Arthur Frommer: The Ban on Muslim Travel to the US is Counterproductive
Posted on 07/05/2018, 3:00 AM
Undoubtedly, the most significant recent development in travel was the Supreme Court’s approval, by a slender 5-to-4 margin, of Donald Trump’s ban against Muslim travel to the United States. All Americans should examine the validity of that ruling from the standpoint of economics, constitutionality, and national security. From an economic standpoint: The world’s population of Muslims amount...
New Zealand to Start Taxing Tourists
Posted on 06/20/2018, 5:30 AM
The price of a vacation in New Zealand is about to go up. The country's government has announced plans to charge a new tax on tourists, expected to go into effect in the middle of 2019. International visitors staying less than 12 months will be charged somewhere in the range of NZ$25–35 (US$17–24). Citizens of Australia and most Pacific Island Forum countries will be exempt from the fee. Acco...
Free Admission at Wisconsin State Parks on the First Weekend of June
Posted on 05/12/2018, 12:00 AM
Wisconsin is giving locals and visitors alike a good reason to experience the state's considerable outdoor charms on June 2-3. That weekend, admission will be free at all Wisconsin state parks, encompassing forests, hiking trails, lakes, bluffs, and beaches. You can hit the trails to see picturesque cascades at Copper Falls (pictured above) in the northern part of the state, survey the mighty M...
D.C.’s African American Museum Tests a Change to Its Admissions Policy
Posted on 04/04/2018, 4:00 AM
The National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. is trying out a new admissions practice this month. Each Wednesday in April, visitors can simply walk up to to the building on Constitution Avenue, get in line, and gain entry to the museum on a first-come, first-served basis, starting at 10am, when it opens. That might sound like standard museum-going procedure, bu...
Most Visited U.S. National Parks and Monuments in 2017
Posted on 03/05/2018, 10:45 PM
The National Park Service (NPS) has released its visitor numbers for 2017. A total of 330,882,751 people spent time at American national parks, monuments, and other sites deemed worthy of federal protection. As the NPS points out, that figure is only a smidge lower than the record-setting 330,971,689 visits the agency logged in 2016—the year of its highly touted 100th birthday. The Blue Ridge ...
Arthur Frommer: Make Sure To Check Your Passport Dates Before Travel
Posted on 02/14/2018, 7:00 PM
You are about to leave on an international trip, and you have carefully checked the contents of your suitcase, wallet or purse to make sure that everything—especially your passport—is there. And is the passport still valid? You glance at the page with that information, and seeing that all is well, you leave for the airport. You have done everything correctly, right? Wrong! Unbeknownst to...
Get Yours Now! Passport Fees are Going Up
Posted on 02/06/2018, 10:00 AM
The U.S. State Department has announced that prices for passports will inch up come April. For adults, the cost for a passport book will be $145. The fee for children 16 and younger will be $115. It's an increase of only $10, but that's on top of a fee that already was pretty steep—those who live in the United Kingdom pay roughly 30% less for their passports. Passport cards, which are used for ...
The Travel Services That Close in a U.S. Government Shutdown
Posted on 01/19/2018, 11:00 AM
As the wheels of Washington threaten to grind to a halt yet again, another United States federal government shutdown is a concern. Travel, by and large, is considered a "non-essential" function—and non-essential functions either dim or go dark. Generally speaking, here's what is not available during a federal government shutdown: Passport services Visa processing National parks and...
U.S. State Department Travel Advisories: Where to Find Them, How to Read Them
In 2018, the U.S. State Department revamped its travel warnings to make them easier to understand. Here's how to find them and how to use them to plan a safe trip overseas.
Tour Operator to Pay Passport Fees for Travelers Age 18–35
Posted on 01/13/2018, 9:30 AM
More than half of Americans age 18–35 don't have passports, according to Contiki, a tour operator specializing in that very demographic. For a limited time, Contiki is offering some passport-acquiring incentive to first-time international travelers—at least, those who fall within the 18–35 age range. Contiki customers who book one of the company's trips lasting longer than seven days can get the...
A Slump in the Number of Foreign Visitors to the United States Continues
Posted on 01/11/2018, 8:15 PM
Commencing with the inauguration of President Trump, tourism officials in several U.S. cities have drawn attention, with alarm, to a reduction in the number of foreign residents visiting their cities. One such official, representing New York, cited a drop of 700,000 foreign tourists no longer coming to the Big Apple. But until now, no such figures have been reported for the United States ...
