8 top things to do in Dominica: hikes, swims, culture and more

Travel to Europe during shoulder season just got easier thanks to a new fare sale, offering round-trip tickets starting at just $359 round-trip. 

Sun-seekers, meet Star Seeker. One of the cruise industry's most anticipated new high-end ships is set to debut at the end of next year, and you'll only have one chance to catch it in the Caribbean.

September welcomes a flurry of night-sky sights, from potential above-average northern lights — known to amplify around the equinoxes — to optimal planet viewing and the crème de la crème of lunar sightings: a partially eclipsed supermoon. If you’re heading out to sky-watch, remember dark-sky locales, such as astargazing hotel, provide the best vantage point. You can pack a pair ofstargazing binoculars, or choose an accommodation with a telescope, but many of the month’s sightings are visible to the naked eye. Here are the best night-sky attractions to keep an eye on this month, including where and when to look, and tips for snagging the best view.

Sep 2, 2024 • 6 min read

Koji, the mold that transforms soy beans and wheat into soy sauce and rice into sake, is so beloved in Japan that it has its own holiday. And lately, chefs have been finding new uses for the fungus, which has a fruity aroma and an ability to make “anything it touches better,” says Jeremy Umansky, 41, the owner of Larder deli in Cleveland. He uses koji for almost everything: to cure pastrami; to ferment Chinese-style black beans, which are ground and swirled into chocolate babka to embolden the chocolate; and to sprinkle over salads and fries in the form of what the restaurant calls Special K, a seasoning of dried ground koji. “It’s a harmonizer,” he says. Bartenders, too, are taking note. At Nancy’s Hustle in Houston, the bar manager, Zach Hornberger, 32, adds it to the nonalcoholic Silver Brining cocktail, a sweet-sour-salty mix of pickle brine, grapefruit and lime juices, koji and tonic. “It brings this umami background to beverages, and it plays well with citrus, taming the high acid notes and rounding the drink as a whole,” he says. At the restaurant Fête in Honolulu, the bar manager, Fabrice McCarthy, 41, infuses rum with shio koji (a slurry of koji, water and salt) and shakes it into a mai tai to add salinity — the effect, he says, is similar to how salted peanuts make you want to drink more beer. Ryan Chetiyawardana, 40, the owner of the bar Lyaness in London, experiments with koji in multiple forms — for one cocktail, he ferments parsnips with koji, which he says unlocks the sweetness and delivers “a huge tropical brightness.” While koji often plays a supporting role, at Paradiso in Barcelona, it wraps around the entire lip of the glass used for the Fleming, named for Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of penicillin, another influential mold. For this fungus-inspired cocktail, which includes grapefruit, tequila and miso, the manager of Paradiso’s research lab, Matteo Ciarpaglini, 30, one-upped a classic salt rim with a fluffy cloud of koji, its floral fragrance accompanying every taste. —

Saving on flights to South America just got easier with deals from American Airlines to some of the most popular destinations across the continent. 

Alva Vanderbilt's 39th birthday present from her husband was a 140,000-square-foot summer "cottage" on the shores of Newport, Rhode Island.

The thing about Hawaii cruises is that there’s no bad time of year to take one. Thanks to its year-round sunshine and warm weather, Hawaii will be there for you whenever you’re ready to set sail.

Exciting news, Carnival Cruise Line fans: A visit to a massively revamped private island is in your future.

Low-cost Frontier Airlines is expanding its domestic network in New York, Los Angeles, and beyond by rolling out nearly a dozen new routes.

I'd never cruised before — but when 12 of my friends from high school hatched a plan to celebrate our 60th birthdays on a four-night Royal Caribbean cruise, I immediately said yes.

For years, Universal Studios Hollywood has immersed theme park fans into the world of their favorite films, TV shows and video games. Visitors can see how movie magic is made on the backlot Studio Tour, fly over Hogwarts Castle on Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and race to the finish line on Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge.