Travel writing often feels like an inherently bossy genre.
More than other types of journalism, we rely a lot on the second-person imperative. Go here, not there, eat this, skip that, look at this view, strap on that money belt.
Speaking for Frommer's, it's not that we don't want you to explore freely and make your own discoveries out in the world.
It's that we know the world, though full of wonders, is also full of disappointments, rip-offs, tourist traps, and truly terrible advice, whether from corporate shills or humorless, slop-peddling, plagiaristic robots.
Our mission has always been to help you get to the good parts of travel while minimizing the time-, money-, and morale-sapping parts.
To that end, we've introduced a new feature here at Frommers.com: the Frommer's Favorites heart.
In our guidebooks (and online listings drawn from our guidebooks), hearts indicate our recommended attractions, hotels, restaurants, and other businesses. (We once used stars, but because hotels are also classified by star rating, using hearts is a surer signal that our very human travel researchers love a place.)
Now we have expanded our hearts of approval from print to digital content as well.
You'll find our little red organ of approbation (pictured above) in the upper right corner on Frommers.com posts featuring our recommendations of travel gear, museums, cruises, planning tools, dining venues, historic sites, transportation savings options, and anything else we cover.
Naturally, not everything we write about will earn the Frommer's symbol of approval. The heart will only appear as an endorsement of the things we love, based on our writers' independent assessments using their own firsthand—and, it must be emphasized nowadays, human—experience and expertise.
The Frommer's Favorites designation will show you at a glance whether the thing or place in question is worth trying.
You might not always agree with our selections. But you can trust that we came by them honestly and without AI—just as readers have been trusting the Frommer's name for nearly 70 years now.
To find our picks for the best in travel, look for the Frommer's Favorites heart or, to browse a selection of recently anointed faves, go to Frommers.com/Frommers-Favorites.
