Articles

Hotels

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Marriott Made Hundreds of Millions from Deceptive Fees, Lawsuit Says

Just how lucrative are resort fees for hotels? Newly unsealed court documents from a lawsuit brought by the District of Columbia's attorney general against Marriott International shed…

Article / Slideshows

Winter Family Fun, Beyond Skiing: Off-the-Slopes Adventure in the U.S. and Canada

There’s a lot more to winter outdoor adventure than downhill skiing. Dogsledding, snowshoeing, cross-country treks, horseback riding, and cycling across snow with special “fat bikes”…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Finding Affordable Holiday Airfare and Hotels in 2021

The holidays will be tricky this year, and I’m not just talking about potential gift shortages due to global supply chain issues. Travel patterns continue to shift. While there’s still…

Article / Slideshows

From Souks to Skyscrapers: Astonishing Then-and-Now Photos of a Middle Eastern Metropolis

The Middle Eastern nation of Qatar gained its independence from the British in September 1971. In the 50 years since, this tiny nub of land on the northeastern coast of the Arabian…

Article / Passportable

3 Bed, 2 Bath, 1 Poltergeist: “The Conjuring” House Is for Sale

The 14-room farmhouse that inspired the hit horror movie The Conjuring can be yours for $1.2 million. Fair warning: You might have some spectral squatters to deal with. A listing for…

Article / Passportable

“Silence of the Lambs” House Now Rentable for Skin-Crawling Overnight Stays

Fictional serial killer Buffalo Bill is famously a pretty terrible host in The Silence of the Lambs. Nevertheless, the three-story, four-bedroom southwestern Pennsylvania home that…

Article / Passportable

Gorgeous Photo Book Celebrates 90 Years of Stars and Style at The Carlyle Hotel in NYC

The Carlyle in New York City is the sort of place where a princess, a pop star, and a titan of business might share an elevator. And we're not exaggerating: Princess Diana, Michael…

Article / Food and Drink

Where Was the Piña Colada Born? A Bar Fight Between Two Puerto Rico Tourism Icons

In San Juan, a historic hotel and a restaurant popular with cruisers both claim to have invented the boozy beachside beverage. Can we settle this dispute?

Article / Passportable

All-Inclusive Resort Chains Sandals and Beaches Set New Standard for Covid Guarantees

Sandals Resorts International is redefining the term "all-inclusive" to fit the needs of pandemic-era travelers. The vacation company operates beachfront properties under the Beaches…

Article / Slideshows

Sleep with Your Favorite Celebrity at These Star-Owned Hotels

When they stay at celeb-helmed hotels, ordinary Joes and Janes feel like they can experience something of the lifestyle of their beloved stars. Just how intensely involved the…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

$25 to Use the Pool?! Airline-Style à la Carte Fees Land at Hotels

Airlines have perfected the art of nickel-and-diming customers with extra charges for services and amenities that were once free, from checking a bag to getting an onboard snack. The…

Article / Money and Fees

Warning: Some Vacation Rentals Don't Include Access to Property Amenities

You might assume that when you book a vacation rental, you automatically have the right to use its amenities, like the pool or the golf course. But that's not the case.

Article / Passportable

Stay in the Home of Maker’s Mark Whiskey on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail

The Samuels family of Nelson County, Kentucky, traces its whiskey-making lineage back eight generations to an ancestral distiller who supplied liquid courage to the troops in George…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Ending Daily Hotel Room Cleaning Will "Cost Women of Color Billions," Group Warns

Largely overlooked in the nonstop circus of summer news headlines, a crucial workers' organization warned in June that the hotel industry's trend of scaling back daily housekeeping…

Article / Passportable

The Prices for Disney's New Star Wars Hotel Are Out of This World

Disney’s groundbreaking Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser hotel sounds like the coolest idea in hotels since pillows. Starting next spring, the new luxury hotel, which was recently…

Article / Health, Insurance, Security

How to Avoid Being Fooled by Greenwashing on Vacation

Is that travel business as eco-conscious as it claims to be? Here's a beginner's guide to figuring out which ones are just full of hot air.

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Historic Hudson Valley Brickyard Transformed Into Luxury Resort

Pillow menus, a social hour with wine in the lobby, goldfish in guest rooms—in the last decade or so there's been an arms race among hotels over which can create the most original…

Article / Slideshows

8 Woodsy Resorts with Cabins Perfect for Families Seeking a Nature Getaway

Sometimes you and your kids just want to keep things simple. A cabin-in-the-woods vacation turns your family’s fantasy of getting closer to nature—and away from crowds—into a…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Hilton Drops Daily Room Cleanings at U.S. Hotels, But Not Rates

From now on, daily housekeeping as a matter of course at Hilton hotels is a thing of the past. In an update to its pandemic-inspired CleanStay program, the company announced that…

Article / Passportable

Tennessee Will Help Pay Your Airfare If You Book a Hotel Stay

Tennessee is giving away thousands of airfare discounts to travelers who book certain hotel packages in the state. Dubbed "Tennessee on Me," the offer applies to stays in four…

Article / Passportable

PHOTOS: Inside a Royal Palace Turned Luxury Hotel in Historic Budapest

A onetime royal palace situated near the Danube River in Budapest has been turned into a swanky hotel. The 130-room Matild Palace, the latest outpost in Marriott International's Luxury…

Article / Slideshows

8 Great Condo-style Resorts for Families in the Caribbean, Bahamas, and Mexico

A condo-style resort goes a long way toward making a family vacation successful. Self-contained lodgings—also marketed as apartments, villas, or residences—grant more space and…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

This Summer, Travel Isn't Working Like It Used To, So Bring Your Patience

As a society, we're still coping with a once-in-a-century trauma—and several of us aren't handling the stress well. Some travelers are snapping, losing their marbles in the worst…

Article / Passportable

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…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Wanna Go to Sicily? The Italian Island Will Help Pay for Your Vacation

In April 2020, I told you about a plan Sicily hatched to restart its tourism industry. The government announced it had set aside millions of euros to pay 50% of visitors' airfares and…