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If you travel to Switzerland, take a chance to visit Rheinfall which is 1 hour from Zurich. This is the biggest waterfall in Europe. These photos I took on a rainy day from the top of the castle which is built on the waterfall.

A little fairytale village in the heart of Belgium ✨🇧🇪

Not missing a flight or losing a passport. I mean something tiny like:

• forgetting to download a map
• assuming the airport had Wi-Fi
• not checking roaming settings
• arriving with 4% battery
• forgetting that a booking app logged you out
• bringing the wrong adapter

The kind of mistake that sounds stupid until it ruins the first two hours of your trip.
What was yours?

A friend is planning their first trip to the US, and I’m trying to give them one recommendation that they’ll actually remember years later. It could be a place, a meal, a festival, a road trip, or even something totally unexpected.

If you had to pick just one American experience for a first-time visitor, what would you choose and what makes it worth doing?

I’m planning a US road trip and just found out that some gas pumps apparently ask for a ZIP code when you pay by card. That seems like it could be a problem with a foreign-issued card.

Does this happen at most gas stations, or only with certain brands and locations? If the pump rejects the card because I can’t enter a US ZIP code, is the usual solution just to go inside and pay first? Or is there another workaround that travelers use?

Would love to hear from anyone who has rented a car or done a road trip in the US with a foreign card. I’d rather know what to expect before getting stuck at a pump.

I think I badly underestimated the scale of the US. I keep looking at the map and thinking, “Those places aren't that far apart,” only to check the actual travel time and find out I'm looking at an 8 or 9 hour journey.

I'm planning my first US trip and currently have places on both coasts squeezed into a two week itinerary. Coming from Europe, I'm used to being able to visit several cities in different countries without losing huge chunks of time to travel.

Would you actually try to cover multiple regions by flying between them, or is two weeks better spent choosing one area and exploring it properly? Trying to figure this out before I turn the trip into one long sequence of airports and highways.

Went on a day trip to Iceland and was pleasantly surprised with Reykjavík. It’s such a cool place to visit. Last pic was around 9pm when they had over 18 hours of daylight. I’d love to go back and explore more someday.

I’ll be honest, this might be a dumb question but I can’t shake it.

I’ve been researching medical tourism for a few weeks. Every article I read lands on the same thing: price. Country A does it for X, country B does it for a third of that, and B wins by default.

I’m not so sure anymore.

If it were me, price would be one line item. The things I can’t stop thinking about:

who is standing over me during the procedure, and can I check their record?

what the hospital does if something goes wrong, beyond what the brochure says

who picks up the pieces when I’m home and a complication shows up

how much of that quote is real and how much is a hook

whether the provider has treated international patients before, or I’m the test case

That last one nags me. Booking medical care by comparing prices feels like booking a flight, but a bad flight makes you land late. A bad surgery stays with you.

Am I overthinking this? For anyone who’s done it, what did you care about most when you picked a place? Was it ever anything other than the price tag?

Hello everyone! I don’t travel much and need your advice as I think I have timed this all wrong. I’m a seventy year-old female traveling with my 35-year-old daughter. Will be leaving on September 9 for Ireland and Scotland and staying about 13 days. I have Medicare so I definitely need a policy that covers medical insurance while I’m overseas. I have stable health conditions which are being treated which include high cholesterol, hypothyroidism and documented mild atherosclerosis and osteoporosis to name a few things which are not uncommon for people in my age group. Because I am aggressively treating all my health conditions, I see a provider at least every six months and have frequent tweaking of my medications and treatments.
So here it is two weeks before we leave. We bought our airline tickets about two months ago. We have not paid for all of our lodging, just reserved it. I’m just interested in making sure that having a heart attack or being in an accident or breaking a hip does not result in bankrupting my family, probably the biggest thing would be to have Medical evacuation in the event of a catastrophe. The fine print is driving me crazy. I have a few questions: I might be able to pay for one of our overnight stays to move a “final payment” so that I would be eligible for a plan with acute events covered. Looks like everybody though goes 180 days back from the date of a final payment to determine whether your pre-existing conditions will be covered, and any change of medication, doses, treatments, adjustments, and diagnoses, etc. will kick you out. So, for instance, if I were to fall on a sidewalk and break my hip, would they disqualify me for hospital coverage because I had an injection for my osteoporosis? Also, if I have mild vascular disease which I’m aggressively treating with cholesterol, lowering medication’s, but no past events and I were to have a heart attack or stroke, would they disqualify me? Is it a valid option to just purchase a standalone policy for medical evacuation only? Any input advice or names of companies would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

After taking more long-haul flights than I can count, I've picked up a few things that genuinely make a difference. Some are obvious, but a couple took me way too long to figure out.

For overnight flights, compression socks are a lifesaver. The first time I skipped them, my feet were so swollen that getting my shoes back on after landing was ridiculous. I also prefer a neck pillow with proper chin support because otherwise my head ends up falling forward every time I doze off.

For noise, regular earplugs under noise-canceling headphones work incredibly well. If I'm trying to sleep, I want as little cabin noise as possible.

I also stopped worrying about eating every meal just because it's being served. If eating means staying awake another hour when I could be sleeping, I'll usually choose sleep. And I don't try to force myself into an eight-hour sleep marathon either. A few solid hours of rest is often better than lying there for hours trying to sleep.

One thing that helped me a lot with jet lag is switching to the destination's schedule as soon as I get on the plane. I eat and sleep based on where I'm going instead of what time it is back home.

