Ask Skift: How Does Visa-Free Travel Impact Tourism?

Thanks to Alaska’s size, limited road system, and often overwhelming array of outdoor activities, mapping out a trip to the 49th state can be challenging. Cruise the Inside Passage or drive the Interior? Day trip out of Anchorage or basecamp in the backcountry? To help you plan the best trip, we asked locals—writers, adventurers, artists, museum curators—for their secret spots and favorite hangouts.

Scoring free entry into America's national parks like Yellowstone and Grand Canyon might just be one of the best deals in travel—after all, America’s great outdoors are home to some of the country’s most stunning scenery and significant historical and cultural sites. Entrance fees, ranging from $10 per person to $35 per vehicle, are typically charged at 109 of the nation's 400 national parks to help fund the government's maintenance of the spaces for millions of annual visitors. But in an effort to ensure accessibility for everyone, there are a number of programs that allow visitors free entry to national parks, and state-run sites too.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, January 5. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

Airlines continue to roll out deals to jumpstart bookings in the New Year. Alaska Airlines' «2024 Takeoff Sale» has flight deals available from nearly all of the 115 destinations Alaska flies to.  The sale is currently available until tomorrow, Jan. 5, at 11:59pm. The discounted flights vary in departure dates with the top deals including:

2023 has been full steam ahead for rail transport with a roster of new train routes and destinations announced.

Saying that social media videos aren’t always trustworthy feels like the biggest no brainer of the century. But in an era of AI, videography tricks, and influencers trying literally anything to garner attention, it bears remembering that when it comes to TikTok, not everything is as it seems. Take this video of a train journey through Skagway, Alaska.

Japan issued a tsunami warning along with urgent evacuation orders after a powerful earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale shook the Ishikawa region on Monday.

Citizens of European Union members Romania and Bulgaria will no longer need a passport from March 31, 2024 to travel by air or sea to most other EU countries as well as Norway and Switzerland, the council of EU governments said on Saturday.

The travel industry has made enormous progress in its rebound from the pandemic this year, but it still faces several hurdles in its quest to make a full recovery — such as Chinese outbound travel not yet hitting pre-Covid levels.

The U.S. government has increasingly taken aim at junk fees, charges levied by travel service providers that are considered unnecessary or excessive and not clearly communicated to travelers.

Saying that social media videos aren’t always trustworthy feels like the biggest no brainer of the century. But in an era of AI, videography tricks, and influencers trying literally anything to garner attention, it bears remembering that when it comes to TikTok, not everything is as it seems. Take this video of a train journey through Skagway, Alaska.

Immerse yourself in the untamed beauty of Alaska and witness the awe-inspiring power of its apex predators with Bearviewinginalaska.com exclusive bear watch tours.