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How to Know if a Barge Cruise in France Is Right for You

I’m just back from one of my favorite trips ever: a six-night, eight-passenger barge cruise on the Canal de Bourgogne. Too many people think a river cruise on a 160-passenger ship is their only option for traveling by inland waterway in Europe. They are missing out. France in particular has a big network of picture-postcard canals where intimate boats (4 to 12 passengers) glide from village to village, past medieval castles and old-world farms, with no cars in sight for long stretches. It’s like floating through a bygone era. The pace is so languid that you can actually walk faster than the barge goes. I enjoyed hopping off to walk or bike along the towpath, then hopping back on.

The biggest surprise for me was how the escargot’s pace of the barge forced me to relax more than I’ve been able to in years. We could have done the same sightseeing by car, sleeping in hotels—in fact, we could have driven from the village where we started (Vandenesse-en-Auxois) to the village where we ended (Plombières-lès-Dijon) in only 27 minutes!—but that would not have unwound us into the same state of deep relaxation.

A beautiful landscape of Vandenesse en Auxois Burgundy Canal barge.

We started our barge cruise in the village of Vandenesse-en-Auxois, France. Photo: Timothy Baker

Despite the slow pace, we actually covered a lot of territory, thanks to excursions by van each afternoon to historic sights, wineries, châteaux, and villages where we ended up visiting artisan studios, farmers’ markets, antique shops, cheesemakers…. One of my favorite excursions was to the Chateau de Commarin, where the same noble family that has owned it for 26 generations still lives today; below you can see the Count’s dog greeting me.

Most people would be surprised by the level of luxury, the modern creature comforts, and the exquisite cuisine on our barge. A private barge charter really is like having your own staffed vacation home, only with ever-changing views. And, because you wake up in a different village each day, there’s always someplace new to explore outside your door, yet there are no logistics to deal with.

Tim and I can’t wait to barge again: Next on our list is the Canal du Midi. Still, barging is not for everyone. I wouldn’t recommend it to families with toddlers or teens (who could get bored on the barge or need more exercise than just walking and biking), nor to anyone who requires a hotel gym. Nor would I recommend it to people who don’t like wine or cheese, given how much of it is served every day. (We tasted at least 40 wines and 40 cheeses during our six days.)

Wendy biking near a barge in the Burgundy canal in France.

Biking on the Canal de Bourgogne was easy and safe. Photo: Timothy Baker

There are three groups of travelers who I think could really benefit from barging:

A group of couples who get together each year and are looking for something different and fabulous.
A family group without kids that is looking for an especially scenic and logistically easy villa-style vacation.
Busy execs who must work on vacation. That’s because a barge lets you sightsee from your desk. I was able to sit on deck all morning, answering email on my laptop while bucolic scenery and history glided by, then take a break each afternoon for an excursion and gourmet pursuits.

If you’re an individual couple without a group, there are certain weeks of the year when barges will have availability for you, but most barge cruises are private charters (typically for a group of four, eight, or twelve). Barges are pretty much sold out for 2023, but there is still a lot of availability for 2024. If you’ve got questions about whether a barge trip is right for you, or if you could use a recommendation of the right boat, region, or itinerary for your needs, I’m happy to help via the Ask Wendy questionnaire.

Wendy at Chateau de Commarin in Burgundy, with a dog approaching her.

One of my favorite excursions was to the Château de Commarin, where the same noble family that has owned it for 26 generations still lives today (that’s the Count’s dog you see greeting me). Photo: Timothy Baker

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Paris Is Crowded: These Tips Will Save You Lines and Headaches

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I just spent the last ten days of April in France, including four days in Paris, and there are a few things that travelers should know. First, at no time did we see, nor were our plans affected by, the fiery protests or strikes you see in the news. Second, what we did see was a gazillion people in Paris. They were enjoying themselves immensely, but Paris was more crowded than I have ever seen before. Here’s what the banks of the Seine looked like last Saturday afternoon:

The crowds at Seine river bank in Paris, France.

The right bank of the Seine on Saturday, April 29, 2023. Photo: Timothy Baker

If you’re headed to France this spring, summer, or early fall, hopefully you took the advice we’ve been giving since January and you’re making reservations well in advance or, better yet, using a France expert with local clout who can spare you time-consuming logistics and get you past the lines and crowds. (You’ll find my France picks on The WOW List.) If you are going it on your own—as I did because those France experts are so busy helping you that I did not want to take up their time!—here are my tips.

A long line of people in Champ de Mars waiting in front of the public toilets.

I counted 21 people in line to use the toilets on the Champ de Mars on April 30, 2023. Photo: Wendy Perrin

Plan for things taking longer than usual.

Because of lines, security precautions, and masses of people in popular places, things take longer than they used to. So, if you’re taking the kids this summer, don’t think you’ll be able to do three major sights per day; you’ll be lucky to do two. The line for the public toilets in the Champ de Mars last Sunday (above) says it all.

Guard against pickpockets.

Where there are crowds, there are pickpockets. Within an hour of our landing at Charles de Gaulle, my husband Tim’s iPhone was stolen (somewhere between Terminal 1 and the RER train platform at Terminal 3). The airport police, the guy at the Apple Store on the Champs-Élysées, and signs all over the Metro conveyed that there is a lot of pickpocketing in Paris now. Our hotel concierge said it’s especially bad at the Paris Flea Market, where Tim and I also went. For the rest of our time in Paris, I kept my iPhone zipped into an interior pocket in my jacket.

A photo of the Rodin Museum with the Sculpture Garden in Paris.

The Sculpture Garden of the Rodin Museum was a peaceful spot in Paris on Sunday, April 30, 2023. Photo: Timothy Baker

Seek out quieter spots.

There are so many lesser-known, charming parks and museums in Paris! At the same time that the Champ de Mars was so busy, the Square d’Ajaccio, a serene and flowery little park with an Eiffel Tower view next to the Hôtel des Invalides (a 15-minute walk away), was empty. I know this because I stopped there en route to the Rodin Museum’s leafy Sculpture Garden on Sunday afternoon (above), which had no wait to buy tickets and had plenty of peaceful corners and unoccupied benches.

Book timed entry tickets.

They’re needed at the most popular museums. As for the Eiffel Tower, even if you buy timed tickets, you’ll still have lines and waits.

The Eiffel Tower comes with its own unique quandaries. Buying advance tickets means taking the risk that your time slot could coincide with rain or foggy weather that ruins your views. That’s why my advice for years has been to wait for a clear day with great visibility, then arrive before opening time and buy tickets to take the stairs to the 2nd floor (the 674-step walk yields fascinating views and perspectives on the city, and you can take it slowly), then ride the elevator from the 2nd floor to the top. In the past, I’ve never seen any line for buying stairs tickets. But now, based on the length of the stairs-tickets line last Sunday afternoon (below), my strategy may no longer work.

A line of people waiting to buy stairs tickers for the Eiffel Tower

The stairs-tickets line at the Eiffel Tower on Sunday afternoon, April 30, 2023. Photo: Wendy Perrin

Signs said that that line was an hour long. More signs, at more ticket-buying lines, warned: “The top floor may be closed to visitors during busy times to limits on capacity. Delay more than 45 minutes on the second floor.”

Personally, the next time I go to the Eiffel Tower without help from a WOW List France specialist, I’ll book a table at the (Michelin-starred) Jules Verne restaurant on the 2nd floor. It’s got its own elevator with no line.

Or consider ascending the Tower at night. Visitors are currently being admitted until 11:45 pm, so you could see the City of Light illuminated.

Just across the Seine, the Trocadéro—with its famous Eiffel Tower views—was terribly crowded too but as good a people-watching spot as ever. We saw a just-married couple in traditional Korean wedding costume posing for photos, watched a man get down on one knee and propose to his stunned girlfriend, and saw dances performed by a group of girls from Germany.

German dancers on Trocadero in front of the Eiffel Tower.

A group of dancers from Berlin performed at the Trocadéro near the Eiffel Tower on April 30, 2023. Photo: Wendy Perrin

In stark contrast to Paris, the idyllic villages of Burgundy where I spent my other six days in France, floating through the countryside on a barge, were blissfully empty! Here’s what the barge cruise was like.

12 Ways Your Phone’s Camera Can Prevent Travel Headaches

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We all know that snapping photographs of your travels is a great use of your mobile phone. Here’s what I’ve learned: Beyond capturing the beautiful moments, phones can also help you avoid many travel headaches. On your next trip, whip out your smartphone camera and shoot the following photos. It will take only a few seconds and could save you wasted time—and even hundreds of dollars—later in your trip.

1. Snap a photo of your parking spot at the airport.
When you return from your trip jet-lagged and foggy, you’ll know the floor/row where you parked your car.

2. Snap a photo of your luggage before handing it to the airline check-in agent.
If your bag gets lost, you’ll have a photo to help the airline identify it. You also may want to take a photo of the contents: If you have to file a claim for a lost suitcase, you’ll need a description of every item that was in it.

3. Snap a photo of your passport identification page.
If you lose your passport, this will help you quickly procure a replacement.

4. Snap a photo of the transit system map in the foreign city you’re visiting.
That way you can refer to it as often as you need to, without worrying about Wi-Fi access, while exploring the city.

Signs underground in Budapest’s subway system

5. Snap a photo of your hotel’s business card or your cruise ship’s location in your current port of call.
This will come in handy if you need help finding your way back.

6. Snap a photo (several, actually) of your rental car before driving it off the lot.
Document any and all dents and scratches on the car at pick-up, and again at drop-off, in case the rental agency later tries to bill you for damage you didn’t do.

Document rental-car returns with your camera, especially if the rental office is unmanned and you can’t get a receipt.

7. Snap a photo of signs or placards you may want to refer to later.
Do your brain a favor and photograph any signs that provide traveler help, technical instructions, regional context, or historical information that you might want to remember. (If they’re written in a foreign language, the Google Lens function in the Google Translate app can convert the text in your photo to English.)

8. Snap a photo of any expensive souvenirs you buy and ship home.
If your purchase never arrives, or if it arrives damaged, you’ll want a photo documenting what you bought.

9. Snap a photo of any souvenir you almost buy but don’t because it’s too expensive.
At least you can enjoy the memory (or, if you change your mind, order it from the merchant later). Of course, whenever you see a local artisan handcrafting a souvenir you’re going to buy, snap a photo of them making it (but always ask for their permission first).

Photograph signs (such as this one in Newfoundland) with directional info you’ll want to remember.

10. Snap a photo of your children each morning of the trip.
If they get lost, you can show authorities what they look like and what they’re wearing.

