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 original house used in the "Home Alone" movies has Christmas decorations to reflect scenes from the movie.

Stay in Winnetka’s ‘Home Alone’ house this season through Airbnb and encounter booby traps, mac and cheese, and a tarantula

By Darcel Rockett

December 1, 2021 at 7:50 p.m.

First, it was the Pie House in Deerfield, then it was Scottie Pippen's Highland Park...

With the help of Airbnb, people can stay in Winnetka’s ‘Home Alone’ house

By Contributed Content

December 1, 2021 at 11:49 a.m.

Airbnb is making it possible to enjoy an overnight stay in the home that made...

Six tiny houses blend with nature at the ESCAPE Village at Canoe Bay Resort near Chetek, Wisconsin.

Tiny home vacation rentals are all the rage, everywhere from the Wisconsin Northwoods to downtown Las Vegas

By Mary Bergin

November 26, 2021 at 5:00 a.m.

One of the best parts of the adventure — en route to unplugging from the...

A United Airlines board displays flights as holiday travelers pass through Terminal 1 of O'Hare International Airport on Nov. 28, 2021, after the Thanksgiving weekend.

People travel over the Thanksgiving holiday

By Contributed Content

November 28, 2021 at 6:52 p.m.

People travel by train and plane during Thanksgiving holiday weekend in November 2021.

Hawksbill Crag, one of the most photographed spots in Arkansas, is on the Whitaker Point Trail.

Visiting Buffalo National River in the Ozarks

By Contributed Content

November 18, 2021 at 11:35 a.m.

The Buffalo National River is a remote region slicing across northwest Arkansas about nine hours...

Jon Ziomek has been a information desk volunteer at O'Hare International Airport for five years, helping an estimated 50,000 travelers navigate the airport, photographed Wednesday, August 11, 2021.

Chicago’s COVID-19 advisory adds 1 state, removes 3: Thanksgiving travel ‘a risky move’ for those not vaccinated, Arwady warns

By Alice Yin

November 16, 2021 at 4:21 p.m.

Arkansas rejoined Chicago's travel advisory that lists places in the U.S. where unvaccinated people should...

Rick Steves’ Europe: Madrid: Two bulls is plenty

By Rick Steves

November 16, 2021 at 9:30 a.m.

Packed onto Madrid's subway jammed with Spaniards heading for Plaza de Toros, I'm wondering how...

Elk graze at dusk in the Boxley Valley along Arkansas' Buffalo National River.

A winding journey around America’s first national river in the Ozarks

By Katherine Rodeghier

November 16, 2021 at 5:00 a.m.

Awed and annoyed. I felt both when my husband, a faster hiker, disappeared down the...

Go away with… singer Sarah Brightman

By Jae-Ha Kim

November 15, 2021 at 4:17 p.m.

Last year, Sarah Brightman had to cancel her tour due to the coronavirus pandemic. But...

The new-and-improved Wilmot Mountain ski resort welcomed its first skiers in December. Vail Resorts bought the Wisconsin property in early 2016.

Midwest winter ski guide: 8 resorts tailored to families, ski purists or breezy day visitors

By Kori Rumore

December 20, 2021 at 9:45 a.m.

For the expanse of flat prairie land that makes up the Midwest, skiing options are...