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,...

Flamingos stand in ornithological park of Pont de Gau in Les Saintes-Maries de la Mer in the nature reserve of Camargue, near Marseille, southern France, on Feb. 28, 2006.

In search of Mary Magdalene: A French pilgrimage brings devotees to shrine, dwelling of sainted disciple

By Erika Hobbs

April 4, 2023 at 12:17 p.m.

Whether you believe she was a penitent prostitute, the wife of Jesus or the apostle's...

Walkers and joggers along the Detroit RiverWalk in Detroit in 2014.

Motor City weekender: 67 things to do around Detroit, from an island jaunt to a Ramadan food fest

By Lauryn Azu

April 17, 2024 at 10:35 a.m.

Here are 67 things to do, see, eat and explore during a Detroit-area weekender.

Patoka Lake Marina, edging the 8,800- acre Patoka Lake, offers houseboats, cabins and floating cabins for overnight accommodations.

Head to southern Indiana for fertile vineyards, historic hotels

By Mary Ann Anderson

March 23, 2023 at 10:54 a.m.

Standing at the edge of Patoka Lake in the southern reaches of Indiana, I gaze...

There's no better place to hike than in the Howth hills outside of Dublin, Ireland.

Wild and free in Ireland: A solo trip to Dublin unleashes the primal release of pure, chaotic solitude

By Joseph Hernandez

March 15, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

I spent my winter holiday break trying to scream on an Irish cliff. I almost...

Members of the Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Local Union 130 pour green dye into the Chicago River as part of the annual St. Patrick's Day festivities Saturday, March 14, 2015 as seen from the terrace of the Trump Tower in Chicago.

‘You feel like you’re king for a day:’ How a family dyes the Chicago River green for St. Patrick’s Day

By Kori Rumore

March 11, 2024 at 10:13 a.m.

It's a Chicago tradition in its sixth decade — the Chicago River is dyed green...

Barns on the Allerton Park complex, which has long been owned and operated by the University of Illinois.

Folk schools want to be more inclusive. Here’s how the 1st one in Illinois plans to make it happen.

By Joanne Cleaver

March 7, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

A folk school is budding in the prairie west of Champaign. It's a first for...

Cherry blossoms are visible along Hains Point in Washington on Feb. 27, 2023.

DC’s cherry blossoms coming early due to confusing weather

By Associated Press

March 1, 2023 at 5:28 p.m.

The cherry trees in the nation's capital are confused by Earth's changing climate, with the...

Gov. Ron DeSantis signs a law on Monday, February 27, 2023 that gives the state control of Disney World's Reedy Creek Improvement District, stripping the resort of its self-governing powers.

DeSantis signs law stripping Disney World of Reedy Creek control

By Skyler Swisher

February 27, 2023 at 4:11 p.m.

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law Monday that gives the state control of Disney World's...

In an undated image provided by Reading Terminal Market, the 78,000-square-foot Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia. In cities like Detroit and Philadelphia, markets have become year-round destinations, offering classes, crafts and music, as well as a surprising array of fresh produce.

Cold-weather farmers markets offer alluring winter travel destinations

By The New York Times

February 22, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

On a recent Saturday morning at Eastern Market in Detroit, busking musicians filled the air...

A table is set at Everest, a fine French restaurant with a view 40 floors up, in Chicago in July 2013.

A look back at 5 of Chicago’s most historically romantic restaurants

By Linze Rice

February 14, 2023 at 12:11 p.m.

For Chicagoans, food is romance. A well-cooked beef, be it Italian or Kobe, is often...