I took my first-ever package tour this past week – a whirlwind five days in Beijing – and it was both better and worse than I had hoped.

On the one hand, I didn’t get “baby-sat” nearly as much as I expected: there were a couple of fixed events, but otherwise we were allowed to pretty well create our own schedules, and were mostly expected to get ourselves to and from our chosen activities. … Read more »

Security cameras are everywhere you travel these days — airports, bus stations, subways, inside taxis, street corners, stores; you name it, there’s probably a camera there to record you. However, if you turn around and point a camera back, something interesting happens — authorities get mad and, in some cases, you may well find yourself behind bars.

Knowing when you can and when you can’t … Read more »

If you’re lacking an outlet for your travel videos, look no further than National Geographic. They’ve just launched a user-generated video site called Everyday Explorers.

Share away. And while you’re at it, you might want to scan the other videos on the site to preview someplace on your “must visit” list. You can rate your favorite clips—they’ll get moved into the “Top Rated” category, alongside “Most Viewed” and “Editors’ Picks.”

The website … Read more »