New York Travel Writers Association

19/12/2024

It ain't just downhill skiing and boarding: This year's recommendations of family-friendly winter sports destinations in Family Travel Forum, which is co-published by NYTW member Kyle McCarthy, includes resorts that also offer cross-country skiing, tobogganing, hayrides, snowshoeing, spas, ice-skating, activities for toddlers, dazzling vistas, etc.
Moreover, this roundup starts with a section on how to stretch your budget on winter resort travel and another section on trends in the world of snow sports.
There really is something for everyone here -- and that includes family members who have no intention of skiing.
https://myfamilytravels.com/content/54757-years-best-ski-and-snow-family-vacations
- Traveling IQ Barbara Peterson Harvey Chipkin

Plan a ski and snow family resort vacation for all abilities and ages with our directory of mountain resorts and winter 2024-25 season discount offers.

16/12/2024

"It’s a familiar tale. You leave home in the pouring rain for a flight that’s still listed as on time. But when you arrive at the airport, there it is displayed on the departure board—the flight’s been canceled. What’s worse, that same screen shows flights on other airlines to your destination that are still operating."

Writing in AFAR, Barbara Peterson knows what you're thinking: If it's as simple as the weather, then why aren't all flights being canceled?

Peterson lays out some definitive answers, and we just hope you're not reading this while sitting on the floor at the airport.

https://www.afar.com/magazine/why-bad-weather-cancels-or-delays-some-flights-but-not-others
Traveling IQ William J. McGee Henry Harteveldt Harvey Chipkin

The injustice of being on a flight canceled due to weather while other flights are still operating.

14/12/2024

"It’s that time of the year again, the time when you decide what gifts to buy your friends and family. Cruises are an exciting option – and no one will think about returning them," writes Meryl Pearlstein, and she's not kidding. Pearlstein recommends some wonderful voyages on large and small ocean-going ships all over the world, and river ships, too, which are a whole 'nother thing. And they come at different price points. In short, a whole lot of terrific ships and destinations here.
https://www.travelworldmagazine.com/2024/12/cruises-to-gift-for-the-holidays/?utm_source=brevo&utm_campaign=2024%20Winter%20Issue%20of%20TWI&utm_medium=email
- Traveling IQ Barbara Peterson Harvey Chipkin Holland America Line Clipper Royal Maine Windjammer Cruises AmaWaterways Scenic Windstar Cruises Princess Cruises Silversea Seabourn Uniworld Boutique River Cruises Goolets

Cruises make exciting Christmas gifts. Choose from small-ship sails, river and ocean voyages, and expedition cruises.

14/12/2024

Longwood Gardens, the former DuPont estate near Philadelphia, is celebrating the season with "the opening of its stunning new West Conservatory. The multi-year Longwood Reimagined project, begun in 2021, also added a new glasshouse for the reinstallation of Roberto Burle Marx’s tropical Cascade Garden, an expanded Orchid House, an outdoor bonsai display area, and an administrative and educational building," reports Linda Cabasin. "The project expanded Longwood’s conservatory area by 17 acres and opened new vistas of the gardens and landscape." Oh, and those fabulous Christmas decorations...
https://sideofculture.com/2024/12/longwood-gardens-celebrates-christmas-with-a-new-conservatory/
- via Side of Culture. Victoria Larson Traveling IQ Barbara Peterson Harvey Chipkin Visit Pennsylvania Visit Philly

09/12/2024

"How excited would you be if you saw British actor of Emily in Paris fame dining at Horsefeathers Restaurant in Tarrytown? Or Drew Barrymore picking up a treat in Scarsdale?...Or former President Bill Clinton getting takeout Chinese in Pleasantville?" Jeanne Muchnick has the scoop on celebrity sightings at restaurants in Westchester. Smart celebrities, too, because in recent years, some of the New York Metropolitan Area's best places to eat have opened up in these northern suburbs. https://www.lohud.com/story/life/food/restaurants/2024/12/03/westchester-rockland-ny-restaurants-serve-celebrities-drew-barrymore-jon-hamm/73625303007/
lohud USA TODAY Travel Traveling IQ Harvey Chipkin Barbara Peterson I LOVE NEW YORK Martine's Fine Bake Shoppe Horsefeathers Restaurant The Bedford Post Inn Trata On The River The Sail House at Market Common NoMa Social Benjamin Steakhouse María Restaurant Birdsall House Alvin & Friends The Tasty Table Tesoro d'Italia
Photo courtesy of The Snackery, and yes, that's Jon Hamm with owner Sarah Leand.

Celebrity spottings happen a lot in Westchester and Rockland, as many celebs live in the area or are working here. See where they have been spotted.

05/12/2024

Award-winning NYTW member Margie Goldsmith has traveled to 149 countries. "Travel has made her a more generous, compassionate person, she says. It’s also made her more resilient," notes Corey Buhay in Outside Magazine.

