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,...

A picture taken on May 2, 2019 shows Chambord Castle, during commemorations of the 500th anniversary of the death of Italian Renaissance painter and scientist Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), in Chambord, France.

Rick Steves’ Europe: Three Castles: Eltz, Rheinfels, and Neuschwanstein

By Rick Steves

July 30, 2020 at 2:03 p.m.

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

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.

Hawaii considers ‘resort bubbles’ for visitor quarantines

By Janeen Christoff

July 30, 2020 at 12:19 p.m.

Three Hawaiian Islands are considering creating "resort bubbles" so that visitors can quarantine with a...

Need a passport? Is it life or death? About 1.2 million people are ahead of you

By Christopher Reynolds

July 30, 2020 at 12:18 p.m.

The U.S. State Department, which largely shut down its passport processing in March, says it...

‘Hidden gem’ made popular by TikTok is shut to keep out-of-towners away

By The New York Times

July 30, 2020 at 10:05 a.m.

HIGH BRIDGE, N.J. — Lake Solitude it was not. For years, the 35-acre picturesque lake,...

‘Hidden gem’ made popular by TikTok is shut to keep out-of-towners away

By New York Times

July 30, 2020 at 10:03 a.m.

For years, the 35-acre picturesque lake, waterfall and century-old dam had been an unspoiled treasure...

The Europe Bay Trail in Newport State Park on July 13, 2020.

Door County state park on Lake Michigan offers easy hikes, natural beauty, solitude

By Steve Chapman

July 29, 2020 at 1:00 a.m.

Door County has always been known as a place where Midwesterners can get away from...

Passengers watch aircraft on the tarmac as they wait for their flight at the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, July 28, 2020. Few flights are scheduled for international departures only but the authorities have eased domestic travel restrictions since June. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

Air travel not expected to recover until 2024

By Associated Press

July 28, 2020 at 2:34 p.m.

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Global air travel is recovering more slowly than expected and it...

WASTE COLLECTION TECHNOLOGY IN THAILAND | Pictured: A demonstration of "Wastie Robot," a contaminated waste collection robot designed to prevent and reduce the chance of infections during the pandemic. "Wastie Robot" will be used in hospitals that are treating COVID-19 patients.

Money is flowing in Colorado mountain towns thanks to out-of-staters, but at what cost to health?

By Contributed Content

July 28, 2020 at 2:16 p.m.

CREEDE, Colo. — The mayor was not flipping hot dogs as he normally would be...

FILE -- Passengers board a Delta Air Lines flight at Baltimore-Washington International Airport, June 1, 2020. Delta has tried to stake a claim as one of the most cautious companies in the industry by promising to leave middle seats empty even as its biggest rivals are selling as many seats as they can.

Why Delta is leaving middle seats empty during the pandemic

By The New York Times

July 28, 2020 at 12:12 p.m.

The number of people flying today is down about 75% from a year ago. And...

FILE -- One of the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess Hotel's drive-in movie nights, with family-friendly cartoons and comedies playing in its parking lot, in Scottsdale, Ariz., July 2, 2020. Hotel marketing campaigns have moved from focusing on cleanliness to appeals to people who just want "to get out of the house."

Hotels are promoting the nostalgia of the family road trip

By The New York Times

July 28, 2020 at 12:11 p.m.

As the United States slowly, haltingly reopens, hotels are trying to persuade Americans to make...