I am a total luddite. So when ���ϳԹ��� proposed I test the latest artificial-intelligence travel-planning tools, I groaned. When it comes to researching trips, my MO remains steadfastly old-school. I still read books to learn the history of a destination and look to recent magazine and website articles for restaurant and hotel suggestions. I scan local news sites to get a pulse on upcoming events. Mostly, I rely on word-of-mouth recommendations from friends and colleagues in the travel industry.

But around 70 percent of Americans are using AI for travel planning, according to a conducted by the Harris Poll on behalf of the personal-finance app Moneylion. That stat convinced me it was time to give AI a try myself. Wouldn’t it be awesome if it could save me hours of research? What if a quick “conversation” with a chatbot could deliver intel on par with what I get from real people and my reporting? I decided to give it a go with an open mind.

My AI Trip-Planning Test

Maui is my part-time home, and because I know it so well, I chose it as the logical destination for this experiment. I honed in on the island’s west side, curious to see if AI would direct travelers to the island’s main tourism hub, the town of Lahaina, which is still recovering from the decimating wildfires of August 2023.��I haven’t visited this area since then, and while some parts of Lahaina remain closed to the public, several restaurants and businesses have reopened, and the tourism board has encouraged visitors to respectfully return.

I tested four free AI tools in mid-August. All were incredibly easy to use, even for a tech-phobe like myself. For most, I simply typed in my vacation wish list: I wanted to take an adventurous weeklong solo trip to west Maui in October, and I wanted to experience ocean sports, cultural activities, great food, and fun hikes. In seconds I was usually presented with a thorough itinerary. I could continue to ask more refined questions (like intel on the best food trucks) to fine-tune the details.

Some AI tools, however, started by asking me a handful of quiz-like questions, which is helpful if you need a bit of travel inspiration. The more specific ones queried where exactly I wanted to travel, approximate dates, with whom, my budget, my interests (the beach, nightlife, shopping) and my travel style (i.e., On a sliding scale between adrenaline rush and peace and quiet, what is your ideal vacation?). The nitty-gritty questions resulted in a more robust itinerary.

Results for these AI trip-planning tools ranged from the comically wrong to the simply outdated. None completely nailed the trip planning. All included what AI users call hallucinations—false facts that this technology makes up when it doesn’t have an answer. But one did seem to stand out among the rest.

Here are how the ones I tested fared.

A Ranking of the AI Trip-Planning Tools I Tested, from Worst to Best

�� pitched me the most hilarious hallucination. This trip-planning app provided me with four prompts: Inspire me where to go, find cheap flights, show me amazing hotels, and build me an itinerary. I chose the latter for west Maui, and it generated a chummy reply: “Ah, Hawaii! Aloha vibes all the way.” It then spit out a seven-day itinerary for the entire Caribbean. Day one, for example, suggested I visit the Blue Hole, in Belize. That same afternoon, the itinerary had me sunning on Seven Mile Beach, in the Cayman Islands. When I reached out about my experience, a spokesperson replied that current models are prone to hallucinations.

�� asked me several questions up front, in an effort to account for my preferences, but the process never allowed me to specify that I wanted to focus my trip on the west side of Maui. Instead, the tool generated a generic, island-wide itinerary, peppered with Maui’s biggest tourist attractions, such as Haleakala National Park and Wailea Beach. Both are beautiful places, but enjoying them means knowing when to go to avoid the crowds. Day one was entirely devoted to Lahaina, with no mention of the fires. The suggested accommodations were nearly an hour’s drive from the sites the bot wanted me to visit. And when I clicked on specific recommendations, like Lahaina Harbor, I was booted to Viator, an online marketplace for tours and activities, where I was given a selection of island-wide tours to book.

has a dynamic interface that allows users to cross-check suggestions with maps and reviews. I appreciated that. You can view the suggested plan as a printable itinerary or in calendar mode; plus, everything is shareable.

It prompted me with a straightforward: “Where to today?” At first I typed in that I’d like to take a weeklong vacation in Maui, and within seconds I was given a list of attractions, activities, hotels, and restaurants—including the shuttered Lahaina Grill. I mentally docked it a point for that. When I refined my ask to the west side of Maui, I was told: “Unfortunately, due to the heavy damage from the fire in 2023, there are currently no tourist services operating in Lahaina,” which isn’t true. The Royal Lahaina resort is open, as are a handful of businesses, such as Maui Ku’ia Estate Chocolate.

Company spokesperson Michelle Denogean admitted that this particular aspect needed updating. She said that recommendations Mindtrip users receive are informed by a combination of ChatGPT and the company’s proprietary knowledge base, which contains over 6.5 million frequently updated places. “We are continuously adding new ones, updating important information like opening hours, and flagging ones that are permanently or temporarily closed,” Denogean said.

��,��a chatbot from the media brand Matador Network, is available via Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp and has over one million users. It was my favorite. I liked the ease of messaging and that I could ask for more details or tweaks to its initial itinerary. The tool cross-checks its suggestions with content from Matador’s 130,000-plus online articles.

Matador founder Ross Borden told me over a phone call that when the platform launched in spring 2023, it was accurate about 85 percent of the time, meaning the AI would get confused or provide inaccurate information approximately one out of six conversations. GuideGeek has since drastically reduced the occurrence of hallucinations and now boasts 98 percent accuracy. Vigorous human intervention is key to minimizing hallucinations, he told me, and more staff have been hired to follow this issue. The technology has also relied on users flagging misinformation; errors are logged and then addressed before regular updates, he said.

Like other AI tools, GuideGeek produced a broad itinerary of Maui’s greatest hits, including the snorkel spot Turtle Town and the Road to Hana. However, I found that many of its suggestions, particularly tour operators, were spot-on, and I was impressed to see it mentioned newer offerings, like the Mangolani Inn, a recently renovated hotel in the North Shore town of Paia. It also provided booking links to hotels and offered useful tips like, “Heads up bring cash as there isn’t an ATM in this area.”

But when it came to Lahaina, its information wasn’t up-to-date. I queried GuideGeek about cultural activities on the island’s west side, and its two recommendations—the Baldwin Home Museum and Lahaina Heritage Museum—had both burned to the ground in the fires.