“'I look at people my age, and they look like my grandmother,' [Goldsmith] says. “They’re bent over with arthritis and they’re not moving. That will never be me. Travel gives you a more active life, a bigger life. It will keep you young.'”
https://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/news-analysis/does-travel-help-you-live-longer/
- Traveling IQ Barbara Peterson

04/12/2024

In case you were wondering why the traffic doesn't drive you nuts when you drive into Denver International Airport or DFW Airport, airlines specialist and NYTW prez Barbara Peterson points out in AFAR that "big" does not always mean "busy." Acreage matters.
https://www.afar.com/magazine/the-worlds-biggest-airports
İstanbul Airport Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) Pittsburgh International Airport Traveling IQ

Busy is different than big. When it comes to sheer landmass, these are the most sprawling air travel complexes on the planet.

03/12/2024

You don't take an Alaska cruise because the ship has a great Broadway r***e or, heaven help us, a waterslide. You take it because of the views and the shore excursions. NYTW member Cathie Arquilla reports on three shore excursions that will knock your (wool) socks off. P.S. And no, it's not to early to be planning an Alaska cruise, especially if you want a certain itinerary and/or a midnight sun experience in June. https://www.gonomad.com/242232-holland-america-alaska-Princess Cruises
via GoNOMAD Cafe Travel Alaska Traveling IQ Barbara Peterson Harvey Chipkin

30/11/2024

Virtually everyone who visits Germany goes to Berlin and/or Munich, but Douglas Stallings, Editorial Director of Fodor's Travel and NYTW member, strongly suggests a visit to Saxony, in eastern Germany. "This is the land of the Audi (and the Trabant), but it’s also where the composers Johann Sebastian Bach and Franz Liszt and the writers Friedrich Schiller and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe were born and lived most of their lives. You could easily spend a week here and still have much more to see." Yes, of course that includes Dresden's world-famous porcelain.
https://www.fodors.com/world/europe/germany/saxony-saxony-anhalt-and-thuringia/experiences/news/why-saxony-is-the-underrated-german-destination-you-need-on-your-bucket-list
- Traveling IQ Visit Germany Barbara Peterson Saxony Tourism Harvey Chipkin Kempinski Hotels Meissen

Fodor's provides expert travel content worth exploring so you can dream up your next trip. The world is a weird and wonderful place—we want to show you around.

27/11/2024

Writing for Msnbc news, nationally respected airlines authority and NYTW member William J. McGee says, "Only a small percentage of [passengers] are booked on Spirit Airlines, the troubled airline that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week. Yet millions of others — make that almost all of us — benefit from Spirit’s presence and should give thanks for its existence." Why? This:
https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/spirit-airlines-bankruptcy-holiday-travel-thanksgiving-rcna181835

MSNBC News U.S Traveling IQ Barbara Peterson Harvey Chipkin

Even the smallest of airlines can bring down larger rivals’ fares for dozens of routes across the country.

26/11/2024

"For those who love snow, aerobic exercise, and getting away from the crowds, nothing compares to cross-country skiing. This sport can be done at the pace of a winter stroll or elevated to challenging levels as you ski through forests, farms, and fields on miles of perfectly groomed trails," writes Everett Potter for ForbesLife.

"Cross-country ski resorts are rarefied lodges in the heart of some of North America's most beautiful mountain settings," he adds. "Yet some of the country’s best ski resorts have adjacent cross-country ski trails that can rival them." What follows is a guide to the best of the best by a travel and outdoors writer who knows this territory.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/everettpotter/2024/11/17/holiday-gift-guide-2024-the-best-cross-country-ski-resorts-in-the-us/
- Photo: Woodstock Inn & Resort Nordic Center
Traveling IQ Barbara Peterson Trapp Family Lodge The Wentworth, A White Mountain Inn Bretton Woods Sun Mountain Lodge Gravity Haus Sugar Bowl Resort Lone Mountain Ranch Devil's Thumb Ranch Hotel Jerome, Auberge Resorts Collection Sun Valley Resort

Cross-country ski resorts are rarefied lodges in the heart of some of North America's most beautiful mountain settings.

26/11/2024

On a Mekong River cruise with AmaWaterways, Geri Bain Keroack traveled in ox-drawn carts through a rural village, rode tuk-tuks (motorcycle-drawn carriages) around the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh and glided silently in a small boat through a nature sanctuary, but she was grateful at the end of each day to return to AmaWaterways’ luxurious (air-conditioned!) cruise ship, the AmaDara. In this article, she tells us why. Traveling IQ Barbara Peterson Harvey Chipkin Everett Potter AmaWaterways Loyal Guests (Official)
https://www.everettpotter.com/2024/11/amawaterways-five-star-luxury-mekong-style/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0yn1dXoUWsfR5Q5bcXP5Y3rYBme6mBLEYTPAmxtqAxfAetByazOR_zHHk_aem_yhGzATQnHapr1Hk9ptV3Gg

By Geri Bain On a one-week Mekong River cruise through Vietnam and Cambodia on AmaWaterways’ AmaDara, the modes of transport […]