Features

Part of the Trashi Chhoe Dzong, located in Thimphu.

Approximately 30 years ago, I passed up an opportunity to spend a month or two in the remote, little-known Kingdom of Bhutan as a trainer in a management program. At that time, the government allowed very few tourists to enter this mysterious, protected, tiny kingdom. As Bhutan became more open and increasingly on the radar of travelers, I wondered what I had missed. 

To satisfy my curiosity, in late February and early March 2017, my wife, Rosie, and I spent two weeks in Bhutan...

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Oaxaca’s Templo de Santo Domingo.

As an avid traveler, I am always attracted to the colorful liveliness of the colonial cities of the New World. So when Grand Circle Travel (Boston, MA; 800/221-2610, www.gct.com) introduced a new tour called “Mexico’s Ancient & Colonial Heritage,” which combined visits to the colonial cities of Oaxaca and Mérida with visits to five UNESCO World Heritage Sites in southeastern Mexico and the Yucatán Peninsula, how could I resist? 

I made my reservation in...

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View from our room at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.

Some trips take a long time to get off the ground. The trip my husband, Paul, and I took to western Canada in May 2017 was one of those. 

It all started with a great but too-short trip to Vancouver, British Columbia, in western Canada more than 20 years ago. Paul and I promised ourselves that when we next returned, it would be to not only see more of Vancouver but to travel through the Canadian Rocky Mountains, preferably by train.

Years flew by, and lots of trips were...

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View of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.

The Philippines and Taiwan had been on my bucket list for years, so when a brochure hit my mailbox from Zegrahm Expeditions (Seattle, WA; 855/242-0967 or 206/285-4000, www.zegrahm.com) with a tour featuring both countries — in addition to the southern Japanese islands — I was halfway there. 

The clincher was three magic words: “No single supplement.” I booked the trip.

“Asia’s Subtropical Isles: Philippines, Taiwan & Japan” (...

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The Palace of Njasvizh, near Minsk, Belarus.

In 2016, I booked a cruise through the Black Sea, but it was canceled because of turmoil in Ukraine and Turkey. That cruise was particularly attractive to my wife, Susan, and me, as it would have gotten us closer to achieving ITN’s All of Europe Travel Award, so I decided to look on the Internet for a land-based tour that would visit some of the Eastern European countries that were on the cruise itinerary. That search led me to a small English company that helped me turn lemons into...

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A floating community outside of Manaus.

We decided South America would be our travel destination this year, so we booked a 22-day “Amazon Exploration” cruise on board the Regatta, a 684-passenger ship operated by Oceania Cruises (Miami, FL; 855/335-2728, oceaniacruises.com). The ship left Miami on Feb. 2, 2017, sailing first through the Caribbean and finally reaching the mouth of the Amazon River on the night of Feb. 10. 

The cruise fare for the two of us was $15,744, which included balcony-cabin...

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A number of readers had strong reactions — some positive and some negative — to the article “The Ugly Tourist (And How Not to Be One)” by ITN Contributing Editor Rick Steves (June ’17, pg. 53). 

In his article, Rick wrote, “Europe sees two kinds of American travelers: those who view Europe through air-conditioned bus windows, socializing with their noisy American friends, and those who are taking a vacation from the US, immersing...

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Jann Segal on a hike at the Featherbed Nature Reserve in Knysna, South Africa.

During some of my recent adventurous travels, I was greatly disappointed to learn that I get severe reactions to all of the various antimalarial drugs. For this reason, I thought I would never be able to go on an African safari. 

However, I consulted my physician and did a significant amount of research, and, with the information I discovered, I was able to take a magnificent trip to South Africa with Grand Circle Travel (Boston, MA; 800/221-2610, www.gct.com). I booked GCT...

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