troubadour Lounge -- and it's all about Patsy Cline. It starts on Friday with Patsy Cline karaoke, then on Saturday the Country Majestics play for country dancing at 9pm and on Sunday it's the 46th annual Celebrating Patsy Cline, Johnny Triplett and Ernest Tubb beginning at 1pm. Along with the music and food, good cheer and Patsy's husband, Charlie Dick, it's the induction into the West Virginia Country Music Hall of Fame.

There's more music on the horizon. On Thursday at 8pm, it's Jam Nite at Tari's Cafe, one of the area's favorite female musicians, Cindy Born hosts. On Saturday at 8pm, the Fairfax Coffee House features traditional and contemporary Irish music with Steve Morris, direct from County Tyrone, Ireland, playing along with Dennis Vaughan. Stop in at the Coffee House during the day also and check out a spectacular new gallery show featuring the alluring paintings and collages of Kelly Scudieri, one of the state's best artists. Earth Dog Cafe always fills the weekend with music as well as the aroma of outstanding barbecue.

Evening fun also includes the Star Theatre, this week showing "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince," Friday through Sunday at 8pm. Just across the street, basking in the flashing lights of the Star, La Luna Wine Bar and Gallery has extended hours to ensure you get time to sip some wine and unwind, staying open until 8pm on Sunday and being open on Monday through 8pm as well. Ambraehouse is a new wine bar open down the block 4 to 10pm Thursday Friday and Saturday. The Country Inn keeps their tavern open until midnight on Friday and Saturday.

On the shopping front, Pocket Meadow Farm Fiber Arts has a Grand Opening at their new location on the mains street just down from the springs and park in the center of town. Come in noon to 8pm on Friday for refreshments, free patterns, coupons and prize drawings. They'll be open Saturday and Sunday too. The shop specializes in natural fiber yarns and wool preparations for knitting, spinning, weaving and other fiber arts. The Vintage Kitchen on S. Green Street is having a sale on select tea cups this weekend. There are two dozen more shops also waiting for you to stop by -- all of them harboring a special treasure for you.

Two important attractions in Berkeley Springs make sense as a way to unwind and enjoy this end-of-summer weekend. The first is a selection of bodywork treatments from a half dozen locations and even more individual practitioners, even those that make house calls. The selection is impressive and includes more than a dozen different types of massage, acupuncture, reflexology, facials, pedicures, manicures, rubs, scrubs and baths. Check the spa page for all the choices you can make. Try several. Make your own tour. Taste and sample.

The same taste and sample principle you apply to spas can be applied to dining. We are proud in Berkeley Springs of how well-fed you will be when you visit from Sunday brunch at the Country Inn, La Luna and Panorama at the Peak to breakfast all day at Earth Dog. Local food -- even meats from the area -- is sought after by several restaurants including the high quality Lot 12, as well as the Country Inn, Panorama and others. And a number of them get their produce from the same vendors you can experience at the Sunday Farmers Market. The list is long for must-eat places from Tari's Cafe to Corner Steak and Sea --Highlawn Inn has one of their silver service dinners on Saturday night, reservations are a must. Check all your options on the dining page.

Choose your place to stay with care. There are B&Bs with exquisite breakfasts and personal service, rustic cabins, fully equipped vacation homes big enough for all your family and with everything from a full kitchen to a hot tub on a deck overlooking the mountains. You can stay intown or along the river -- and everyplace in the county is worth more than what you pay. Be comfortable, be pampered, be pleased with the experience you have when you come to Berkeley Springs, center of the universe and closer than anywhere.