October 2009

  A few years ago, if you wanted to take a cruise from a U.S. port, you didn't have a lot of choices. If you were dreaming of the Caribbean, you would book a flight to Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Port Canaveral and then set sail. If you lived west

Vajrayogini Mandala, Tibet; 18th century, Courtesy Rubin Museum of Art Reviewed by Bobbie Leigh Just as painted Russian icons are not intended to be  solely artistic  representations of  saints, but objects of meditation and veneration, mandalas   — at least for the initiated —  are   magic windows, pathways to  the deepest

A room at The Sanctuary Hotel, not bad for $159 a night in Manhattan. The Deal: The “Dress Rehearsal” rate is good for one of the nine newly-renovated Sanctuary Studio rooms. You get a preview rate that starts at $159 per night as well as “a $50 credit for a

Shakespeare and Company, Paris. Photo by Dena Timm. The best English-language bookshops in Paris, Vienna and Lucerne … By Richard West PARIS Shakespeare & Co. (37, rue de Bucherie): Surely the most well-known bookshop in Europe, founded in 1951 by the now-in-his-90's, George Whitman, who still describes the three sprawling

Jeff Dossett on Everest. Jeff Dossett is the CEO of AdventureLink, the new adventure travel trip finder that's beginning to change how we research and book adventure travel. He's a former Microsoft guy, where he was MSN's executive producer and general manager, and also did a stint as a senior

Rathaus in Vienna. The Deal: Get away for three nights in the Austrian capital, including air, for $799. Or go to Budapest or Prague instead, for the same price. Why It’s a Deal: The $799 price includes round trip economy class air transportation from either New York (JFK) or Washington,

The journey, not the arrival, is what seems to matter more than ever these days. That's because flying from A to B is the toughest part of any trip. But if you're proactive, you can make your next flight experience easier and maybe even seamless. The good news is that

By Mary Alice Kellogg Like many of us, SpaWatcher thinks "sauna" and "Sweden" are words joined at the hip. But after a visit to Stockholm's sleek Sturebadet, she now thinks Sweden and "Sami Zen" is an even better match.

Grizzlies in Brooks Falls, Alaska. Photo by Steve Morello. If you’ve ever contemplated an adventure trip with “nature” as the keyword, you’ve probably come across Natural Habitat Adventures. The Boulder-based company is the Conservation Travel Provider to World Wildlife Fund. It’s been named a “2009 Best Adventure Travel Company” by

Planning your next adventure? Regardless of whether you’re going hiking in Chile’s Atacama Desert, kayaking in the Sea of Cortez or biking in Vietnam, there are five questions you should ask yourself before you commit with your credit card.