SideStep today launched Activities Search Beta which offers comprehensive, real time search and quick links to booking options for local entertainment in categories such as Museums, Sports, Outdoor & Adventure, Amusement & Theme Park, and Dining. The service also offers powerful filtering options such as duration (3 Hour tour or all day tour?), city (Visiting NYC? You might want to see Stamford, CT), and day (Rest the first couple days and then choose an Segway tour for the third day of your trip).

This service isn’t just for someone planning a vacation, but also for anyone who wants to book an activity in his or her local area. SideStep’s Activity Search would actually be a very strong stand alone offering, but has even more potential when integrated into flight and hotel searches.

You’d think that something like this is already out there…but I think that SideStep is the first to comprehensively aggregate disparate types of activities through search, provide advanced filtering capabilities, and then link to activity providers where you can buy tickets. It’s taking CitySearch to the next logical level.

Read my introduction to SideStep Activity Search over at VerticalSearch.net…it was written at around 1am this morning, so please excuse any errors.