When I told Borden about this outdated information, he said it comes down to fielding enough input to create updates. The company receives regular feedback from users, as well as 20 or so tourism boards or destination management companies that pay Matador to create custom versions of GuideGeek’s AI tool.

I shared my suggested GuideGeek itinerary with Lei-Ann Field, a member of the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau, which does not partner with GuideGeek. “Overall the itinerary is pretty good, but there are other nuances that are missing, like considering guided tours for the Road to Hana and necessary online reservations for Haleakala sunrise,” she said.

Will I Be Using AI Going Forward?

My takeaways: I was impressed by how seamless and fast these AI tools were. And it’s key to remember that the more specific questions you ask, the better the responses will be. Most are a good starting point, offering an overview of a destination, and they create a loose plan way faster than I could have using my traditional methods. That plan is a good enough outline to modify and build upon with further research.

My issues: Every AI tool suggested the same attractions in Maui, which contributes to overtourism. The personal touch is noticeably missing; for example, I’d tell a friend who wanted to visit Maui to opt for lunch instead of dinner at Mama’s Fish House, a North Shore spot where it’s nearly impossible to score reservations; to skip the downhill mountain-bike sunrise Haleakala experience (a recipe for injury); to stay overnight in Hana if you really want to make the most of that drive; and to make a point of engaging with locals and being aware of cultural and environmental sensitivities.

I asked Jack Ezon, founder of the travel agency Embark Beyond, if he thought AI would ever be able to deliver the accuracy of a human travel agent. “Even in its infancy, in just a few seconds AI is able to create itineraries that are about 80 percent of what a true expert can create,” he said. “Soon it will be able to suggest the right place for someone to stay and the best experiences they can consider.”

That said, he doesn’t believe there will ever be an equivalent to best the advice of travel agents or friends. He sees AI as a tool agents will use to deliver even more customized advice for clients, though. To wit, Embark Beyond recently launched an AI-powered “clienteling” tool for advisers that examines all experiences, cultural events, and promotions in the marketplace and then suggests clients that would likely be interested and why.

WIll I be using AI to plan future trips? If I’m heading to a popular place like Paris or London or even Moab, Utah, for the first time and don’t want to miss the star attractions, it’d be a something I’d look to initially. But I like to get off the beaten path when I travel, and I’m not convinced AI would get me to that less-trafficked trail or mom-and-pop breakfast spot that’s only advertised via locals in the know. For now, I’ll remain a luddite and stick to good old word-of-mouth travel planning.

Jen Murphy is ���ϳԹ��� Online’s travel advice columnist. She prefers to be off her devices when she adventures and believes a town’s local bartender often has the best recommendations for restaurants.

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The post The American Road Trip Is Back appeared first on ���ϳԹ��� Online.

The longer I sit still, the more I yearn to move. The pull of motion isn’t a calm desire; it’s a nagging that builds up until I imagine that it enters the couch or the bed I’m on. I can’t stand lying there another second. Then I wonder if the bed, itself infected with yearning, has begun to move. It creaks as if it’s about to start. The key moment, the passing between the two states—from motionlessness to motion—will be almost undetectable. I keep watching for it. Is the headboard just slightly farther from the wall than it was a minute ago? We know that all beds secretly want to fly.

I grew up in Ohio, the centrifugal state. For no reason I can explain, Ohio takes people who were born there and spins them around and flings them in every direction. It’s no accident that the first man to fly, the first American to orbit the earth, and the first man to stand on the moon all came from Ohio. I come by my radical, excessive footloose-ness honestly, from my constantly spinning Ohio childhood. As kids, my friends and I roamed the local woods; by the time we were in junior high, we had started to hitchhike. In my late teens, I walked to the Ohio Turnpike, climbed the fence, stuck out my thumb, and ended up in Wyoming or Boston, almost on a whim, depending on whether I chose the westbound or eastbound lanes. Today, as an ex-Ohioan—a flung Ohioan—I am just as restless. My basic idea of how to get somewhere is to jump in the car and drive there, whether it’s to the store or to the edge of the tree line in Canada. I would rather drive for 20 hours than fly in a plane for three. But in the end, I’ll settle for any transport that will carry me.

Sometimes in everyday life I ride a commuter train. The New Jersey Transit, which serves our suburban town, has a lot of double-deckers, and when one of these is in the station in New York, the view from the lower level presents you with the boarding platform at shoe-top height. On the other side of the window, inches away, is the yellow zone at the edge of the platform, with its grid of little round bumps to keep people’s feet from slipping. Black, stenciled letters next to it say Stay Behind Yellow Line. The train doors make their ding noise and slide shut.

Then, with almost imperceptible slowness, the no-skid bump on the other side of the window, the particular one I’m concentrating on, starts to move backward. I switch my gaze to another bump; it’s also moving backward, but slightly faster. I try to hold my focus on individual bumps as they come into view, but then they all accelerate into a yellow blur and lose their physicality like fish in a blender. For a moment the transition is painful. Only after the train has entered the blackness of the tunnel do I relax and enjoy the speed.

I think about another train, one that I rode in Siberia. Some years ago, I was driving across Russia with two Russian guys. Back then the road did not go all the way across but ran out at a remote Siberian railroad-junction village called Chernyshevsk. To this day it is the worst place I have ever been. At Chernyshevsk, travelers had no choice but to put their cars on the train if they wanted to continue across a 560-mile swamp between the village and where the road resumed. Hundreds of cars had been waiting for days for a place on the train. In and near the station there were swarms of sinister, crew-cut Russian guys and begging, heartbreaking, rapacious children, and no working bathrooms. There were no public trash barrels. Garbage covered the ground, and large flies as shiny blue as oil slicks buzzed all over. The month was August. We waited our turn to get on the train inside the piping-hot vehicle with the windows closed to keep out the crew cuts and the kids and the flies. After two days we finally got on, in a dark, closed freight wagon. More hours passed.

