Articles

Jason Cochran

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

By Converting the Norway Pavilion to a 'Frozen' Attraction, Epcot's World's Fair Concept Dies

On his deathbed, Walt Disney had a dream for his ultimate legacy. He wanted to create a living community in Central Florida where companies could use residents to try out new…

Article / Passportable

The World's First Drone Film Festival is Actually a Travel Film Festival

Everyone talks about drones—those small unmanned flying robot cameras—as if they're predominately a technology story. But when you look at the sort of footage that comes out of them,…

Article / Passportable

Cuba Opens to Travel (Eventually)!

Some wonderful news for travelers today: U.S. President Obama has announced that for the first time since 1961, relations with the Caribbean nation will move toward normalization. As…

Article / Passportable

Adorable Hotel Brand Kimpton Sells Out

Travel can fill you with wonder or it can break your heart. Yesterday we learned that Kimpton, one of our favorite boutique hotel brands, has sold out.It now melts into the…

Article / Passportable

Now You Can Stay the Night at Downton Abbey

A few years ago, the condition of the English mansion Highclere Castle grew so dire—after years of benign neglect from Earls who were more interested in horses or exploring—that…

Article / Passportable

This Incredible Piece of Luggage Earned $1.3 Million in a Month: Want One, Too?

Check this out: A newly invented piece of luggage just collected an astounding $1.36 million in a little over a month on crowdfunding site Indiegogo—and when you hear what it can do,…

Article / Passportable

The World's Most Obscene Hotel Wi-Fi Charge

What would you do if you signed on to the Wi-Fi in your hotel room and saw a bill for €300 (US $391) the next morning?According to the Telegraph, that's what guests of the…

Article / Road Trips

Gas, Food, Lodging, Payola: Why You Can't Trust Those Highway Signs

Signs along the Interstate tell you which restaurants and hotels are nearby—but how did those signs get there?

Article / Passportable

The Airlines Made HOW Much on Fees?

Remember when the airlines put extra fees in place and told us that it was because fuel costs had spiked?Yeah, they lied. Fuel costs went back into line, but the extra fees…

Article / Passportable

Sneak Peek of the New World Trade Center's Observation Deck

The final tourist amenity at the new World Trade Center site, which some visitors still call Ground Zero, has announced what it'll offer tourists when it opens in the spring.The…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Hailo Shuts Down: How Taxi Drivers Sabotaged a Golden Opportunity and Handed Uber and Lyft the Keys

Taxi, New York City, 2013The cab-summoning app Hailo is dead.Yesterday, it suspended operations in North America, opting to concentrate its business in Europe and…

Article / Money and Fees

Using Contactless Credit Cards When You Travel

The new twist in credit card purchases is contactless payment—how does it work, and can you use your credit card on vacation?

Article / Passportable

New Scanner Debuts: You May Fly with Fluids Soon

A new machine being tested in 65 of Europe's 550 airports could mean you can bring full bottles of liquid on flights again in Europe as soon as January 2016.The Cobalt Light…

Article / Passportable

Passenger Detained by FBI for Wearing a Speedo: Watch

Jerome Jarre is a celebrity of sorts. Some 7.5 million people follow his mini-videos on the app called Vine, where he has made a name by gallivanting around city streets doing wacky…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Iceland is Hot! New Flights, New Airlines, New Campaigns Make the Little Country Cheap to Visit

Hallgrimskirkja, ReykjavikIceland is having quite the moment.The small, mostly treeless volcanic island nation in the north Atlantic has always been breathtakingly…

Article / Passportable

Air New Zealand's Hobbit-Themed Safety Video is Another Viral Smash: Watch It

Kaboom! That's the sound of yet another volley in the ongoing Wacky Safety Video Wars.This time, it's Air New Zealand that has launched another salvo. Because the final film of…

Article / Passportable

U.S. Workers Hand Their Bosses $52.4 Billion a Year in Unused Vacation Time

Most employers have a "use it or lose it" policy for vacation days, and a new study using information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics has calculated just how much money…

Article / Passportable

Are Venice's Gondolas Endangered by Rising Water?

The curling iron comb of the gondola's stern is no longer practical for Venetians.Venice's gondolas cut an iconic profile: slender hull, swooping shape, swan-like stern…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Government Official Blames 'Cheaper Tourists' For Their Own Deaths in Terrible Avalanche: Is That Fair?

"Summit Day" on the Annapurna Circuit, NepalLast week in Nepal, avalanches hit Annapurna Circuit of the Himalayas. So far, more than 40 have been confirmed dead, with…

Article / Passportable

World's Highest Observation Deck Opens, Shatters Height and Price Records

The world's highest observation deck has opened on the 148th floor of the 2,717-foot-tall Burj Khalifa skyscraper in Dubai. That makes the deck 1,821 feet above street level, or a…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

These Three Newly Announced High-Design, Lower-Priced Hotel Brands Are the Future of Budget Travel

Prototype room of the new Hub by Premier InnAlmost as if they knew their core product is losing appeal with a significant sector of the hotel-going public, three major…

Article / Passportable

Ellis Island's Haunting Hospital Ward Now Open

After years of begging from Americana buffs and urban explorers, the spooky and historically crucial Hospital Complex of New York harbor's Ellis Island is now open for guided…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Rooms in New York City and Los Angeles Reduced to $100 to $200! Here's How and When to Book

A well-known travel industry public relations firm has once again announced the deals in its annual Hotel Week promotion, which drums up business for its clients during low…

Article / Passportable

London Now Charges £10 to Attend New Year's

New Year's Eve on Lambeth Bridge, LondonWant to go to London to hear Big Ben bong in the new year and watch the fireworks? Pony up!Last month, London mayor Boris Johnson…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

A 5-Night Vacation Next Month for $159! Plus a Bunch of Other Cruise Deals for National Cruise Vacation Week

Coral Princess at night. Photo credit: Princess CruisesWe periodically ask our friends at AllThingsCruise.com to tell us about the best bargains in cruises at the moment.…