If you land at Sacramento International Airport, you might hear a voice over the public address system making the following statement. “We’re proud to offer a unique blend of big-city amenities and small-town charm that can only be found here.” I’m not above borrowing a good quote when I hear one, and I think it’s an apt description. Air Canada in July began direct, daily flights from Toronto to Sacramento, the capital of California and a city I think is heavily underrated. It’s an attractive city filled with towering, leafy trees, fun neighborhoods and a very good food scene. You’re Read more
Architecture
Jennifer Ollinger of Visit Detroit says she tells people the hardest part of her job is getting people to visit her city. But once they come and see the great food scene, stylish, boutique hotels and sparkling waterfront in this Michigan city, she says her job is done. “The city sells itself.” It wasn’t always this easy. As someone who has worked at Visit Detroit (the city’s tourism bureau) for 25 years, she’s seen her share of low points, including a municipal bankruptcy and far too many headlines about a city gone to seed. “In my second month on the Read more
This was originally published in 2018. I’m back in San Antonio for a U.S. Travel Association meeting and thought I’d re-post this blog, with a bit of added information. SAN ANTONIO – Judith Ely is showing me around the San Antonio Museum of Art, a surprising spot with treasured art from around the world. She points to a mosaic on the floor in the ancient Italian/Greek section of the museum. “Look at this one,” she says. “It’s a rendering of an Italian wedding but there’s a lot of shenanigans going on. People are having sex and disrupting things. But then Read more
A world-class museum of art. Glorious golf courses. A vibrant downtown. A new, cutting edge warehouse district. And some of the world’s best hotels. The Palm Beaches is a popular and increasingly diverse destination in south Florida. Here are some great things to see and do, as well as fine places to lay your head. WHERE TO STAY The Breakers: This is the granddaddy of them all, a sumptuous, Italian-influenced seaside beauty that dates back nearly 100 years in its current iteration. There are 538 rooms and 10 restaurants, as well as four oceanfront pools and a private beach. They Read more
A lakefront that’s the envy of the world. Amazing architecture. Fabulous food. And Midwestern hospitality. Those are just some of the reasons that readers of Conde Nast Travel have voted Chicago the best big city in the U.S. six years in a row. “That means more than 240,000 readers of Conde Nast voted for us,” Lynn Osmond, President and CEO of Choose Chicago, told me in a recent interview. “No other city has been chosen number one three years in a row, but we’ve done it six times straight.” Osmond said the city’s Midwestern hospitality is another key factor in Read more
