Articles

Miscellaneous

Article / Car, Bus, Rail

Orlando's Visitor Toll Pass Saves You $20–$30 a Day. More Tourists Should Know About It.

Is Florida's Visitor Toll Pass legit? Yes! But it saves tourists so much money on tolls that the rental car companies would rather you didn't know about it. Here's how it works.

Article / Air Travel

How to Identify Flights Overhead and Ships at Sea for Free Using Your Smartphone

Free apps and tools let you identify the airplanes you see in the sky and the ships sailing in the ocean.

Article / Beach & Water Sports

Beach Safety Tips for Avoiding Rip Currents

Amid rising risks from rip currents, follow these essential beach safety tips to avoid one of the ocean's biggest dangers. 

Article / Family & Kids

Disney World Rebrands Genie+/ FastPass, but It's Still a Miserable, Complex, and Costly Chore

In July 2024, Walt Disney World in Florida tweaks its overscubscribed beat-the-lines product yet again. To make it work, vacationers will have to plan even farther ahead and spend even…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Frommer’s Maine Coast: Our Latest Guide to Acadia, Portland, and Other Seaside Stunners

“Maine is a beautiful place that I paradoxically want to hoard to myself and share with everyone I meet," humorist John Hodgman writes in his 2017 book Vacationland. On a recent…

Article / Air Travel

Airplanes Don’t Like Extreme Heat: Tips for Avoiding Flight Delays in Summer's Hot Weather

Summer flying can be tough. Especially this year. Plane engines simply behave differently in the summer, and smart travelers use that information to avoid delays and cancellations.

Article / Air Travel

5 Idiotic Viral Travel Hacks You Shouldn’t Bother Trying When You Fly

Don't believe everything you see on the internet. These viral travel hacks aren't likely to make flying better—and could make things worse. 

Article / Passportable

Barcelona to Ban All Vacation Rentals by 2028

Although the announcement may seem surprising to outsiders, people familiar with Barcelona will recognize this has been a long time coming—and will likely be a harbinger of future…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Bags Stolen From Baggage Claim: The Airlines' Big Luggage Security Problem

Many travelers won't know or remember this, but there was a time when airline passengers had to to present a claim check in order to pick up their luggage after flights.Until the early…

Article / Passportable

JetBlue Basic Economy to Allow Carry-Ons—Which Airlines Still Charge for Overhead Bins?

JetBlue passengers with the airline's cheapest class of tickets, known as Blue Basic fares, will be allowed to bring a carry-on bag onto the plane at no additional charge, the carrier…

Article / Passportable

Where The Best Beaches in Europe for Water Quality Are

Weather forecasters say it's gonna be another summer of brutal heat waves in Europe—maybe the hottest season ever, according to some predictions. But at least there's some reassuring…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Online Passport Renewal is Back in the U.S.! Here's How to Get In On It

All right, Americans. Ready? This is online passport renewal, take two. The U.S. State Department today announced that it is once again accepting applications for online passport…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

This Airline Is Mining Your Personal Information to Sell Things to You In Flight. Stop That!

Welcome to the spammy skies. United Airlines has launched a new ad serving platform that will exploit the personal travel information of its customers gathered from bookings, and the…

Article / Passportable

You’re Not Going to Like What Drinking Alcohol on Flights Does to Your Body, Per New Research

For the many travelers out there whose strategy for getting through long-haul flights is a one-two punch of boozing and snoozing, some German scientists have some bad news. A new…

Article / Passportable

Would You Climb This Scary Ladder "Floating in Thin Air" Above Norwegian Fjords?

As climate change pushes Southern Europe's summer temperatures past the proverbial boiling point, many travelers have begun to look northward to Scandinavia for outdoor vacation…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Find Vacation Rentals—But From Someone You Know: Meet Trustr, A New Rental Site

According to the National Association of Home Builders, there are 7.5 million second homes in the United States, which is 5.11% of the total number of homes. Yet even in this age of…

Article / Passportable

TSA Confirms Real ID Will Be Mandatory to Fly Starting May 7, 2025

This post was originally published in December 2022 and contains updated information.The deadline for all Americans to be using Real I.D., the strengthened identification format that…

Article / Cruise

11 Ways to Find a Cheap Cruise: The Secrets of Cruise Discounts in 2024

We’ve got the lowdown on how to make your hard-earned cruise vacation cash go even further. Here are 11 methods for booking a cheap cruise.

Article / Air Travel

Where is Everybody? "Humanless” Customer Service is Dominating Travel. Can We Be Heard as Consumers?

Companies have been eliminating customer assistance and denying consumers help with increasing frequency, and now the problem is nearly ubiquitous. Why isn't this a national…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

American Airlines Raises Bag Fees, Will Ban Some Booking Sites from Points Eligibility

This news post was updated with new information after its original publication.It's almost as if the corporations dominating our lives are determined to make back whatever they missed…

Article / Passportable

Deal Alert: Hawaii Hotels Are Up to 30% Cheaper Than Normal Right Now

If you've ever wanted a vacation on Maui's famed Ka‘anapali Beach, this is the year to go. Occupancy and prices are down some 20–30% in the popular West Maui resort area, but those…

Article / National Parks

How to Get U.S. National Park Reservations if They're Sold Out

The most popular national parks in the United States now require advance reservations for entry in peak season, and those often book up months in advance. Here's how to get into a…

Article / Passportable

Hurricane Season Forecast: 2024 Could Get Most Storms Ever

This post, originally published April 22, has been updated with new information.The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season is going to be a rough one, according to weather forecasters. For…

Article / Passportable

Bike Tennessee with This Free Online Collection of Scenic Cycling Routes

Tennessee is making it easier to experience some of the state's best scenery and historic sites by bike. A partnership between the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development and the…

Article / Local Experiences

The USA's Legal Recreational Weed States in 2024

24 states and counting . . .