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,...

Built by communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu, Bucharest’s Palace of the Parliament is Europe’s biggest building – and it’s 70 percent vacant. (Rick Steves, Rick Steves’ Europe)

Rick Steves’ Europe: Bucharest’s lively old town – and eerie palace

By Rick Steves

September 24, 2025 at 6:34 p.m.

Still haunted by the legend of a vampire count and the legacy of a communist...

National Transportation Safety Board Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy presides over the NTSB fact-finding hearing on the DCA midair collision accident, at the National Transportation and Safety Board boardroom, Wednesday, July 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

Night vision goggles may have hampered Army helicopter pilots before midair crash with jet, experts tell transportation safety board

By Josh Funk

August 2, 2025 at 5:14 p.m.

The National Transportation Safety Board on Friday enters its third and final day of public...

Palermo’s La Martorana features high arches and gorgeous gilded mosaics. (Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli, Rick Steves’ Europe)

Rick Steves’ Europe: Palermo: Gritty, yet delightful

By Rick Steves

September 24, 2025 at 6:33 p.m.

Europe is always changing – and Sicily’s capital, Palermo, is a fine example of this....

FILE – A traveler walks through the Southwest Airlines ticketing counter area at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, April 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

Southwest Airlines flight headed to Las Vegas takes dramatic plunge in response to nearby aircraft

By Rio Yamat

July 26, 2025 at 8:53 a.m.

The plane suddenly jolted shortly after takeover then felt like it was falling, said Stef...

In countryside Britain and Ireland, the road can get quite narrow – and pulling over to let vehicles pass is common. (Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli, Rick Steves’ Europe)

Rick Steves’ Europe: Driving ‘British’ and ‘Irish’

By Rick Steves

September 24, 2025 at 6:30 p.m.

While most first-time visitors to Europe choo-choose to travel by train, consider the convenience of...

An airline passenger holds his shoes and has an unloosened belt while waiting to go through the Transportation Security Administration security checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, in Atlanta, Aug. 3, 2011. (Erik S. Lesser/AP)

After years of tough rules on liquids and footwear, US air travel may be on the cusp of a new era

By Rebecca Santana

July 17, 2025 at 9:00 p.m.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has hinted at possible changes to TSA's liquid restrictions.

A view of one of the three Seine swimming pools on July 3, 2025, which will open during the ‘Paris Plages’ event from July 5 to Aug. 31 in Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Want to take a dip in Paris? River Seine reopens to public swimming for the 1st time in a century.

By Sylvie Corbet

July 4, 2025 at 10:00 a.m.

For the first time in over a century, Parisians and tourists will be able to...

Giant fiberglass Paul Bunyon Hotdog Statue in Atlanta, Illinois, seen on June 21, 2025. (E. Jason Wambsgans/baiduhai)

Go big and stay home! Why Illinois loves its roadside monsters.

By Christopher Borrelli

July 2, 2025 at 8:38 a.m.

Our state loves its towering Abe Lincolns and ketchup bottles. Looking for a road trip?...

The eastbound end of Route 66 at East Jackson Boulevard and South Michigan Avenue in Chicago, June 21, 2025. (E. Jason Wambsgans/baiduhai)

Route 66 road trip: The last — or first — 300 miles in Illinois

By Jonathan Bullington

June 29, 2025 at 5:00 a.m.

Route 66 often conjures images of quaint small towns, but its foundation has always been...

Lea Davis and her partner lost their home in the Fountain Park neighborhood of St. Louis when it was condemned due to storm damage from a May 16 tornado. (E. Jason Wambsgans/baiduhai)

Route 66 road trip: A deadly twister crosses a long-standing divide in St. Louis, Missouri

By Jonathan Bullington

June 29, 2025 at 6:51 a.m.

A month after a deadly tornado ripped through St. Louis, the extensive damage and slow...