If Central California’s Santa Ynez Valley, in Santa Barbara County, is known for anything, it’s wine. It’s nowhere near as famous as Napa or Bordeaux, of course, but this bucolic region of rolling hills dotted with stately oak trees produces excellent pinot noirs and chardonnays and syrahs. Remember the movie “Sideways,” about two sad sacks … Read more
The most exciting place to visit in Africa right now is an off-the-beaten-path nation better known for making tragic headlines than attracting tourists: Welcome to a splashy new Sierra Leone. Now, Ebola-free and more than two decades after the end of a devastating civil war, Sweet Salone (the local nickname) is once again ready to … Read more
It rocks! A new 360-degree skyline attraction at Rockefeller Center is guaranteed to bring you a step — or a few hundred — above the rest. Top of the Rock unveiled its brand-new Skylift ride — a stunning ascending circular platform that propels up to 13 riders 900 feet in the air. The attraction, which … Read more
Dying to book your next trip? Then go ahead and live a little. Traveling can delay the aging process and improve physical and mental health, a new study published in the Journal of Travel Research found. Researchers at Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Australia conducted the study believed to be the first-ever that applied the … Read more
Is no place safe? As cities large and small across Europe battle the adverse effects of outsider-induced overcrowding, the seemingly limitless tentacles of modern tourism have slithered to a surprising new destination — underneath the U.K.’s “most complex” highway interchange. Visitors to Birmingham, the country’s second largest city and the hometown of Ozzy Osbourne, are … Read more
A visit to Rome could soon cost a’more. Tourism bosses in the Eternal City are desperate to curb overcrowding at the iconic Trevi Fountain — to the point where they’re floating the idea of an admission fee and reservation system for visits to the beloved Baroque-era site. The idea of staggered entry and a modest … Read more
Cultural and historical landmarks are going downhill thanks to “selfie-tourism,” and UNESCO is warning that it could lead to destruction. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization defines “selfie-tourism” as “the trend of travelers visiting destinations primarily to take and share photos of themselves, often with iconic landmarks and escapes in the background.” People … Read more
Thought Burning Man had bad traffic? Scotland’s formerly secluded Fairy Pools have become marred by apocalyptic congestion with tourists waiting in four-hour traffic jams to visit them, according to local tour companies. “The people who work in the Fairy Pools car park have said visitors say it’s like a warzone driving there,” Gordon Pearson, who … Read more
It’s a real-life Temple Run. The UNESCO World Heritage Site Angkor Wat, a Hindu-Buddhist temple in Siem Reap, Cambodia, has received an influx of tourists reportedly disrespecting their religious structure by replicating a Temple Run mobile game experience that was very popular in 2011. The gaming application established by Imagini Studios follows an explorer with … Read more
He definitely made it into the mile cry club. An American tourist has been deported from Colombia after kicking and punching an airplane because he missed his flight. The wild video was initially shared to the X account @RedMasNoticias, but was reposted to Instagram, where it’s currently going viral. “This man had an aggressive demeanor … Read more
Brace yourself. I’ve got a budgie to smuggle. As I’ve found out the hard way, Europeans like to think themselves sophisticated. They had a couple of enlightenment figures write some books a few hundred years ago and now they’re all: “you can’t wipe your mouth with your hand” and “no wearing swimmers off the beach, you … Read more
Weather can be very impressive, and a few visitors to Jamaica experienced this firsthand when a massive waterspout formed in front of them. The clouds were above the choppy water off the coast of Negril, Jamaica on Sunday when the funnel could be seen forming in the distance. Pat Aleywine said he knew they were about to … Read more
Hungry tourists scaling the Great Wall of China no longer have to worry about continuing their adventure on an empty stomach. People hiking the ancient monument can get food delivered to them straight out of the sky thanks to Chinese food delivery giant Meituan. A drone delivery service will bring food and other goods to … Read more
Tourists in Europe have once again outraged locals with their strange behavior – this time, taking a dip in front of a cemetery in Venice. Two men, who were spotted by commuters on a water bus in the Italian city, left their clothes in front of the San Michele Cemetery last week and entered the … Read more
A travel blogger was gutted to find out that the hotel he booked in Egypt turned out to be ancient history. Mark Jeavons, 43, was excited for his four night stay at the Pyramids and Sphinx View Hotel in Giza, Egypt, which was quoted as £40-per-night ($52 US). But when he arrived at the listed … Read more
Kim Jong Un’s hermit kingdom will lower its drawbridge once again. North Korea will allow visitors to enter at least part of the country starting in December after the reclusive country shut its doors to the outside world for nearly five years because of strict COVID-19 restrictions. Tourism in the northeastern city of Samjiyon — … Read more
This meal left one man very crabby. A tourist was stunned when he noticed an extra charge added to his bill at a Spanish seafood restaurant. Antonio Barbeito recently dined at an unnamed restaurant while on vacation in Menorca, Spain. Antonio Barbeito recently dined at an unnamed restaurant while on vacation in Menorca, Spain. X/@barbeitovila … Read more
A British tourist has been caught carving his daughters’ initials into an Ancient Roman house in Pompeii. The 37-year-old Englishman, who has not been named, allegedly used a sharp object to make five indentations in the House of the Vestals. It is described as one of the most sophisticated and impressive houses in Pompeii at … Read more
This Big Apple tour is Taylor-made. A $36 tour launching next month in Manhattan will stop at Taylor Swift’s stomping grounds, including her former Greenwich Village apartment on Cornelia Street and the Lower East Side cocktail bar Banzarbar, where she celebrated her birthday in December. The two-hour jaunt will be led by Brooklyn Swiftie Arielle … Read more
The mystery of what actually goes on behind the illusive North Korean border has fascinated the globe ever since it detached and went rogue in the 1950s. Sometimes, stories of life on the ground seep through the cracks of Kim Jong-un’s authoritarian information wall. We have heard gut-churning tales of starvation, secret prisons and the … Read more