Island tips

Looking to plan a trip around a weekend festival or worldly event in 2018? Then check out this list of festivals and events for every month this year.

Welcome to the first episode of The Boarding Pass Podcast, brought to you by SmarterTravel. In this episode, we’ll bring you expert tips on avoiding traffic at the airport, debate the controversy of reclining seats on planes, and travel far away to the islands of Sao Tome and Principe with Matt Phillips, the Lonely Planet Destination Editor to Sub-Saharan Africa.

Whether you’re looking to explore the farthest reaches of the globe or vacation closer to home, the year ahead will offer plenty of reasons to explore. In 2017, many of the world’s most intriguing destinations will be celebrating anniversaries, festivals, easier access, and other new reasons to visit. So grab your suitcase and go—there’s never been a better time to visit these fascinating places near and far.

It would be an understatement to say that travel to Cuba hasn’t met the airlines’ expectations.

Cruising is one of the best ways to take in multiple destinations on a single trip, not to mention some killer ocean views. For those reasons and more, we look forward to Cruise Critic’s annual Cruisers’ Choice Destination Awards. Based on port ratings from avid cruisers and readers, Cruise Critic picks 15 destination winners each year.

Enter the SmartSource.com “New Year, New You” sweepstakes by February 29, 2016, for a chance to win the grand prize: a seven-night trip for two to Freeport, the Bahamas, including air, hotel, and on-premise meals.

In the latest blow to Cuba tourism, the U.S. Department of the Treasury today issued new restrictions on travel to the island nation.

No one knows cruising better than frequent cruisers. That’s why we always look forward to Cruise Critic’s annual Cruisers’ Choice Destination Awards, which are based on port ratings provided by reader reviews. This year, Cruise Critic divided destinations into 15 different categories and ranked the top places for cruisers to visit in each. Here are 10 key destinations from the list—head over to Cruise Critic’s Cruisers’ Choice Destination Awards page for the full list!

When it comes to the world’s most popular destinations, two travel hubs have been in a tug-of-war match for the title of ‘most-visited’ over the past few years.

Since diplomatic relations with Cuba were reinstated and a newly liberalized U.S.-Cuba aviation agreement was enacted last year, travel between the two countries has been a decidedly up-and-down affair.

Get the most bang-for-your-buck with a trip to these top value destinations this year. For months we’ve tracked dozens of destinations around the world to find vacation-worthy spots that won’t break the bank. From a cool West Coast city to a Mediterranean Island, here is where you should be going in 2018 if you’re looking to save some money.

Summer is for beaching, unplugging, and getting away. To celebrate our favorite season, we’re launching a photo contest and a sweepstakes on Instagram this July, with plenty of great travel prizes! The details are as follows:

For the first time in more than 50 years, U.S. airlines have received federal approval to operate scheduled flight services to Cuba.

Another August means another summer drawing to a close, and pangs of desire for one last fair-weather trip. Late summer and early fall travel can be a science that’s hard to perfect, but do it right and you’ll find great shoulder-season deals in destinations perfect for one last warm-weather getaway.

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.

The Department of Transportation today announced its nominees to operate nonstop flights to Havana, Cuba. In all, eight airlines were approved for service to Havana from 10 U.S. airports, as follows:

Enter the Copa Airlines “My Paradise” sweepstakes by July 5, 2016, for a chance to win the grand prize: a four-day trip for four to Nassau, Bahamas, including air, transfers, hotel, some meals, and a dolphin swim.

Stuck paying for a timeshare you want out of? You’re not alone: Some 85 percent of the nine million timeshare owners in the U.S. are looking to get out of a timeshare contract. This is according to a service that helps people get out of timeshares, called Timeshare Exit Team—which has mixed reviews online with success stories among them, and a favorable rating from the Better Business Bureau.

These days, budget air deals aren’t hard to come by. There are plenty of flash sales and discount carriers to choose from, but not all of them are created equal. It’s become easy to find reasonable flights between big air hubs, but dreamy, far-off islands will almost always cost you more.

As featured in SmarterTravel’s The 12 Best Places to Travel in 2019 and 10 Best U.S. Cities to Visit in 2019, Puerto Rico is a trending destination this year, and the musical Hamilton has a lot to do with it. Starting on January 12th, Lin-Manuel Miranda reprises his role of Alexander Hamilton for a special featured performance of the hit musical in his father’s home of Puerto Rico.

Shorter days, cooler weather, and back-to-school sales are right around the corner—but don’t let summer come to an end without enjoying one last vacation. Book one of these cheap Labor Day weekend getaways to take advantage of low airfares, affordable hotel rates, and special events in a variety of U.S. and international locations.

A grumbling volcano is ruining more than a few tropical vacations this holiday season.