11. Snap a photo of the objects your children make or collect during the trip that can’t be transported back home.
Such photos will go a long way toward mollifying your kids when they are forced to leave their treasures behind.

12. Snap a photo of your rental home upon departure.
Avoid unexpected fees by taking photos that show you left the house and its contents in good condition.

Tell me: What did I forget? How else can you use a smartphone camera to prevent or minimize travel headaches?

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Planning a River Cruise: 7 Mistakes You Think You’re Too Smart to Make

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Contemplating a river trip in Europe? A river cruise is a scenic and effortless way to travel, for sure, but take heed: Many of the rules that apply when choosing a hotel or a big ocean cruise ship don’t carry over to river boats. To get the best value for your dollar, here are seven things to keep in mind.

Mistake No. 1: Splurging on a balcony

Panoramic view from Avalon Alegria in Suite 2.

The Panorama Suite on Avalon’s river vessels is one of the nicest afloat. Instead of a small balcony, its French verandah, which extends to the width of the room, makes your whole stateroom feel like a balcony. Photo via Avalon.

You’d probably assume a balcony is critical—for the view, the fresh air, the photo ops, the extra space, the privacy. A balcony is a big plus at a resort and on a huge ocean ship, but on river boats it can actually be a drawback: River ships have a width limit (so that they can fit through locks), which means that cabins can only be so wide, which in turn means that a balcony takes away from your interior room space. If it’s chilly or raining—as it sometimes is—you’ll value the interior room space more than the balcony. Also, a balcony lets you see only one side of a river, whereas elsewhere on the ship you can see both sides at once. And who wants to miss half a river?

This is why many savvy river cruisers opt for a “French balcony” instead of an “outside balcony.” A French balcony is a glass door or wall-to-wall window that opens to give you fresh air and the feel of a veranda, minus the outside floor, tables, and chairs. The best such pseudo-balcony I’ve seen is on Avalon Waterways’ newer ships. The outside wall of the cabin is floor-to-ceiling glass that stretches 11 feet wide and slides open 7 feet wide. Basically, it turns your whole room into a veranda.

Avalon calls these cabins “Panorama Suites.” Technically, they’re not actually suites: Each is one room that measures 200 square feet and has a comfy sitting area (a chair, a loveseat, and a table) overlooking the water. The bed faces the view—a bed position that is unusual for river ships and is a nice touch, as the view is the first thing you see when you wake in the morning (unless you’ve drawn the curtains, you’re in a lock, or another ship is parked alongside you—which is a reason why most people do draw their curtains at night).

With cabins that transform into open-air terraces, who needs a balcony?

Mistake No. 2: Assuming that your whole itinerary is on the river

The beauty of a river cruise is that it’s a picturesque and easy way to see towns and cities along a river. Typically, the ship drops you off in town, and you can choose to walk around and explore on your own (always my preference) or take a walking tour or bus tour with a group from the ship. Sometimes passengers are bussed to sights an hour or two (or more) away from the river. And sometimes those bus tours can mean missing whole stretches of the river. On the Seine, for instance, opting for the bus tour to Honfleur or Normandy’s WW2 landing beaches could mean missing a picturesque stretch of the river because the bus picks you up at one port and drops you off at the next. (Which is why, on one cruise, I opted not to go to Honfleur or the landing beaches.)

One of the most scenic spots on the Seine River is the approach to the village of Les Andelys. Photo by Carolyn Spencer Brown

So find out whether the cruise line and itinerary you’re considering may force you to choose between the river itself and the sights away from it—and whether those stretches of river are not-to-be-missed picturesque or okay-to-miss industrial. A good cruise director will answer these questions honestly and accurately, and Google Earth can help too. If the cruise director can’t tell you which stretches of the river are most interesting, do what I do—even though technically it’s not allowed: Knock on the wheelhouse door, make friends with the captain, and ask them (at a moment when they’re not busy steering around barges or into locks). Captains always know.

Don’t bother spending precious time attempting to find out where your ship will dock in each town. We choose hotels for their location, of course—so it’s understandable that you’d want to know where a ship will be situated—but, for the most part, they all dock in the same spot. Some ships might have better real estate in certain cities. In Budapest, for instance, Viking’s spot is right under the Chain Bridge. As a general rule, though, all the ships park in pretty much the same area—and, to some degree, where they park can’t be known far ahead anyway. In Passau aboard Viking, we docked in one spot and then later the ship moved several slips downriver.

Mistake No. 3: Insisting that your ship have a gym and a pool

I want these in a hotel or on a giant cruise ship as much as the next person, but the fact is, on river ships, you rarely see anyone in the gym (which is tiny and only minimally equipped) or the pool (which is equally tiny except on some Uniworld ships that have gorgeous indoor pools and some AmaWaterways ships that have a relatively spacious pool with a swim-up bar). There just isn’t enough time to use the gym or pool, as you’re off the ship exploring all day. And if you’re not off the ship, chances are either it’s nighttime or you’re gliding down a significant stretch of river that you won’t want to miss.

AmaWaterways is one of the few river lines that have pools on the top decks of its ships. Photo by Wendy Perrin

Cruise-line execs keep gyms and pools on ships as marketing tools to get travelers to choose their ship, but the reality is that you likely won’t end up using either. That’s because there are so many opportunities to get exercise off the ship: Some lines carry bicycles and offer cycling tours. Others lend out Nordic walking sticks for ambitious strolling and hiking. And check with your ship’s cruise manager; oftentimes they’ll know where in port you can go to swim or get a massage at a resort or day spa.

Mistake No. 4: Choosing a ship based on the number of passengers
Most people I know, when choosing a hotel or an oceangoing cruise ship, veer away from anything too huge. But on Europe’s rivers there are pretty much only two sizes of cruise ship: 110-meter vessels (which hold about 128 passengers each) and 135-meter vessels (which hold about 166 passengers each). Viking’s longships squeeze 190 passengers onto a 135-meter ship, which competing cruise lines say make it feel crowded. Honestly, though, I sailed on a 190-passenger Viking ship and, other than chairs spaced close together in the observation lounge and trouble finding seats for my party of four at dinner one night, the ship didn’t feel crowded to me. (Then again, I grew up in Manhattan, so my definition of “crowded” may differ from yours.) Nor did I experience less personal service on Viking, partly because Viking (unlike other river cruise lines) has a dedicated concierge who provides such service.

Most ships that ply the Danube and Rhine are similarly laid out (with a few exceptions), so choose your cruise based on the destinations, not the ship itself. Photo via Viking .

There is an exception to this rule. AmaWaterways designed its AmaMagna, which debuted in 2019, to be almost double the width of the standard riverboat on the Danube. The plus? It’s got more amenities, such as more spacious suites, four different restaurants, a sundeck pool and whirlpool, a juice bar, two massage rooms as part of a zen wellness studio and, new this year, a pickleball court. The minus? This ship, due to its size, is limited to a stretch of ports along the Danube that don’t involve locks. Still, it can travel from Germany through Austria, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania, so the options aren’t severely limited.

If I were you, instead of choosing among river ships based on the number of passengers, I’d choose based on factors that I think will affect your trip more—namely, itinerary, river landscape, cabin type, and like-minded fellow passengers.

Mistake No. 5: Booking the least expensive cabin
In a hotel it can make sense: Choose the lowest-category room at a fabulous property, so you can take advantage of everything the hotel offers, and use the room just for sleeping. On a river cruise, though, the least expensive cabin can be really tight—170 square feet or less—with small windows that don’t open. It’s usually worth the several hundred dollars more to get a French balcony. The aforementioned Avalon “Panorama Suite” cabins cost about $100 more per person per day than the ship’s lowest-category rooms. They’re worth it.

View of the Avalon Alegria Deluxe Stateroom.

On river vessels, the cheapest staterooms are on the lowest deck and though they have windows, there’s not much of a view (this one is on an Avalon riverboat).

Mistake No. 6: Assuming you can dine on your own
In a hotel or on a megaship, it’s easy to stick to yourselves, but on a river ship, there’s a lot of forced socializing. Every night there’s a four-course (at least), two-hour (at least) dinner where you’re seated at tables with other passengers, some of whom you just met. I’ve made some great friends at these chance meetings, but I’ve also been stuck with some louts. Viking is the only river line I have traveled on that provides an alternative venue where you can grab a half-hour dinner on your own if you just don’t feel like making chit-chat with strangers.

Viking’s Aquavit Terrace offers a casual dining alternative to its main restaurants. Photo via Viking.

AmaWaterways offers some options—typically a light breakfast or lunch option is available to grab and go from its lounges. And its new ship, AmaMagna, which is twice the size of traditional river boats, offers more dining options than any other vessel on the Danube.

Mistake No. 7: Assuming there’s room service
Room service is a given in hotels, and it’s usually free on ocean cruise ships, but on river ships it barely exists. On certain ships, in certain cabins, you can get a room-service breakfast. Avalon offers a complimentary continental breakfast option. Room service for lunch or dinner is rare, but Avalon does offer (again, complimentary) an option based on the day’s menus. You do have to order from the front desk, but the food will arrive at your stateroom.

On most ships, early morning coffee and continental breakfast are available in the observation lounge starting at about 6 a.m.

Don’t expect to find an in-room coffee machine in most river-ship cabins. You really don’t need one, though: Every vessel I’ve sailed on has a fancy coffee machine mid-ship (either off the lobby or in the observation lounge) that whips up espressos, cappuccinos, and machiattos, plus there’s hot chocolate, an assortment of teas, and snacks such as cookies and fruit. In fact, on the Avalon Tapestry II, there are two such coffee set-ups—one in the front lounge, one in the back lounge. Which means coffee is never more than 15 seconds away.

Finally, one mistake you are too smart to make: Assuming the Wi-Fi will work at all times
The good news: The Wi-Fi on river ships is free. The bad news: It comes and goes, depending on whether you’re in a lock or on a remote stretch of the river or the other passengers are sucking up all the bandwidth. Where you’ll have Wi-Fi and where you won’t is unpredictable—and none of the river lines are better or worse at providing it—so just know that, generally speaking, your best windows of connectivity are when you’re not in a lock and other passengers are off the ship or have gone to sleep. Know that coffee shops in towns along the way offer better and free Wi-Fi. Another option is to bring a portable modem that connects with systems on land. You can also pre-purchase international packages via your Wi-Fi provider that enable you to use your phone as a modem.

Also know that nobody requires more frequent Wi-Fi than I do, and a river ship is actually one of the best working environments I know: You can sit at your laptop for hours yet have an ever-changing view.