I will never forget when that train started to move. It began haltingly, after a few lurches and the clatter of the couplings, one after the next­­­—a sound that diminished down the length of the train. Then it started to roll so slowly that it seemed always on the verge of stopping, but never quite did. I had thought we might remain in Chernyshevsk in remote eastern Siberia forever. I never expected such bliss as that first delicious feeling of motion. The train took a day and a half to cross the swamp, sometimes at what seemed about 15 miles an hour. I didn’t care how slowly it went as long as it kept going.

“So long, suckers!” That is what the object in motion sometimes shouts to the objects at rest. The objects at rest shout something back, but the object in motion can’t hear it above the wind in its ears.

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They may be backpacking’s most notorious do-it-yourself job: the duct-tape shoes Cheryl Strayed��made after watching one hiking boot tumble into oblivion and chucking the other after it (because what good is one boot?).

“I wrapped my socks and sport sandals in duct tape and I had a pretty darn GOOD��pair of boots,” Strayed��told me via email. “It still makes me laugh to remember them.”

The hack was born of catastrophe, as are many awkward and unlovely—but useful and necessary—homemade backcountry items. It’s one reason hikers make their own gear, but it’s not the only one.

Given backpacking’s glaring absence of luxury, one might be forgiven for thinking it’s a cheap hobby. It’s not. Just setting��yourself up��for a comfortable��overnight trip in the woods requires, at minimum, a sleeping bag, sleeping pad, tent,��and backpack. If��you select for average quality, buying these four foundational items could lighten your wallet by at least a thousand dollars. Throw in trekking poles, a stove and cooking equipment, raingear, a tent footprint, stuffsacks, trail runners, a base layer, a top layer, a puffy coat, a water-filtration system, a headlamp, a paracord, and a first aid kit, and there goes another grand.

But spend any time in the woods or in online backpacking forums, and it won’t escape your notice that backpackers��hail��from more than one socioeconomic stratum. Sure, rich folks backpack. (On long-distance trails, we call them “platinum blazers” for the credit cards we presume they use for their Dyneema tents, custom-made quilts, and ultralight backpacks.) But ordinary people find a way to get out there, too. How?

Strayed was taking a great leap of faith into a healing journey. “I had a mission, so I spent all the money I had on gear,” she says.��But if long-distance hiking isn’t a question of life or death for you, or if you don’t want to spend all your cash, you can save��some money with a bit of ingenuity and pluck. Backpacking as a hobby self-selects for hearty souls—people willing to endure its rigor and general unpleasantness hardly lack motivation or self-sufficiency. Making your own equipment��and knowing how to fix��gear that breaks or goes missing while you’re on a hike only��reinforces this self-reliance and builds��confidence.

Triple crowner Joe Brewer (who completed the Appalachian Trail in 2012, the Pacific Crest Trail in 2014, and the Continential Divide Trail in 2015) turned crafty when his first thru-hike was just a twinkle in his eye in 2011. The problem was, he says, “I really just didn’t have the money to buy new gear.” So he summoned the skills he learned in a middle school home-economics class. “I slowly dabbled with making gear, borrowing my mom’s old sewing machine and figuring it out as I went.” Brewer stitched himself a hammock, a tarp, and an underquilt using synthetic fabric, 900-fill-power down, and cord and cord locks that he purchased from online DIY suppliers such as ,��, and . All three items lasted him from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to Mount Katahdin, Maine. He had had no idea whether his homemade gear would work, “and then I’m hanging in a tree and I’m not falling out,” he recalls.��Brewer’s YouTube channel, , now��brims with more how-to videos.

Even hikers who don’t have a sewing machine or the desire to build major items themselves can save money and dial in their kit to more precisely match their needs.

While I was hiking part of the AT in 2016, by far the most common handcrafted item I encountered was an alcohol stove. You can basically make this tool��,��and��at under two ounces, it weighs less than anything commercial. By cutting the bottom 1.5 inches off two soda cans, punching burner holes in one of them,��sliding the one with burner holes into the other one, pouring denatured alcohol into the resulting vessel, and lighting the alcohol, you have a basic stove.��Be mindful of the open flame.

Another common DIY item is a protective ground cover. Tent manufacturers sell footprints that match the dimensions of their shelters, but these are often��heavy and expensive (for example, the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL1 footprint weighs four ounces and costs $60). Instead, I bought a length of Tyvek, a high-density thermoplastic material��used in everything from house insulation to protective suits, which is waterproof and puncture resistant, from , the first outfitter that northbound hikers encounter on the AT, at buck-fifty a foot. (A note about Tyvek: it’s extremely noisy, especially when new, though it softens over time and use, a process you can speed along by running it through the washer without soap and letting it air-dry.) Amazon and eBay carry various sizes as well. Even lighter—and, accordingly, flimsier—is Duck or Frost King window shrink film.

Some hikers punch grommets into their homemade groundsheets, which snugs��them to their tents—especially useful on rainy nights—but I simply laid mine out and pitched my tent on top of it. A good rule of thumb is to cut the sheet a quarter of an inch smaller than the tent’s actual floor; if it extends beyond the tent’s dimensions, it will sluice rainwater right between itself and your tent floor.

A meal insulator, used for keeping food warm,��is a homespun innovation you can make. Stacia Bennett, a nurse in Asheville, North Carolina, who has backpacked more than 1,400 miles of the AT, made hers out of a cut-up car sunshade. She built it to fit around the quart-size��zipper bags she used to��rehydrate and heat��her homemade��meals. To create this��accessible DIY item, trace around your Ziploc with a Sharpie (leaving a little extra room for the bag’s eventual expansion), fold the car shade over to double the tracing, then cut the shape out, making the end of one side slightly longer��so you have a flap to fold over. Stuff your Ziploc with some balled-up paper to simulate supper, wrap the cut-out car shade around it, and duct-tape the seams. You can affix some Velcro to hold the flap closed if you want something really fancy. “It worked absolutely wonderful,” Bennett says.

