ArcaMax

Don’t you love it when you find yourself ahead of the crowd? I don’t mean budging in line, but rather when you have discovered something or someplace before most people.

That’s what I was patting myself on the back for when I read the The Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) 2025 ...Read more

Some people dream of quitting their job and enjoying the quiet life. Not Leonidas G. Demas. After he retired from his career as an attorney, he pursued his passion for filmmaking. Demas wrote a script for the film “A Spartan Dream,” which has a mid-August release date. “Over the years, I had developed a love for Greece, visiting many times...Read more

August is vacation time in Europe. Entire towns seem to shut down as locals head to seaside escapes, eager to enjoy unforgettable beaches and the culture that comes with them. Let’s close our eyes, tune in to the rhythm of the waves, picture a sunset glinting through a drink in your hand, and join them. Here are some of my favorite seaside ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Hello, gorgeous! Minnesota may be the Land of 10,000 Lakes. But is it also the land of 10,000 beautiful views?

That many at least. But what are the best of the best, the loveliest vistas in the state, the sort of views that give you a catch in the throat, that give literal meaning to the cliche “breathtaking”?

We’ll get ...Read more

HARTFORD, Conn. — A beloved holiday tradition in Connecticut is coming to an end. Lake Compounce has announced that the amusement park’s Holiday Lights event will end after the 2025 season.

The 175-year-old event offers a wintertime tradition with thousands of lights, the “tallest Christmas tree in the state” and rides, games and crafts...Read more

With the exception of Israel, no foreign entity elicits as much bipartisan support in Washington as Taiwan. The self-ruled democratic island is David to China’s Goliath, a relatively small pseudo-country (the United States and much of the world don’t recognize Taiwan as a state) under constant threat from the Chinese Communist Party that has...Read more

Ready to build your own temple? No need to be an ancient king, either. The Denver Museum of Nature and Science temporary exhibit, Angkor: The Lost Empire of Cambodia enables kids to design their own temple starting with rusty “red stone,” using “sandstone” for ...Read more

Tinpo Lee’s acting career has ranged from “General Hospital” to the Denzel Washington film “Roman J. Israel, Esq.” But ask him which role was his favorite and he will almost always include the ones with his daughter Peyton Elizabeth Lee. He has fond memories of guest starring on her series “Doogie Kameāloha, M.D.” The duo also ...Read more

Still haunted by the legend of a vampire count and the legacy of a communist dictator, Romania is complex – with an epic history, a multifaceted ethnic mix, and an unusually rich cultural heritage. It may not be the easiest place to travel, but for adventurous souls, it's exceptionally rewarding.

If you go, start in Romania's capital, ...Read more

How’s your stress level? I know it’s the middle of summer and we are supposed to be relaxing. BUT if we are on vacation, we have to watch the youngest travelers like a hawk in an unfamiliar environment. We may have experienced flight delays, lost luggage, car trouble, bad weather, annoying relatives … the list goes on and on.

AND if you ...Read more

Multilingual recording artist Miist has had a busy couple years, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. “I just came back from an amazing trip to Italy and France, and this past weekend to Los Angeles for recording a new single, ‘I Think I Lost a Day,’ with the incredible Tayte Nickols and the local band, Familiar Faces, at Apogee ...Read more

Europe is always changing – and Sicily’s capital, Palermo, is a fine example of this. For years, Palermo’s touristic reputation was tarnished by labels like gritty, run-down, polluted, traffic-clogged, crime ridden, and synonymous with Mafia violence. But those days are long gone. Palermo today is far cleaner, safer, and more inviting than...Read more

The Trump administration is debating whether to allow a planned U.S. stopover by Taiwan’s leader next week as concerns mount that it could derail trade talks with China and a potential summit with President Xi Jinping, according to people familiar with the matter.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te was planning to stop in New York on Aug. 4 ...Read more

The Wisconsin homeowner couldn’t have been nicer. Yes, he loved young children, he said, (mine were one and three at the time). Yes, there was plenty of space for them to run around. And his house was only a couple hours from where we lived in Chicago. It was October 1987.

I was a reporter for the Chicago Tribune then, and the travel editor ...Read more

For westerners, K-pop has become the umbrella term for any artist performing songs in Korean (and usually dancing along). But South Korea has a long history of pop and rock artists who don’t adhere to that stereotype. Catch The Young is the latest band to showcase their musical dexterity as much as their singing. They punctuate this point on ...Read more

While most first-time visitors to Europe choo-choose to travel by train, consider the convenience of driving. Behind the wheel you’re totally free, going where you want, when you want.

Driving in the British Isles is wonderful – once you remember to stay on the left and after you’ve mastered the roundabouts. But be warned: Every year I ...Read more

Did you remember to pack everyone’s rain gear?

With such unpredictable weather patterns these days, you never know when it’s going to rain on your vacation. If you are in the mountains, you can probably count on afternoon thunderstorms, but you can get drenched at the beach, theme parks (we memorably were stuck in a tropical storm at Walt ...Read more