Articles

Entry Requirements & Customs

Article / Passportable

Airline Ticketing Will Include Nonbinary Gender Option

The major U.S. airlines are changing their online ticketing sites so that passengers can identify gender with options other than male and female. According to the Associated Press,…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Venice Has Adopted the Ultimate Means for Reducing Crowds: Admission Fees

Just about everyone will agree that the worst current problem in travel is overtourism—the crowded conditions in the world’s most popular cities and destinations. In places like…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

U.S. Tourism to Canada Again Embroiled in Controversy

Through all the decades of travel from the U.S. to Canada, our northern neighbor has occasionally presented us with touristic issues and arguments. Some 60 years ago, Canadian travel…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Arthur Frommer: The Ban on Muslim Travel to the US is Counterproductive

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…

Article / Passportable

New Zealand to Start Taxing Tourists

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…

Article / Slideshows

For These European Sights, You Should Reserve Tickets Ahead

Because travel has become so affordable, the world's favorite tourist attractions have never been more crowded. Some of them are so overrun that you could spend as many hours outside…

Article / Passportable

Free Admission at Wisconsin State Parks on the First Weekend of June

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…

Article / Air Travel

Biased Metrics? Concerns Over Privacy and Race in Airport Face Scans

The Department of Homeland Security plans to scan the face of each passenger leaving the United States, citizens included. Should we be worried—and is the technology fair?

Article / Passportable

D.C.’s African American Museum Tests a Change to Its Admissions Policy

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…

Article / Passportable

Most Visited U.S. National Parks and Monuments in 2017

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…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Arthur Frommer: Make Sure To Check Your Passport Dates Before Travel

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…

Article / Passportable

Get Yours Now! Passport Fees are Going Up

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…

Article / Passportable

The Travel Services That Close in a U.S. Government Shutdown

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"…

Article / Health, Insurance, Security

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.

Article / Passportable

Tour Operator to Pay Passport Fees for Travelers Age 18–35

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…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

A Slump in the Number of Foreign Visitors to the United States Continues

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…

Article / Passportable

NYC's Met to Charge Mandatory Admission to Out-of-Towners

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…

Article / Passportable

To Visit This Island Paradise You Have to Pledge to Protect the Environment

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…

Article / Passportable

Turkey Fully Resumes Issuing Visas to Americans

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…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Arthur Frommer's Travel Resolutions for the New Year

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,…

Article / Slideshows

Do These Things Before Going to China—Your Trip Will Go Better

China can feel like a world unto itself—different ATM systems, different methods of paying, even different styles of bathrooms. If you're planning a vacation in China, there are a few…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Our Top Tips for Surviving Holiday Air Travel this Year

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…

Article / Passportable

American State Department Simplifies Travel Warnings

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…

Article / Passportable

Paid Reservations Now Required to Visit California's Muir Woods

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…

Article / Passportable

Brazil Just Got a Whole Lot Easier to Visit

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.…