START PLANNING A RIVER CRUISE

This article was updated and fact-checked in March 2023. It was originally published in 2015.

Honeymoon Ideas That Are Truly Special

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Daydreaming about a honeymoon is exciting, but planning it can be stressful: Expectations are high, yet—thanks to that other big event you’re organizing—the amount of bandwidth and time you have for planning are low. To make things easier, we’ve combed through our travelers’ trip reviews—meaning, feedback from the travelers who have used our WOW system to get VIP’d and get the best trips possible—to find honeymoon ideas worldwide to inspire you. These honeymoons were easy to plan, magical, and delivered the special treatment that all honeymooners deserve. Get inspired, even if you’re a longtime married couple. Who says you can’t go on a honeymoon every year?

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Tahiti, Moorea, and Bora Bora—because there’s no place dreamier than French Polynesia…if you plan it right!

Overwater bungalow and dock over turquoise water in Bora Bora, French Polynesia.

Bora Bora, French Polynesia. Photo: Shutterstock

“We married and honeymooned in French Polynesia. Kleon is a compassionate man who truly listened to all our quirks and wants and dreams, and then he turned them into a reality. He added experiences to our trip that brought me to tears because they were so beautiful. Each step of the journey just kept getting better and better.

As far as value, I joined Facebook groups for travel to French Polynesia and was surprised to see the cost others booked their travel for. Our travel costs were about the same, but we had upgraded rooms, drivers, guides, day rooms, etc., where others were asking for suggestions for where/when to go to various places, what to do with overlong layovers, etc. We never had to wonder where to go or what to do. We are ever so appreciative, and we would recommend Kleon to everyone!” —Margaret Arnold and Carl Hammerle

Read more reviews of French Polynesia trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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France, Monaco, Italy & Switzerland—for a road trip with romantic views, meals, and chateaux

Beautiful architecture in Saint Paul de Vence in Provence, south France.

Saint Paul de Vence in Provence, France. Photo: Shutterstock

“My husband and I booked a very special trip, our honeymoon, with Philip this past December. We wanted to do a road trip through Europe. Our trip consisted of multiple moving parts, and Philip helped give us the honeymoon of our dreams. My husband and I wanted to enjoy romantic, luxurious hotels, and every single one Philip booked was incredible. What was so nice was he made sure each was different as not to compete with each other. Each time we arrived at a new place we both could not stop smiling and saying “Wow”!

We started off in Geneva, Switzerland, where we kicked off our trip with a Christmas market that was across the street from our hotel. Our next stop was Gstaad, which felt like a winter wonderland. After that we drove to Chamonix, where we stayed in what was my husband’s dream spot at the top of Mount Blanc. It was truly something, we had to take the most charming red train to get to our hotel. The stars there were unlike any we had ever seen. After Chamonix we drove to Fossano, Italy, where we visited a castle and stayed in a suite that felt as if we were in an old Italian romance novel.

Next, we went to Monte Carlo, where our hotel key gave us access to the Monte Carlo Country Club. My husband is an avid tennis fan and this was really special for us. We enjoyed the famous American Bar, and the people of Monte Carlo couldn’t have been nicer or more welcoming. We stayed on the top floor and had the most incredible view of the city and water. We even were across from Rafa Nadal’s suite.

Following Monte Carlo we went to St Paul de Vence, where we relaxed in a spa hotel with a Mediterranean influence. Our trip’s pace started to slow down a bit on this second half which was really nice. Philip was able to get us reservations for meals at some exceptional places. Next was Aix in Provence where we stayed at a dreamy chateau. After that we went to Avignon where we stayed across from the Pope’s Palace. It felt as if we were in a castle. We had a car and it was very difficult driving through the narrow roads, but we made it and it was a fun part to look back on. We ended our trip in Paris on New Year’s Eve. It was a trip of a lifetime and we both were thrilled with our experience.

I don’t think we could have planned such a remarkable trip without Philip’s help, knowledge, and expertise. We had just planned our destination wedding and were a bit planned out. We wanted something to remember forever, that would blow us both away. This trip delivered and then some. We are so grateful for your recommendation, and look forward to booking another trip in the future! Thank you so much!!” —Margaret Harvey

Read more reviews of France trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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France—for WW2 history in Normandy and family-owned wineries in Burgundy

Etretat in Normandy. Photo: Fernando Grilli

“We had a wonderful honeymoon with Philip’s team. We had a great itinerary that helped us check many things off our bucket list and even add a few new things to it. From Bayeux in Normandy, we took a D-Day tour with a guide who had interviewed veterans of WW2, as well as people living in the area, and amassed a collection of stories that make the sites come alive and give you a more intimate connection to the events.

Another guide, Giselle, who came to France as a college student at the Sorbonne and has a doctorate in history, made Mont St Michel so interesting. We learned about the medical texts that were amassed there during the time of the abbey and how this knowledge was lost in the French Revolution when much was burned and destroyed. We saw the tides, and Giselle shared stories of how she has twice had to call for helicopters to rescue people.

From Normandy, we arrived in Beaune in Burgundy, and we met Brendan, a Brit who has been living in France for over 30 years. He started as a barge captain and has since become an expert on the wines of France. He has personal relationships with numerous wineries large and small. We saw the famous vineyards of Romanée-Conti and visited other vineyards and wineries. We mostly had tastings with smaller family houses that do not export to the U.S. We sat with family members tasting 5-15 different wines at each house. Each afternoon we were treated to a picnic consisting of local charcuterie and wine in a beautiful spot. At Domaine Daniel Séguinot et Filles, we sat at the table with the family and the bottlers who came in their special truck to bottle last year’s wine. Daniel is quite the character who kept bringing different wines, from premier cru to village appellation and different vintages.

We then moved north to Chablis and stayed at Chateau Vault De Lugny, a family-run hotel with a one-starred Michelin restaurant on site. From this location, we continued with Brendan and visited other family wineries and learned about the northern wines of Burgundy. We left feeling knowledgeable and with a better understanding of wine in general. Mostly we left with a huge appreciation of the families who have inherited and continue this vocation steeped in history, hard work, and a bit of the magic that the land gives to each vineyard, depending on where they are located.

We then had a driver take us to Paris to finish our honeymoon. We had planned this portion ourselves but were surprised with a WOW Moment: We were picked up and driven to a lovely afternoon cruise on the Seine, dining on a 3-course meal with a wine pairing from Alain Ducasse. It was a wonderful treat as we dined on gourmet food and wonderful wine, and cruised past some of Paris’ iconic sites.” —JoEllen Shelden

Read more reviews of France trips. Learn how to get your own WOW Moment. Or use our trip questionnaire (reached via the black button below) to start a WOW trip.

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Sri Lanka and the Maldives—for “relaxation, adventure, culture, food, and luxury”

Beach views from Gili Lankanfushi, Maldives. Photo: Gili Lankanfushi

“Miguel did an amazing job planning our honeymoon to Sri Lanka and the Maldives. We provided him with a rough idea of what we were looking for— a combination of relaxation, adventure, culture, food, and luxury—and he put together an outstanding trip. Not having to think about the itinerary, timing, schedule, etc., is a luxury in itself! We simply were told when to show up and where and then went along for the ride! Miguel and his team were extremely helpful in arranging our accommodation in the Maldives, even negotiating an upgrade to half-board.

And Sri Lanka, for those who are considering it, is a special country that blew us away. It is amazing how so much history, culture, and diverse scenery fit into one tiny island. The people and food (food!!) were also a delight. We traveled the end of September through the first week of October, which was considered ‘shoulder season.’ We had AMAZING weather that was not too hot/humid and only experienced a spot shower or two. The crowds were light, so we never felt like cattle call through the sites. I cannot recommend visiting this nation enough… especially before more catch on to its charm!” —Shelley Devinny

Read more reviews of Sri Lanka trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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Portugal—where even 19 days will leave you wanting more

Lisbon, Portugal skyline with Sao Jorge Castle

Lisbon, Portugal. Photo: Shutterstock

“Wendy calls it ‘The WOW List’ for a reason. Gonçalo crafted the trip of a lifetime for my new husband and me. We worked with him while deep in wedding planning, and he was extremely patient and responsive with us throughout the entire process, making our 19-day Portugal honeymoon the light at the end of the tunnel. I spoke with Gonçalo over the phone to kick things off, describing our interests and the cities we were wanting to visit. He was super kind and honest, letting us know what would be closed or perhaps unsafe to reach during the winter holiday (we traveled in the low season of December/January), but providing comparable options in other regions. We received the most well-thought-out and organized itinerary from him. It was the perfect balance of must-sees, off-the-beaten-path suggestions, and open days to relax and explore.

Over the course of the trip, we stayed at four properties, three of which were booked through Gonçalo (one was through my job, as I work at a hotel company) and, boy, were we treated like royalty. The properties were not only gorgeous and in prime locations, but we were upgraded to suites at each of them because they knew it was our honeymoon. We were also left various treats in our room on multiple occasions at each of the properties. To this day, we’re still talking about it!

It was very important to us to be able to experience Portugal’s wine regions, as Portuguese wines are our favorite to drink at home. Gonçalo arranged for three private tastings and tours for us, including a very special morning at Taylors in Porto. To explore Lisbon and Porto, Gonçalo arranged for private tour guides to show us around in style. For the sheer length of our trip and all that we did and indulged in, we felt that the prices were incredibly reasonable. Now we’re aching to go back. Forever grateful.” —Danielle Berman

Read more reviews of Portugal trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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Tuscany and Florence—because all honeymooners should get to sleep in a medieval tower

Chiesa di San Biagio standing in a green landscape of Montepulciano Italy Tuscany

Chiesa di San Biagio, Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy. Photo: Shutterstock

“With all the details we had to consider for the wedding, I didn’t want to feel overwhelmed by also researching and planning a big trip. Wendy Perrin’s WOW List made it easy to find a travel expert for Italy, and then it was simply a matter of describing my dream trip and hitting the submit button. Maria then emailed me to set up a phone call so we could discuss in more detail what we wanted to accomplish. Trying delicious food and wine were at the top of our list, but we also wanted to see the top landmarks and achieve a nice balance of art, culture, architecture and history. The itinerary she sent back was perfect and took all the stress out of the equation. Maria also provided location guides for both Rome and Florence, with suggestions for sightseeing, shopping and restaurants during our leisure time.

When we walked into our hotel room in Florence, in a 13th-century medieval tower, we jumped up and down because it was so awesome. The hotel even surprised us with a bottle of champagne on ice and snacks. Our favorite experiences of the trip included a lunch at a small family-owned vineyard and a cooking class in a private olive grove.

