Compass
Amsterdam is a city with many recognizable features like winding canals and famous historic buildings such as the Anne Frank House. It’s also one of the world’s most bikeable places, and it’s renowned for its cafe and coffee house culture. But in December 2018, Amsterdam lost one of its most iconic symbols – the I amsterdam sign.
Have you ever wondered what draws people to the morbid places associated with suffering or death? Auschwitz, Ground Zero, and Chernobyl come to mind.
If you ever saw an Aldabra Giant Tortoise, you’d think it was a dinosaur, as they look as if they came from another time period. And, it’s possible that’s true. After all, they can live to be more than 100 years old and weigh up to 300 pounds. Of course, seeing the actual Aldabra is difficult due to the excessive number of restrictions put on visitors.
Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau is promising a crackdown on the number of cruise ships that can dock in the popular Mediterranean city. According to Colau, the city doesn’t have a lot of capacity. However, she also promised citizens that they would have better air quality. Barcelona’s air quality levels often go beyond the regulations set forth by the World Health Organization. Colau said she wants the city to work on every front. Barcelona will also be declaring a climate emergency, and putting forth ideas such as banning highly-pollutive vehicles from coming into the city and boosting low-emission zones. She also wants to decrease plastic use, improve the recycling efforts, reduce speed limits and boost the number of car-free zones. The city of Barcelona is a hot spot cruise destination spot in Europe with over 2.5 million visitors coming here in just 2018. However, cruise ships are also the biggest cause [...]
Travel with us to the summit of Monserrate above Bogota, Colombia. The mountain is part of the Andes and is a focal point in center of Colombia's capital city. It rises to 3,152 metres (10,341 ft) above sea level. At the top of Monserrate sits a 17th century church that houses a shrine devoted to "El Señor Caído" (Fallen Lord). Monserrate is a pilgrimage destination as well as a tourist attraction and the top offers spectacular views of Bogota below.
The island of St. Maarten (Sint Maarten) is the common denominator in the stories of two different families whose lives were changed when they landed on the Caribbean island. Join us to hear why St. Maarten was the backdrop to their positive life transformations. First, we’ll speak to Erik and Emily Orton about their decision to spend a year at sea with their five children. The family of seven spent a year sailing from St. Maarten to New York. The lessons they learned and the adventures they experienced are described in their book, Seven at Sea: Why a New York City Family Cast Off Convention For A Life-Changing Year On A Sailboat. In their book, Erik and Emily remind us that we have the ability to customize our lives, regardless of our perceived constraints. Then, we’ll introduce travel writer Breana Johnson who lived as an American expat on the island [...]
If your goal is to enjoy Vienna, it’s time you stop following online review advice – that’s the message the city’s new tourism campaign.
Hawaii recently passed one of the island’s most strictest vacation rental laws in over 40 years. A bill signed by Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell, aims at limiting the number of bed and breakfast rentals to 1,715. The Honolulu City Council suspects there are close to 10,000 vacation rentals on Oahu with only 770 of them being legally licensed to provide short-term rentals.
Outpost, a luxury pop-up camp, has been set up in Aysen, which is a remote area of northern Patagonia, to help people reach some of Chile’s less traveled tourist locations.
As the birthplace and childhood home of Queen Victoria and the current home of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their children, Kensington Palace is a place of fascinating insight into the British Royal Family.
Experience a slice of American history as two journalists share their perspectives on Martha’s Vineyard and parts of the American south. Author, Bijan Bayne,has been a summer resident of Martha’s Vineyard since childhood. He says that while most people may know about Martha’s Vineyard because of the Obama family and the movie Jaws, the Vineyard has a rich history within the African American community. Bijan tells us that the island is much more than a playground for the rich and famous and his stories will shatter some stereotypical notions many hold about Martha’s Vineyard. Travel writer Kathleen Walls loves sharing the historical stories she discovers during her travels. Her storytelling is truthful and authentic and she isn’t afraid to share stories about dark episodes in American history like the Trail of Tears or slavery. Kathleen says that often times certain parts of American’s history is overlooked because of shame and [...]
Every May, the entire island of Bermuda comes alive to celebrate Bermuda Day, a cherished national holiday that was formerly known as Empire Day. Originally marking the birthday of Queen Victoria across all British colonies, the day has since evolved to celebrate Bermuda’s national identity and heritage as the colonies gained independence.
