Welcome to Travel News Articles, a great source of travel news and ideas for stress-free travel. There are three parts to this website.

1. The travel directory on the left has many interesting websites for you to check out. Website owners, why not advertise your site here.

2. The buttons above take you to a variety of travel articles written by people who have "been there done that".

3. The news feed at the bottom of this page features the latest travel news from around the world.

Preparing to Travel

The world has changed a lot in the past century. Thanks to the invention of airplanes and high-speed trains, today's world is wide open to travel. In a day's time, we can travel to the other side of the world without using our entire life's savings. We also have a number of options open to us to help us plan our travels, and choosing wisely can help save time and money.

1. travel Agents

Many people have the misconception that using a travel agent entails paying a fee. Nonsense. In actuality, most travel agents receive commissions from the vendors (airlines, hotels, tour agencies); they are the ones paying the fee, not you. A travel agent has access to deals that often are not available anywhere else. He or she can help take the headache out of planning, allowing you to sit back and relax while the logistics are plotted out. Another bonus is that travel agents often include travel insurance in their packages, to ensure that you are getting what you paid for.

2. Internet

With the widespread use of the world wide web, travel prices have gone down considerably. Using travel sites like Orbitz, Expedia, and Travelocity, buyers can find lower rates than ever before for airfares, hotels, and package deals. The downside? Truly finding the best travel deals often requires a lot of time and patience as you compare rates with other sites and with direct booking. Another downfall is that you can't always find availability at these lower rates, but it is nice to plan right at home.

3. Guidebooks

Tried and true, travel guidebooks are a traveler's best friend. Seasoned travel writers research and compile guidebooks based on their own experiences, and who better to give advice than someone who's been there, done that? Depending on your preferred level of luxury, you are sure to find a guidebook to meet your needs. Best of all, travel guidebooks are often available at your local library-for free!

4. Booking Direct

Sometimes travel companies will offer special deals to customers who book directly. This is especially true with tour and cruise companies who advertise travel deals to repeat customers. You can often find rates as low as half-price (or lower) if you book at the last minute. If you have the flexibility and the determination, this may be the way to go.

5. Travel marketing blog

There is much useful information available to those marketing a travel website at etravel.success a blog providing information on travel website marketing.

LATEST TRAVEL NEWS

Celebrating the Sounds of Appalachian Strings
For 85 years, strummers, pickers and fiddlers have met in the North Carolina hills on a spring weekend to play homage to old-time music.

Practical Travel: Twitter Comes to the Rescue
From bad airplane seats to poor room service, customers are getting surprisingly fast responses to their tweets.

Frugal Traveler: Hunting for Treasure in Paris's Marchés aux Puces
In the city's legendary flea markets, the Frugal Traveler hopes to find some prized items and bargains among the bric-a-brac.

Q&A: Day Trips From Limerick
"I'll be staying in Limerick and I would like to make short one- or half-day trips when I have free time."

Journeys: Chicago?s New Wave of Microbrews
With local beers popping up all over town, the city is experiencing a brewing renaissance.

On the Road: Cutting Those Carry-Ons Down to Size
A bill recently introduced in Congress would standardize the size of carry-on bags and require the Transportation Security Administration to enforce the limits.

Airline Has Nothing to Hide. Really.
The in-flight safety instructional video and a companion ad series show employees of Air New Zealand unclothed, concealed only by body-painted uniforms and strategically placed props.

Frugal Paris
Even for those on a budget, summer in the City of Light can offer unexpected pleasures.

Heads Up: New Day for Shanghai Nights
A growing gay scene is contributing to the city?s already vibrant night life in ways once hard to imagine.

The Haggler: Who Exactly Is Protected by ?Travel Protection??
Think you?re getting a refund? Check the fine print.

36 Hours in Cork, Ireland
The city?s compact size makes it perfect for a tour on foot, providing you?ve packed walking shoes and a bit of ambition for a few hilly climbs.

Explorer: Ottoman Whispers in a Secret Corner of Greece
An easing of border tensions has made Thrace, an Islamic foothold in the northeast region, accessible to travelers.

Taking The Kids: In Puerto Rico, a Rain Forest Full of Easy Adventure
Set among the Luquillo Mountains, El Yunque is the only tropical rain forest in the United States national forest system.

Globespotters: Madrid, Rome and Istanbul
Italian art in Spain, Elizabeth Taylor?s jewelry on display in Rome and a graffiti exhibit in Istanbul.

Bites: Restaurant Review: Outerlands in San Francisco
This restaurant exists to refute the surrounding neighborhood gloom, or at least to offset it with fine food.

Celebrating the Sounds of Appalachian Strings
For 85 years, strummers, pickers and fiddlers have met in the North Carolina hills on a spring weekend to play homage to old-time music.

Away: A Jazz Voice Finds a Mellower Range
When it?s time for the jazz singer Sheila Jordan to work on arrangements, she heads to Middleburgh, N.Y.

High & Low | Coeur D?alene, Idaho: Outdoors for All Seasons
Residents of Coeur d?Alene, Idaho, a city of about 42,000 surrounded by lakes and protected forest, like to compare it to living in Lake Tahoe without the high prices.

On Location: A Second Home, a Starter Budget
A Brooklyn couple made their first home purchase a weekend house in the Catskills, decorating it with pieces acquired through Craigslist, thrift shops and yard sales ? even items found on the street.

A House in the Woods, After the Woods Are Gone
When my wife and I bought land in Montana, the stands of timber were so dense you couldn?t walk through parts of the property. Then the beetles came, killing the stately old trees.

American Journeys | Mad River Valley, Vt.: Ski Country Abounding in Off-Seaso...
Bordered by the Green Mountains and Northfield Ridge, Vermont?s Mad River Valley reveals itself in warmer weather, when history, culture and a hyperlocal food scene come to the fore.

Where Public Enemies Went for a Little Peace and Quiet
In the 1920s and ?30s, Wisconsin was the refuge of choice for bad guys on the lam. Visitors can follow in these criminals? footsteps, F.B.I. raids excluded.