International Destinations - CTnow

Have road will travel: Top 10 drives along the coast

McClatchy-Tribune News Service — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 08:56:00 EDT

Few things celebrate the end of winter like a great drive and enjoying the beach. Whether you can put the top down or not, members and editors of travel website VirtualTourist.com are sure you'll enjoy any of our "Top 10 Coastal Drives."

Scouting the gems of San Juan

Phil Vettel — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 23:07:00 EDT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — This island offers so many visual treats — gorgeous beaches, rugged hills, beautiful churches and majestic historic forts — that dining becomes a virtual afterthought. A hunk of meat or fish, some sides of mofongo (fried mashed plantains) and mamposteao (rice and beans with other goodies), a stiff rum drink and you're good to go, right?

Chile: Go wine sipping, then hit the rapids in northern Patagonia

By Mary Forgione — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 10:00:00 EDT

If you're looking for the trip of a lifetime, National Geographic Traveler has 50 to choose from. Its best guided expedition list for 2013 singles out tours that ignite the "inquisitive spirit" of travel. Among the adventures: an eight-day tour of Chile that pairs wine touring by bicycle with white-water rafting in northern Patagonia.

Singapore: Lion City shows its prowess with new hotels, sights

By Rosemary McClure — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 10:45:00 EDT

Singapore , nicknamed the Lion City, is roaring into the future with a host of new or updated tourist facilities.

Vietnam: Metropole offering tours of rediscovered wartime bunker

By David Lamb — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 10:45:00 EDT

The Metropole , Hanoi ’s legendary colonial hotel built in 1901, is offering four daily tours to its recently reopened underground concrete bunker where guests, staff and anti-war activists such as Joan Baez and Jane Fonda sought safety from U.S air raids during the Vietnam War.

Antwerp: A plunge into funky, homegrown urbanity

Rick Steves — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EDT

Belgium falls through the cracks. It's a little country, not big enough for people to find on a map sometimes. But it's one of Europe's great secrets. While its capital, Brussels, has become overly international, the port city to the north -- Antwerp -- has more of a local identity. It's an honest, what-you-see-is-what-you-get place, perhaps because it's in the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium called Flanders.

Travel Postcard: 48 hours in Cologne

By Shadia Nasralla — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 06:07:00 EDT

COLOGNE (Reuters) - Famed for its yearly carnival celebrations, there is more to Cologne than silly costumes and soccer's Lukas Podolski.

Hiking heaven

By Barbara Brotman, Tribune Newspapers — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 20:09:00 EDT

Even a flatlander can scale trails in these Italian Alps

MERANO, Italy — A line of goats walked toward us, their bells ringing. A waterfall gurgled. The steeply pitched mountain farm angled down sharply below us. The goats headed downhill, then leaped over a stream through the grass, which looked like green velvet.

Tax-refund travel destinations in Florida, the Bahamas and the Caribbean

By Georgina Cruz — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EDT

With National Tax Day having passed, and the IRS reporting that many Americans will get refunds of close to $3,000, some of us may be looking for “tax refund-worthy” destinations. Here are some deals to consider in Florida, the Bahamas and the Caribbean (all rates and packages are subject to availability):

Uruguay: Coastal reveries, away from it all

By Sasha Vasilyuk — Sun, 7 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EDT

Time seems to stand still in such towns as Punta del Este, Punta del Diablo and Barra de Valizas. Watch the waves, enjoy the fresh beef and seafood.

COLONIA DEL SACRAMENTO, Uruguay — Straddling the crest of a sand dune, my back to the Atlantic Ocean, I watched a Uruguayan boy net fish in a river lagoon. He waded through the chest-high water, dragging behind him the reflection of the setting sun.