Sampling craft beers in the Holy Land

I was 20 years old and had J Robert Oppenheimer's house all to myself. From the porch of the small yellow cottage, four steps led down to the beach where coconut trees swooped low at the water's edge and the Evian-clear Caribbean gently lapped the sugar-white sand. Day after day, I'd hike here after work to marvel at the parrotfish, butterflyfish and hawksbill turtles that glided between the shallow coral reefs, never once seeing another soul. 

St Lucia is a volcanic island and one of the more mountainous in the Caribbean. At only 27 miles long and 14 miles wide, the island is small enough to get from one end to the other in less than two hours. 

It’s no longer something to keep hidden.

Enter the Paul Gauguin Cruises “Soul of the South Seas” sweepstakes by May 31, 2016, for a chance to win one of four grand prizes: each a seven-night cruise for two of Tahiti and the Society Islands, including air, onboard meals, and ground transfers.

Although the United Kingdom is one of the closest European destinations to the United States, it’s been out of reach for many Americans for a long time, due to the unfavorable pound to dollar exchange rate.

The esteemed Dr. Beach has released his annual list of America’s top ten beaches, and you’ll want to visit all of them this summer—doctors orders.

“Best airport” rankings aren’t typically the most helpful in terms of travel planning: If I want to go to Boston, I’m not going to head for Las Vegas instead because its airport is better. But those best airport lists do come in handy in two cases—when you have a choice of airport for your connecting flight, and when you can choose between multiple airports within a single metro area.

Wondering what the best airlines are according to the average flyer? TripAdvisor (SmarterTravel’s parent company) gives a good idea in its Travelers’ Choice best airline rankings each year based on real travelers’ reviews. And the results are different than most trade studies that list the “best airlines.”

America’s newest wicked-long flight is the Boston-to-Honolulu route from Hawaiian Airlines, which is now the longest flight in the country at 5,095 miles. And it’s not a fluke—the new Hawaiian flight is the longest nonstop route in the United States ever. The journey takes a whopping 11 hours 40 minutes when flying to the islands, but it will only take 10 hours and 15 minutes to get back to reality.

The latest study from J.D. Power proves something you might have already suspected: Air travelers aren’t too happy. The 2019 North America Airport Satisfaction Study found that travelers’ satisfaction with domestic airports plateaued this year amidst widespread delays and crowds. According to the findings, the halt in passenger satisfaction comes after several years of rapid growth.

If you want to stay at the best hotel in the United States, head to the French Quarter Inn in Charleston, South Carolina. And if you’re looking for the best bargain hotel stay in the world, it’s in a small town in northern Spain. That’s according to TripAdvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards, which just shared the best hotel ratings for multiple categories heading into 2019.

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.