My Instagram feed is full of couples getting engaged at swoon-worthy spots across the globe, from Rome's Trevi Fountain to candlelit beaches in Mexico.
27.07.2023 - 18:45 / smartertravel.com
It’s no secret that it’s been a year of ups and downs—but one silver lining is the affordable travel possibilities it’s opened up for American travelers. Thanks to expanding air routes, a strong U.S. dollar, and tour companies catering to younger, more frugal tourists, the world is now more accessible than ever.
Here are 10 dream trips you can actually afford to take in 2017—and how to make them happen.
Moroccan Desert and MedinasFor expert-led trips that are truly light on your wallet, look to colorful Morocco. G Adventures’ Morrocco Kasbahs and Desert trip is on sale for just $100 per day—or $800 for an eight-day tour from Casablanca to Marrakech with medina walks, some meals, and an overnight Sahara Desert excursion included.
Flights to Casablanca for around $700 make affordable travel to Morrocco easy to find, and the cost of living is far less than it is in the United States (except when it comes to beer or gasoline). Meals at restaurants are around 70 percent cheaper than they are in the U.S., according to BaseTrip. You’re unlikely to spend much more than you will on the tour and airfare unless you have a medina-shopping addiction—and stargazing in the Sahara is free.
Highlights of the United KingdomThis will be a banner year for affordable travel to the United Kingdom. With the unfortunate economic fallout from this summer’s Brexit vote comes a more favorable exchange rate for Americans visiting England—last year one pound was worth about $1.50, but now it’s at about $1.20. Visiting because of this might feel like taking advantage of a bad situation, but as detrimental as the chaos of Brexit may be for Britons and Europeans, tourism is still crucial to the U.K. economy.
Cross London off your bucket list or head to a lesser-known English locale like Hull—the U.K. City of Culture for 2017 (an honor only given every four years). Don’t forget about Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland—some of the most scenic spots in the world for hiking and cycling.
Airfare to the U.K. is at its lowest in years thanks to Brexit and growing budget carriers like WOW, Norwegian Air Shuttle, and Virgin Atlantic. Tour companies have also slashed their U.K. prices by hundreds of dollars, like Go Ahead Tours’ Highlights of England, Scotland, and Ireland—10 nights starting at $1,999, including a guide, accommodations, and some meals.
Related: 3 Simple Rules for Post-Brexit Vacation Savings Greek Island HoppingAnother newly affordable travel destination that relies on tourism, Greece is just one country of many where the euro currency is more favorable for Americans this year. One euro is currently worth $1.05—which is a 10-year low for the European Union.
Getting to the picturesque Peloponnese islands with a
My Instagram feed is full of couples getting engaged at swoon-worthy spots across the globe, from Rome's Trevi Fountain to candlelit beaches in Mexico.
Ely MacInnes and her husband, Tom, began traveling in the western United States with their 85-pound mutt, Alaska, in March 2020. Driving and living in an R.V., they visited White Sands and Petrified Forest National Parks in New Mexico and Arizona before heading to California, Oregon and Washington. They sometimes struggled to figure out where Alaska could and couldn’t roam, but often found that they could have wonderful experiences.
Walking tours, don’t you know, may be the best way to see the world. The pace is slow, the better to take in all the new sights and sounds around you. You can savor the landscape, the architecture, and the people you encounter, just as you delight in the food and wine that invariably follows a day on foot. There are no crowds, no lines, no delays. Just a quieter way to travel. Here are five new walking trips for 2024 — in Scotland, Croatia, Spain, the Canadian Rockies and the French Alps — all terrific ways to see the world at a slower pace.
When you watch "Oppenheimer," you might feel like you're being transported to the exact places where history unfolded — and, in some cases, you are.
With multiple airlines (at the time of writing Delta, Alaska, and American) instituting a “smart luggage ban,” travelers have a right to be concerned if they travel with that pricey smart bag they bought. The part of the product in question is the suitcase’s battery, which with new regulations, must be removed in order to bring the bag onboard.
In a historic agreement signed this week, the United States and Cuba have now resumed commercial air traffic between the two countries for the first time in 50 years, with routes expected to be running by fall 2016. Currently, only chartered flights are allowed to operate between the two countries.
Bare fares—cheap coach fares with few perks and plenty of restrictions—are a thing. The unbundled fares, as they’re also called, are what have made Spirit, Frontier, and other ultra-low-cost carriers the darlings of the most price-sensitive customers, and of Wall Street. And the legacy carriers can’t afford not to compete for those flyers.
The travel industry obviously doesn’t like true solo travelers much: Almost all tours and cruises are priced on a “per person, double occupancy” basis, and most hotels charge the same rate for either one or two people. If, as a singles traveler, you just want to avoid a stiff single supplement, the industry often promises to find someone to share with you so you can, in effect, travel at the couples price. But if you really want to travel solo, your options are limited.
Fall is often referred to as the sweet spot of travel for many destinations because you’ll encounter fewer crowds and pleasant weather, post summer’s high season.
Each year, the World Tourism Organization (a specialized agency of the United Nations) sponsors a day to highlight tourism around the world. September 27th marks World Tourism Day 2017. The agency designated this year’s as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development to raise awareness for social, economic, and environmental progress with travel. Now more than ever, you should be thinking more about these values as you make your travel plans. Here’s why.
Fair or not, American travelers are sometimes given a bad rap abroad. The ugly American stereotype paints us as insensitive, loud, and unfashionable—even if most of us aren’t! Instead of getting mad about it, why not take it as travel advice? Here’s what you can learn from the ugly American stereotype.