Hilton, Travel and Leisure, Marriott Timeshares: 2024 State of Play

The island paradise of Sir Richard Branson, Necker Island in the idyllic British Virgin Islands, is affording guests a newly enhanced insight into its wide-reaching conservation efforts.

The City of Chicago and the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) announced the full lineup and programming highlights for the 2024 edition of the beloved Chicago Blues Festival, taking place June 6 – 9 as part of Millennium Park’s milestone 20th anniversary season.

I learned how to maintain dignity and self-respect, even in the face of humiliation, from my grandmother. My mother’s mother was widowed suddenly at the same age I was when I started Accidental Icon. She sold everything she owned, including her home in Connecticut, and moved to Dallas to live with her two sisters, all three widowed during the same year. As young women, the sisters performed as a trio; one sister played the harp, one the piano, and my grandmother the cello. They traveled often, and that is what they did for the next twenty years—this time without their instruments and husbands. We saw my grandmother during this period maybe four times a year. She would call and tell us to meet her at the New York piers or the airport, when she and her sisters were embarking on a European adventure or a trip to Asia. My grandmother, in an exquisitely tailored bouclé suit, would envelop us in a cloud of expensive perfume. The jingle of the charm bracelets she wore on her slender wrist announced her arrival. She would bring gifts—pearls from Japan, or perfume from Paris—upon her return. For me there were geisha dolls, books of watercolor scenes of cherry blossoms on rice paper with transparent covers, carved perfume bottles, and netsukes made of wood.

I have, of late, been thinking a lot about the relationship between traveling and reading. One of the ways that I fell apart a little bit during the first year of the pandemic, as so many of us did, was that I largely stopped reading books. By early 2021, I had resolved to change this, and the return of travel helped me do it.

Birgir Jónsson is well aware of how a budget airline's fortunes can quickly turn around.

Opera superstar soprano Lise Davidsen stars in the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino,” streaming Live in HD to cinemas around the world this Saturday, March 9 at 12 noon ET.

MGM Resorts International and Marriott International are coming together to bring travelers an all-new level of access to exclusive experiences and even better benefits. 

Holland America Line is setting sail for adventure with the opening of bookings for its 2025-2026 Panama Canal and Hawaii cruises. With a focus on longer voyages and destination immersion, the premium cruise line is set to offer sailings out of five North American homeports on five separate ships for the 2025-2026 season.

Amtrak has expanded its Northeast Regional service to offer more travel choices along the U.S. East Coast. This enhancement includes the introduction of four extra weekday roundtrips and two new weekend roundtrips between New York Penn Station (NYP) and Washington Union Station (WAS), along with a fresh weekday morning departure from Philadelphia’s William H. Gray III 30th Street Station (PHL) to NYP. In addition, one new weekend departure now also connects PHL to Boston South Station (BOS). 

Success Stories focus on veteran travel advisors and how they achieved success. Here’s a look at Niki Rakowitz, founder of Visionary CARE Travel and CT Signature Collection.

The much-anticipated ITB Berlin, the world’s premier B2B travel show, has kicked off on the Berliner Exhibition Grounds, showcasing an impressive international presence and a diverse range of exhibitors from across the globe. Spanning from March 5th to 7th, 2024, the event has recorded exceptional bookings, filling over 90 percent of the display area with 150,000 square meters dedicated to exhibitors from 170 countries and territories.

PriceTravel Holding, one of the biggest B2B and B2C travel companies in Latin America, is set to make a significant impact at ITB Berlin 2024. The company proudly announces an astounding +450% growth in its hotel portfolio through direct contracting, offering over 35,000 hotels and solidifying its position as a major player in the hospitality sector. This portfolio of hotels spans across 120 destinations, primarily in Latin America, the Caribbean, the United States, and Europe, ensuring a comprehensive and varied selection to meet B2B and B2C client demands. The key strategic agreements that position PriceTravel as the undisputed leader are based on three strategic pillars in terms of its contracted product: