Travel

Tech Watch

Kissing Language Barriers Goodbye

Google is paving the way for the universal voice translator, formerly a thing of science fiction. But will they actually help us communicate?

March 28, 2014

New Research

Booking Your Vacation At Work? Bad Idea

Study finds that booking a vacation at work tends to lead to purchasing more expensive hotels and being less satisfied with your trip

March 27, 2014

Cool Finds

Somewhere Lets You Travel To Amazing Places Online

Somewhere takes you instantly to some of the most photogenic places on earth

March 26, 2014

The Los Angeles That Was Never Built

Had these 13 grand architectural plans been executed, the city would look entirely different today

March 24, 2014

Cool Finds

France Is Fighting for Its Fungi

With rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns threatening truffle supplies of France and Italy, Chinese truffles are moving in

March 21, 2014

Smithsonian Secretary Clough on His Hometown

Post retirement, he will be spending more time in Douglas, Georgia

April 2014

How Japan Copied American Culture and Made it Better

If you’re looking for some of America’s best bourbon, denim and burgers, go to Japan, where designers are re-engineering our culture in loving detail

April 2014

Smithsonian Best Small Towns 2014

The 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2014

From country music to herbal cocktails to horseshoe crabs to Rodin, our third annual list takes you to cultural gems worth mining

April 2014

Cool Finds

Careful: These Gorgeous Video Postcards Will Inspire Instant Wanderlust

Take a minute-long trip to a faraway land

March 20, 2014

Canada

In British Columbia, There Are Amazing Waves No One’s Ever Surfed Before

Nootka Island is a surfer’s paradise for enthusiasts who don’t mind water temperatures hovering around 50 degrees Fahrenheit

March 20, 2014

Cool Finds

This Former Salt Mine Is Now a Theme Park With a Ferris Wheel

368 feet below ground, the mine is home to basketball hoops, mini golf, a ferris wheel, an underground lake, a spa and more

March 18, 2014

Cool Finds

Ireland’s Wild Atlantic West Is the Longest, Uninterrupted Coastal Route in the World

The Wild Atlantic Way skirts the entire west coast of Ireland

March 14, 2014

Cool Finds

Take a Mini-Tour of the Lenten Station Churches of Rome

During Lent, some Romans make an annual pilgrimage to churches all around the city, visiting one each day

March 13, 2014

Trending Today

Google River View Comes to the Colorado River

Google’s street view is now available for off-road destinations

March 13, 2014

Top 10 Travel Destinations for An Astronomy Geek

From the world’s biggest telescopes to isolated islands, here are some of the best places to explore the cosmos

March 12, 2014

Cool Finds

See Every Plane Criss-Crossing Europe in This Weirdly Beautiful Video of Flight Paths

An air traffic control company created this incredible video showing flight patterns around Europe

March 12, 2014

Tech Watch

An Airship The Size of a Football Field Could Revolutionize Travel

A new fuel-efficient airship, capable of carrying up to 50 tons, can stay aloft for weeks and land just about anywhere

March 7, 2014

Cool Finds

What’s the Most Perfect Moment to Buy That Plane Ticket?

You know that the longer you wait to book a flight, the higher ticket prices climb. But when exactly should you book a flight?

March 7, 2014

Sub-Orbital Travel Is Going to Make the World Feel Really, Really Small

Our small world is about to get even smaller—for those who can afford to fly sub-orbitally

March 7, 2014

Cool Finds

These Alien-Looking Metal Domes Are Keeping London Safe And Dry

The flood barrier that protects London closed fifty times this winter—a new record

March 7, 2014