Travel Blog

The pickleball takeover of cruising seems complete with news that Holland America Line is set to host the first-ever Professional Pickleball Association – yes, there’s a Professional Pickleball Association! – competition on a private island. The Professional Pickleball Association Invitational takes place in March, 2027 on Holland America Line’s private island beach resort in The Bahamas, Half Moon Cay, during a special Caribbean cruise. The invitational will feature professional players on RelaxAway, Half Moon Cay’s four new pickleball courts. The event comes as...

Take a video tour of the new cruise ship – the first of a whole new cruise line - that’s based on a premise you might find surprising. It means you can’t book a single room on this ship! Transcend Cruises launched in 2026 with a very different idea: charter-only river cruises in Europe. If you thought that chartering a river cruise ship would be just for company conferences, think again. Here are some groups that travel advisors have already booked in Transcend’s...

The Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, are Mother Nature’s own light show, one of travel's most mesmerizing natural phenomena that nothing man-made can beat. Electrically charged particles from the sun interact with Earth's atmosphere, creating shimmering curtains of green, purple, pink and occasionally red that dance across the night sky. Standing in the glow of this mystical Arctic phenomenon is on many a travel bucket list. The bad news is there’s a specific time – and place – to see the Northern...

A new generation of Caribbean resorts is delving deep — sometimes literally — into the nature, culture and traditions of their destinations to go far beyond the beach and offer experiences that truly deliver on the promise of ‘a sense of place.’ Three new and returning resort experiences in Mexico, The Bahamas and Saint Lucia illustrate the shift towards hyper-local coastal resorts. They’re answering the call from visitors for experiences so rooted in their destination they couldn’t be duplicated anywhere else. Here...

Many cultures have fall festivals, but only one makes the arrival of astronomical autumn a national holiday: Shubun no Hi. What’s more, Japan does it twice a year, also making March’s Vernal Equinox Day the holiday Shunbun no Hi. Shubun no Hi, or Autumnal Equinox Day, falls around September 22 or 23, when the sun crosses the celestial equator and day and night are equal in length. We may pull on a sweater in a new palette of colors and order the...

Caribbean cruising - and beyond! - may have changed forever. Royal Caribbean Group -which also owns Celebrity Cruises and Silversea - and Sandals Resorts International announced that the cruise company has purchased 50% of the Caribbean all-inclusive resort chain. It's a deal worth 3 billion USD, and it's sending a tidal wave through both the cruise and all-inclusive resort worlds. Here's why it's a gamechanger for any cruise traveler on Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean, or Silversea. Or people who love high-end, all-inclusive...

Switzerland’s famous for its snowy peaks and picturesque slopes. It’s home to some of the world’s chicest ski resorts and 40,000 miles of summer hiking trails.  The Swiss have elevated outdoor Alpine lifestyles to a national art form… and the image you might have is a global elite clad in equal parts stylish and highly technical gear. Not so fast. Switzerland Tourism / Colin FreiOn a growing collection of Swiss trails called Barfussweg (‘Barefoot Trails’), the on-trend footwear is… none.Welcome to barefoot...

We love Tuscany, too. But Italy has 20 wine-producing regions. Why should Chianti have all the fun? Head north, east, and very south from Tuscany for three deliciously different wine adventures. Tuscany has become almost shorthand for Italian wine travel: cypress-lined roads, Renaissance hill towns, vineyard-covered hills and a glass of Chianti waiting at lazy sun-drenched lunches and on terraces at sunset. Now that’s the Dolce Vita. But perhaps it’s time to stop giving Tuscany all the love. Every one of Italy’s 20...

Greece’s ancient coastlines, history and modern lifestyle retain evergreen travel charm; no wonder Four Seasons has opened its second Greek resort - and its first on a Greek island. Four Seasons Hotel Mykonos is a tranquil beachfront retreat just 20 minutes from the island’s lively town and its renowned social lifestyle. Set above Kalo Livadi Bay, the new cliffside hotel features contemporary design, a private beach, dining with sea views and immersive island experiences.The Four Seasons Hotel Mykonos’ elevated location unfolds over...

Vienna has spent centuries perfecting the art of living well. Coffee and cake in chandeliered cafés. Music, art and architecture on an imperial scale. And, increasingly, some serious pampering behind the doors of the Austrian capital’s luxury hotels. But these days, “wellness” during your trip to Vienna can involve much more than a massage.The city’s luxury hotel spas still deliver plenty of old-school indulgence, often in spectacular historic surroundings. At the same time, a new generation of wellness centers inside luxury...