By far my personal favorite hack is the hands-free umbrella rig.��Carrying an umbrella on a long-distance hike might seem silly, but everyone I met on my trek who had one counted it among their favorite items. The only drawback is that��you have to hold it, which means stowing a trekking pole and hiking with just one, and if you’re used to hiking with two, that’s a drag. One day, exasperated and wanting to attempt a rock scramble in a drizzle, I lashed the umbrella handle to my backpack’s chest strap with a bandana. The strap and handle made a cross, and I wrapped the bandana diagonally in all four directions, tied a crude knot, and tugged it tight. Presto, I was dry and using both trekking poles.

Families face special challenges in the backcountry, according to��freelance writer and mom Heather Balogh Rochfort. “Where we end up rigging the most gear is with our daughter, who’s two,” she says, adding that although outdoor equipment does exist for kids, “it’s not as technical.”��She and her husband have a child carrier, but they customize it by draping it with “one of those superthin swaddles that every mother has,” since the carrier does not offer 360-degree sun protection. Non-kid-related hacks that Balogh Rochfort uses include��taking a foil emergency blanket into her sleeping bag to add ten degrees of warmth and reimagining first aid applications for tampons, such as plugging bloody noses and bandaging cuts.

Bennett, the nurse, who is also wilderness first aid certified, adds that dozens of items not designed for medical care can nevertheless be put to that use. “A trekking pole can splint a leg, a bandana can stabilize any joint, and you can use a shirt to create a sling,” she says.

The world of DIY options is��great because it saves money and yields more precisely customized items, such as a sleeping bag that’s actually long or short enough for you or��a rain skirt that has pockets. More than that, it strengthens the DIYer. Bennett credits her time on the trail—including having to MacGyver her way out of calamities such as a tear in a puffy coat she patched up with Second Skin��(usually used for blisters) and a raccoon-chewed hole in her pack sewed up with dental floss—with giving her the confidence to fix her car once she got home. She��had a busted radiator but couldn’t afford a car repair, “so I J-B Welded it back together,” she says, referring to the epoxy.

Strayed echoes��the sentiment: “The nature of a long-distance hike requires you to be innovative and to have a DIY spirit. You have to be able to respond to situations as they arise and all you have is what you have on your back, which is rather wonderful.”

The post No One Knows How to DIY Quite Like a Thru-Hiker appeared first on ���ϳԹ��� Online.

When most people think of travel expenses, they imagine flights and hotels. But in reality, silly fees and extra charges on the ground can quickly add up to expenses in the triple digits. The good news is that most of these are avoidable with careful planning and a bit of bargaining, so��instead of wasting money on parking or ATM transactions, you can use your cash for an epic day of SCUBA diving or a night of unlimited Mai Tais.��

Budgeting��

The easiest way to wreck your travel budget? Not having one in the first place. Besides paying taxes and taking out the trash, budgeting is easily one of the most despised parts of everyday life—hence why it’s the last thing most people want to do when planning a vacation. For most people, a budget tells you what you can’t spend, but I like to look at it as a roadmap for telling you all the fun things you can do with your cash.��

Setting a travel budget is the best way to avoid overspending and set priorities on your holiday. For example, it’ll stop you from running up the bill at a fancy restaurant when that money is allocated for a day snorkeling instead. Plus, overspending typically leads to credit card debt, attached to interest, which ultimately means you end up spending even more.��

Remedy:��As far ahead as you can, do some research into how much a day’s worth of basic expenses (food, drinks, lodging, transportation) will be in your destination. Multiply that number by the number of days of your vacation, and add about 20 to 30 percent to pad for unexpected expenses, like tips or that souvenir you just can’t pass up. Set the total (or as much of the total as you can, if you’re saving up) aside in a separate high-yield savings account, such as , so you won’t be tempted to blow in in the meantime. You can even pre-pay your credit card to set a firm amount and track how close you are to hitting your limit. Before you go, download an app like , so you’ll be able to monitor your spending in real-time and see how it’s tracking against your daily budget goals. If you go over budget, rather than induce spending-stress, the app will suggest costs you can cut back on.

Parking

If you live in a city like Los Angeles, like I do, you only have a few ways to get to the airport: using a ride-share, an airport shuttle, or driving yourself. If your flight gets in at odd hours or you don’t want to deal with an Uber driver, you’ll probably choose the last option, which can end up eating up a sizable portion of your travel budget. Parking fees range anywhere from $9 to more than $25 per day at most major airports. Multiply that by a long weekend, and you’re easily looking at $100.��

Remedy: One of my favorite sites is where you can find rates as low as $5.95 a day at a variety of airports. I always make a reservation at least a week prior to my departure date to score major deals. Also, if you belong to AAA or other membership organizations, such as your college alumni program, always check to see if they offer parking discounts—some can go as high as 30 percent, which quickly adds up if you’re gone a week.

Baggage Fees

If there’s one thing I hate to spend money on it, it’s baggage fees. They are almost inescapable these days (unless you’re traveling overseas, when airlines typically allow��for one checked bag), and usually cost $25��or more per bag per person. If you’re traveling with a family, that comes out to huge expense before you’ve even left the airport.��

Remedy: One of the easiest (and nowadays, only) ways to avoid baggage fees is to use an airline credit card when booking your plane ticket. I have the , which partners with American Airlines and other associated carriers, and gets me up to four bags free with four passengers. My husband and I routinely save $100 roundtrip just from putting our flight on plastic. Most major airlines have this deal, and sites like sum them up nicely.

Foreign ATM and Transaction Fees

These charges are like gremlins that sneak up on you after your trip and haunt you long after you’ve returned. They can range from brand to brand, but most credit and debit card companies charge around three percent for every meal, drink, and trinket purchased abroad.��

Why not just use cash instead? Your bank will get you there, too. Domestically, the majority of banks will charge a withdrawal fee for ATMs from other companies. Internationally, they’ll charge that (usually between $2.50 to $5), a foreign exchange fee, on top of an unfavorable exchange rate. Plus you’ll probably get dinged��by the ATM you’re withdrawing from. Do that enough, and you’ll wind up paying for your vacation weeks after you’ve returned.��

Remedy: There are plenty of credit cards that charge nothing for foreign transactions, so make sure you have one in your wallet before setting foot on international soil. A few good ones: , , and . Always make sure you double check with your credit card company before you leave the country so you know what charges you’re in for and can choose them wisely. Even so, it’s always good to have some cash when you travel, so choose a bank like or Charles Schwab which are truly free, with zero ATM or foreign transaction fees (Schwab will even reimburse you for withdrawal charges from other ATMs). If you’re determined to use your regular bank, you can minimize costs by taking out a lot of cash at once—just be careful to stash it in different places in case of theft or loss. Or, if you’re planning to bring money to exchange, opt to change enough to get you by at airport kiosks, which typically give a less favorable rate, and leave the rest for small, local banks.��

Rental Car��

Rental companies will charge a premium for the cars best suited for your destination. For example, driving a Jeep around Oahu could cost up to $90 per day. That’s not including insurance pushed by rental agents that can run as high as $50 a day, a price they can get away with because most people don’t know there are other insurance options available.��

Remedy: Despite companies’ dire warnings of terrible crashes and freak hail storms, most experts recommend against their insurance.��There are , like going through your own auto insurance and most major credit cards, or booking through an agency like , which usually offers coverage for as little as $10 a day. Also keep in mind that rental prices change frequently: On a recent trip to Maui, I saved over $150 by continuing to scan prices up to a week before the trip.��

Lodging

Comparing prices on third-party sites like Kayak, Priceline, and Expedia can sometimes be counterproductive—budget hotels that offer similar amenities in the same neighborhoods are often priced the same, despite having different standards.��

Remedy: Most people assume the price posted on a hotel’s website is non-negotiable, but if you see a lower price on a third-party site like Expedia, call the front desk and ask for a discount if you book through them. Most hotels would rather have you book directly through them versus an online site, and will give you an even better rate.

The post How to Save Money While You Travel appeared first on ���ϳԹ��� Online.

For me, long days and warm temperatures make summers synonymous with weekends on the road. My wife Sarah and I spend so much time living out of our suitcases that we’ve gotten packing down to a science: last year, we fit everything we needed for two weeks in Belgium into a single carry-on. To keep our packing routine quick and our luggage light, we’ve developed a travel wardrobe of versatile, go-to garb that we can toss into our bags and head out the door. These functional, fashionable pieces keep us covered whether we’re strolling a European city or paddling Colorado whitewater. Here are our must-have staples for summer getaways.

Base Layer

His: Kit and Ace City Tech Short Men’s Sleeve Shirt ($98)

I’ve worn just about everywhere, from a nice dinner in New York City to a day of paddling on Arkansas’ Lake Ouachita. It dresses up nicely, and stays plenty cool and comfortable thanks to a cotton-polyester blend and supple Micro Pique Stretch fabric, whether you’re belly up at a bar or biking around the city. It also comes with hidden reflective hits under the cuff, great for safely navigating new roads at night.

His: Lululemon Commission Short Chino Slim ($88)

I adore for their roomy��design, which incorporates four-way stretch into a gusseted crotch—a godsend if you spend a lot of time crammed into an airplane seat. Better yet, they’re breathable enough to wear straight off the plane and onto the trails, while the slim cut and classy styling keep me from looking like a tourist at après-hike margaritas.

��

Hers: Patagonia Women’s Fleetwith Romper ($119)

This is ����������’s go-to travel outfit for it’s recycled polyester-spandex blend that resists wrinkles, dries quickly, and has loads of stretch. Plus, it’s treated with Durable Water Repellent (DWR), for some built-in insurance if you find yourself riding through the streets of Crested Butte when a late afternoon monsoon hits. It’s also trendy enough for a hip bar and a favorite of female ���ϳԹ��� staffers.

Shoes

His: Chaco Men’s Davis Lace ($90)

A canvas upper keeps airy enough for warm weather, but it’s the Luvseat footbed that makes them a must-pack item. Supremely comfortable and durable, it cushions my foot for a long day of walking better than similar styles or flimsy flip flops. They also dress up easily for a bar hop or nice restaurant, cutting your shoe quota in half.

Hers: Sorel Women’s Ella Slip On Shoe ($90)

Slip-ons make airport security lines a breeze, and because these incorporate features of hardier footwear from the longtime Canadian bootmaker Sorel, you can and onto the streets. A super soft yet sturdy EVA footbed and molded rubber sole make for a supremely cushy day of roaming foreign cities, while a waterproof leather upper keeps the elements at bay.

Sunglasses

His: Zeal Boone Sunglasses ($149)

I’ve tested a lot of shades throughout the years, and these might be . They’re particularly great for travel—weighing in at less than an ounce, you’ll barely notice them on your face or in your suitcase. The Z-Resin Bioplastic frame is injected with a material called Proflex, which makes these the most bendable I’ve used, able to withstand being tossed haphazardly into my backpack.

Hers:��Smith Lowdown 2 ($169)

Not only does Sarah love for their style, but because they’re perfect for one of her favorite summer activities: fly fishing. The Chroma-pop lens technology increases clarity and improves color, while anti-reflective and hydrophobic lens coatings keep her vision sharp whether she’s in, on, or next to the water.

Jacket

His:��Columbia��Outdry EX Reversible Jacket ($150)

The Outdry series is for both waterproof and breathability, but the styling leans toward technical. This reversible option is more practical for vacations that blend urban and backcountry adventures, transforming from a fully waterproof shell to a more stylish (but still water resistant) outer layer with a quick turn inside out.��

Hers:��REI Co-Op Skyline Ridge Parka ($117)

����������’s features a cinched waist and slim fit that resembles more of a traditional trench coat, without skimping on technical features. A waterproof, breathable, laminate shell with a wind rating for gusts up to 60 miles per hour will stand up to an afternoon hike, while the classic look makes it ready for a night on the town.

Swimsuit

His: Patagonia Baggies ($55)

You can get away with packing swim trunks as your only pair of shorts for your entire holiday thanks to . The 100-percent recycled, quick-drying nylon construction and DWR finish ensures that they perform as well on land as they do in water without adding weight to your bag. Plus, they’re practically indestructible: mine have been a suitcase staple for almost a decade.

