Travel

The Chicago skyline backdrops the Chicago Jazz Festival at Millennium Park’s Pritzker Pavilion on Sept. 4, 2026. (Chris Sweda/baiduhai)

Conde Nast Traveler readers name Chicago ‘Best Big City’ for 10th year in a row

By Robert Channick

October 6, 2026 at 3:25 p.m.

Conde Nast Traveler received nearly 800,000 votes for this year’s Readers’ Choice Awards, which cover...

Olivia Estrada, the on board manager, carries plates of food to the dome car for guests aboard a Patrick Henry Creative Promotions private rail car as it travels from Chicago, Illinois, to St. Louis, Missouri, on May 19, 2026. Private train cars may seem like a relic of the past, but for some rail fans, nothing beats having — or renting — your own sleeper car. (Jamie Kelter Davis/The New York Times)

The quiet allure of private rail

By The New York Times News Service Syndicate

October 2, 2026 at 6:15 p.m.

Private rail cars traveled 429,000 miles on Amtrak in fiscal year 2025, according to the...

Cary Sabados shops for chocolate at Hotel Chocolat in Lakeview on Feb. 12, 2026. This Lakeview location, opened last April, was the first Chicago store. (Eileen T. Meslar/baiduhai)

Chicago-based Hotel Chocolat going nationwide with airport concessions, grocery stores and new retail markets

By Robert Channick

September 23, 2026 at 12:37 p.m.

This fall, Hotel Chocolat will pop up at 49 airports, hit the shelves at Wegmans,...

WAIT FOR A SPORTING EVENTS | <a href="https://www.theactivetimes.com/extreme-weather-pro-sports-athletes"target="_blank">Pro athletes have endured a lot</a> for the sake of the game, however this global health pandemic has upended the spring and summer sporting season. Currently, Major League Baseball has not announced a ticket refund policy, and the league intends to play as many games as possible when the season begins. The NHL and NBA have both been similarly mum on refund policies as they navigate the possibility of a season with empty stands and stadiums.

Celebrity Travel: Go away with … Amber Nash

By Jae-Ha Kim

December 3, 2020 at 11:31 a.m.

Comedian Amber Nash said people often recognize her voice before her face. The Atlanta-based actress...

Rick Steves’ Europe: Naples: Bella chaos

By Rick Steves

December 3, 2020 at 11:29 a.m.

As we've had to postpone our travels because of the pandemic, I believe a weekly...

How to pretend you are in Tokyo

By New York Times

December 1, 2020 at 5:21 p.m.

there are ways to capture the spirit of a sometimes impenetrable, always fascinating city. Perhaps,...

United Airlines airplane takes off over a plane on the runway at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco.

United Airlines charged an extra $386 for a Thanksgiving flight. Travel Troubleshooter investigates.

By Christopher Elliott

December 3, 2020 at 2:45 p.m.

When United Airlines erroneously marks Catherine O'Connor as a "no show" on her Thanksgiving flight,...

Santa Claus, Indiana, is the place to be this time of year for Christmas merriment

By Jay Jones

November 30, 2020 at 1:54 p.m.

Yes, there really is a Santa Claus. No, not the jolly old man toiling away...

Ed Perkins on Travel: Will IATA’s new travel pass get you going again?

By Ed Perkins

December 3, 2020 at 2:46 p.m.

IATA, the International Air Transport Association, is developing a digital "Travel Pass" data system that...

FILE -- A skier at Mad River Glen in Vermont, Jan. 17, 2016. This year, the ski area had seen strong season pass sales before the state announced new quarantine guidelines.

Newly tightened virus regulations challenge Vermont’s ski season

By The New York Times

November 29, 2020 at 7:24 a.m.

In some ways, it looked as if the pandemic could be good for Vermont's ski...

Guests walk on Main Street, U.S.A., in front of Cinderella Castle in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., Wednesday, September 30, 2020. Disney Co. announced Tuesday they are laying off 28,000 employees in the U.S. due to the downturn in visitors to their parks and resorts caused by the coronavirus pandemic. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

4,000 more Walt Disney Co. employees are losing their jobs

By Gabrielle Russon

November 28, 2020 at 12:43 p.m.

On the day before Thanksgiving, the Walt Disney Co. revealed 4,000 more layoffs are coming,...

Celebrity Travel: Go away with … Dexter Darden

By Jae-Ha Kim

November 25, 2020 at 3:32 p.m.

Dexter Darden has played everyone from the fictional Frypan in "The Maze Runner" franchise to...

Rick Steves’ Europe: Café chitchat, chocolate cake, and the Vienna opera

By Rick Steves

November 25, 2020 at 3:26 p.m.

As we've had to postpone our travels because of the pandemic, I believe a weekly...