Destinations

There are few more idyllic, memorable, budget-friendly activities than enjoying an outdoor picnic.

By Liam Bentley

The magnificent fortresses and walls encircling Cartagena, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, are part of a earnestly restored and historically important center showcasing museums, churches, plazas, and shops. These, merged together, create a vibrant and dynamic coastal destination that’s at once surprising, gritty, appealing, and interestingly infectious.

By Susie Stauffer

The list of America’s Favourite Works of Architecture is dominated by three cities I the northeast and one 9n the Midwest. New York has 32 places on the list (SPOILER ALERT) including #1 the Empire State Building. Chicago has 17 one more than Washington D.C.

By Susie Stauffer

Everyone loves a good ghost story, especially if it involves legend and lore. As a rule, the creepier, the better. Ghost stories take on a whole other meaning when you move them away from the conversational setting and immerse yourself in the experience.

By Susie Stauffer

Visiting Paris as a tourist, seeing sight after sight- like the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, and The Louvre- can get very overwhelming and exhausting. So take a break from the lines and spend time exploring Paris’ nitty-gritty- you will discover what makes Paris a world-class destination time and time again. 10.

By Susie Stauffer

It’s known as the happiest place on earth: Disney World. Though that might be a debatable claim depending on who you ask, there is definitely something about the group of six theme parks under the Disney umbrella in Florida, that you want to be able to take your kids to experience.

By Shelley Seale

Perhaps paradoxically, at the same time North Americans have been waging war on carbs and gluten-laden treats, there has also been a growing infatuation with bakeries of all stripes. Of course, not all bakeries are created equal and very few of them are worth traveling far from home for.

By Susie Stauffer

What is the quintessential adrenaline rush exactly? For some it’s free-falling out of an airplane into endless sky while for others it’s diving into the deep depths of the ocean into waters teeming with eager sharks. The essential ingredient of any adventure trip is most definitely adrenaline, no matter what form it comes in.

By Susie Stauffer

The English countryside holds a bounty of natural beauty and scores of surprises best uncovered along thousands of kilometers of trails comprising England’s revered National Trails and additional footpaths. Old legends are revealed along steady paths, history unveiled along careening mountain passes, and coastal paths explore the charm of the waterfront.

By Susie Stauffer

There’s nothing quite like getting out to sea and sailing the mighty waters and if you’ve ever experienced it, there’s a good chance you’re hooked. For some, sailing around the world is a dream but for others, a blithe reality.

By Susie Stauffer

There are surreal landscapes all around the world, many which seem to be from another planet entirely and go well beyond the point of extraordinary. Many of these landscapes are just plain bizarre and seem to be a collection of detailed movie sets but they are indeed as rel as you and I.

By Susie Stauffer

A large swath of Europe’s landscape is occupied by the Balkan Peninsula, one of the continent’s oldest and largest settlements. Natural wonders and historic landmarks dot the territory, merging with unique culture, making it a popular destination with people from around the globe.

By Susie Stauffer

Aromatic spice plantations, languid rivers, ancient cathedrals, and frothy waterfalls raise the bar when visiting Goa for the alabaster beaches, hypnotic swaying palms, and the easygoing nature of Goa’s people.

By Susie Stauffer

It’s the “tale as old as time” — the classic, beloved Beauty and the Beast is currently onstage at the ZACH Theatre in my hometown of Austin, Texas. Beauty and the Beast holds a special place for me and my daughter (now 28).

By Shelley Seale

Budapest is a gorgeous city with two very distinct sides separated by the Danube River: Buda is on the west and Pest on the East. Merged into one city in 1873, both areas have developed very independently of each other and though they share similarities, each has its own, distinct flavour.

By Susie Stauffer

The historical and cultural wealth throughout Yorkshire screams “medieval” more so than any other English city.

By Susie Stauffer

Last fall, I was in Guatemala eating dinner when I bit down and had that dreaded realization: I had broken a tooth. With no dental insurance and pretty certain I needed a crown, I immediately began to worry about what I would do.

By Shelley Seale

The World Heritage Committee added 19 new sites: 13 cultural, three natural and three mixed sites to its list, bringing the total number to more than 1,000 in 167 countries.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Cyprus is a small mythological island located in the Eastern Mediterranean, south of Turkey. The third-largest island in the Mediterranean, it is known for its rugged interior, beautiful beaches and long, sometimes turbulent history spanning 10000 years.

By Flashpacking Duo

Here’s an adrenaline-rush adventure for this week’s Try-it Tuesday! Have you ever climbed a bridge? How about across the top of the largest steel arch bridge in the world? I’m currently in Sydney, Australia, and had the incredible experience of doing a bridge climb across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, with BridgeClimb Sydney.

By Shelley Seale

Springtime in the Texas Hill Country is pretty spectacular — temperatures are mildly warm, the gorgeous wildflowers are out in full bloom, and everything is green (before our crazy-hot summers turn everything brown).

By Shelley Seale

We were up well before dawn, leaving our tents with lanterns in the pitch-dark early morning. Here in the Lake Eyasi region of Tanzania, our tented lodge camp was an hour’s drive down a dirt road, from the nearest town or major paved road.

By Shelley Seale

They lay silent underneath the surface of the sea, holding hands with their faces turned up in hope. The Circle of Children is an underwater sculpture just off the coast of the Caribbean nation of Grenada, done by artist Jason de Caires Taylor.

By Shelley Seale

You don't have to travel to Greece to see the Parthenon; there's a full-scale replica in Nashville, Tennessee.

By Kathryn Whitbourne

I have a message for hotels: please, please, STOP with the endless disposable bottles of water that you insist on providing to guests daily. This is one area where the hotel industry really needs to improve, especially in an era where most of them have made at least courtesy nods to environmental practices.

By Shelley Seale