Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Smart News / Smart News Travel

Not for the faint of heart, these destinations are meant to entice thrill-seeking tourists.

Chinese Province Closes All of Its Glass Bridges Amid Safety Concerns

Heart-stopping glass structures have become a craze in China, but some have been linked to injuries and fatalities

This aerial picture shows Shuri Castle after a fire ripped through the historic site in Naha, Japan's southern Okinawa prefecture, on October 31

Fire Ravages Japanese Heritage Site Shuri Castle

The castle, first built more than 500 years ago, was seen as a symbol of the dynamic Ryukyu Kingdom

Officials hope to complete work on the new museum by the Jefferson Memorial's 80th anniversary in 2023

Trending Today

Philanthropist Donates $10 Million to Jefferson Memorial Museum

David Rubenstein’s donation will fund the creation of a new education center at the D.C. monument

Nirmal Purja smashed the speed record for summiting the world's 14 highest peaks, racing up all "8000ers" in just six months and six days

Trending Today

Nepalese Mountaineer Smashes Speed Record for Climbing World’s 14 Tallest Peaks

Former special forces soldier Nirmal Purja summited Everest, K2 and a dozen other 8,000-meter peaks in just six months

The creepiest doll in all the land

A Minnesota Museum’s Creepy Doll Contest Is Here to Haunt Your Dreams

“The doll I disdain handling is the one with human hair,” says curator Dan Nowakowski

A rendering of Kusama's design.

Artist Yayoi Kusama Is Creating a Whimsical Balloon for Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

The artist’s studio collaborated with ‘balloon specialists’ to create the inflatable artwork

J.D. Salinger (center left with his hand on his chin) on the deck of the M.S. Kungsholm, 1941

Get a Rare Peek Into the Life of Reclusive Writer J.D. Salinger

A new exhibition at the New York Public Library includes never-before-seen photographs, letters and manuscripts

For the first time in some 450 years, Nelli’s "Last Supper" is finally on public view

Renaissance Nun’s ‘Last Supper’ Painting Makes Public Debut After 450 Years in Hiding

The 21-foot canvas, created by self-taught artist and nun Plautilla Nelli, is now on view in Florence

An employee of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant walks in the control room of the destroyed 4th block of the plant on February 24, 2011, ahead of the 25th anniversary of the meltdown of reactor number four.

Trending Today

You Can Now Visit Chernobyl’s Control Room, if You’re Quick About It

Visitors will have five minutes to look around the contaminated spot where the worst nuclear disaster in history took place

A panoramic view of Jerusalem with the Dome of the Rock at the center

The World’s First Travel Guide Is Set to Go on View in London

The 1486 text features panoramic illustrations of Jerusalem, Venice and other sites across the Mediterranean region

This interactive map predicts fall foliage changes across the U.S.

This Interactive Map Shows Fall Foliage Predictions Across the U.S.

The tool will help cross-country travelers in search of colorful leaves

Trending Today

D.C.’s Newseum Is Closing Its Doors at the End of the Year

The museum dedicated to the history of journalism and the First Amendment has struggled financially since opening 11 years ago

Researchers extracted DNA from more than 400 lions

Zambia’s Lions Roam Areas Previously Believed to Be Uninhabitable

A select group of migrating big cats ensures high levels of genetic diversity throughout the country’s lion population

Virtual Travel

Listen to the Stories of Alabama’s Civil Rights Sites

A new interactive project seeks to preserve oral testimonies connected to 20 historic locations

Trending Today

The “Versailles of Dresden” Has Been Rebuilt, 74 Years After World War II

The opulent royal apartments at the Residential Palace were Augustus the Strong’s attempt to project and prolong his power

Trending Today

Bankruptcy of U.K.’s Largest Travel Operator Strands Thousands of Vacationers

The U.K. government is undertaking the largest repatriation effort since WWII to bring home 150,000 Thomas Cook customers

Tawanda Kanhema, as pictured in 2018 at Zimbabwe's Victoria Falls

Meet the Photographer Single-Handedly Putting Zimbabwe on Google Street View

Thanks to Tawanda Kanhema, you can now take a virtual tour of Victoria Falls, the Great Zimbabwe National Monument and other attractions

The museum will be housed in a former brothel known as the Shasta Room

Deadwood Is Getting a Brothel Museum

A non-profit is telling the local history of prostitution in the Wild West town, popularized by the HBO show of the same name

Kurt Vonnegut in 1988

A New Kurt Vonnegut Museum Is Opening in His Hometown

The Indianapolis museum will feature a re-creation of the author’s writing studio and a “freedom of expression exhibition,” among other attractions

The Guggenheim Museum's Hilma af Klint exhibition was a surprise hit, eventually becoming the Manhattan institution's most-visited show of all time

Study Shows U.S. Museums Still Lag When It Comes to Acquiring Works by Women Artists

Between 2008 and 2018, artwork by women represented just 11 percent of acquisitions and 14 percent of exhibitions at 26 major museums

Page 42 of 118