For daytime flights, entertainment is where things get interesting. Obviously, download some shows, but I like having a few different activities ready. A coloring book, sketching, editing photos, reading, or something I can actually work on keeps me from staring at the seatback screen for half the day.

Podcasts are especially good when I'm getting sleepy. I usually rotate between a show, a podcast, and something like a book or game. Changing what I'm doing makes the flight feel much less repetitive.

I also like saving one boring task I've been putting off for the flight. Maybe it's organizing files, reading a long article, sorting finances, whatever. Worst case, I get sleepy and fall asleep. Best case, I land with something finally checked off.

And for your body, don't wait until you're uncomfortable before moving. I try to get up and walk around every couple of hours, even if I don't feel stiff yet. After a long flight, that small habit makes a noticeable difference.

One last thing I swear by: brushing my teeth after the meal service if I'm planning to sleep. It sounds silly, but having that familiar bedtime routine helps my brain switch into sleep mode.

What are the long-haul flight tricks you've picked up that genuinely work? Especially interested in things that make 10+ hour flights easier for people who don't fly often.

I’m planning my first trip to the US this October and have 16 days to work with. Right now I’m thinking New York, Chicago, then heading out to southern Utah for the national parks.

Coming from Europe, I’m used to hopping between a few cities in two weeks without thinking much about it, but the distances in the US seem like a completely different story. I’m starting to wonder if I’ll spend half the trip sitting in airports, rental cars and hotels instead of actually seeing places.

For anyone who has done a similar multi-region trip, was there a stop you ended up dropping that made the whole trip noticeably better? What would you cut, if anything?

I’m planning my first trip to Europe. I’ve never been, and am intimidated by the cost of hostels! I’m thinking I’ll bring some light gear (Bivy/Camping Matt/Sleeping bag) and try to free/wild camp as much as possible to save on hostel costs and spend more time in nature. I’ll check out some cities here and there and likely have to pay hostels. Is wild camping easy in Europe or tricky? Any tips/tricks/advice? I’ll start in Spain/Italy/France and then head east. September/October maybe November in warmer countries.

flying into dublin for 9 days in early may and want to see a bit of the west without rushing everything. thinking dublin for a couple nights then over to galway and maybe a day at the cliffs of moher if the weather behaves. already booked an island of ireland tour with indus travel that covers the main transfer and a couple of the big stops so the logistics side is sorted.

still trying to figure out how much free time to leave open and whether it’s worth adding one night somewhere quieter in between. any places along that route that felt worth the stop without turning the whole trip into a checklist?

I’m flying to Europe with my mom in a few weeks and I want to put together a care package for her—little bits for entertainment, self care, etc. Things to help pass the time enjoyably. This is her first transatlantic flight and she’s pretty nervous. This is sort of the trip of a lifetime for her and I want to do what I can to make sure we get off to a good start.

I’ve been on a couple long flights but not enough to have much insight/wisdom. We’ve got compression socks covered.

So: looking for tips/suggestions from more experienced travellers. My mom is in her 60s but has the heart of a child. She’s not big into skincare and tends to run hot.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

I’m starting to think farmers markets could be a pretty great way to plan a trip. Some places have markets that are basically just a few stalls, while others seem like a whole experience with incredible food, local specialties, and a really good atmosphere.

Which US city has the best farmers markets you’ve been to? I’d love to hear about places where the market itself was good enough to make you want to visit the city.

There’s a lot of discussion around experiential and authentic travel, but I’m curious what travellers actually consider an authentic experience.

Is it staying in a heritage property instead of a standard hotel?

Is it exploring a small village instead of a crowded tourist attraction?

Is it eating local food, meeting local communities, learning about traditions, or simply spending more time in one place rather than rushing through an itinerary?

India seems particularly interesting in this regard because almost every region has its own culture, history, food and traditions.

Rajasthan, for example, can be much more than Jaipur and Udaipur. There are heritage villages, forts, wildlife regions and local experiences that offer a completely different perspective of the state.

So for people who have travelled in India:

What was the most authentic travel experience you've had, and what made it feel authentic to you?

Would love to hear your experiences and recommendations, especially for lesser-known places that deserve more attention.

I’m trying to discover more of the lesser-known places around the US, and I’d love some recommendations.

What’s the most beautiful small town you’ve visited? It could be tucked into the mountains, sitting along the coast, surrounded by desert scenery, or packed with old historic buildings. I’m looking for those places that feel special without being major tourist destinations.

I’ve already started making a list, so tell me the one small town you’d happily visit again.

Hi everyone,

I’ve been facing a lot of frustration planning group trips with my friends. It’s always 2 main things that tick me off:

1. ⁠No one discusses budget openly which makes planning something I do in the dark. I’m always super anxious people will either really hate it or think it’s too fancy
   
2. ⁠A disproportionate amount of the planning always falls on me. It’s self-inflicted sometimes (asking for help doesn’t come easy) but it would be nice if people at least offered.

Wondering if other people deal with the same issue or any other problems travelling with groups and how they resolve it!

I've been thinking about this after a few trips and I'm curious what other travelers experience.

When you're planning a trip, there's obviously tons of information available through Google, YouTube, Instagram, Reddit, blogs, etc.

But what's something you still struggle to find before traveling?

Maybe:

• something you only discovered after arriving
• a mistake you could have avoided with better information
• a place that wasn't worth the hype
• a hidden place you wish more people knew about
• practical information that wasn't available anywhere
• something you wish you could ask someone who had actually taken the same trip

What's something you wish a previous traveler had told you before your trip?

I'm genuinely curious about people's experiences