A tourist refreshes Blue Spring State Park’s reservation page at 12:01 a.m., chasing one of just 232 vehicle slots for the day. They were advised to do so at that exact time by a local, while being told to save that trip for later in September. These are the places many Floridians have learned to…
Four of the ten U.S. airports where the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) catches the most guns at security checkpoints are in Texas. But travelers pack far more banned items in their carry-on bags than guns. These are the airport security mistakes costing Texas travelers their belongings before they ever reach the gate. Note: This is…
Louisiana has 64 parishes, and New Orleans sits in only one of them. That leaves 63 to explore. These are the small Louisiana towns that rarely make tourists’ itineraries but should. 1. Natchitoches Natchitoches predates New Orleans by four years, founded as a French fort and trading post on the Red River in 1714. That…
Think you can hike into the Grand Canyon in August and tough it out? The National Park Service tells hikers to stay off the inner canyon between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. in the summer, when the canyon floor can run up to 30 degrees hotter than the rim. That gap has cost hikers their…
McClure, Pennsylvania has served the same bean soup recipe out of cast-iron kettles for 133 years. It’s cooked over open fires, stirred by volunteers, and eaten by a crowd that’s shown up every September since a handful of Civil War veterans started the tradition. You’ll be hard-pressed to see a tour bus stopping there. These…
About four in ten Rockport residents stayed home in 2017 when Hurricane Harvey’s Category 4 winds were bearing down on the Texas coast. The acting mayor told those staying behind to write their names and Social Security numbers on their arms in marker. That’s how rescue crews would identify the bodies. Rockport wasn’t the last…
North Carolina has more than 250 named waterfalls in Transylvania County alone. The falls locals send visitors to don’t always match the postcard everybody already knows. These are the waterfalls the state’s oldest hiking club has already vetted as worth the trail, ranked by the hikers who’ve made the climb. 1. Rainbow Falls Rainbow Falls…
Alabama drivers taking the same road trip year after year fall into a familiar handful of habits each summer. Here’s how those habits cost them. Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Alabama’s traffic laws and fines are subject to change, so confirm the current rules with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. 1. Skipping…
North Carolina brewers spent decades locked under a 6% alcohol cap, a Prohibition-era law that made entire beer styles illegal to sell in the state. A grassroots campaign called Pop the Cap got that law rewritten in 2005. Now breweries can be more creative than ever. These are the North Carolina craft breweries worth planning…
Grand Strand rental agencies lock summer guests into Saturday-to-Saturday stays for the entire stretch from June through August, no exceptions. By September, the same oceanfront units are taking three-night weekend bookings with a Tuesday check-in. These are the things South Carolina’s beach towns do differently once the summer crowds leave. 1. Boardwalk Rides Slow to…