Without the help of Maria and her team, we wouldn’t have access to special experiences like these. Everything in our itinerary went according to plan, and we never had to worry about a thing. We are so happy we splurged, and are already dreaming of our next trip to Italy.” —Megan Sullivan

Read more reviews of Italy trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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Egypt—without the crowds and with a hot-air balloon ride over Luxor

Queen Hatshepsut's mortuary temple in Luxor as seen from our hot air balloon just after dawn Egypt.

Hot air balloon, Luxor, Egypt. Photo: Stephen Behnen

“We haven’t even unpacked our bags from our Honeymoon tour of Egypt and we are already planning to return for another one! Arlene, Jim, and everyone on the ground in Egypt did a spectacular job making us feel cared for, and the trip went off without a hitch, even in these uncertain times. Our Egyptologists (Reham and Bassem) were so knowledgeable and on top of their game that we would often have temples to ourselves, avoiding all other crowds. Our only regret is that we didn’t extend our trip for another extra week. If you’re considering taking this tour to Egypt, just book it. You will not regret it. And don’t forget to add a hot-air balloon ride over Luxor. I promise it will be magical!” —Rebecca Switzer

Read more reviews of Egypt trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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Tropical Asia—for an adventure “perfect in concept, orchestration, imagination, and detail”

Sunrise at Angkor Wat. Photo: Shutterstock

“Sandy planned a honeymoon trip for me and my bride to Cambodia, Laos, the southern islands of Thailand, and Bangkok. The experience he crafted was perfect: perfect in concept, orchestration, imagination and detail. I say this as a veteran traveler—I speak French and Spanish, have worked and lived in Paris, and have traveled throughout Europe, South and Central America, and to Hong Kong. Sandy’s work was the best I’ve had yet, and his in-country guides are thoughtful, dedicated folk who add their own magical touches to the experience. It is clear that he is very close to them and their families and cares a great deal about them. It is also very clear that he worked closely with them to make our experience into the adventure we’d hoped for.

I thought it might be helpful to describe a few of his guides that met us along our journey. Kheleur, our guide to Angkor Wat and Cambodia—welcoming, gentle, accommodating and masterful in his plans, and a subject matter expert in the temples. We loved how he created seamless transitions between touring and our wild events (for example, candle-lit dinners on rural tropical estates, sunset cocktails on the water about Angkor Thom) as much as we loved the archeological tours, evening cruises and dinners themselves. The boat tour and the villa dinner merit special praise—he made them appear as if magically created. The midday respite to allow for physical training (and swimming and napping) was brilliant.

Ek and Paan, our guides in Luang Prabang and the Laos countryside—warm, kind, absurdly welcoming. We were treated as family—I felt unworthy! They gave us love and generosity. Ek sparkles with goodwill and joie-de-vivre. He also seems to know every single person in town. When we threw a wrench into the plans he had made for us (we changed a lunch site and some afternoon touring) he cheerfully accommodated—and facilitated—our wishes as if it were nothing at all.

We loved Pablo, our guide in Thailand and Bangkok. Enthusiastic, a careful listener, an eager and engaged teacher of Thai culture and history, a gentleman whose goodwill and blithe spirit are as radiant as his smile. I am sure he has brought hundreds to the same five temples, has taken the same longboat cruise every week for years, and could apply for permanent citizenship at the flower market. You would be unable to tell—at each stop of the white van, he would genuinely brighten as he shared our discovery of each new scene. Truly, the journey Sandy crafted for us was educational, exciting, restorative. Cannot recommend highly enough.” —Charlie Mize

Read more reviews of Southeast Asia trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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Costa Rica—for “stunning nature and wildlife”

beach, coastline lined with green jungle at Costa Rica Carrillo and Samara Beaches in Costa Rica

A beach near Nosara, on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast. Photo: Shutterstock

“When we approached Irene in order to plan our trip to Costa Rica, she asked us in great detail about our lives, hobbies, and passions. We wanted an authentic and adventurous trip where we could immerse ourselves in the local culture and experience the stunning nature and wildlife. We began our trip by going to Irene’s mother’s house on the way to the Arenal volcano region. She was so welcoming and taught us how to make homemade tortillas and prepared an amazing Costa Rican lunch filled with Gallo pintos, chicken, yucca, etc.

In the Arenal region, Irene arranged for a beautiful hotel at the base of the volcano amongst the natural hot springs. It was an authentic Tico experience—Pura Vida all the way. We went ziplining, white water rafting, rappelling, and on a hanging bridge and wildlife tour. All in three days. It was amazing!!!

We then headed to Costa Rica’s Pacific side and to Nosara, a vibrant local beach village without major resorts or attractions but with everything we wanted. We surfed every day and stayed in an open-air hotel right on the beach, with a different menu each day and amazing staff. We also got to see thousands of sea turtles arriving to lay their eggs, which only happens once or twice a year, for a few days!

Irene ensured we got the perfect honeymoon and that it was entirely hassle-free. We now are hoping to make this trip at least every two years and would not dream of doing so without her.” —John Allen Mixon

Read more reviews of Costa Rica trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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South Africa and Mauritius—for a two-week safari-beach combo

An elephant family at Singita Kruger, Kruger National Park.

“My wife and I used Julian to plan our honeymoon to South Africa. We went away for two full weeks, and Julian provided thoughtful recommendations that met all our needs, from city exploration to adventure to relaxation. Our trip started in Cape Town, where we stayed at the gorgeous Cape Grace, then we headed to Kruger National Park where we stayed four nights on safari at Arathusa and Tintswalo—beautiful game reserves with excellent service and incredible sights. Then we stayed one night in Johannesburg at the African Rock Hotel, a gorgeous boutique hotel. Finally, we finished in Mauritius on the most beautiful beach at the One & Only. From start to finish, every single detail was accounted for, and all our transfers were seamless. We didn’t have to worry about a thing.” —William Giordano

Read more reviews of South Africa trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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Bali—for gorgeous scenery, snorkeling, cooking classes…

Green rice fields on Bali island Indonesia

Green rice fields on Bali island. Photo: Shutterstock

“My husband and I just returned from the most fabulous honeymoon in Bali. Diane arranged the perfect trip—which had us stay in three different parts of the island to enjoy all the activities we were interested in. Both her planning and hotel suggestions were fabulous. From snorkeling to cooking classes, we enjoyed so much on this gorgeous island. We had a wonderful guide who enlightened and took great care of us. The Ubud Village Resort and Hotel Tugu are two of the most incredible places I have ever stayed and I would recommend both Diane and those gorgeous properties to anyone.” —Amy Rosoff

Read more reviews of Bali trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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Puerto Vallarta, Mexico—for a beautiful beachfront all-inclusive

aerial view of green coastline and ocean of Puerto Vallarta Mexico with hotels

Puerto Vallarta. Photo: Hotel Mousai

“Zach and his team, did an amazing job helping us plan our honeymoon to Mexico. They provided us many options to choose from in different areas of Mexico, with great tips on places to go and stay, and things to do in each place. It was through their vigilance that we found our eventual resort, Hotel Mousai.

This particular resort was not even on our radar until they brought it to our attention. But it completely blew us away with how amazingly beautiful it was, especially with its views of the coast surrounding the Puerto Vallarta area. They arranged for our stay, as well as our transportation to and from the airport, including transportation to and from the maritime terminal. Overall, we had a great experience on our trip, in large part because of Zach’s excellent service.” —Patrick Kirkendall

Read more reviews of Mexico trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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The Maldives—where you can get more and pay less by using the right trip designer

Imagine two full weeks here in the Maldives. Photo: Shutterstock

“We went to Maldives for our honeymoon. We spent two full weeks there— 7 days at Emerald Maldives and 7 days at Amilla Fushi. We are older and this is our second marriage, so I wanted to make sure everything went smoothly. I reached out to Wendy Perrin and she assigned Justin to help us arrange the trip. He was extremely helpful and responsive. He recommended the two resorts we stayed at, plus some additional ones (and maybe we should have taken his advice more closely). He made all the arrangements and even got us some additional upgrades. I would highly recommend using a trip planner. There was no additional cost to us and, in fact, we got more and paid less than if we tried to do it on our own.” —Allen Bartman

Read more reviews of Maldives trips. To get your own WOW trip, start with our trip questionnaire, reached via the black button below.

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Australia and New Zealand: “A dream come true…”

View of the Hauraki Gulf sea, taken from the Owhanake Coastal Track on Waiheke Island, New Zealand. Photo: Shutterstock

New Zealand’s Waiheke Island is affectionately known as the Island of Wine; locals take the ferry from Auckland for relaxed afternoons and long lunches. Photo: Shutterstock

“Stuart and his team in Australia and New Zealand made our honeymoon trip a dream come true. Highlights included a driver and guide, Adil, to Auckland’s spectacular West Coast Beaches where we saw many gannets in their natural environment. Another was a day on Waiheke Island. We had a very knowledgeable guide, Geoff, who has, as we do, a big interest in wines. He guided us to three vineyards, all different in style, including a wonderful lunch at one. We had great tours of Sydney and Bondi Beach, as well as a day hiking in the Blue Mountains with locals who have lived in these places their entire life. So much knowledge!

Thank you to Stuart and to Wendy Perrin for a gorgeous WOW Moment—we really appreciate it. We had no idea what was happening until our driver delivered us to the Rose Bay Seaplane sight for our flight over Sydney and the surrounding beaches. Tom and I both love flying so our introduction to Sydney in this way was so amazing. We were the only two passengers and Tom sat in the co-pilot seat, enabling him to take fantastic photos of the beautiful city below us. The weather was perfect that day. It was over the top in every way!” —Susan Ketchum

Read more reviews of Australia trips. Learn how to get your own WOW Moment. Or use our trip questionnaire (reached via the black button below) to start a WOW trip.

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Secrets to a Family-Friendly Trip to Egypt

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When you use our Trip Questionnaire to get a WOW trip, you start by articulating your trip goals and challenges. That’s what Brook did when planning her kid-friendly adventure in Egypt. You can find the right Trip Questionnaire for you via The WOW List’s CONTACT buttons.

My trip request:
Seeing the Pyramids had long been my son Zeke’s dream. Egypt has been marked with a special pushpin on the world map in his bedroom since he was seven. When Zeke turned 11, we decided it was time to make his dream come true. We needed a kid-friendly itinerary for Egypt that hit all the highlights while avoiding the post-pandemic tourist crowds that afflict those iconic spots.

