Travelers tips

Southwest Airlines now lets travelers book award flights with cash and points, starting with 1,000 Rapid Rewards. This redemption option makes it easier to utilize small point balances, enjoy more flexibility with booking flights, and minimize out-of-pocket costs. Leisure and business travelers can benefit from this new perk.

It’s an unfortunate truth that air travel has become an overall frustrating experience. With shrinking seats, crowded flights, and rising fees for services like checking a bag, it’s enough to make even the most savvy of travelers exasperated. But a select number of airlines continue to stand out from the rest, with refreshingly smooth operations and passenger-friendly cabins.

When the days get longer and hotter, sometimes the only thing you want to do is slap on some SPF and let the sun’s rays and the ocean’s cool breeze take over. This is when a roomy beach blanket comes in handy—allowing you to lay out comfortably to read, eat lunch, or catch some Vitamin D. Read on for 13 of the best beach blankets selected by Conde Nast Traveler for their size, price point, and stand-out features. We've included blankets that are quick-drying, sand-proof, and bug-repelling, so you’re ready for whatever is on the itinerary, whether that’s a day at the beach, a picnic in the park, or stargazing in your own backyard.

The Senate is racing against a Friday deadline to pass legislation to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration at a moment of intense uncertainty and disruption in the air travel system, but a host of policy disputes and unrelated issues are threatening to prolong the debate.

Low-cost Icelandic airline Play wants to make one lucky winner a tourist for a year with the chance to win free flights.

Princess Cruises will return to San Juan, Puerto Rico, next year for the first time in more than 10 years, sailing week-long voyages from the U.S. territory.

The countdown is on for an important change with airport security.  In less than a year, travelers will no longer be able to use a standard driver's license when going through airport security, and will be required to use a license with the Real ID accreditation. Real ID is an added identity check that is applied on a standard driver’s license.  Travelers will need the updated identification by May 7, 2025, or otherwise use a passport to get through security.

The sun-drenched sepia photograph shows a dapper European, handkerchief in pocket, cigarette in hand, sitting among a row of men dressed in bisht and keffiyeh. The moment was captured during Jacques Cartier's first visit to the Persian Gulf in 1911, on his way back to London from Delhi—part of a sales trip encouraged by his father, Alfred, then the head of Cartier. The decline of the Ottoman Empire and the 1905 Persian Constitutional Revolution had flooded Europe's artistic centers with new influences, forging an aesthetic then known as “the Muslim arts.” Eager to learn more, Jacques spent four months traveling throughout Asia and the Middle East, rifling through bazaars and emporiums and mixing with high society.

The English capital is one of the most touristed cities anywhere in the world, with nearly 19 million arrivals in 2023—but when is the best time to visit London? While many choose to travel here during the summer to make the most of the many of the destination's parks, rooftop bars, and outdoor activities, all four seasons have something unique to offer for the traveler heading to London. Below, we break down when to visit for the best weather, the best rates, and more.

Guest rooms and suites at one of the most anticipated hotels in the U.S. are now available for bookings starting later this year.

When it comes to the world's best airlines for business class, the same names and products have long dominated the conversation, especially when it comes lie-flat products on Middle Eastern routes. But these days, with new technology for a post-pandemic travel era coming to fruition and the elevated-class competition strong, travelers would do well to pay attention to newer business products that are emerging to compete with those major players—particularly on smaller routes, where the service is more focused and the airport less-crowded, no less.

Now that you’re a family, traveling is more expensive. We get it.

Airlines have new bragging rights ahead of the busy summer travel season.  For the third year in a row, Southwest Airlines was ranked as the top airline for customer satisfaction for economy or basic economy, according to JD Power's 2024 North America Airline Satisfaction Study published on Wednesday.

It’s been yet another rocky year for the airlines amid a parade of troubling headlines ranging from problems with Boeing aircraft to concerns about cancellations and delays as we head into what could be a record-breaking summer for air travel. So, it may come as little surprise that fliers have mixed feelings about the airlines these days.

What’s the best airline in 2024? It depends on the cabin you fly. Delta Airlines comes in at top for both first-class travelers and those who fly in premium economy, according to J.D. Power’s newest 2024 customer satisfaction survey that ranks North American airlines.

Longtime food writer Priya Krishna’s latest offering is a very different kind of cookbook. Aimed at kids ages 8 to 11, Priya’s Kitchen Adventures: A Cookbook for Kids is a collection of recipes organized by some of the countries Krishna was able to visit in her own childhood thanks to her mother’s career in the travel industry. “Every country starts with a little narrative from my younger self about my experiences of the countries, and I mined my old diaries to get a lot of that content,” she says.

JetBlue and Etihad Airways have expanded their partnership to allow travelers to earn reciprocal points benefits when flying either airline.

The head of Saudi Arabian tourism wants Taylor Swift to bring her tour to the Middle East. Of course he does; Swift’s Eras tour has a proven track record of boosting economies wherever it goes.

Imagine being able to board a train from Spain to Morocco, and travel efficiently—and sustainably—between Europe and Africa in under six hours. Thanks to a historic rail tunnel project currently being considered by the two countries’ transportation ministries, the first-ever rail link between the two continents could become a reality in just a few years.

A hill I will die on: There are few types of trips as stressful to organize as group travel. But we are all just walking contradictions, and while I hate organizing big group trips, being around all of my friends is one of my favorite ways to vacation. So, when my best friend asked me to be her maid of honor, I happily accepted, knowing that I would undoubtedly need to shepherd multiple people to one place at the same time to plan the bachelorette party of her dreams.

As the daily homepage for travel, Skift is the information and intelligence brand at the center of it all, with our team continuously reporting on the innovators that are disrupting the status quo and leading the way to a more exciting industry.