Tagged: tours

You Can Now Stay Overnight at the Palace of Versailles. Take a Peek Inside.

We're guessing Marie Antoinette's TripAdvisor review of the Château de Versailles would have been decidedly mixed ("Pastry chef: okay; security against angry mobs: subpar; verdict: two…

Harry Truman’s Key West Home Now Offering Spins in His Presidential Limo

Harry S Truman paid 11 visits to Key West, Florida, during the years of his presidency, 1945–53. He'd spend his leisure hours fishing and, like many a Key West tourist since, looking…

What Escorted Tour Companies Are Doing to Keep Travelers Safe

August 3, 2020 Many travelers are fans of tours, both for their convenience and their conviviality. But the major problem with group tours during a pandemic is right there in the…

Duck Boats Are Not Safe, Government Agency Warns

The deadly sinking of a duck boat on Table Rock Lake near Branson, Missouri, could have been avoided, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has concluded. The accident…

In an Isolation Innovation, Walking Tour Guides Mount Live Virtual "Tours" You Take from Home

"Thank you for your booking," says my new tour guide, Eleonore. "Thanks to your presence here, I am able to go back to work. I am very happy." Then we descend 60 feet below the streets…

Coronavirus and Travel: The Latest News, Updated Daily

Need to cancel or change travel plans? CLICK HERE for a list of links to the official coronavirus policy web pages for dozens of airlines, cruise lines, hotels, and other travel…

The Top Travel Trends for 2020

What are the trends that will affect your 2020 vacation? In many ways, they are evolutions of ones that affected travel in 2019, so I strongly encourage you to read last year’s…

Tequila Tourism and Beyond: Get to Know Mezcal in Mexico

According to the government of Mexico, authentic mezcal—the wildly popular category of agave-based spirits that includes but is by no means limited to tequila—can only come from the…

New York City Sightseeing Passes: A Buyer's Guide for Every Type of Traveler

What makes choosing a New York City sightseeing pass difficult is the same thing that makes it hard to pick a Manhattan restaurant or find an eligible New Yorker on a dating app: too…

Muslim History Tour Tells Untold Chapter of New York City's Past—and Present

The gym where I work out (when I’m feeling up to it and can’t find anything good on Netflix) is housed in a building that stands where there used to be a mosque founded by Yemeni…

Tipping in Costa Rica: A Gratuities Guide for Hotels, Restaurants, and Tours

In Costa Rica, tips aren’t as large—or as expected—as they are in the United States and Mexico. In fact, Costa Ricans (otherwise known as Ticos) aren’t in the habit of automatically…

Amsterdam Bans Tours of Red-Light District

As much as it's known for picturesque canals and paintings by Dutch masters on display at the Rijksmuseum and elsewhere, Amsterdam has also gained a reputation as a haven for legal…

Tipping in Portugal: A Gratuities Guide for Hotels, Restaurants, and Taxis

Portugal consistently ranks among the most affordable countries in the Eurozone. Given the savings that travelers will find on hotel stays and restaurant meals, it won't be too painful…

Tipping in China: When You Can—and When You Shouldn't

How much should you tip in China? In most cases, the answer to that question is whatever the Mandarin word is for jack squat. “In my experience, offering a gratuity has usually been…

Tipping in the U.K.: A Gratuities Guide for Taxis, Hotels, and Restaurants

For North American tourists in the United Kingdom, the primary tipping danger, as in the rest of Europe, is of overdoing it. Tipping a waiter 20% on top of your restaurant bill may be…

Tipping in Germany: A Gratuities Guide for Restaurants, Hotels, and Taxis

The German word for a tip is Trinkgeld. That translates literally to “drink money,” suggesting that in Germany a gratuity is considered a little something extra rather than a…

Former High-Security Prison in Tennessee Opens to Visitors

Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary was not a spot often visited for just one day. This former maximum-security prison held dangerous criminals with sentences exceeding 200 years. The…

Arthur Frommer: This Is Surely the Year's Greatest Travel Bargain!

About a dozen years ago, a tour operator called China Spree, headed by a Chinese-American expert, astonished the travel world by charging only $999 for a one-week stay in Beijing…

Famous Hawaiian Mule Ride Closed Indefinitely

One of the most popular tourism experiences in Hawaii has shut down, possibly for good. Travel Weekly reports that the operators of the long-running mule rides down the cliffs of…

New Program Matches Travelers with Locals for Tours and Activities in Sweden

We've said it a million times: One of the most rewarding ways to experience a new place is by getting to know somebody who lives there.The West Sweden Tourist Board is making that a…

British Virgin Islands Flights, LAX Car-Sharing, and Pennsylvania Cheese Tour: Today's Travel Briefing

JUNE 19, 2017 — Good morning, everybody! Here's the latest from the world's islands, parking lots, and culinary tours.NONSTOP FLIGHTS BETWEEN MIAMI AND BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS EXPECTED…

Hamilton Tours at Thomas Jefferson's House

Thanks to Lin-Manuel Miranda's hit Broadway musical, Alexander Hamilton has stolen the spotlight from his fellow Founding Fathers. Now the ten-dollar Federalist is even making…

Grand Canyon Visitor Numbers, California Highway 1 Closures, Hamilton Tours at Monticello: Today's Travel Briefing

APRIL 7, 2017 — Good morning, everybody! Today's travel news is all about American icons—the Grand Canyon, California's Highway 1, and Broadway's favorite Founding Father. PARTS OF…

Royal Caribbean Launches Tour-Booking Site for Cruisers and Landlubbers Alike

Cruise companies have been organizing shore excursions for decades in scores of locations across the globe. Now one of those lines is offering tours and activities to everybody—not…

Trump's Impact on Travel, Royal Caribbean's New Tour Site, and Passover on the Road: Today's Travel Briefing

MARCH 30, 2017 — Good morning, everybody! Here's the latest from the world's travel marketers, tour operators, and vacation hotspots. * INTEREST IN TRAVEL TO U.S. DOWN OVERALL—BUT UP…