Biggest trip goals:
I had two goals: to make three-dimensional the ancient history Zeke had been learning about from textbooks, and to show him a slice of the country’s contemporary life.

Biggest trip challenges:
People from all corners of the globe want to see the last remaining wonder of the ancient world, so Egypt’s sights are notoriously crowded. I needed an itinerary that would allow us to avoid the lines, crowds, and tour-bus gridlock, fill our days with enough physical activity to burn kid energy, and keep Zeke from missing too much school.

Getting there:
We were starting in San Francisco. We thought about connecting in New York (JFK) to the EgyptAir nonstop to Cairo, but decided against it because we were nervous about domestic flight delays possibly interfering with our connection to an international flight. Instead, we flew nonstop from San Francisco to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines, spent a restful six hours at the YOTEL hotel on the airside of the airport (no need to pass through security), then connected for a short flight to Cairo.

The basic itinerary:
We contacted Egypt specialist Jim Berkeley via The WOW List. He timed our trip for Thanksgiving week, so that Zeke would miss only four days of school. Jim designed our 10-day itinerary thus: two nights in Cairo, one night in Luxor, a four-night Nile cruise on a small dahabiya, two nights in Aswan, and two nights in Giza.

Challenges solved:
Jim handpicked private, English-speaking, special-access guides for us who knew how to get around many of the crowds. At Cairo’s Egyptian Museum, for instance, our guide got us there as soon as the doors opened and made a beeline for the second-floor galleries containing King Tut’s treasures, while most other visitors started on the first floor. At the Pyramids, she took the opposite route that most tours take—letting us have the Sphinx completely to ourselves. To me, the best local guides are people I could imagine striking up a friendship with if we lived in the same town. I never found the boundaries of our guide Reham’s historical knowledge—indeed, she was studying for a master’s degree between our forays around Cairo—but even more memorable than her book learning were our shared commiserations over raising pre-teens while juggling careers in travel, and the apparently worldwide phenomenon of helicopter parents trying to solve their kids’ social quandaries.

Strolling El Moez Street in Old Cairo along locals and other visitors.

Brook and local guide Reham strolling El Moez Street in Old Cairo. Photo. Ryan Damm

Jim also found ways to add physical activity that would be fun for the whole family: We sandboarded down dunes in Aswan one day. We rode bikes early one morning from Luxor to the Valley of the Kings. (For safety, we were led by a motorbike and followed by our van, with a spontaneous police escort waving us through one intersection—but next time I’ll remember to insist on helmets when planning to rent bikes abroad.)

Brook and her son biking on an empty road to the Valley of the Kings in Luxor.

Biking to the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, Egypt. Photo: Ryan Damm

Sandboarding near Aswan. Photo: Ryan Damm

Our food tour of Cairo involved not just eating, but also walking a few miles on bustling city streets to visit ten different stops, from a juice bar to a falafel stand to a homestyle joint where all the signage was in Arabic.

Different fruit nets on a food market in Cairo.

A stop on Brook’s food tour of Cairo. Photo: Ryan Damm

The highlight:
Our 4-night Nile cruise on a dahabiya. A dahabiya is a crewed sailing vessel that had won over even my boat-averse colleague Billie last year. Unlike the larger, Western-style cruise ships on the Nile, our 12-passenger dahabiya was able to stop at smaller sites the larger ships couldn’t navigate. For instance, we pulled up beside an ancient sandstone quarry; it was fascinating to walk amongst the cliffs from which stones had been cut and then rafted downriver to build the very temples we’d visited earlier in the trip. We strolled around a village where Zeke shared photos and Frisbee throws with local kids. We even stopped at a sandy shoreline where we could swim in the Nile (our captain chose a spot where the water was moving briskly enough to keep it clean, and crocodiles are rare north of the High Dam in Aswan). As the only kid on board, Zeke was occasionally restless, and the cabins were a tad shabby—but the deeper experience of life on the river made it well worth it.

Dahabiya Zekrayaat. Photo: Ryan Damm.

Just another shoreline view from the dahabiya. Photo: Ryan Damm.

Making friends in a Nubian village. Photo: Ryan Damm.

Playing frisbee with local kids. Photo: Ryan Damm.

Swimming in the Nile. Photo: Ryan Damm.

Exploring a sandstone quarry. Photo: Ryan Damm.

A larger cruise ship passes Brook's dahabiya. Photo: Ryan Damm.

A dahabiya is by nature a communal experience (the cabins are small, so we spent most of our free time on the sun deck, and all meals are shared), and we were fortunate to join a fabulously interesting group of fellow travelers. The Thanksgiving-night talent show with the other passengers was a blast. Zeke told two jokes, and we watched new friends sing and dance; all I had to contribute was a handstand. Everyone’s willingness to let their guard down among people they’d met just three days earlier bespoke the camaraderie and intimacy of our short time together.

Best surprise:

Brook looking at the mural painting inside Nefertari's Tomb.

Inside Nefertari’s Tomb. Photo: Ryan Damm

Queen Nefertari’s Tomb. Jim made sure we didn’t miss this gem. The millennia-old tombs in the Valley of the Kings—and even more so, in the less crowded Valley of the Queens—are exquisitely well preserved, with vibrant colors, visible brushstrokes, and everyday scenes that suggest they could have been painted just last week. But Queen Nefertari’s tomb takes the cake, with multiple chambers and intricate carvings done in sophisticated high relief.

Worst surprise:
Losing Zeke for five terrifying minutes among the throngs at Luxor Temple after sunset. Already disappointed by the crowds that made the temple’s innermost sanctuary feel more like Grand Central Station—it proved to be my least favorite site of the trip—we decided to cut our visit short and lost track of each other on the way out. Our guide kept his cool and found Zeke by the entrance; I greeted them both with teary hugs.

Most underrated:

Looking at the ceiling of the Temple of Khnum in Esna.

The Temple of Khnum, in Esna, Egypt. Photo: Ryan Damm

The Temple of Khnum. Just before boarding our dahabiya in Esna, we visited the local temple. The ruins are below ground level but have been fully excavated; you take a tuk-tuk through the streets of this unassuming town 35 miles south of Luxor, walk down a flight of stairs, and enter one of the most impressive sites in all of Egypt—at least to my eyes. Restoration work is ongoing, and centuries of soot, grime, and bird droppings still obscure the stone in one half of the temple; in the other half, rows of columns with capitals ornately carved into flowers and palm fronds, and pastel-toned vulture-winged goddesses painted on ceiling frescos, leave you tempted to simply lie down on the gravel floor to take it all in.

Most overrated:
King Tut’s tomb. It’s modest by comparison to other tombs in the Valley of the Kings; at least the mummy still lies in state. Enter for the nostalgic connection to your childhood fascination with Egypt—not for the elaborate carvings you’ll find guiding other pharaohs’ paths to the afterlife, but not Tut’s.

Best places we stayed:

View of pyramids from the balcony at the Marriott Mena House.

View from a room at the Marriott Mena House.

I couldn’t take my eyes off the view from our room at the Marriott Mena House in Giza: There was the Great Pyramid, framed between palm trees by day, and lit up in colorful lights at night. The hotel’s prodigious buffets at breakfast and dinner ensured that everyone in our family could find something they were excited to eat.

View of Palace Cataract Suite at the Old Cataract Hotel in Aswan.

Palace Cataract Suite at the Old Cataract Hotel, Aswan.

The bar at the Old Cataract Hotel in Egypt.

The bar at the Old Cataract Hotel. Photo: Ryan Damm

You need not be an Agatha Christie fan to be charmed by the Sofitel Legend Old Cataract in Aswan. Most rooms in both the original and newer wings have broad Nile views that take in the weathered curves of granite on Elephantine Island, the graceful lines of the feluccas sailing around it, and the hotel’s own highly manicured grounds. In our suite, the ornate chandeliers and richly toned wood cabinetry with mother-of-pearl inlays felt fit for royalty.

Worst place we stayed:
In Luxor, the Sofitel Winter Palace oozes history in ways both good and bad: You can imagine Howard Carter grandly announcing his discovery of King Tut’s tomb from the hotel in 1922, but you also wonder if the furnishings haven’t been reupholstered since then. The main restaurant is adults-only (not to mention jacket-required), and we found the alternative buffet to be overcooked and overpriced. Jim thinks the Winter Palace will get a much-needed refurbishment in the next year or two; until then, he tells me, the other options in town have their own idiosyncrasies.

Traveler beware:
In four decades of traveling, I’ve never been to a place as dominated by group tourism as Egypt is. A smart local fixer employs strategies to avoid the busiest times at the iconic spots—and turns your gaze to smaller, out-of-the-way details, like the careful carving of the toenails on a statue of Ramesses II—but you can’t escape the crowds entirely. A single group of 25 travelers all following the same flag-toting, mic’d-up guide is more difficult to navigate around than a dozen independent couples or families. That shouldn’t stop you from going to Egypt. Just be sure to book your trip through an Egypt specialist like Jim who has the proven ability to outsmart and outrun the big groups when possible.

Brook with her son exploring the Karnak Temple with their guide.

On a busy day at Karnak Temple, Brook’s guide still finds a quiet corner to explore. Photo: Ryan Damm

Thank goodness I packed:
$100 in one-dollar bills. Thanks to Jim’s pre-trip intel, I had plenty of cash for baksheesh, which I most often handed out unsolicited. In the tombs at Luxor, though, the security guards were persistent in their offers to take your photo or let you behind the ropes—and then equally persistent in seeking out the tip they expected in return.

I’m glad I didn’t pack:
Binoculars. While our early-morning boat ride to the sandboarding spot outside Aswan was a birdwatcher’s dream, and we could have seen more than the most obvious herons, egrets, and kingfishers with a bit of magnification, Jim warned me that customs officials often take binoculars away from travelers upon their arrival, deeming them a security threat to the country’s military installations.

Lesson learned:
A few days before the trip, Jim rejiggered our plans in Cairo, which meant we wouldn’t see the pyramids until the end of our trip—and boy, am I happy he did. This was the highlight of the trip for Zeke, and it allowed us to end on a high note in a way that city sightseeing (while plenty of fun early in the trip) would not have matched. I knew it was a risk to save the most anticipated site for last, but we had to fly through Cairo to get home anyway, and we vowed to extend the trip to see the Pyramids if a Covid quarantine or some other malady forced us to change up our itinerary. (Luckily, all went according to plan.) From now on, I’ll always make sure there’s an extra-special finale at the end of every trip.

