Whale watching on New Year’s? These are the most unique celebrations across the Americas

The bigger the better, the more the merrier: The world's two largest cruise ships have finally met.

A highly anticipated newcomer towers along the hustle, bustle, and traffic of Miami's busy coast. And for good reason: PortMiami's newest 1,198-foot-long resident was recently crowned the world's largest cruise ship.

Six countries now have the world's most powerful passport, according to the 2024 Henley Passport Index — but the US isn't one of them.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with John Barnhart, a 32-year-old who left Tampa, Florida to travel, and work, around the world.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Diane Higgins, one of the 155 people who survived the "Miracle on the Hudson" crash alongside her mother, Lucille Palmer, in 2009. It has been edited for length and clarity.

As someone who grew up in Wisconsin and moved to New York City a decade ago, I enjoy analyzing the similarities and differences between the two regions I call home.

During the pandemic, doing jigsaw puzzles became a form of meditation for me (and thousands of others) and I’m still doing them four years later. Puzzles have come a long way from the dusty old landscapes and cat illustrations you may still have on your basement shelf; dozens of new brands (many of them women-owned) have popped up and they’re creating beautiful, unique, statement-making works of art that are fun to do and worthy of framing.

It’s a common dilemma most travelers face when booking a dream vacation: how many days are you going stay in one place? It's a choice that can be the difference of having perfectly enjoyed the time in a city, and being somewhere just a little too long. This week, the dilemma spilled over into an online discourse on Reddit where hundreds of travelers weighed in on which cities require the most amount of days to visit, and which can be skipped over. One of the top cities that travelers felt needed extra time is Tokyo. The city has a population of 14 million across 847 sq. miles, while for comparison, New York City is only 468 sq miles. “Definitely Tokyo, if we're counting the Tokyo Metropolis. Just the city proper requires 10-14 days to explore its variety and sprawl,” one traveler wrote in support of the Japanese city in the tread.

Staring at a map of North and South America, from the frozen extremities of Canada down to the Diego Ramírez islands off Chile, it’s hard to fathom the cultural variations that have evolved across the two continents. This is a region of ancient civilisations and lost cities, from the indefinable magic of Peru to the jungle temples of Mexico. Yet it’s also the birthplace of rock and roll, country music and the blues, with a wildly vivacious, deep-rooted commitment to the good times. Just look to New Orleans and the Deep South, where renowned music forms arose beside atmospheric marshlands, in a truly authentic piece of Americana. Here, five experts reveal their favourite cultural locations and experiences across the two continents.

Amtrak is making it easier to travel around the Big Apple from the bustling streets of New York City to the soaring peaks of the Adirondacks, the thundering roar of Niagara Falls, and beyond with a buy-one-get-one ticket sale.

It was 2:38 p.m. on August 21, 2017, when day turned to night. That was the precise moment in Greenville, South Carolina, when the moon, passing between the sun and Earth, fully blocked our view of the sun.

With a rate of $1190 for the cheapest room, New Orleans emerged top of the rankings.