Catch the Last of Summer in Türkiye’s Unmissable Destinations

Sep 4, 2024 • 7 min read

When someone says “bucket list trips,” it’s all too easy to imagine the journeys you’d like to take in the future, in some faraway someday to celebrate a momentous occasion or mark a sort of final hurrah. That’s all well and good, but as they say: There’s no time like the present. All across the vast United States lie innumerable opportunities to fulfill a childhood—or adulthood—dream, to experience the country in all its splendor, whether rural or urban, culinary or cultural, educational or just plain ol’ fun. At Condé Nast Traveler, we spend our days learning and writing about the best experience all 50 states have to offer—this is our ultimate wish list.

One might reasonably assume that the world’s best-connected airports would have been around for a while—long enough to test out new airline routes, apply those learnings, and figure out the smoothest way to introduce new carriers and destinations. Heathrow, for example, has long been hailed as one of the world’s best hubs, having opened nearly 80 years ago.

Sep 3, 2024 • 5 min read

On September 1, SAS Scandinavian Airlines left Star Alliance and joined SkyTeam. The change came just days after Air France-KLM formalized its 19.9% shareholding in the Nordic carrier. With the Franco-Dutch group a cornerstone of SkyTeam, it was incomprehensible that SAS would remain with Star.

Protesters staging hunger strikes against tourism developments. Local officials threatening to cut off water to illegal vacation rentals. Residents spraying tourists with water pistols.

Skift Global Forum kicks off on September 17th with an opening reception at The Glasshouse (660 12th Ave at 48th Street) in New York City, running from 6-9 pm ET. This special evening will include insightful fireside chats with top executives from the travel industry, followed by an exciting reception.

Once rather unknown to travelers, the Urla district in Turkey’s seaside Izmir province has recently been propelled into the limelight. That's thanks to a string of newly minted Michelin-starred restaurants (three with the famed stars, and three with sustainability recognition)—and trail of inventive and boutique wine producers called the Urla Wine Route. The area is a year-round reprieve that has managed to preserve and capitalize on its natural beauty; olive groves, fruit orchards, and vineyards here have become ground zero for the reinvention of modern Aegean cuisine and wine, inspired and sustained by the region’s fruitful lands. Today, Urla beckons with culinary delights, cultural treasures, and design-first hotels—here's how to experience the new nucleus of Turkey's fine-dining scene.

The Air France-KLM Group has officially become a shareholder in SAS Scandinavian Airlines. The agreement marks the conclusion of one of the year’s biggest airline deals and heralds the latest phase of consolidation in the European airline industry.

On a damp morning in Istanbul, I pay a visit to Zeyrek Çinili Hamam, a recently unveiled museum in a 500-year-old public bathhouse that once echoed with the chatter of the Ottoman middle class. Getting there involves zigzagging through the winding cobbled streets of Zeyrek, one of four UNESCO World Heritage sites in Istanbul. It was a holy place 1,000 years ago, during the Byzantine Empire, but these days it's uncharted territory for most Istanbulites. Few people are out: only the odd chain-smoking vegetable vendor and some meandering octogenarians doing their grocery shopping. The fall air smells faintly of raw meat, thanks to the butchers who have long populated the neighborhood. Trying to make sense of Google Maps on my phone, I almost collide with several men haphazardly carrying a sheep carcass from a van. I am lost. Or at least I think I am, until I realize that I've passed the hammam four or five times without noticing its domed roof.

When my husband and I got stranded in Paris during the global Crowdstrike meltdown last month, we decided to make it a lemonade out of lemons event. We were on our way home, flying with Delta Air Lines from Istanbul to Albuquerque, New Mexico, with a connection through Paris following a two-week Mediterranean cruise.

Call it the most epic Europe cruise ever.