Articles

Trends & Hacks

Article / Hotels

Travel Troubleshooter: I Cancelled in Time, So Where's My Deposit?

Our traveler's tour operator promises to refund her deposit if she cancels with more than 45 days' notice. But when she does, the company balks. How can you avoid this situation?

Article / Entry Requirements & Customs

Help Me, Uncle Sam! How to Get Government Assistance When You Travel

Here are a few tips on the whens, wheres, and hows to effectively complain to the government about a travel-related matter.

Article / Health, Insurance, Security

Hotels Try to Kick the Smoking Habit

There's good news for non-smoking hotel guests: Properties are beginning to rethink their smoking policies across the country, with some banning the practice outright.

Article / Air Travel

Can't Get No Satisfaction From the Airlines? File a Grievance in 140 Characters or Less

In the time it takes you to get through to customer service, you can tweet your question or comment. And, depending on the airline, you may get your answer and get on you way.

Article / Miscellaneous

Four Secrets for Upgrading Your Next Vacation

There's no need to settle for a mediocre vacation. From using a travel agent to embracing social media to find -- and punish -- the worst hotels, here are four ways to save your next…

Article / Health, Insurance, Security

Affordable Spa and Fitness Retreats

From getting pampered to losing a few pounds, escaping to a spa retreat or a boot camp could be just what you need to get ready for summer. We've rounded up a few places that will help…

Article / Air Travel

Fly Safe, Fly Smart: How to Decode Code Shares

Code shares are lies the airline industry tells to make their lives easier. They take one airline's flight and stamp another airline's name on it. Here's what's wrong and what's right…

Article / Cruise

8 Kid-Friendly Cruise Ships

Picking the right ship can help make your family vacation feel more like a real getaway. As tested by a veteran cruiser and mother of twin boys, these eight ships are ideal for babies…

Article / Money and Fees

Travel Troubleshooter: The Vikings are Real on This Riverboat

Our reader tries to arrange a special side-trip before a Seine river cruise, but the company nixes the idea. What's more, it won't communicate with their travel agent. Can't it bend a…

Article / Health, Insurance, Security

When in Rome, Watch Your Driving

Of all the recurring complaints I get from readers, the one they find by far most vexing has nothing to do with excessive fees, surprise surcharges, or surly employees. It's about…

Article / Air Travel

Labor Disputes at American Airlines and British Airways Put Travel Plans at Risk

What should a traveler do when faced with the prospect that their flight's crew may walk a picket line with a placard rather than the aisle with a drinks trolley? Find out here how to…

Article / Hotels

Travel Troubleshooter: But No One Told Me About the Resort Fee!

What's this mandatory resort fee for on our reader's hotel bill. Didn't the rate she booked through Hotwire include everything? No, it didn't. But that doesn't mean she's out of luck.

Article / Health, Insurance, Security

Too Sick to Fly? When to Put Yourself on the "No Fly" List

If you're feeling under the weather, sometimes it's worth paying the airline change fees and staying put. Here are five common scenarios when grounding yourself makes perfect sense.

Article / Air Travel

Fly Safe, Fly Smart: What To Do About Lost Luggage

Experts tell you to never, ever check your bags if you can possibly avoid it. Short of sticking to a carry-on, here's what you can do to keep your bags with you.

Article / Hotels

How Far Will a Hotel Go to Get a Good Review?

It's not enough to ask guests for a write-up on TripAdvisor or Yelp after they've checked out. Lately, some innkeepers have been pressuring their customers to say positive things…

Article / Air Travel

Travel Troubleshooter: Stopped Payment on My Compensation Check

Alaska Airlines pays our reader $239 when she's bumped from her flight. Then it stops payment on the check. Why? And is there anything she can do to get the money back?

Article / Packing & Luggage

Busted! How to Ensure Your Luggage Survives a Trip

Never let your luggage let you down during a trip again. Here are some common pitfalls and ways to avoid breaking your bag -- and your back.

Article / Air Travel

Stopping Low Airfares From Vanishing in a Click

When you're airfare shopping, attractive prices can vanish in a split second. Here's what you can do to avoid losing that perfect fare.

Article / Health, Insurance, Security

Accidental Tourist? Tips for Maximizing Happy Coincidences, and Avoiding the Bad Ones

Accidents -- good and bad -- happen when we're away. More so, maybe, because there's a certain randomness about travel -- a sense that the unexpected can happen.

Article / Air Travel

Fly Safe, Fly Smart: Pack Like The Pros

You don't need to check luggage. Never, ever again. Smart packing and traveling light helps now more than ever—especially when it comes to keeping your wallet from getting too…

Article / Air Travel

7 Secrets for Boosting Your Online Power

Got a travel problem? Just tweet about your troubles, and the airline, car rental company or hotel will fix it. At least that's the conventional wisdom.

Article / Cruise

Vancouver: A Cruiser's Guide to the Olympics

If you've turned on a TV over the past two weeks, you know that we're in the midst of the 21st Olympic Winter Games. But where exactly in Vancouver are all these events taking place?

Article / Hotels

Travel Troubleshooter: My Hotel Lost a Star, What Now?

When our reader books a nonrefundable hotel room through Priceline, she's promised a four-star property. She ends up with a three-star and when she complains, she's given the runaround.

Article / Air Travel

Good Airline Fees? Some Are Worth the Money

This isn't another story about airlines and their misguided fees. It's about the surcharges that are worth paying -- and why you should consider saying, 'yes' to them

Article / Cruise

Here Be Monsters: The Secret Story Behind Cruising's Most Cherished Traditions

It may come as surprise that many of the endearing traditions we honor aboard today's cruise ships have their origins in fear, superstition, loss, and even human sacrifice.