Hers: Prana Lahari Halter Bikini Top ($38) and��Innix Moderate Coverage Bikini Bottom ($33)

Water is a common element in our summer travel, and transfers easily from lounging on the beach to riding waves. The stylish cut and look fashionable and won’t slip during more active pursuits.

The post Our Favorite Summer Travel Clothing appeared first on ���ϳԹ��� Online.

You don’t have to empty your savings account to pull off a top-notch excursion. Pick the right destination, score a cheap flight, and the rest is easy. We rounded up some of our favorite low-cost places to go right now��and have thrown��in a few tips to save you some bucks while you’re there.

Rossland, British Columbia

Play: Many visitors come to Rossland in the winter to ski Red Mountain. But the place is dreamy in the summer, too, with��, miles of hiking trails, rainbow trout and walleye fishing on the Columbia River, and even underground��.

Stay: Located walking distance from��base of the mountain is��the new��, which��opened in December��and has a shared kitchen, secure��storage for your bike, and basic rooms with bunks starting as low as $30 a night.��

Save: From U.S. destinations, it’s cheaper to fly to Spokane, Washington, than directly into B.C. In Spokane, rent a car to drive across the international border��and up to Rossland (a two-and-a-half-hour drive). Book an with Red Mountain for guided mountain biking or river rafting��and you’ll get��20 percent off your lodging at the hostel or with other participating accommodations.

Fort Collins, Colorado

Play: Sixty-five miles north of Denver, Fort Collins is a college town with a serious microbrew habit. You’ll find more than 20 breweries in the area. Tour them yourself or get a guided escort by�� or��. Run or cycle��the 6.8-mile Foothills Trail across the city or take a dip in or�� the Cache la Poudre River.

Stay: The hip, centrally located�� opened in 2017, and room prices are stellar for how nice the place is—you can score accommodation��for under $200 that��comes with a record player (old LPs are in the lobby��and can be checked out for the night). Don’t miss Emporium Kitchen, an on-site��wine bar slash coffee shop.

Save: To get around, take advantage of the city’s��, which’ll run you��$1 for 15 minutes. Old Town Yoga leads a����in September. And if you qualify for a local library card, you can score�� to Fort Collins museums, coffee shops, and more.

Valle de Guadalupe, Baja

Play: Dubbed the Napa of Mexico but way cheaper than Napa itself, Valle��de Guadalupe, two hours south of San Diego, has some 150 wineries and produces over 70 percent of Mexico’s wine. The area hosts a�� in October, if you’d rather visit in the fall. Ride horses through a vineyard at��, or there’s surfing on the coast, near Ensenada, less than an hour away.

Stay: At��, you’ll sleep in a bubble-shaped tent with unfiltered views of the night sky, surrounded by vineyards. Rates start at $145 per night.

Save:�� arranges travel packages from the U.S.��to Baja California Norte that include transportation across the border and insider deals at top wineries.

Wilmington, North Carolina

Play: There’s plenty to do outside in the seaside town of Wilmington. Wrightsville Beach is home to the�� surf contest, held in August, and Carolina Beach hosts shorefront��yoga and surf lessons at . Watch for�� on Kure Beach or�� to sunken Civil War ships.

Stay:�� opened in June in the historic downtown, and rooms, which start at $129, come stocked with yoga mats, foam rollers, and hand weights. The hotel’s tiny and tasty restaurant, the��, is worth a stop for cocktails and gin-soaked olives.

Save: Downtown’s free Sundown Concerts are held on Friday nights through the summer,��plus there are��Thursday-night summer fireworks and concerts (also free) on the Carolina Beach Boardwalk.

San Luis Obispo, California

Play: Mountain-bike, paddleboard, or explore 80 miles of beaches in the laid-back coastal region of San Luis Obispo County, right on Highway 1 between Los Angeles and San Francisco. The town’s��popular Thursday-night farmers’ market is a good spot to pick up tamales, ice cream, and fresh produce grown nearby.

Stay: The�� has standard and recently renovated motel rooms from��just $75 a night. Or stay at (from $111), and you can book wine tours through the hotel or score discounted tickets to��, a walk-through art installation of thousands of solar-powered lights in nearby Paso Robles.

Save: Watch����or����for free, or take a tour of the iconic��—tickets start��at $25. And likely you’ve noticed that��the wine industry is booming in this region. You can partake in a tasting for a little as $5.

Sullivan Catskills, New York

Play: Less than two hours from New York City, the Sullivan Catskills offer��easy access to fly-fishing and rafting on the Delaware River, biking along a growing rail-to-trail network, and hiking to one of the area’s many historic��. The�� is where the original 1969 Woodstock festival took place, and this year, the region is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a packed lineup of music and arts events.

Stay: (from $169) operates four eclectic hotel properties and several restaurants, including the Cabin at Hessinger-Lare, a classic log cabin with a popular Wednesday wing night. Book the�� package��at any of its��lodges, and you’ll get tickets to visit Bethel Woods and the local Catskill Distilling Company.

Save: When you book the�� at the 14-room�� inn, you’ll score a guided��outing on the Willowemoc River and rental gear. Or pitch a tent at one of several campgrounds instead to save on lodging fees; among others, the region is home to , , and��.

New Orleans

Note: New Orleans has been dealing with flooding after��Hurricane Barry made landfall in Louisiana on July 13. If you’re making plans to visit the area, be sure to check what’s open and available ahead of time.����

Play: A lot of the sights in New Orleans—wandering around the French Quarter, checking out art and live music in the Warehouse District—don’t cost a penny. The vintage streetcar down Charles Avenue is just $1.25.�� offers a number of free-of-charge group runs, yoga classes, and dance workouts.

Stay:�� (from $77) has packages billed as “adult summer camp,” which include crafting with visiting artists, cooking with award-winning chefs, and riding around the city��on a guided culinary bike tour. If you want something bigger than a hotel room—but not pricier—the newly opened�� in the Warehouse District has sleekly designed apartments starting at $149 per night.

Save: In August, hotel rates are typically the lowest they will be all year, making it a great (albeit, hot) time to visit. To cool off, the�� in Bywater has a pool (plus a bar and restaurant) for an admission fee of just $15. Book a��, with a choice of over 100 different hotels, and you’ll save on both the room and the gator spotting.

The post Affordable ���ϳԹ��� Trips in North America appeared first on ���ϳԹ��� Online.

For some of us, living a life of adventure feels like an impossible dream. That’s part of what makes Shane Dillon Gidcumb’s story so special. Shane, 38, a former winery executive and author of����book series, decided one day to radically change his life, leave his corporate office, and head out on an adventure: biking across the United States��and Europe. With a salary of $50,000 that he pieces together by��teaching and writing, Shane’s been able to experience the world and live out his dreams, one adventure at a time.

OUTSIDE: What made you decide to quit your job and ride across the United States��and Europe?
Shane Dillon Gidcumb: I worked for 11 years in the wine industry in Sonoma County, California. I started as an intern and left 11 years later as the vice president of the winery. Working in the wine industry was fun, but I felt like there was something missing in my life. By the end, I didn’t feel like I was learning anymore. It wasn’t that I was unhappy. I just felt like my days had turned into a monotonous routine with money being the only goal. One day��it occurred to me that I could go on doing this for the next 40 years. If I lived life this way, those 40 years could basically be condensed into a single week—repeated again and again. I knew I had to find a way to start learning and adventuring again.

How did you afford to do this, and what advice would you give to others who want to take that leap?
The theory of slow travel is that the slower you travel, the cheaper it becomes. Based on this idea, walking is the cheapest way to get around, and bicycling is a close second. Your biggest expense is food, which is essentially fuel. It’s amazing how your body becomes an efficient machine after a few weeks of bicycling eight hours a day.

During my bike��journeys on Disco��(yes, Disco is the name of my bike—you’d��be surprised by the things you think up while cycling eight hours a day for months),��I spent about $15 per day on food. In the beginning, I ate mainly at restaurants, and then I figured out it was cheaper and healthier to buy food from grocery stores to cook on my camp stove. For lodging, I tried to sleep in my tent as many nights as possible. I found most people would let me sleep in their backyards, and some even invited me into their homes for dinner and a shower. Other alternatives I used closer to cities were apps like����and . Sometimes, if I was desperate, I would just pitch my tent behind a church at sunset and make sure to be on the road by sunrise. There are a lot of free options to find a place to sleep at night.

The advice I would give to others is to just do it. I know it sounds crazy. In hindsight, I would make the same decision every time. Bicycle touring is a life-changing experience—essentially a crash course in minimalism.

What sort of gear do you have, and how much did you spend?
Before I left on my trip across the U.S., I had to buy all new gear. I made the mistake of buying cheap gear and having to upgrade later to a more durable setup. After cycling for a month, I was forced to replace my panniers, front handlebar bag, tent, and sleeping pad. These items are essential and can really improve the quality of life on the road. If at all possible, I recommend buying high-quality gear that will last. It will not only make your life easier, but it will also save you money in the long run.

Here’s my list of essential gear:

• Bike:
• Rear panniers:
• Front handlebar bag:
• Bivy��sack/tent:
• Sleeping bag:
• Sleeping pad:
• Socks:
• Chamois cream:
• Sunblock:
• Camera: An old Olympus digital camera converted to infrared

How do you make money now?
While cycling across the U.S., I started sending my résumé to teaching positions abroad. To my surprise, I landed a job in the south of Spain in a fishing village on the Mediterranean Sea. That was two years ago, and I have been living in Spain ever since. I work part-time at a grade school teaching English. The job provides a modest salary, a work visa, health insurance, and an abundance of free time. The money I make teaching is sufficient enough to get me through the school year. Then, in the summer, I dip into my investment account to fund my adventures. I am also a writer, and the money I make from my books definitely helps out.

What does your monthly budget look like?
Living in Spain, I am able to maximize the dollars I earned and saved in the U.S. My monthly budget is $1,200. Of that, I plan on spending half for fixed expenses, while the other $600 goes to my daily expenses. My daily budget is $20 per day, which is more than enough to live comfortably in Spain. On top of that, I set aside an additional $5,000 each year for travel. Currently, I live in Malaga, an ancient city on the Mediterranean.

Have you gleaned any money-saving tips over the years?
My creativity is a major form of my entertainment, and it actually pays for itself. One thing you learn about yourself while living on the road is how free time feeds your creativity. I’ve found that the more free time I have, the more productive I am from a creative standpoint. I don’t watch TV anymore, and my internet time is limited. Now all of my free time is devoted to my passions, which just so happen to be free. I am currently writing a personal finance book series for young adults��in addition to my photography. Physical fitness is important to me, and there are many low-cost options available, no matter where you live.

A few other tips? Each Sunday, I make two big pots of soup. I freeze individual servings and enjoy them throughout the week. A serving of soup costs less than $2. This is a great way to save money. When I go out for tapas with friends, I don’t feel bad about dining out.

I bike or walk everywhere I go in the city, which means I have nearly eliminated my transportation expenses. I was spending at least $400 a month on transportation in the states. Now I spend less than $10 a month. Essentially, I have eliminated one of my biggest expenses by living in Europe.

Finally, Google has an awesome cellphone plan called that works in more than 170 countries. This allows me to travel the world without worrying about expensive international rates. Monthly, I spend about $50 per month using this plan.

Where is your next adventure?
This summer, I’ve��decided to give Disco��some time off.��I’m��planning on doing two long hikes. First, I’m going to hike the Camino de Santiago in Spain. It’s about a 500-mile hike and will take about five weeks to complete. The second big hike I’m planning is a coast-to-coast trail across Ireland. It’s a little shorter and should take anywhere from three to four weeks to complete. One thing I have learned through my travels is that the journey inward is longer than journey outward. Last summer, I got in the habit of cycling during the day and working on my books at night. As there are more daylight hours than I can cycle or hike, I figured I would use my free time to write. During the day, I’m able to listen to podcasts to research for my book while pedaling. I plan on applying this same concept while hiking in Spain and Ireland.

The post Earning $50K While Biking Across the U.S. and Europe appeared first on ���ϳԹ��� Online.

