If you're looking to get the perfect summer tan before you hit the beach, but worried about protecting your skin from the sun's harmful rays we have help in this special report.

We found out a couple of ways to get a natural looking tan without the sun or a tanning bed.

Nearly everyone wants that red carpet ready sun kissed glow, but even with the help of celebrity stylist some A-listers can come out looking more orange than bronze, and you know that tan didn't come from the sun.

It's not just celebrities turning their backs on outdoor tanning... the risks of skin cancer, wrinkles and age spots have sun worshipers looking for another way to get a golden summer glow.

"People thought, 'wow, that looks so natural what are you doing? are you in the tanning bed? are you laying outside?' and I said 'no, it's the mystic tan,'" said Victory Duncan of the Tanning Club.

Booths using a spray-on tanner started popping up around Augusta about five years ago. They claim to give you a natural looking glow.

"It's very similar to self-tanners you rub on your body but the difference is you don't have to worry about getting it even or any streaks or splotches," Duncan said.

It takes a little prep work: barrier cream to make sure you're feet don't turn too dark, a shower cap to protect your hair and some lip balm, but once you step inside it takes less than a minute. Just towel off when you're done and you're ready to hit the beach.

If you're looking for a "do-it-yourself" tan look no further than the grocery story shelves. They're full of products promising to bronze your skin and give you a summer glow.

We tested two different products. The Loreal was a spray-on application which goes on fairly light. The Neutrogena was more like a moisturizer you rub in. After 24 hours, both arms are certainly more tan, but their performance was about equal. The main difference was the smell--Neutrogena smelled pretty bad!

If you prefer organic products, Aveda's entire line is plant derived and they have a sunless tanner called Sun Source.

The ladies at Michelle James Salon applied it to our resident NBC Augusta green advocate Mariah. After 24 hours she looked pretty good.

According to several popular women's magazines and online sites, Clarins self-tanning instant gel is the best for a natural looking instant glow followed by St. Tropez tinted self-tanning lotion and Fake Bake Self-Tanner.

Since every product works differently on different skin types, it's all a bit of trial and error, but hopefully we've pointed you in the right direction to find the the product that works best for you.

If you're curious about the cost, Mystic Tan costs $25 for two visits. The store-bought tanners we used were about $8 each. The Aveda Sunless tanner costs about $17.