Several years ago, my now-husband, Alex, and I spent a few months sailing around Indonesia, experiencing both highs — turquoise waters, freshly caught fish and stunning sunsets — and lows, including a broken engine. We were also there during Ramadan, a special time to be traveling in the world’s most populous Muslim nation. At one…
T’s monthly travel series, Flocking To, highlights places you might already have on your wish list, sharing tips from frequent visitors and locals alike. Sign up here to find us in your inbox once a month, and to receive our weekly T List newsletter. Have a question? You can always reach us at tlist@nytimes.com. Situated…
Long-haul flights are generally considered to be those eight hours and over, while any that stretch past a grueling 16 hours are nicknamed “ultra long-haul.” The longest nonstop commercial flights currently available include New York to Singapore (18 hours and 50 minutes; 9,530 miles) and Perth, Australia, to London (17 hours and 45 minutes; 9,010…
Their best method for success, it seems, is to communicate via polite, concise email queries rather than phone calls or online chat or web forms. Those customer service email addresses are sometimes harder to find, but that means they may receive faster attention or better service. Plus, they make for a clean, written record you…
It was a year that was to mark the post-pandemic recovery of travel, bringing economic relief to local communities that had been hit hard by the prolonged loss of tourism revenue. Borders fully reopened, pandemic restrictions were lifted and traveler bookings surged, sparking a social media trend called “revenge travel.” But even as demand in…
After weeks of anticipation, a volcanic eruption in Iceland’s most populated area sent lava spewing into the night sky late Monday and pushed the authorities into action mode Tuesday. The eruption, which was larger than volcanologists had predicted, happened not far from an evacuated town and a power plant. Iceland is no stranger to volcanic…
Driving west out of Austin toward Fredericksburg, the road narrows to one-lane blacktop, and the edges of the city’s suburbs gradually give way to a different kind of Texas, one of ranches, old wooden churches, farm stands and wineries. This is the Texas Hill Country, a 31,000-square-mile area of rocky karst hills considered the threshold…
In Strasbourg, France, throughout the holiday season, Santa-capped teddy bears festoon a restaurant’s facade. Stuffed polar bears adorn another. In a Yuletide arms race, buildings are affixed with giant, gift-wrapped packages, glittering white deer and oversize gingerbread men. Turning the central medieval quarter into a Christmas maze, curtains of lights glow above cobblestone lanes lined…
By Alexander Lobrano Outside the tiny town of Simon in Romania’s Carpathian Mountains, an NGO called Foundation Conservation Carpathia is creating a 66,000-acre national park. It’s against that backdrop that the hotelier Bogdan Calulanu opened Matca, a 16-room hotel with 10 private villas. Matca is the Romanian word for “queen bee,” the name a reference…
Three hours into my latest visit to Key West, Fla., I listened as a mermaid explained why islanders are called “Conchs.” “We had a tradition a long time ago where, when a baby was born — because, back then, your baby was born at home — you would put a stick in the yard and…