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Celebrity Travel: Go away with VVS
Before VVS even made their April 2025 debut, there was already enough buzz about this international girl group that they were featured in Billboard magazine and CNN. Now, they’re ready to show the world what they can do. Their infectiously catchy single, “Tea,” is accompanied by a cinematic noir music video that includes sword fights, ...Read more

Rick Steves’ Europe: A healthy dose of history and Champagne in Reims
France's bustling, modern Reims greets travelers with cellar doors wide open. As the capital of the Champagne region, it features a lively center, a historic cathedral, and, of course, Champagne tasting. And thanks to France's slick high-speed rail, it's just 45 minutes from Paris – making it an easy day trip.
Reims (pronounced like “rance�...Read more
Travel Troubleshooter: RVshare Keeps Security Deposit After Renter Returns His Van
Q: I rented a Mercedes van for two weeks through RVshare, a rental company. It rained on the way home, and water leaked through the air conditioner vent. After I returned the van, RVshare kept my $1,500 deposit.
Here are a few facts about our rental: First, when it rained, the air conditioner vent would leak. The owner of the van lied and said ...Read more

Taking the Kids: Spa can be entré to a new culture
I’m slathered in thick black mud from head to toe – on purpose. And I’m thrilled by the experience.
That’s because I’m at the Kempinski Hotel Ishtar Dead Sea, which includes “the oldest naturally occurring spa” on the shores of the Dead Sea and about an hour from Amman, ...Read more

Nearly 900,000 fewer people came to the US from Canada last month
The number of people traveling to the United States from Canada plummeted in March.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said nearly 900,000 fewer people entered the U.S. from the north compared with the same period last year. That decline followed weeks of President Donald Trump insulting Canada by referring to then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau...Read more

'There's been a huge drop-off': Canadians pull back on travel to Orlando
As political tensions continue to run high, predictions that Canadian travelers would shun Central Florida are becoming a reality, with hotel bookings down and airlines scaling back flights in response to lower demand.
Sandra Pappas, who owns a Disney-focused travel agency in Canada, said she started noticing the downturn in February. That’s ...Read more

Celebrity Travel: Go away with Uwade
For musician Uwade, traveling around Norway with her two best friends was a bucket-list trip come true. “We got to see the Northern Lights, go snowmobiling and meet some very cute reindeer,” said the 25-year-old Palo Alto-based singer. “It was the middle of winter, so there was snow everywhere and basically no sunlight. It was wild and ...Read more

Rick Steves’ Europe: Modern Milan: Fashionable and Fun
They say that for every church in Rome, there’s a bank in Milan. The economic success of postwar Italy can be attributed, at least in part, to this city of bankers, publicists, and pasta power-lunchers.
Like any great city, the more you know about it, the more it entertains. On a recent trip I gained an appreciation of Milan’s “Big Canal�...Read more
Travel Troubleshooter: Booking.Com Won't Refund A Room After An On-Time Cancellation
Q: I booked a hotel in Wroclaw through Booking.com. I canceled my reservation well within the free cancellation period, but then I discovered a charge on my card for the full amount of $742.
I reached out to Booking.com, and a representative told me that I would be refunded within 10 days. This didn't happen. I called back, and this time, a ...Read more

Taking the Kids: Celebrating Earth Day and shopping more sustainably for travel gear
Ready to do your part?
Earth Day is coming up soon (April 22) and the theme this year is “Our Power, Your Planet” with a focus on the need for #renewableenergynow. The idea is to work toward the goal of tripling the global generation of clean electricity by 2030.
If you are wondering, renewable energy ...Read more

Rick Steves’ Europe: Leipzig is the German city that helped halt communism
Once trapped in communist East Germany, bustling Leipzig is now a city of business and of culture. It’s also a city of great history – Martin Luther, Goethe, Johann Sebastian Bach, Felix Mendelssohn, Richard Wagner, Angela Merkel, and many other German VIPs have spent time here.
There are many reasons for visitors to spend time here, too. ...Read more

Celebrity Travel: Go away with Peter Holsapple
For The dB’s guitarist-vocalist-songwriter Peter Holsapple, seeing the United States by train is a great way to unwind and spend time with loved ones. “Last year, my family and I took the train from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Whitefish, Montana, to visit Glacier National Park,” said Holsapple, 69. “It was long-winded, but fantastic. We ...Read more
Travel Troubleshooter: ITA Cancels The Wrong Ticket For A Flight By Mistake
Q: I'm trying to get a refund for a ticket on ITA, and I'm hoping you can help me. We had tickets on ITA to fly from Dallas to Barcelona to catch a cruise. My grandson, Jacob, could not make the cruise, so four months before our departure, I called ITA to cancel his flight.
Just before our departure, I checked the remaining three passengers, ...Read more

Taking the Kids: Most iconic trips
What’s been your favorite family trip? Maybe you’ve got one, or two. But for me, that’s like asking which is my favorite child. They’re all wonderful and unique, though at times aggravating and frustrating. But as I’ve often said, the missteps make for memories – and stories to tell at holiday gatherings. They also teach kids how to ...Read more

Celebrity Travel: Go away with Five for Fighting
John Ondrasik – better known as Five for Fighting – has been touring for decades. But rather than being jaded by life on the road, he said he considers it a perk that has yet to grow old. “One of the beautiful things about being in a touring band is seeing all aspects of America,” said the California native. “My favorites are the small...Read more

Rick Steves’ Europe: York, the capital of England’s North
We have New York, but England has old York, one of the country’s top tourist destinations outside of London. The town offers a captivating tour of historic sights mixed with an easygoing pedestrian ambience – all lassoed within its formidable medieval wall.
York has a rich, long history, serving as a Roman provincial capital in AD 71, ...Read more

Taking the Kids: Lessons learned when traveling with grown (or nearly grown) kids
I realized travel with my older daughter had changed irrevocably when we were hiking up Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania with Thomson Safaris.
For the uninitiated, it’s no easy trek to the roof of Africa – some 19,431 feet at the summit. While it doesn’t require technical climbing skills or gear, the altitude certainly is a challenge when ...Read more

Celebrity Travel: Go away with Paul Rappaport
In Paul Rappaport’s memoir “Gliders Over Hollywood: Airships, Airplay, and the Art of Rock Promotion” (Jawbone Press), the former Columbia Records senior vice president of rock promotion captures an era of music (the late 1960s through the 1990s) that he considers magical. Besides sharing stories about legends like the Rolling Stones and ...Read more

Rick Steves’ Europe: A crossroads of civilizations in Istanbul
Some of my most vivid memories from my first visit to Istanbul in the 1970s are of the colorful locals. Scruffy kids sold cherry juice, and old men would grab huge cucumbers from wheeled carts, then peel, quarter, and salt them, and sell them for pennies. While the Old World magic in many parts of the city has been plowed under by modern ...Read more

Taking the Kids: And learning about amazing women
Do you know any amazing women? March is the time to celebrate them – and many others you may not have heard of. Since 1987, March has been deemed National Women’s History Month to recognize the accomplishments of women in U.S. history who have often been overlooked.
This...Read more