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Travel

The Great Kobuk Sand Dunes with the shadows of the Arctic midnight sunset, Kobuk Valley National Park.

Welcome to the Tundra: Kobuk Valley, One of America’s Least-Visited National Parks

Dramatic weather and impassable terrain shouldn’t stop you from visiting this park

Smithsonian Best Small Towns 2015

The 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2015

From sea to shining sea, our top picks for the most amazing American small towns to see this year

The rooftop garden and colonnade at the Museum of Jurassic Technology.

Urban Explorations

Inside Los Angeles’s Strangest Museum

Enter the dark and completely unique world of the Museum of Jurassic Technology

Journalists walk along the new Caminito del Rey in El Chorro-Alora, March 15, 2015.

“The World’s Most Dangerous Trail” Reopens This Week

A once-deadly path is now a modern tourist attraction

Urban Explorations

Eight Modern Speakeasies With Real Roots in the 1920s

These speakeasies across the United States do justice to the Jazz Age

John Wayne's dark-green 1971 Pontiac station wagon.

Make a Pilgrimage to the Brand New John Wayne Birthplace & Museum

Opening in April, a museum to match the movie star’s legacy

Ganden Sumtseling Monastery in Shangri-La was built in 1679 at the direction of the Fifth Dalai Lama.

Retracing the Footsteps of China’s Patron Saint of Tourism

Travelers are discovering the Ming dynasty’s own Indiana Jones, an adventurer who dedicated his life to exploring his country’s Shangri-Las

This particularly charming street in Colmar, France looks straight out of a fairy tale.

The 11 Most Endearing Small Streets Worth Visiting

These tiny corridors around the world invite you in with their charm and surprising level of bustle

Diners eat lunch outdoors at the Osteria Margutta.

Rome’s Very Short Street With a Long, Magnificent History

Taste the food life on the Via Margutta, once home to Fellini and since 1953, the scene of Americans’ sweetest Roman Holiday

Phytoplankton light up the beach on Vaadhoo.

These Spellbinding Light Phenomena Will Make You Believe in Magic

See seven stunning natural light shows from around the world

The Soul of Louisiana

Where the first American mafias, Louis Armstrong, and chef Emeril Lagasse started out, New Orleans remains the soul of Louisiana

A dog sitting in a field of wildflowers in California's Anza Borrego Desert State Park.

American South

Best Places to See Wildflowers Around the United States

Snow and cold got you down? Remember, spring is around the corner, and that means wildflowers

Spanish cruise ship 'Gemini' enters Havana Harbor. Americans are now legally able to book a cruise to Havana through a Canadian cruise line.

Trending Today

It’s Now Legal to Book a Cruise to Cuba

A Canadian cruise line is allowing Americans to legally book a trip around Cuba

A man walks on a tight rope in the remote mountain village of Tsovkra-1.

Cool Finds

The Russian Village Entirely Populated by Tightrope Walkers

The circus-skill tradition goes back so far in tiny Tsovkra-1 that no one knows quite how or why it started—but it may end before long

Best Travel Destinations for Food Foraging

Forage for wild foods like truffles, herbs and scallops on these guided tours—feasting included

Livraria Lello, Porto, Portugal

Charming and Unusual Bookstores Around the World

Curl up with a new book—or catch a reading or concert—at these thriving independent bookstores from Mexico City to Melbourne

The mouthwatering nature of chocolate is one constant no matter where you go.

Switzerland

Chocolate Destinations Around the World to Drool Over

These five places from Belgium to Hong Kong offer their own enticing takes on the confection

A new hotel in Japan will have robots serving its front desks.

Japan Announces Plans for the First Hotel Run by Robots

Slated to open July 17, the hotel in a Japanese theme park will be staffed by “actroids”

Neuschwanstein Castle, the ultimate fairy-tale castle, is the 13th most visited castle in the world.

The World’s Most-Visited Castles and Palaces

From Paris to Beijing, these historic castles and palaces draw millions of visitors for a glimpse of the lifestyles of the rich and famous

A finely crafted galley ship, with a dragon's head, is built and burned every year.

Europe

Vikings Storm the Streets at Up Helly Aa, Europe’s Biggest Fire Festival (Photos)

Hundreds of local residents took to the streets, brandishing thousands of flaming torches, in an homage to Shetland’s Viking heritage

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