Best trip memory:
Zeke still can’t stop talking about our exploits inside the cramped passageways of the Great Pyramid! Built long before the more elaborate tombs constructed during the dynasties of Egypt’s New Kingdom, most of the walls inside the pyramid are smooth but largely unadorned, and the King’s Chamber is a humble precursor of later pharaonic resting places. But nothing makes you feel more like Indiana Jones than clambering up the narrow wooden ramps that lead to that chamber, ever mindful of the tonnage of stone that has held fast above your head for 4,500 years…and counting?

Navigating the passageways inside the Great Pyramid.

START YOUR TRIP TO EGYPT

Transparency disclosure: So that I could experience Egypt, WOW Lister Jim Berkeley arranged reduced rates for my family’s trip. Everything I did on my trip is accessible to every traveler who contacts Jim via Wendy’s WOW questionnaire. Thanks to Wendy’s WOW system, you’ll get marked as a VIP traveler.

Where and When to Travel in 2023

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2023 is shaping up to be a very busy year for international travel. Most of the countries that had Covid-related entry restrictions in 2022 have dropped them, which means there will be many more people worldwide making international trips this year than last. Depending on where they go, they may find service shortages, inflation, and the other conditions that apply when a country is trying to ramp back up after a pandemic yet also handle a sudden flood of tourists. So it will be crucial this year to choose your destination wisely and time your trip right. In our WOW Week Travel Talk on January 23rd, Wendy, Brook, and Carolyn shared how.

In a hurry? Start the video at 3:10. No time to watch the whole thing? Here are top takeaways:

This is the year to see Southeast Asia. It was among the last regions to reopen after Covid, and its bounce-back has been softer than Europe’s, so there is still time to see it before the large tour groups return. As for the rest of Asia, Japan has seen a huge surge in demand (and prices) since fully reopening last fall, and China isn’t currently issuing tourist visas to U.S. travelers, but India and Central Asia offer a lot of opportunity to travelers looking to get there before the big tour groups return. Read reviews from travelers just back from Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.

Choose Northern Europe over Southern. As happened last year, we predict that in 2023, Italy, France, Greece, Spain, Portugal, and their neighbors will see overwhelming numbers of tourists. The city of Venice has begun charging day-trippers a fee to enter, and the Louvre Museum in Paris is now capping the number of visitors daily. If you must travel to Europe in peak season, then instead of Mediterranean locales, focus on more northerly places such as Scandinavia. Read reviews from travelers just back from Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands, Iceland, Norway, and Romania.

Don’t overlook South America. For sun in winter, value for money, and an outstanding diversity of landscapes and experiences, it’s hard to beat South America, especially in 2023: It is home to many of the countries that still have Covid-related entry requirements in place (Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay), so that should keep visitor numbers relatively low. Since WOW List destination specialists can make navigating these requirements a breeze, you can have a hassle-free trip in a place that feels unattainable to many others. South America is warm when Europe is cold, and there’s less jet lag and not nearly as many tour groups. From celeb-magnet beach towns in Brazil to coffee-region haciendas in Colombia to Amazonian lodges in Ecuador to heli-hiking in Chile to top-value wine regions in Argentina—not to mention the Galapagos Islands and Patagonia—South America doesn’t get old. Read reviews from travelers just back from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, and Patagonia. (We’re keeping an eye on the situation in Peru and will keep you updated.)

Think about Australia, New Zealand, and Japan only if you can travel at off-peak times. These countries did not reopen until 2022, so there is enormous demand for them this year. To find availability and affordability, avoid peak periods (e.g., springtime cherry blossom season in Japan, which sold out months ago). Read reviews from travelers just back from Australia and New Zealand.

If you must travel to a place that’s in high demand, choose under-the-radar locations within it. Let’s say it’s your honeymoon in June, and nothing but Italy’s Amalfi Coast will do. WOW List destination specialists know the hidden-gem spots that will give you relief from the crowds—and they often have insider connections that can get you into sites after-hours, and behind-the-scenes access to places not open to the general public.

Traveling to a place during its “shoulder season” is smarter than ever. Shoulder season comes just before or after peak season, when the weather is still good but the crowds aren’t there, and prices are a bit lower.

Europe in low season has gained appeal too. The pandemic lengthened Europe’s tourist seasons: What was once shoulder season (April/May and September/October) is now very popular. What was once low season (November and March) is now a smart time to go, with weather pleasant enough for outdoor dining (unlike last summer’s temps above 100 degrees). Hotels are lengthening their season to accommodate higher travel demand (hotels on Lake Como, for instance, now stay open through December). The pleasures of Rome in January are no longer a best-kept secret. Read Winter is Europe’s Secret Season for more ideas.

Opt for nonstop flights. Every connection creates an opportunity for something to go wrong: a missed flight, lost luggage, an inconvenient delay. As the airlines find their feet post-Covid, there are more and more flights from U.S. cities to interesting international locales. If a stop is essential, choose one of the smartest airports for making connections in. When you are making a domestic connection to an international flight, consider overnighting at the connection point. (For instance, if you’re flying to Africa via JFK, missing your connection could seriously disrupt your safari plans, so consider spending the night in New York.)

The larger your group, the earlier you need to plan. When you only need one hotel room, it’s usually possible to develop the ideal itinerary to suit your interests and trip goals, and then book suitable hotels. But when you need two or more rooms, you may have to patch together hotel availability wherever you can get it and let that dictate your schedule. With a multigenerational trip or other large group, booking early will maximize your options.

If you’re worried about Covid, know that safe trips are possible. Choose warm-weather destinations where all the sightseeing and activities are in the open air, where streets and public spaces are not crowded, and where you can eat every meal outdoors. Here are smart options that we ourselves road-tested during the pandemic (and we never got Covid). For more options, ask us here.

Buy travel insurance and evacuation assistance. It can protect your financial investment, cover any medical expenses, and give you peace of mind. If you’re sick or injured, the right travel insurance policy will cover your care at the nearest appropriate facility; you need a second layer of protection if you want to be treated at home.

Links to Useful Resources

Where To Go When: Ideal Destinations For Each Month of the Year

Where Everybody’s Traveling in 2023: The 10 Most Popular Countries For WOW Trips

Countries with No Covid-Related Entry Requirements

Nonstop Flights To Make Your Travels Easier in 2023

Smartest Airports for Making Connections

Winter Is Europe’s Secret Season

10 Top Dream Trips for 2023

The 2023 WOW List of Trusted Travel Experts

The Countries That Are Open to U.S. Travelers and How to Get In

Unusual Ways To See the World by Water

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There are parts of the world that are best seen from the water, and there is a growing array of unusual itineraries and small ships for doing so. We’re not talking about Caribbean islands or Italian coastlines as viewed from a cruise ship so huge that it can only dock in the big industrial harbors. No, we’re talking about floating along France’s scenic canals by barge, sightseeing by houseboat through the backwaters of Kerala, India, or exploring remotest Antarctica by small expedition ship. Cruise expert Carolyn Spencer Brown joined Wendy and Brook for a WOW Week Travel Talk on new ways to explore the world’s waterways in 2023. Watch the video and be surprised by everything you’ll learn.

Small-ship experiences you can find around the globe include:

Expedition ships: These small ships typically navigate parts of the world that it would be hard to experience any other way, such as the Arctic, Antarctica, and pristine portions of Alaska’s shoreline. In such pockets of the world, water-based travel is often your only option: You can’t drive from place to place, and it may be cost-prohibitive or too unreliable to get around via private, chartered aircraft. When these expedition ships are between seasons (say, repositioning between the Arctic and the Antarctic during the spring and fall), they may offer delightfully off-the-beaten-path itineraries that nip into tiny islands, landings, and anchorages. Carolyn and her husband sailed through the Swedish and Finnish archipelagos on a 100-passenger expedition ship, and he, a native of Finland, had never been to most of the small places they got to explore.

Yacht charters: Yachts and sailboats in the British Virgin Islands, Greece, Croatia, the Mediterranean, and many other parts of the world enable you to go where you want to go, drop anchor when you like, and choose who you want to vacation with (meaning, you’re not on a ship with strangers). You can even charter a private boat in India: In Kerala, traditional wood and thatched houseboats called kettuvallam ply the serene, rural backwaters, rivers and canals. You can charter a private boat or book a cabin on an 8-person “cruise” kettuvallam. Read about Wendy’s gulet charter on the Turquoise Coast and Brook’s catamaran charter in the Caribbean.

River boats: You may be familiar with the relatively large (160- to 190-passenger) cruise ships in Europe that ply the Rhine, Danube, Rhone and Seine, but there are many other rivers around the world where smaller vessels go to more exotic places, such as the Amazon in Peru, the Mekong for exploring Vietnam and Cambodia, and the Chobe River for the wildlife of Africa. On the Nile, instead of a Westernized river ship, you can opt for a wind-powered dahabiya. Dahabiyas are local boats that hold up to 12 people and can take you to places beyond the reach of traditional conventional vessels. Read about Billie’s experience sailing the Nile on a dahabiya.

European barge charters: Barges, often holding from 8 to 24 travelers, primarily ply the canals of France and are one of the best ways to explore the countryside, at a snail’s pace. Work barges have been repurposed as small passenger vessels—some quite luxurious, others cozy and comfortable. You’re provided with a captain and a cook, and you travel so slowly that you can easily grab a bike from your barge and meet it in the next village—with time to sip a glass of vino at an outdoor cafe. Read about Wendy’s barge trip through the French countryside.

For help finding and planning the right private-boat or cruise experience for you, use the black button below.

GET A PERSONALIZED RECOMMENDATION

Sailing the Caribbean Sea in a Private Yacht. This Could Be You.

The Best Way to See Egypt. Especially If You Don’t Like Boats.

How to Know if a Barge Cruise in France is Right for You.

Where Everybody’s Traveling in 2023: The 10 Most Popular Countries for WOW Trips

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As you plan your travels for the year ahead, you’d be wise to keep in mind where everybody else is going. These are the 10 most-booked countries by travelers who have used our WOW system to plan 2023 trips:

1. Italy
2. United Kingdom
3. Australia
4. France
5. Japan
6. Spain
7. Portugal
8. New Zealand
9. Ecuador (incl. the Galapagos Islands)
10. Egypt

It’s great to see places that had some of the strictest Covid restrictions and that took two years or more to reopen—Australia, Japan, New Zealand—making such a strong comeback. The best way to find availability and affordability in these popular places is to be flexible with your travel dates. Avoid peak periods (e.g., springtime cherry blossom season in Japan, which is practically sold out) and go in shoulder season instead.

The House at Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia.