NYC's Met to Charge Mandatory Admission to Out-of-Towners
Posted on 01/05/2018, 11:15 PM
For the first time since its founding in the 1870s, New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art is instituting a mandatory admission fee. Starting March 1, visitors who do not live in New York State will be charged $25 to enter. That ticket will be valid for three consecutive days at the Met and its offshoots, the Met Breuer and the Cloisters. There will not be separate lines at any of those plac...
To Visit This Island Paradise You Have to Pledge to Protect the Environment
Posted on 01/04/2018, 8:45 PM
In order to enter the island nation of Palau in the western Pacific Ocean, visitors must now sign a "passport pledge" to protect the environment. The mandatory vow was enacted to counter the negative effects of tourism on the country's 200 islands and their coral reefs, volcanic hills, rich biodiversity, and cultural sites. The move makes Palau the world's first nation to change immigration law...
Turkey Fully Resumes Issuing Visas to Americans
Posted on 12/29/2017, 12:00 AM
For nearly three months, Turkish authorities and the U.S. government have been in a diplomatic spat, resulting in the suspension of visas for American tourists. The quick and painless electronic application procedure was abruptly closed to U.S. citizens. A month later, they were offered the arduous option of going in person to a Turkish embassy or consulate to submit to interviews, a luxury nearly ...
Arthur Frommer's Travel Resolutions for the New Year
Posted on 12/28/2017, 12:00 AM
Because they often seek to regulate all of human activity, I find most New Year’s Resolutions to be rather unsatisfying. Here’s an attempt to limit these rules to the world of travel, which—to me—is badly in need of a little moralizing at this moment in our history. So here goes. In the year ahead: I shall fight, as a citizen and as a voter, to preserve the right of every American...
Our Top Tips for Surviving Holiday Air Travel this Year
Posted on 12/13/2017, 2:45 PM
The airlines are expecting 51 million passengers to fly in United States in the final two weeks of December, a figure that’s up 3% from last year’s record number. Break it down and that means some 80,000 more passengers a day than fly during an average day during the rest of the year. If you will be among the masses, you'll want to carefully strategize. Here are our suggestions: Check in 2...
American State Department Simplifies Travel Warnings
Posted on 12/11/2017, 2:15 PM
Following a long internal review, the United States Department of State is making its travel warnings clearer. Starting in January, its notices on safety situations will be boiled down to one of four categories. Level 1: Exercise normal precautions Level 2: Exercise increased caution Level 3: Reconsider travel Level 4: Do not travel Since the State Department's travel warnings are ...
Paid Reservations Now Required to Visit California's Muir Woods
Posted on 11/30/2017, 12:00 AM
From Dubrovnik to Machu Picchu, popular tourist destinations around the world are devising new sign-up strategies to combat overcrowding caused by hordes of temporary visitors. The latest spot to add to the list, as Frommer's reported would happen back in 2015: Muir Woods National Monument in Mill Valley, California, north of San Francisco. Starting on January 16, 2018, each visitor who arrives...
Brazil Just Got a Whole Lot Easier to Visit
Posted on 11/27/2017, 12:00 AM
Hallelujah! Brazil's arms are finally opening wide to tourists. For years, if you wanted to visit the riches of this South American country, you soon found out how difficult it was. You'd have to make an appointment with the nearest Brazilian embassy or consulate, and that could take more than a month. On the big day, you'd travel there and proffer your passport along with photo, an application, a...
The Trump Slump Claims Another Victim: Students Coming to Study at U.S. Colleges
Posted on 11/17/2017, 9:00 PM
In earlier blogs, I discussed the recent sharp decline in foreign tourism coming to vacation in the United States—far more than a few million fewer visitors compared to previous periods. To those figures, in statistics released just days ago, we now need to figure in a drop of several hundreds of thousands of fewer foreign students coming to the United States to study in our places of learning. ...
Blaming Trump, Another Airline Calls It Quits in Cuba
Posted on 11/17/2017, 8:30 PM
Alaska Airlines will discontinue its service to Cuba on January 22, 2018, the carrier has announced. The reason: the Trump Administration's new rules that make it too difficult for Americans to visit the island. The tighter restrictions do away with the Obama-era "people-to-people" travel exemption. That means that Americans who want to visit Cuba must now do so with authorized tours and cruises ...