Two new Caribbean resort openings show travelers just how far the concept of the all-inclusive holiday is stretching, with lifestyle hotels translating their unique identities into all-inclusives and focusing less on buffets and the beach and more on wellness retreats, culinary travel, and immersive cultural experiences. In Cancun, Mondrian is taking its famously design- and culture-driven hotel concept all-inclusive for the first time. Meanwhile, in the Dominican Republic, the new adults-only Hyatt Vivid Punta Cana puts wellness, flexibility, social connection, and local...

Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey put one of the world’s oldest travel stories back on the big screen in 2026—and launched Greek voyages back into our travel imaginations. It might be the year’s biggest inspiration for ‘set-jetting': planning your own dramatic exploration of Greece inspired by the film. Homer’s epic follows Odysseus making his way on a ten-year voyage home across a mythical Mediterranean world of islands, storms, temptations, monsters and gods. Nearly 3,000 years later, real-life Greece is less dramatic, but...

Twenty-five years ago, moviegoers got their first glimpse of Middle-earth — and savvy travelers discovered that it looked remarkably like New Zealand. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring premiered in 2001, the first chapter of Peter Jackson’s epic trilogy based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s novels. All three movies were filmed back-to-back in Jackson’s native New Zealand, with more than 150 locations eventually used across the North and South Islands.Why New Zealand? It wasn’t just hometown patriotism. Jackson had an...

What cruises give you the warmest welcome in Europe’s coolest months? River and coastal ocean cruising doesn’t completely stop when the Christmas holidays start. In fact, Europe’s “quiet season” is becoming a season of its own for cruisers. It’s true that most Christmas markets pack up around Christmas Eve, although some extend through the holidays. But then come New Year’s celebrations, winter sales, Carnival, distinctive seasonal foods and traditions — and, along parts of the Mediterranean, the first blossoms of the...

What’s it like to captain a ship that sails year-round in exotic French Polynesia? I got to ask the captain of the Paul Gauguin during a visit to the bridge on a week-long voyage around the Islands of Tahiti. It’s a bucket-list trip for many of us – and rightfully so. Nowhere in the world compares with the tropical romance of the South Seas, and the Paul Gauguin doubles down on everything to feed your travel imagination: The Paul Gauguin is part...

For generations, travelers have organized their days around daylight. Get up. See the sights. Take the photos. Then, as the sun sets, the day starts wrapping up. One of travel’s fastest-growing trends turns that itinerary upside down. And the lights off. Noctourism or Astrotourism? “Noctourism” – or nocturnal tourism – is the growing appetite for travel experiences after dark. Noctourism can intersect with astrotourism, but they’re not exactly the same thing. ‘Astrotourism’ is about traveling for celestial experiences.  And a recent survey of tens of...

You came to the Caribbean for the beach. So did the wildlife. Throughout the islands, some stretches of sand come with company: two legs or four, from birds to beasts to reptiles. Some creatures are unexpected, others have earned celebrity status. Some are indigenous to their islands, while others have adapted over centuries to new climes. Here are some Caribbean beaches where you may have to share your patch of sand – and get a glimpse of a local resident of the...

In July 2027, the Tour de France will make cycling history in the UK. Three men’s stages and three women’s stages will put Britain on the cycling world stage. In fact, it will be a historic double-header: for the first time, both the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes will hold their Grand Départs - in the same country - outside France. The 114th edition of the world’s most famous bicycle race will begin with a 630-kilometer road trip...

82 years after what Winston Churchill called “the most complicated and difficult” military operation in world history, Normandy’s D-Day Landing Beaches finally achieved long overdue recognition of their place in the world as we know it today – plus the protection needed to ensure their lessons live on for future generations. LEARN MORE IN THE VIDEO ABOVE: Normandy Landing Beaches Designated UNESCO World Heritage Site after 82 years. The surprise landing of over 150,000 Allied soldiers – from the UK, USA, Canada,...

I adore river cruising. I constantly recommend river cruises to viewers and followers. But river cruising is facing an industry-changing crisis. And I think it’s time to face it head-on with new solutions that will benefit everyone. A NEW LOW Low water levels on Europe’s major rivers – including the Rhine and the Danube – are making headlines around the world. I was at (not on!) the Rhine last week (early August, 2026), and I was shocked at the water levels, as you can...