Tequila Tourism and Beyond: Get to Know Mezcal in Mexico
Wanna see how tequila and mezcal are made? A leading agave evangelist shows us how to let the spirits lead in Mexico.
Take Your Next Beach Vacation in the Bahamas: It's the Right Thing to Do
Posted on 09/10/2019, 8:15 PM
The pictures are devastating: mile after mile of rubble, overturned cars, and marooned boats where once homes, streets, and marinas stood. Hurricane Dorian, the slow-moving, hugely powerful storm that hit part of the Bahamas, was arguably the most destructive hurricane in modern history. Many are now asking how to help. The clear, if unexpected answer is: Go to the Bahamas on your next vacation....
Will Fall Foliage Be Worth Seeing This Year in New England? Here's An Expert's Forecast
Posted on 09/03/2019, 8:15 PM
New England’s fall foliage show is right around the corner. Leaf peepers are polishing their binoculars, planning their routes, and booking their B&Bs. In preparation for this popular season, I spoke with Mel Allen, the Editor of Yankee Magazine, to get his take on what road trippers can expect in the coming months. Pauline Frommer: I need to start this interview by saying that the website of ...
A Major Newspaper Asks If It's Ethical to Fly. Arthur Frommer Wants Your Thoughts
Posted on 08/26/2019, 12:00 AM
Depending on your politics, you either do or you don’t regard The New York Times as the nation’s leading newspaper. But after that paper’s recent examination of the relation between travel and climate change, you must surely regard it as the nation’s boldest newspaper. The Times’ startling discussion (which you can read here) results from the belief held by almost all prestigious ...
New Paris Museum Chronicles Liberation from Nazis in WW2
Posted on 08/20/2019, 10:15 PM
Sunday, August 25, marks the 75th anniversary of the Liberation of Paris from its Nazi occupiers during World War II. On the same day, a new museum will open permanently to chronicle that momentous 1944 event. The facility's name is a mouthful: the Musée de la Libération de Paris-Musée du Général Leclerc-Musée Jean Moulin, but most English-speaking people will call it the Liberation Museum. De...
Arthur Frommer: Preventing Travel to Cuba Is Harming Ordinary Cubans the Most
Posted on 08/19/2019, 1:00 AM
When the Trump Administration recently announced its reversal of the Obama effort to permit American travel to Cuba, it justified this new limitation by the effect it would have on the government of Cuba (and not on the Cuban people themselves). Examples were given of the Cuban military’s ownership of major hotels, and of other areas in which a downturn in American travel would harm the ...
Liquor and Spirits: San Diego to Get a Cemetery Speakeasy
Posted on 08/19/2019, 12:00 AM
San Diego's El Campo Santo cemetery was established in the city's historic Old Town in 1849, and according to ghost hunters, the spirits residing there have been riled up almost ever since. A streetcar line was installed right through the middle of the burial site in the late 19th century, disturbing the eternal rest of those interred there (small brass markers in the street indicate gravesites ...
Arthur Frommer: Viewing Whales and Dolphins in Captivity Should No Longer be Seen as Ethical
Posted on 08/15/2019, 1:00 AM
A major step forward in the ethical treatment of large sea life was just taken by Sir Richard Branson. On behalf of all the Branson entities, he has announced that his companies will no longer participate in tours with or presentations of captive whales and dolphins, otherwise known as cetaceans. Those large animals are today found to be thinking creatures with emotions and tho...
Vacation Rental Law Hits Hawaii Hard—How to Navigate Tough Rental Regulations
Posted on 08/14/2019, 6:00 PM
Long before Airbnb was a twinkle on founder Brian Chesky’s browser, New York State had a law severely limiting short-term rentals. Called the "Multiple Dwelling Law," it has, in its many iterations, banned short-term rentals of less than 30 days in the state, including New York City, since 1929. The law was strengthened in both 2011 and 2018; today, it applies to apartments in buildings with mo...
Living the Good Life (Affordably) In and Around Traverse City, Michigan
Posted on 07/26/2019, 1:15 AM
In some ways, the Inn at Black Star Farms recalls Tara from Gone with the Wind. Guests are greeted in a marble-floored lobby embedded with a black star (hence the name) in front of a grand curved staircase wide enough for hoopskirted damsels to make a glam entrance. The property is not, however, from that era or located in the South. It's in Michigan's Leelanau County and was built in the 1980s...
Visiting This Australian Museum Will Require Flippers and an Oxygen Tank
Posted on 07/24/2019, 12:00 AM
Deep-sea divers with an interest in sculpture should mark their calendars for December, when the first installation of visionary artist Jason deCaires Taylor’s Museum of Underwater Art is set to be unveiled at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. (Image by Jason deCaires Taylor) The MOUA, which will eventually comprise works at several spots around Queensland, will debut with a coastal-bas...
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An Adult Returns to Sleepaway Camp at Interlochen Arts Camp in Northern Michigan
Posted on 07/22/2019, 2:00 PM
Proust had his madeleines. But for me, the sight of a vanilla-and-chocolate swirled cone being served through a window marked “Melody Freeze” was a memory prompt. With the first lick, I was 14 years old again, at a time in my life when music and theater meant everything. I was at Interlochen, known in my adolescence as the National Music Camp, a place I’d once thought was only for kids like me. B...
Pauline Frommer: I'm Often Asked How to Become a Travel Writer, And I Suggest This Event
Posted on 07/02/2019, 12:00 PM
Every year, I give about a dozen speeches on travel across North America. When I sign books afterwards, a familiar scenario inevitably will play out. I’ll hand back the book that I've just autographed and notice that the individual standing in front of me looks very, very nervous… and doesn’t want to move away from the table. She or he will chit-chat for a few minutes before taking a deep breath ...
