Years ago, when our kids were in preschool, my husband and I had what seemed like a crazy pipe dream: Once a year, we would take a multiday hike as a couple. Turns out it was a crazy pipe dream. At least at the time. But last year, as empty nesters, we resolved to finally make it happen.

The city within a city of Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, acts as a time capsule. Since the Spanish settled there in 1519, the district’s buildings, plazas and fountains have been built in a medley of architectural styles – Gothic, baroque, art deco, modern and more.

It was akin to being part of a Disney production as a cluster of butterflies floated by as I pedaled into Montecito in August. If scenes from heaven were shot on location, the laidback village of Montecito, which is a 15-minute bike ride from downtown Santa Barbara, would be perfect.

TOWAOC, Colo. – Some say the first people of the canyons never left. Not really. You don’t see them, the Ancestral Puebloans who made homes in the cliffs some 1,400 years ago. “But you can feel them,” says the woman at the ramshackle gas station-turned-visitor center here.

The vibe at Coeur D'Alene Resort is considerably different than it was a year ago. The pandemic plagued the popular destination since groups from other parts of the country and the world didn't visit during the summer of 2020.

In her novel “The Bean Trees,” writer Barbara Kingsolver has a character describe St. Louis’ famous Gateway Arch as “that giant McDonald’s thing towering over the city.” Kingsolver likely was being facetious, even if her character wasn’t. 

With more than 100 species of trees, the Blue Ridge Parkway is a prime spot for a fall getaway and leaf-peeping. The 469-mile roadway passes through six mountain chains in the Appalachians in Virginia and North Carolina and is operated by the National Park Service.

VANCOUVER, B.C. – I’m pretty sure I did Vancouver wrong. Granted, I tried to chug down a complex, changing metropolis in just three days, which is a ridiculously – and, let’s be honest, insultingly – short period of time.

"We are cautiously optimistic about the future of New York City tourism," said Christopher Heywood, executive vice president of global communications for NYC & Company, whose website, nycgo.com, offers free planning resources for travelers.

As summer comes to an end, but the delta variant's surge does not, it's difficult for travelers to know what options they have for safe trip planning. Travel advisories and local pandemic mandates are returning, and even Hawaii is asking visitors to stay away.

BOISE – Looking for someplace unusual to rent on your next vacation? Airbnb just shared its top 16 “wacky roadside Americana stays” across America. Naturally, two of the possibilities are in Idaho. Why naturally? Not just because Idahoans are proud oddballs.

During a recent flight from Puerto Rico to New York, Noah Fishman was on edge. "Due to COVID, the masking requirement and the extra safety protocols, I was more stressed traveling than ever," Fishman said. However, the owner of Zenbarn Farms has a secret weapon.

After the van’s GPS flickered out, my mom kicked in: Together, we were piloting a weather-beaten camper north from Reykjavik, Iceland, toward the Westfjords, a shattered peninsula that pokes out from the country’s northwest corner.

Stacia Morfin is of medium height, slim, with arched eyebrows and long brown hair separated into two braids, both clasped with panels of red, green, blue and black beads, dressed in regalia that reflects her Native American heritage.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – I’ve probably stopped in Springfield several dozen times while on my way to somewhere else. I am ashamed to say that until recently, I had never stayed to explore what the city has to offer.

Who says roadside pit stops have to be boring? This summer, road-trippers looking for stylish accommodations that won’t break the bank, something between upscale luxury and side-of-the-highway corporate chains, are discovering a new trend.

CALANQUES NATIONAL PARK, France – In one of Europe’s most picturesque national parks, officials have embraced a surprising goal: They want to make the site appear less stunning. Calanques National Park ranger Alain Vincent did his best to talk down the place. 

Berkeley Square is unusually quiet. At 10 a.m. on a sunny Tuesday in early June, the place is as sleepy as a village green. There’s little to no traffic, and from the sidewalk on its eastern side, I can see just seven people: a personal trainer and his charge, a middle-aged man in boxing gloves; and others.

On a spring afternoon deep in West Virginia, Frankie ran around and around and around the deck of Solar Solitude, a rental yurt. To the uninformed observer, the Puerto Rican rescue dog, a guest at the property, was chasing an imaginary squirrel.