Sun, Sand, and a Side of History: 7 Historic Sites You Must Visit in the Caribbean
If you love sun and sand… with a side of history, here are seven Caribbean islands whose history lives on today through preserved and protected UNESCO World Heritage historic sites.Which history-rich destinations top your list for an upcoming beach holiday with a twist? ANTIGUA: “Nelson’s Dockyard” Known for its famous inhabitant, British Admiral Lord Nelson, who lived in Antigua’s Royal Navy Dockyard for three years in the 1780’s, Nelson’s Dockyard is part of a National Park UNESCO site that is...
Hike Europe's Most Famous Ancient Trail During This Jubilee Year
Only once or maybe twice a decade, the Camino de Santiago becomes an even more remarkable hiking journey through Spain. Pilgrims and tourists have been hiking the “Way of St. James,” as it translates, since the 9th century. It’s a 500-mile (800 km) route across northern Spain to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, the spiritual home of the apostle James who preached in Spain, became its patron saint, and whose remains were returned here and enshrined.The route...
Where to Find Mexico’s Most Famous Art Scene
While it was founded in the 1500’s by a monk, and its colonial center has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, San Miguel de Allende as a famous art colony dates from the Second World War. Just half a day’s drive from Mexico City in the Colonial Highlands, San Miguel is 6000 feet above sea level in Mexico’s high sierra, with cool, comfortable temperatures and clear mountain air year round. After the war, US veterans covered by the GI Bill started...
New Museum in Denmark Celebrates the Fantastical World of Hans Christian Andersen
Many of us have spent hours of our own childhoods or alongside our favorite kids immersed in stories like the Snow Queen, the Emperor’s New Clothes, the Princess and the Pea, the Nightingale, and the Little Mermaid, either in timeless storybooks or Disney movie incarnations.Now, the author who created these immortal works is being reinterpreted and remembered in a new museum in his birthplace of Odense in Denmark. The new attraction is one of Denmark’s largest and most ambitious museums. Hans...
Celebrate the Māori Lunar New Year and the Southern Dark Skies in New Zealand
New Zealand is in celebration mode in July with the arrival of Matariki.It's a constellation of stars that rises in New Zealand skies, shining their brightest in the first week of the month.Known to astronomers as Pleiades or the Seven Sisters, Matariki is believed to have formed more than 100 million years ago, and this pre-historic cluster of stars plays a pivotal role in modern and ancient Māori mythology.The rising of Matariki marks the Māori Lunar New Year, a significant...
Discover 'Japan's Machu Picchu'
In Japan, it’s called the ‘Castle in the Sky’, but international travelers who’ve discovered historic Takeda Castle have compared it to another mountain-top historic ruin half a world away in South America.Peru’s Machu Picchu has made most intrepid travelers’ bucket lists of adventures. But Japan’s Takeda Castle (pronounced: ‘tah-kay-dah’) - that's about the same age as Peru's Machu Picchu - remains an other-worldly experience unknown to most overseas travelers. That's especially surprising considering it’s in the district next door to...
Now You Can Discover Your European Family Heritage While Sailing on a River Cruise
It’s news that marries two of the fastest-growing styles of travel: river cruising and family heritage travel.AmaWaterways has partnered with Ancestry, the company that specializes in genomics and connecting people to their family history.The river cruise line has done family-heritage themed cruises before, but now, you’ll be able to uncover specific details about your own family. That’s because guests are given pre-cruise private ancestry consultation and family history research, while onboard, presentations and curated excursions hosted by an expert genealogist...
10 Reasons to Visit Columbia on Your Next Trip to Latin America
Colombia is reborn. Named after the 15th century explorer of the Americas, Colombia stands out as the only nation in South America with coastlines on both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean, as well as being the leading source of coffee and emeralds in the world. Colombia has found new followers among savvy global travellers, who, in survey after survey cited the warmth and kindness of Colombians as one of their top reasons to visit. Now, Colombia has given itself a...
The Best Place In Britain to get Your 'Bridgerton' Fix
The steamy, historic-fantasy Netflix series ‘Bridgerton’ couldn’t come at a better time to brighten our stay-at-home winter blahs. We aren't surprised it's shattered Netflix viewership records.Bridgerton is an early-19th century, light-hearted romp of an historic romance on steroids. Bridgerton follows the intrigues of the young Bridgerton family and their high society friends, enemies and potential mates, their scheming mamas, and the revelations of Lady Whistledown's scandal sheets.It's fantasy and eye candy of the highest order, with impossibly beautiful and sexy...
The White House Milestone Travelers and History-Lovers Are Celebrating
Amid political drama, it’s easy to forget that 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC isn’t only the address of one of America’s branches of government - or a family home, America’s original work-from-home venue before WFH became a ‘thing’.The White House is also a global symbol of the historic roots of democracy. And it’s one of the pre-eminent museums of the history of the United States.It wasn’t always that way. This year, the White House Historical Association celebrates its 60th...