Starting on June 17, Brazil will join the ranks of countries that don’t require a tourist visa from Americans. This will save travelers from having to track down one of only ten Brazilian consulates in the U.S. and pay the��$40 fee (which we recommend putting toward post-swim caipirinhas, the country’s tart national cocktail).

The change in policy has been a long time coming. For the past several years, Brazil has experimented with streamlining entry requirements for citizens of the U.S., Canada, Australia, and Japan, four countries deemed a significant source of tourism revenue.

Brazil’s Ministry of Tourism��first tested the waters with visa waivers during the 2016 Rio Games. Then in January 2018, it introduced an electronic visa program for the four countries mentioned above and slashed the fee to a quarter of its original cost, from $160 to $40. The move paid off, helping contribute to a�� in travelers compared to 2017. Now��you’ll be able to enter and stay for up to 90 days—with the possibility to extend to 180 days total—without having to do any paperwork.

“This is one of the most important achievements of the Brazilian tourism industry in the last 15 years,” said Marcelo Alvaro Antônio, the country’s minister of tourism, in a��. “We are confident that it will be extremely beneficial to the country.”

Meanwhile, if you’re looking for this kind of hassle-free international adventure, you’re not limited to Brazil. Americans have long been able to visit our closest allies, like Canada and the European Union, with only a valid passport, and globally there’s a fairly even split between nations that require visas��and ones that don’t. Here are six��other outdoor meccas for Americans that don’t require a visa in advance. ��

Thailand

Want to deep-water solo this Southeast Asian nation’s��? You’re in luck. You can vacation in Thailand for up to 30 days without a visa—plenty of time to climb in the famed Railay Beach area, then hightail it to the country’s southern islands to dive world-class coral gardens among angelfish, manta rays, and whale sharks. Just ensure you have a passport that’s valid for at least six months past your date of entry, as recommended by the U.S. State Department. ��

Guatemala

While this is not the only Central American country that lets you duck the red tape—the whole region is pretty much fair game—it’s a rising��hub for mountain biking and a longtime surf mecca. As long as you have a return ticket booked, you’re free to ride its jungle singletrack and catch consistent surf at at El Paredón for up to 90 days.

New Zealand

It may take 12 hours or more on a plane to get there, but trust us—it’s worth it. New Zealand’s��jaw-dropping scenery provides an epic backdrop for hiking, biking, and backpacking, and from the��famous Milford Track in the South Island’s Fiordland National Park to the rugged Tongariro Alpine Crossing up north, adventuring in Kiwi country is unlike anywhere else. And you’ll have 90 days to play as long as your passport is valid for three months after your date of departure.

Morocco

This North African nation is famous for its Atlantic coast, which is lined with year-round surf spots in places like Taghazout and Imsouane. Morocco has great climbing, too. Head inland to the��, a 1,300-foot-tall rift between the High Atlas Mountains and the Sahara, to send��. There’s a 90-day limit on your stay, and you’ll need a passport that’s valid for six months and has one empty page.

Japan

If you get depressed scrolling through the proliferation of posts on Instagram every winter, know that a quick trip to Hokkaido is actually pretty easy—excluding the international flight. Lift tickets often cost less than elsewhere in the world, too. Once you’re there, you can stay for three months sans visa. Just make sure there’s at least one blank page in your passport for the entry stamp before packing your bags.

Tahiti

Voyaging to French Polynesia may seem like a pipe dream, but it’s relatively easy to get there these days. Not only is there the standard 90 days of visa-free travel, but with the introduction of a new direct route to Tahiti from San Francisco, courtesy of the budget airline�� (from $329 one-way), a direct last-minute trip is within the realm of possibility.

The post 6 Places Besides Brazil You Can Visit Without a Visa appeared first on ���ϳԹ��� Online.

I’ve traveled the world, usually without a partner. And I’ve found that this style of travel, more than any other, fosters an appreciation for place and community. Here are a few tips I’ve learned over the years to make the most of going it alone.����

Stay Social

Locals and fellow travelers can be invaluable founts of knowledge. One of the best ways to connect with them is through single-friendly, social accommodation. Check out homestays for a true residential experience (and try to pick up��some of the local language so that you can engage with your host). Hostels and guesthouses, where you’ll mingle with other like-minded travelers, are also great options and can be easier to coordinate.

If you’re out in a café, or maybe waiting for a bus, avoid fixing your gaze on your phone or book, as you may miss out on important interactions that could make your trip a whole lot more interesting.

Be Prepared

When you travel solo, you need to become self-reliant, so get yourself organized well in advance with money, visas, and vaccinations, as well as travel insurance for any unfortunate eventualities. And book at least one or two nights’ accommodation for when you arrive at your destination, so you can land firmly on your solo-traveling feet.

Stay Safe

Get clued up about your destination with advice from other solo female travelers on�� or other forums, as well as female-specific safety tips on��. Dressing appropriately to respect��local customs is important in some countries to avoid offending anyone or drawing attention to yourself, so check your guidebook for details.

Leave a copy of your itinerary and travel documents with a friend or family member, and register your trip with the�� if you’re in the U.S.,�� in Australia, or the equivalent in your own country. Arrange to check in with a family member or friend on a regular basis, so that one person back home is always aware of your location.

Pack Light

This has never come naturally to me, but I do admit it makes sense, so I’ve refined my techniques over the years. To lighten your load, don’t pack heavy items, wear layers and convertible clothes, and leave one-time��outfits at home. You’ll enjoy��the benefits when your luggage doesn’t weigh as much and��you’re jumping on and off airport buses or climbing stairs in accommodation where there’s no elevator (in Europe especially, where elevators are hard to come by). I also pack a comfy change of clothes for long-haul flights and wear my heaviest shoes on the plane to save baggage weight.

Don’t Overschedule

Conducting a bit of advance research on stuff you’d like to do and see at your destination will mean you won’t miss out on the important bits. However, don’t book out every minute of every day. You want to allow room for spontaneous outings, plus you won’t exhaust yourself by trying to do everything.

The post The 5 Golden Rules of Traveling Alone appeared first on ���ϳԹ��� Online.