Sometimes I have only a day – or even just a few hours – to see a city. Whether I’m passing through town during an overland journey or I have a flight that is transiting in the city, figuring out what to see during that short period can be tough. I mean, when you have... read more

If there’s one thing that can zap the fun out of a vacation or drain the productivity from a business trip, it’s jet lag. Feeling hungry in the middle of the night, dosing off during the day, and struggling to sleep after dark are just some of the debilitating symptoms associated with hopping on a... read more

This is a guest post by Kate Stendahl Meier. On my travels I often struggle at markets and in shops because I tend to want to bring home “treasures” for myself and for friends and relatives. Maybe your girlfriend asked for French books for her son. Or your mom’s birthday is coming up and you... read more

If you’re reading this website, chances are you already agree that travel is a pleasurable experience. It’s something you look forward to and enjoy and probably want to do more of. But since few people can travel all the time, getting the most pleasure possible out of the time we do spend traveling is worth... read more

When you stay at a hotel – particularly a high end one – the expectation is that it’ll be clean. But no matter how fancy the establishment or how high the price tag, study after study shows that many hotel rooms are seething with germs. While hotel rooms do get cleaned after each guest checks... read more

In a lot of places, we’re judged on how we look. It’s not necessarily fair, but many bars, clubs, and even restaurants will turn away would-be patrons because they’re not dressed the part. Now maybe you don’t care…because maybe you wouldn’t want to frequent any kind of venue that was so judgmental or superficial in... read more

Most of us spend a lot of time obsessing about what to pack for our upcoming vacations, yet we rarely stop and think about what we pack in our wallets. We tend to just grab and go – taking the same stuff we carry around everyday and transporting them halfway around the world. But that’s... read more

Imagine if you could walk into a restaurant that had a line of patrons winding all the way out the door – but you could skip straight to the front of the line. And imagine if you could enter a five star hotel and instantly get a 50 percent discount – just for being you.... read more

If you’re one of those people that feels frazzled before you go on vacation and not much better after you return, you’re not alone. According to surveys, nearly 60 percent of people feel that taking a vacation doesn’t relieve their stress. What’s even worse, a quarter of respondents say they feel even more stressed when... read more

I gave up making New Year’s resolutions a long time ago – it’s a fun concept, but inevitably, a few weeks into January (at best) I’ll already have broken them. Or sometimes, the resolutions are just so big and overwhelming, I never really even get started. Since resolutions have a way of making me feel... read more

If you’re flying home over the Christmas break, one thing is almost certainly on your packing list: gifts. You probably spent a ton of time planning and shopping for your Christmas presents, but have you given a thought to how you’ll pack them? It’s something you ought to consider if you want to avoid having... read more

Do you remember the good old days of flying when all you did was make one payment for your ticket and that was it? No fees for meals, no charges for checking a bag, no surcharge for seats with extra legroom, and no paying for headphones so you could watch the in-flight movie. Those were... read more