Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Travel

None

The Hot Condiment of 2013? Barrel-Aged Hot Sauce

Restauranteurs across the nation are feeding a new trend by feeding hot sauce into whiskey oak barrels

None

One Man’s Seven-Year March Along Ancient Migration Routes

This past Sunday, journalist Paul Salopek began his walk from Ethiopia to Patagonia

None

Preparing for a Mission to Mars Is Dangerously Boring

One of the biggest challenges to a Mars mission is just how long it takes to get there

None

No Place Compares to the Unrelenting Lifelessness of Peru’s Sechura Desert

From tropical mountains, we descended into a landscape of flailing-armed cacti, spiny succulents like giant artichokes and sand dunes as high as mountains

The miserable sprawl and slums of north Lima make a poor first impression for tourists fresh out of the airport. Here, the author’s brother, Andrew, is shown 15 kilometers north of Lima, on the way to the mountain town of Canta.

From the Slums of Lima to the Peaks of the Andes

After unpacking and assembling his bicycle at the airport terminal, the author heads north on the Pan-American Highway toward the mountain town of Canta

Peru’s mountainous terrain is the landscape of dreams for climbers, hikers and cyclists.

A Short Bike Ride in the Peruvian Andes

The author kicks off 2013 with a 1,100-mile cycling journey through the Andes from Lima, Peru, to Ecuador’s lofty capital of Quito

A Roscon de Reyes, courtesy of Tamorlan

Don’t Wait til Mardi Gras for Your King Cake, Celebrate Tres Reyes This Weekend

The New Orleans classic has its roots in the roscon de reyes, a Spanish treat for the 12th day of Christmas

Is our world really not enough? Simple pleasures like swimming in the Adriatic Sea or hiking in the hills of Greece (in the upper right of the photo) will require staying on Earth.

Do We Really Need to Take Vacations to Space?

The possibility of entering a sealed aircraft, buckling up and exiting the atmosphere in the name of leisure is nearing reality

None

Think Apple Maps Are Bad? These Cartographics Blunders Were Way Worse

If you think Apple messed up big time, think again. The history of map making is full of far worse blunders

It was at the La Comédie-Française where Hugo brought his controversial new play, “Hernani,” that became a spark plug for Paris’s greater societal and political tensions

Take a Tour of Victor Hugo’s Paris

As a film version of his Les Miserables hits theaters, consider traveling in the French writer’s footsteps

None

The Best Places to See and Celebrate the Winter Solstice

Many temples and monuments were intentionally built to face, frame or otherwise “welcome” the rising winter solstice sun

Even NASA Doesn’t Know Exactly What Causes Motion Sickness (But There Is a Way to Avoid It)

Larissa and Michael Milne, shown here in their hometown of Philadelphia, sold nearly all their belongings in 2011 and embarked on a tour of the world. Along the way they visited the frightening but fascinating country of North Korea. Also shown in this photo is the Milnes’ travel companion, “Little Rocky,” a six-inch figurine of one of Philadelphia’s most famous native sons.

A Frightening and Fascinating Journey Through North Korea

When a Philadelphia couple took a world tour in 2011, they quickly struck upon the idea of visiting one of the world’s most mysterious places

Images A, C, E and G show the new species E. bazinga, the others the E. ignita.

A Brand New Bee Was Just Named After Sheldon From ‘The Big Bang Theory’

Andre Nemesio and his team just named a brand new orchid bee Euglossa bazinga, after the catch phrase used by Sheldon Cooper

None

Your Guide to the Most Delicious Drinks for the Holidays

Few beers may so strongly evoke the image of dark winters and frozen European landscapes as Imperial Stout—and a bottle fits nicely in a Christmas stocking

None

Why Japan Is Obsessed With Kentucky Fried Chicken on Christmas

Thanks to the successful “Kurisumasu ni wa kentakkii!” (Kentucky for Christmas!) marketing campaign in 1974, Japan can’t get enough KFC on Christmas Day

The lodge at Bolivia’s Chacaltaya Glacier was once the world’s highest ski resort—until the glacier melted away almost entirely in just 20 years. The lodge closed its ski facilities in 2009 and stands today amid a rocky, almost snowless moonscape.

As the World Warms, the Future of Skiing Looks Bleak

Climate change is delivering serious wounds to the winter sport all over the globe

None

Start Hoarding Your Beans, Thanks to Climate Change, $7 Coffee May Be the Norm

Starbucks most expensive cup of coffee to date raises the question, how high can we go?

None

Should Trophy Hunting of Lions Be Banned?

Some argue that tourist safari hunts generate important money for African nations—but can lions afford the loss?

None

Where to Watch the Biggest Waves Break

From Waimea Bay to “Mavericks,” here are some superb sites to watch surfers catch the biggest breakers in the world this winter

Page 83 of 132