Of the countries that were closed the longest during Covid and did not reopen until 2022, Australia is the most popular now. This is Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef. Photo: Elise Hassey

Five European countries on the 2023 Most Popular list were also on the 2022 Most Popular list: Italy, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, and Portugal. You know what that means: These places will be in even higher demand this year than they were last year, given the greater number of people worldwide who will return to traveling internationally in 2023. So, if any of these places are on your Must-See-In-2023 list, avoid tourist crowds by focusing your itinerary on the best off-the-beaten-path locations within these countries.

The problem solvers who can maximize your experiences of these places are the trip-planning specialists on Wendy’s WOW List. They have the connections and clout to find availability in “sold out” hotels, they know the smartest timing for your trip, and they can point you to the best under-the-radar locations. To get an unforgettable trip, use the black CONTACT buttons on The WOW List to reach out to the right local fixer. That’s how you’ll get a priority response and VIP treatment. Here’s why.

If you haven’t started making travel plans for 2023 yet, I encourage you to focus on places that are not on the above list. There are so many wonderful opportunities in South America, Asia, the South Pacific, and non-Mediterranean Europe where you won’t face as much competition from other travelers that drives up prices and crowds. There are also countries worldwide that reopened early during the pandemic and thus the pent-up demand for them has cooled a little. Learn your smartest options by perusing our trip reviews from travelers just back from these very places.

READ TRAVELER REVIEWS OF THE LATEST WOW TRIPS

How to Get an Extraordinary Trip: Wendy’s WOW Way

As a travel journalist and consumer advocate for the past 30 years—first as Condé Nast Traveler’s advice columnist, then as TripAdvisor’s Travel Advocate—I’m all too aware of the multifarious travel challenges that need to be addressed as a result of the post-pandemic combo of pent-up travel demand, local inflation, and understaffing. For international trips in particular, you’d be wise to use an extremely well-connected, destination-specific, trip-planning expert who can act as your local fixer and optimize your every step. You’d be even wiser to find and contact that trip planner via the unique WOW approach to trip planning that I’ve created by popular demand from my longtime readers. It’s the approach used by the travelers who are submitting these trip reviews. And it starts with filling out any one of the trip questionnaires on this website.

Starting a trip with my questionnaire is designed to deliver these benefits:

1. Priority status and VIP treatment
2. Great value for a maximized travel experience
3. My advice from the start of your trip planning and at key stages of it
4. The right to review the trip planner after your trip (your reviews serve as a uniquely useful and empowering resource to our community of sophisticated, frequent travelers)
5. A surprise WOW Moment, custom-designed for you and complimentary. After two qualifying trips, Wendy will email you a WOW Moment gift certificate, which you can then redeem on a future qualifying trip before the certificate’s expiration date.

I can’t monitor your trip if I don’t know about it. That’s why it’s necessary to fill out my questionnaire at the start of your trip planning. It’s the only way I can make sure your trip planning goes as well as possible. When you use my questionnaire, that’s how the trip-planning expert knows that I sent you and I’m watching.

To find my questionnaire:
• Go to The WOW List and click on the CONTACT button of the travel specialist you want. Your answers go directly to that trip planner, as well as to me.
OR
• Go to Ask Wendy. We can recommend the best trip planner for your specific needs.

Because I stand by my words and my vetting, I will invite you to review your trip afterward here on WendyPerrin.com. This review system ensures that my recommendations stay up-to-the-minute reliable. It safeguards my reputation by proving I can stand behind my recommendations. That’s what I get out of this. What you get is an excellent trip.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I hire Wendy to plan my trip?
2. What is a WOW trip?
3. Is a WOW trip better than what I can plan on my own?
4. When should I NOT use a WOW List trip planner?
5. Why should I use your questionnaire?
6. Is there a cost to using your questionnaire?
7. Are a WOW List planner’s trip arrangements more expensive than if I plan it myself?
8. Will I know what every element of my trip costs?
9. Why must I speak (rather than just email) with a WOW List trip planner?
10. How does a trip planner get onto The WOW List?
11. What is Wendy’s “trip support”?
12. What is The WOW List Pledge?
13. What if there’s no trip planner in my price range listed for where I want to travel?
14. How do you test new candidates for The WOW List?
15. Do we want readers to nominate trip planners for consideration and to help road-test WOW List candidates?
16. What are Wendy’s WOW Moments?
17. Is The WOW List pay-to-play?
18. So how do you fund this website and service?
19. I have a question that hasn’t been answered above.

1. Can I hire Wendy to plan my trip?

No. I’m a journalist on deadline. But I can likely recommend the trip designer you’re looking for. My unique expertise is that I have spent two decades finding, vetting, testing, and monitoring trip-planning specialists for specific regions of the world and types of travel.

It started when I was Condé Nast Traveler‘s advice columnist (1996 – 2014). As more and more Internet travel-booking sites were popping up in the late ’90s, readers kept asking me the smartest way to book their travels, and I realized they could use a list of the best destination-specific trip planners. So I combed through my Rolodex (remember those?) and selected those destination specialists with the greatest depth of expertise and connections. Thus was born the magazine’s list of top travel specialists, in June of 2000. It was literally called “Wendy’s Rolodex.” It became so popular (and copied!) that I was forced to compile it (and improve it!) annually for the next 14 years.

When I left Condé Nast Traveler and launched WendyPerrin.com in 2014, I was inundated with email from my longtime readers, who were still asking me who to use for their trips. So I put up a WOW List of Trusted Travel Experts and an “Ask Wendy” button. Colleagues of mine from Condé Nast Traveler, Billie Cohen and Brook Wilkinson, pitched in to help me cope with the overwhelming volume of inquiries. This ultimately led to our Get a Personalized Trip Recommendation service and an entire WOW system designed to make sure you end up with the best possible trip. All of which is to say: I can’t personally plan your trip, but I can—if you use our questionnaire—give you advice, and the other benefits listed above, to make it WOW.

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2. What is a WOW trip?

A WOW trip is a custom-tailored, wisely designed, non-touristy, sophisticated, hassle-free trip that maximizes your experience of a place—like these trips that your fellow travelers have recently returned from—and minimizes your risk and unnecessary logistics.

It eliminates inefficiencies, crowds, lines, and other headaches and pitfalls.
It gets you priority status, insider access, and VIP perks.
It may cost more than a trip you plan yourself but is worth it. It’s value for what you get.

The trip planners on The WOW List deliver such trips.

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3. Is a WOW trip better than what I can plan on my own?

You’re comparing apples and oranges. Some people like to plan their trip by finding and booking each separate component (hotels, restaurants, day tours, vehicles, English-speaking guides) on the Internet. By contrast, the destination-specific specialists who have earned a spot on The WOW List create one-of-a-kind, start-to-finish trips that you can’t find on the Internet—and the whole that they create is bigger than the sum of its parts. Think of them as trip chefs: They find, combine, and even create trip ingredients—in ways that you can’t, thanks to their local expertise and connections. Even if you could buy the same ingredients from the same marketplace, the meal you cook wouldn’t turn out the same. That’s because WOW trip chefs leverage their relationships to spice up each day, creating a unique journey, customized to your personal tastes. They eliminate unappetizing elements (lines, logistics, traffic jams, tourist traps), sprinkle in special touches (behind-closed-doors access, can’t-miss views you would have missed, introductions to noteworthy local people), and sometimes pull off the impossible.

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4. When should I NOT use a WOW List trip planner?

It does not make financial sense for you to use a WOW List trip planner (you will not get enough value for the money) in these circumstances:

When you’re looking for a budget or off-the-shelf product. Here, we define value by how high-quality and personalized your trip is, not how little it costs. There are plenty of websites that can help you find travel deals (though you should beware phony “values”), but this isn’t one of them.
When you’ve already booked much of your trip. To guarantee a world-class experience from start to finish, a WOW List trip designer needs control over your arrangements from start to finish. The more of your trip you have already booked yourself, the less value you will get by using a human-being trip planner, and the less financial sense it will make to work with one. Example: Let’s say you’ve booked your hotels and you need only an English-speaking guide for a couple of days: If you use a WOW List trip planner to book just the guide, you might be missing out on the hotel perks you could have gotten. You might get a lower-quality guide because trip planners save their best guides for the travelers who are making bigger arrangements. Or, the trip planner may be concerned that what you’ve booked already could negatively impact the portion they would arrange and, therefore, they may be reluctant to work with you at all. The more of your trip a WOW List trip planner designs and books, the more they can save you wasted time, money, and pitfalls, and grout your trip with special touches.
When you’ve already decided on a detailed step-by-step itinerary. When you know where you want to go, stay, and eat, and you just want someone to book all those components, book them yourself. Do not use WOW List trip planners as order takers. They deliver the best trips when you give them the freedom to create an imaginative, outside-the-box itinerary that will surprise and delight you.
When all you need is an airline ticket, a hotel room, and a rental car. You can book those things on your own. The time to use a WOW List destination specialist is when you also want a brilliant itinerary, special experiences, and the savviest local fixers who will save you time and headaches, deliver insider access, and make your whole trip easy and delightful. You can’t get that on your own.
When you’ve redeemed points for your hotel stays or otherwise already booked your accommodations. Trip planners do not earn revenue for hotel stays booked with miles/points. The less you use the charming properties that the trip planner has negotiated special rates and perks with, the less that trip planner can embellish your trip with special treatment. This means that, if you use a WOW List trip planner for a trip where they won’t be booking your hotel, you will get less value for what you spend.

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5. Why should I use Wendy’s trip questionnaire?

1. It’s like a personal letter of introduction from Wendy to the WOW trip planner. It marks you as a VIP traveler. It tells the trip planner that Wendy sent you and is watching, and that you will be reviewing the trip afterward.
2. It helps you to articulate your trip goals and needs effectively. This sets you up for a more productive conversation and successful collaboration with the trip designer. We have spent years figuring out exactly what input on your end will lead to the most efficient and effective conversation (see FAQ #8) and help you determine what the trip planner can do for you and whether they are the right choice for your specific goals and needs. The questionnaire works!
3. It’s the only way we can know about your trip in order to monitor it. Wendy designed this system because, throughout her decades as a consumer journalist, readers have contacted her about the same recurring issues over and over again. Through her trip-monitoring emails of advice to the traveler, she can provide answers before those issues arise. She can help prevent the common misunderstandings and mistakes that occur between travelers and trip planners.
4. You get the benefits outlined in The WOW List Pledge. Every WOW List trip planner must sign The WOW List Pledge (see FAQ #11), promising that they will follow certain best practices that Wendy insists on because they are beneficial to travelers and lead to an excellent trip. For instance, they pledge to reply to your request within 48 business hours. They promise to have an in-depth trip-design phone/Zoom/Skype conversation with you (because such a live conversation is critical to a WOW trip—see FAQ #8). They promise to offer the lowest pricing publicly available. They promise VIP courtesies and treatment.
5. You get to review the trip planner after your trip. We continually monitor our recommended travel specialists in order to ensure they uphold the standards and values that got them onto The WOW List in the first place. When you return from a trip that we’ve monitored, you’re invited to share your review of the travel specialist, for the benefit of your fellow travelers. These reviews from you help determine whether or not that travel specialist stays on The WOW List.
6. It’s the only way your trip can qualify toward a WOW Moment on a future trip (see FAQ #15).

