North America travel tips

Visit Fort Lauderdale is offering up numerous sensory-friendly activities for families to enjoy in Greater Fort Lauderdale from museums to sporting events in honor of Autism Awareness month this April.

My two boys are grown now, 24 and 20, and I always tell them to be careful. And invariably they always say to me that they are grown men and can be trusted.

Could the summer air travel season be impacted by a potential Congressional amendment?

Los Angeles, California — The United States has “serious problems” when it comes to international inbound travel that must be resolved if the country is to regain its competitive edge.That’s the assessment of the U.S. Travel Association and its leader Geoff Freeman, the organization’s president and CEO.Freeman delivered his sober take on the problems plaguing inbound travel to the United States during a press conference today in Los Angeles, California where a travel industry convention is taking place.“The United States remains the world’s most desired nation to visit, but at the end of 2019 we had 79 million visitors internationally and in 2023 we had 67 million international visitors," Freeman told the media gathered for the IPW 2024 convention. “That’s only 84 percent of pre-pandemic levels.”“When you look at travel as an export - before the pandemic we had a 12 billion [person] travel trade surplus. At end of last year we had about a 50 billion [person] travel trade deficit,” Freeman added.There's a handful of challenges that the United States currently faces when it comes to attracting international visitors and significantly ramping up inbound numbers, said Freeman. And some of those challenges are within the country’s ability to fix, while others are not.There’s not much that can be done, for instance, about the strength of the U.S. dollar, which makes this country very expensive to visit from many other parts of the world. Similarly, there’s not much U.S. officials can do about the current prohibitions surrounding flights over Russian airspace, which pose a major obstacle for airlines coming to this country from China.However, visa wait times continue to be a significant roadblock for international visitors — and that’s an issue U.S. officials can — and should — be able to fix, Freeman said.“On the visa side, I checked this morning — if you're a Columbian and want to come to the U.S. the wait times are over 600 days to get an interview at a U.S. consulate,” said Freeman. “If you’re in Mexico, the wait times are over 800 days.”By contrast, for visitors from India the wait timeline for visa interviews has recently been reduced to a somewhat more reasonable 150 to 200 days. Similarly, wait times for those visiting from Brazil have been reduced drastically — from what was once 500 days down to just 21 days, according to the U.S. Travel Association.“It shows us that it can be done. When the State Department uses their ingenuity and gets creative and puts resources in the right places, this problem can be solved,” explained Freeman. “But it’s been going on for far too long. It needs to be solved now.”

Goway announced on Monday that the company is expanding its luxury tour itineraries to include several of the most popular National Parks in the United States.

Nayarit is a land of natural beauty and incredible cultural and historical experiences for travelers to enjoy. If you’re not familiar with this destination, then this is the guide for you. 

Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. (Photo Credit: Walt Disney World Resort Media)

On Friday, Hawaii Governor Josh Green signed into law landmark legislation (SB 2919) that grants local governments the power to regulate short-term rentals to meet the needs of their communities. 

O’Hare International Airport in Chicago is one of the biggest and busiest airports in the country. But nobody ever referred to it as a possible money driver.

Hilton announced a new partnership with ResortPass to bring curated day pass packages to participating properties across the Americas.

Governor Gavin Newsom and Visit California CEO Caroline Beteta just broke the news that California still retains the largest market share of tourism in the entire United States. According to new data released today, travel spending in the Golden State reached a record high of $150.4 billion in 2023, outstripping the previous record amount of $144.9 billion seen in 2019.

Cruise season is officially underway in Montreal.

For Halloween enthusiasts, Howl-O-Scream is returning to SeaWorld this fall, and the theme park company is offering a Mayhem sale to celebrate.

Oahu is getting its first adults-only hotel when the Romer House Waikiki opens on June 1, 2024. 

Amid the fanfare of a press conference about the growth of inbound United States tourism, Brand USA Today officially introduced its new president and CEO and bid goodbye to its longtime leader after a dozen years of service.Brand USA, the destination marketing organization for the United States, welcomed Fred Dixon into the DMO’s top role. Dixon is the current president and CEO of NYC Tourism + Conventions.He will take over in July for Chris Thompson, who announced his retirement from the role last year. Thompson held the role of Brand USA president and CEO from 2012 until 2024.

Halloween may still be six months away. But Mickey and Minnie are already gearing up for the spooky holiday.

If you’re thinking about a vacation rental in Hawaii, you should know that the market is in a topsy-turvy state right now.

Spirit Airlines announced its first-quarter earnings on Monday, but the focus was on the second quarter. And it wasn’t good news.

Several high-ranking members of the United States government have reached an agreement on a final bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) for five years.

CLEAR, the secure identity company easing the airport security screening process in airports across the U.S., announced a new partnership with Hawaiian Airlines ahead of its launch at Maui’s Kahului Airport (OGG) on May 1. 

Starting December 1, Delta Air Lines is relaunching its daily services to Lagos, Nigeria, from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City.  

The U.S. government's agreement on a final bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) presents a mixed bag for travel agencies and advisors across the country, according to the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA).The organization was successful in its efforts to secure a provision that streamlines offline disclosures surrounding air travel and establish the Passenger Experience Advisory Committee within the Department of Transportation (DOT) to advise the Secretary and the FAA Administrator on improving the passenger experience in air transportation customer service."This will reduce frustration with the air ticket purchase process and lessen the unnecessary burdens on our members' business operations while keeping critical consumer protection intact," said ASTA President and CEO Zane Kerby about the offline disclosure victory.However, ASTA expressed frustration with DOT's new airfare refund rules that could negatively impact agencies by leaving them on the hook to issue a refund as the "merchant of record" even if they've already passed the funds over to the airline."We were thankful when the House originally recognized this important distinction. Unfortunately, the final compromise between the House and Senate kicks this issue back to a DOT that has shown a clear lack of understanding of how travel agencies book air travel," added Kerby.