Cheryl Maguire

My family always feels happy after visiting an island, and it turns out that we’re not alone. “The World Happiness Report” found that of the 60 happiest countries listed, 10 were islands. Islands provide beautiful natural surroundings. A research study from Scientific Reports found that people who spend time in scenic settings experience a boost in happiness.
Visiting an island is not only fun but also can be good for your health. A 2023 study from researchers at Penn State and two universiti...

Husband-and-wife team Ian and Tonya Fitzpatrick are founders and hosts of the World Footprints travel podcast. Even though they are now married and hosting a successful podcast together, they almost didn’t meet. When Tonya, a lawyer, first met Ian, she wasn’t interested in dating anyone. Ian’s cousin, who knew Tonya from college, attempted to be a matchmaker for the pair, but he soon learned it wasn’t going to be an easy match.
After hearing that Ian was also a lawyer, Tonya’s response was, “...

When Chaya Milchtein was about to turn 18 years old, she created a GoFundMe fundraiser for herself. “I was aging out of foster care—it was 2013, and I was pretty desperate to find a job,” she explains. One person reached out to her based on the campaign and asked, “What’s going to be the most helpful to you to transition into the next part of your life?” Milchtein replied that she needed a job.

The woman helped her get a job interview at Sears, and during the interview, they asked Milchtein, ...

Jodyann Morgan loved her job as a security guard for sports and entertainment brands. “I was able to see all of my favorite artists perform while making money,” she says. One of her job highlights was when she worked as a security guard at a Rihanna concert. “Seeing her up close was amazing,” Morgan recalls.

Since she loved her job, Morgan didn’t anticipate having a second career. But now she’s the founder and owner of a candle and planter company called CTOAN Co. The acronym stands for “Can’...

Mother-daughter relationships are complicated, and mine is no exception.
Given our complex 18-year history, I assumed that when she embarked on her new life as a college freshman she would flee from me like a gazelle narrowly escaping the jaws of a crocodile. I also accepted that our conversations — which have become increasingly disjointed in her teen years — would cease until Thanksgiving. But I was wrong.
Without fail, at 8 p.m., she FaceTimes me, and not only talks for over an hour but al...

If you want to plan a trip to Europe, then Rick Steves is your go-to guide. There’s no shortage of ways to learn about his travel tips—from guidebooks to television shows to podcasts… well, you get the idea.

Who is Rick Steves?

Even though Steves is now the expert on European travel with a multimillion dollar company, he didn’t start out in the travel business.

“I was a piano teacher,” he says. His piano students weren’t interested in taking lessons during the summer, so he decided to use tha...

One way you can plan for your next vacation is by listening to travel podcasts. You can also learn about places you might want to visit, or you can experience the destination if you’re unable to go there. We spoke to travel experts to find out which podcasts are worth listening to, especially if you are stuck waiting at the airport. We then spoke to the podcasters to learn more about their shows. The podcasts can be found on most major platforms. Here are the ones the experts recommend.
Trave...

Darley Newman, host, creator, and producer of the PBS show Travels with Darley, was waiting for the train. She stood in the depot in Lamy, New Mexico, wearing cowboy boots and jeans, ready for the Wild West adventure she planned to film for her show. As her ride pulled in, she admired its vintage cars, which were covered with splashes of draconic graffiti. “The train looked like a dragon rolling through the countryside. I really hadn't seen a train quite like that before,” she says. The paint...

When the pandemic hit, “no-sail orders” suspended cruises for 15 months. Once the ban was lifted, Marcello De Lio, an avid cruiser from New York City, couldn’t wait to get back onboard. But his girlfriend of three years didn’t share his enthusiasm.
Even though he had never sailed solo before, De Lio, 26, a construction company owner and travel blogger, began researching his options and found promotions designed to entice customers to return. He set off alone from Miami for a four-night cruise...

Vacations are a break from everyday stressors such as your job or other responsibilities. You might assume that this break would mean that you will get a great night’s sleep. But when you’re traveling, you are away from your routines and your bedroom, which can lead to difficulty sleeping.

The accommodations might have a bed or pillow that isn’t comfortable. You could have some other issues with your room, which might be too bright or noisy. Traveling to another time zone also could lead to s...

When I, a native New Yorker, suggested to my husband, a born-and-bred Bostonian, that we take the kids on a day trip to the Boston Harbor Islands, he told me in his rich accent that he’d “nevah heahd” of them. That was 10 years ago, when our kids were ages 7 (twins) and 4, and since then, our family has made almost yearly visits to these little-known yet fascinating islands.

“I have always blamed that [lack of awareness] on the topography of our city,” said Kathy Abbott, president and CEO of ...

Most building developers try to maximize their profits by developing all their owned land. But Angelos Michalopoulos and his wife, Vassiliki Petridou, are opting for the opposite approach. They are choosing to build on only 1% of the land they own so they can afford to preserve the rest of it.

As Greek natives, they grew up with an appreciation for nature. Michalopoulos was raised in Athens. His father was a landscape architect who inspired him to love the environment. “Nature is truth. Natur...

Americans are venturing out again after being cooped up due to pandemic travel restrictions. But they are quickly learning they are not alone as they encounter long lines in airports, restaurants, and tourist attractions. These lines are often due to an abundance of travelers combined with staffing shortages.
“It’s a perfect storm right now,” said Darley Newman, a travel host and an executive producer in New York City. “There are workforce shortages, flights getting canceled, and a shortage o...

In anticipation of his first visit to Paris, Shawn Richards created the perfect plan for seeing the Eiffel Tower. Because he was only going to be in the city for one day, he decided to start with the Arc de Triomphe and the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont and save the most famous site for last. But after a day of sightseeing, he was too tired to tour the Eiffel Tower and instead ate ice cream in a cafe. On the plane back to Las Vegas, he regretted his decision to skip one of the most iconic monument...

The best way to plan your next vacation is by doing some sleuthing. Websites like Google, Trip advisor, Booking.com and Expedia offer customer reviews for accommodations, restaurants and tour companies located at your intended travel destination.
Reviews can provide valuable information to help you decide if the business is a good fit for your travel needs. But with some reviews written by artificial intelligence robots that can automate tasks, and others by paid reviewers, sometimes it can b...