A Message from the SmarterTravel Team on COVID-19

You can’t escape the orange. That’s what travelers this summer have been reckoning with — swaths of tangerine, traffic cone and burnt sienna on maps indicating record high temperatures around the globe. Four concurrent heat domes from the southern United States to East Asia descended on millions — Phoenix residents enduring 31 days of 110-degree-plus temperatures. Italians in more than a dozen cities under extreme weather warnings. And in South Korea, at least 125 people were hospitalized for heat-related conditions at the World Scout Jamboree.

When I visited Paris last year for the first time, I couldn't wait to eat my way around the city.

Next year, Italy will introduce a flurry of new train routes, especially for tourists.

Among the many wonderful things about Greece is that everyone has a favorite island—and everyone is right. For veteran Forbes travel contributor Jim Dobson, that magical isle is Sifnos. Reachable by ferry from Athens in a little over two hours, Sifnos has beautiful beaches, numerous hiking trails along the Aegean Sea and a remarkable 237 churches. Here’s where to eat, stay and play on Sifnos.

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Summer, also known as high season for travel, is almost here. And according to AAA just about everyone is poised to hit the road. The organization predicts two-thirds of what it categorizes as “leisure travelers” plan to take vacations this summer, meaning millions of Americans will be hitting the road.

In this time of isolation, businesses and individuals around the world are sending out messages of hope. Discover, in photos, how we’re keeping our spirits up during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Editor’s Note: This snapshot of life in Italy under COVID-19 lockdown comes from Nancy Raff, an American expat who has lived in Italy for nearly a decade, and who shares her experiences of life in a small Tuscan village on her website and weekly newsletter.

Review and booking website Tripadvisor (SmarterTravel’s parent company) is out with its annual list of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. It’s dominated by iconic attractions, some of which you’re guaranteed to wait in a two-hour line for unless you can purchase skip-the-line passes. It’s also worth noting that almost every attraction on the list is in Europe.

Holland America Line will launch a 42-day cruise across the Atlantic Ocean and around Europe and the Middle East from Florida next year, inspired by a journey the cruise line took nearly 100 years ago.