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,...

The eclectic "ruin pub" scene in Budapest usually spills out of the bars and into courtyards. (Cameron Hewitt/Rick Steves' Europe)

Rick Steves’ Europe: Enjoying the Bohemian vibe of Budapest’s ruin pubs

By Rick Steves

August 22, 2023 at 8:00 a.m.

Budapest, the cultural capital of Hungary and much of Central Europe, has no shortage of...

An undated photo provided by Ely MacInnes of herself and her dog Alaska at Grand Canyon National Park.

You can take your dog to a national park, but you’ll both need to be very, very good

By The New York Times

August 21, 2023 at 11:08 a.m.

Ely MacInnes and her husband, Tom, began traveling in the western United States with their...

Activity board for Lil Wranglers, Brush Creek Ranch

Taking the kids: To an unusual and very kid-friendly dude ranch

By Eileen Ogintz

August 17, 2023 at 2:37 p.m.

No yelling or sticking your fingers in the baby goats' mouths! The Lil' Wranglers at Brush...

The Fountain Barber Shop, part of the Havre Beneath the Streets tour at the Frank DeRosa Railroad Museum, in Havre, Mont., May 5, 2023. In Montana, a stretch of U.S. Highway 2 known as the Hi-Line is colored by grain elevators, railroad cars and century-old homesteading remnants.

Montana Hi-Line road trip: A slice of big sky country you won’t see on ‘Yellowstone’

By The New York Times

August 16, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

Recently, western Montana and cities such as Bozeman are experiencing a surge in popularity because...

Broadway star Jose Llana said that Italy is at the top of his travel bucket list.

Go away with … Jose Llana

By Jae-Ha Kim

August 15, 2023 at 6:00 a.m.

Jose Llana is excited to reprise his role in the David Byrne and Fatboy Slim...

Parisians make several stops in their grocery routine at the fromagerie for cheese, the charcuterie (or boucher) for meats, and the boulangerie for freshly baked bread.

Rick Steves’ Europe: Market streets bring village charm to Paris

By Rick Steves

August 15, 2023 at 6:00 a.m.

As I dodge Parisians walking their poodles and pushing baby strollers down a busy market...

Riding the waves on the Main Salmon River

Taking the kids: When the grown-ups go out to play – getting out of their comfort zone on a whitewater raft trip

By Eileen Ogintz

August 10, 2023 at 2:53 p.m.

Laura Croghan never had any interest in camping. "After 35 years of marriage, I finally...

Along Sugar River, visitors can enjoy music, cocktails and scenic views.

Dairyland getaway: From tiny towns to new Art of Cheese fest, the best Wisconsin stops for cheese lovers

By Terri Colby

March 12, 2024 at 11:58 a.m.

Wisconsin is America's Dairyland. It has more dairy farms than any other state. It even...

Actor Daniel Augustin said his most memorable trip so far has been to Haiti. (Ben Cope/TCA)

Go away with … Daniel Augustin

By Jae-Ha Kim

August 8, 2023 at 8:11 a.m.

For viewers wondering whether Daniel Augustin's "Rap Sh!t" character will show any growth in the...

Ampelmännchen / Ampelmann
traffic light men pedestrian walk. (Rick Steves/Rick Steves' Europe)

Rick Steves’ Europe: Searching out the remains of communist East Berlin

By Rick Steves

March 12, 2024 at 11:58 a.m.

Enjoying my vanilla ice cream in eastern Berlin's Café Sibylle, I ponder the half-mustache carved...