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6. Is there a cost to using Wendy’s questionnaire?

No. There might be someday, but for now, we’re trying to keep our advice and service complimentary. If you choose to work with a trip planner whom you contacted via our questionnaire, then The WOW List Pledge applies, and that Pledge requires that you get the trip planner’s lowest pricing. WOW List trip planners are incentivized to comply with this requirement because they want to remain on The WOW List and because they want to get great reviews. If travelers feel they got great value from a trip planner, that translates into great reviews. If enough travelers feel they did not get value, we remove that trip planner from The WOW List.
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7. Are a WOW List planner’s trip arrangements more expensive than if I plan it myself?

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. It depends on the destination and type of trip. WOW List trip planners can save you money via reduced rates that they negotiate with hotels and other travel suppliers at their destinations. They negotiate special benefits and amenities too (e.g., early check-in, upgrades, complimentary meals). At the same time, their arrangements can cost more because they employ the best local private guides whom they have personally vetted, they use the newest cars and safest drivers who know all the shortcuts, they pay to eliminate time-consuming hassles such as lines and crowds, etc. Their trips include special touches and perks that you would not be able to procure on your own—and most of these special touches you won’t know about, or appreciate the value of, until you’re actually taking the trip. Their prices also include the local infrastructure to be able to come to the rescue in an emergency. So, typically, you’ll pay more than if you booked on your own, but you’ll end up with a more rewarding trip in the end. Read these FAQs for more details about trip costs and fees.

If your conversation with a WOW List trip planner doesn’t convince you that the value he or she will add to your trip will be worth the higher cost, then don’t use that trip planner. Feel free to ask us for a different recommendation.
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8. Will I know what every element of my trip costs?

It is common for travel planners to quote a lump-sum price for your entire trip. Why? The local hotels and other businesses that provide the Trusted Travel Experts with exclusive reduced rates do so on the condition that the TTEs not reveal those rates. Sometimes a planner is able to provide a partial breakdown, either by day or by type of expense (e.g., accommodations, private guides, transportation). If you’re presented with a lump-sum price and need to cut costs, explain that you’d feel more comfortable spending X thousand dollars on this trip, and ask the planner how they would suggest that you reach that figure.

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9. Why must I speak with (rather than just email with) a WOW List trip planner?

Because, in the 20 years that I’ve been monitoring and scrutinizing feedback from travelers, I’ve learned that the single biggest factor affecting the outcome of a trip is the initial conversation between traveler and trip planner. If you want a truly custom-tailored trip, it’s essential to have a live, in-depth conversation, preferably via video call. Such a conversation gives the trip planner a nuanced understanding of your specific trip goals and needs and what would delight you. It also eliminates the misperceptions and disconnects that can easily mar a trip. This trip-design conversation should be with the specific person named and listed on The WOW List (not just any old employee). These WOW Listers are very busy and frequently traveling, and many who are company founders/owners don’t speak with travelers anymore as a general rule. But when I put someone on my WOW List, the prestige is great enough that they agree to speak personally with “Wendy’s travelers.”

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10. How does a trip planner get onto The WOW List?

A trip planner earns a spot on The WOW List via the testing process detailed below (see FAQ #14). We’re constantly testing a new crop of travel specialists to determine whether or not they warrant inclusion on The WOW List. We’re always improving the List, by listening to feedback from travelers who use it, gathering nominees from our readers who understand the standard we insist on, and scouring the travel industry worldwide.

The WOW List is not static. It changes all the time because we are always road-testing new travel specialists who come to our attention. We send travelers to them, collect and publish those travelers’ trip reviews afterward, and then use those reviews to determine who belongs on The List.

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11. What is Wendy’s “trip support”?

When you use our questionnaire, it enrolls you in our trip support: We’ll watch over your trip planning from start to finish, sharing important advice via email at key stages of the process. I designed this system because, throughout my decades as a consumer journalist, readers have been telling me about the same recurring issues over and over again, and I can provide insight and answers before those issues arise. I can help prevent the common misunderstandings and mistakes that can occur between travelers and trip planners and that can spoil a trip.

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12. What is The WOW List Pledge?

The WOW List is comprised of destination specialists, trip designers, and local fixers who have earned a spot on the List after a rigorous test for the specific location or type of travel they are listed for (see FAQ #14) . They must also sign a Pledge agreeing to abide by these requirements:

1. I will reply to Wendy’s travelers, within 48 business hours of receiving their questionnaire, to schedule a phone appointment or video call.

2. I will personally meet by phone/Zoom/Skype with each traveler sent by Wendy because I understand that an in-depth, live conversation (not just an email exchange) is essential to an extraordinary trip. (See FAQ #8 for why.)

3. I will extend my lowest pricing to the travelers who come through Wendy’s questionnaire. I understand that Wendy’s system was designed so as not to increase costs for the traveler and, in fact, so as to save the traveler money in many cases.

4. I will extend any and all VIP courtesies and benefits that I am able to provide. I will make Wendy’s travelers top-priority clients.

5. I will make every effort to reduce Wendy’s travelers’ financial and health risks in light of Covid. I will detail the measures I am taking to protect their health, and how my booking, cancellation, and postponement policies will help protect their financial investment.

6. I will update Wendy frequently regarding the trip-planning status of the travelers she refers to me, so that she can send emails of advice to the traveler at specific times and stages of the trip planning.

7. I understand that The WOW List is a list of people, not companies. The WOW List logo applies to me specifically and not to others in my company who are not on The WOW List.

8. If my WOW List designation is revoked, I will stop using the WOW List logo—from any and all years—in my marketing immediately.

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13. What if there’s no WOW List trip planner in my price range for where I want to travel?

If you ask us, we may be able to recommend someone more affordable. Sometimes we are in the process of testing someone who is more affordable (see FAQ #14). But remember that some countries are far more expensive than others. Also remember that The WOW List is a list of the best people out there; they provide trips you can’t buy elsewhere, and the prices they charge are considered a great value by your fellow travelers who have experienced the trips first-hand. Furthermore, nowadays there is no viable business model for inexpensive human-being travel agents. If you want an inexpensive trip, book through a deals website.
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14. How do we test new candidates for The WOW List?

We are constantly road-testing destination-specific travel specialists, local fixers, and other trip designers who come highly recommended by your fellow sophisticated travelers. First, we evaluate these candidates to determine whether they meet our high standard and have a good chance of ultimately earning a spot on The WOW List. Then we send travelers to them and monitor those trips closely, staying in touch with the travelers and asking them to review their trips afterward. Eventually, if we receive enough stellar feedback about the WOW List candidate, then we conclude that the travel specialist has earned a spot on The WOW List. This testing process takes at least a year and more typically two or three years—because it takes that long for enough trips to get planned, booked, taken, and reviewed publicly, so that there is no doubt in our minds that the trip planner merits The WOW List.
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15. Do we want readers to nominate trip planners for consideration and to help road-test WOW List candidates?

Yes! Hundreds of trip planners have asked to be considered for The WOW List, and dozens of readers have asked for distinct specialties that are not on The WOW List yet (usually because we’ve never found anybody good enough in those specialized areas, despite years of searching). We want to fill these gaps, if possible. So, if there is someone whose trips you have experienced first-hand and whom you recommend for The WOW List (even if you see others already listed for that region), let us know. If you have used at least three of our recommended people and thus have a clear first-hand understanding of the standard and level of service they represent, and you would like to be a road-tester, let us know.
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16. What are Wendy’s WOW Moments?

On every third qualifying trip you take, you’ll get a gift of a WOW Moment. This is our way of thanking you for helping us fine-tune our evolving WOW system. It’s also how we incentivize travelers to submit their trip reviews within three months of returning from their trip. The WOW Moments rules are here: Wendy Wants to Amp Up Your Trip!
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17. Is The WOW List pay-to-play?

Of course not. I’m a journalist and would never jeopardize my reputation, and all the years I’ve spent building up the trust and credibility that my readers and sources depend on, by publicly recommending a weak travel planner, no matter how much they wanted to pay me. My name, and the standard of travel I stand for, are worth a lot more than that. Besides, if The WOW List were pay-to-play, there would be 5,000 travel agents on it.

Getting onto The WOW List is like getting into a top college: You need to pass a series of challenging tests. Once you’re admitted, it means you’re the best of the best, and in our case, it means a trip planner becomes part of the WOW pool from which Wendy feels confident making her recommendations. (See FAQ #13 for how trip planners get approved for The WOW List.) There is no application fee, and there is no way to pay to bypass the test. After approval, if the trip planner would like to purchase a special logo they can use to let people know they’ve been accepted (the same way proud parents buy a college bumper sticker), then we make that available to them for a fee.

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18. So how do you fund this website and service?

Perhaps we should charge for our advice, but we are journalists who have spent decades informing as many people as possible, regardless of the size of their wallets, and that is what we believe in.

So we have worked very hard to create a site that is self-sustaining, that enables us to continue sharing our honest advice, and that puts each traveler’s needs and bottom line first and foremost. We accept advertisers, host conferences with sponsors, and earn speaking fees. Trip planners who pass our rigorous WOW List test (see FAQ #13), as evidenced by the stellar trip reviews they earn, become approved for The WOW List. Once approved, they may pay for the right to use The WOW List logo in their own company’s marketing materials. If you decide that a trip planner we’ve recommended is a good match for your needs and you opt to work with that trip planner and buy a trip, then after you return we may (or may not) receive a referral fee. In cases where we do, the fee does not impact your trip cost (see The WOW List Pledge). To get a sense of the standard to which we (and our readers) hold WOW List trip planners, you can read these reviews.

To protect the traveler’s bottom line, we require every WOW List trip planner to sign The WOW List Pledge, ensuring that “Wendy’s travelers” will not pay one cent more when using our questionnaire and receiving our trip monitoring. And the value that travelers receive shows through in their trip reviews. If we receive complaints that a WOW List trip planner is not delivering value for the money, we remove that person from The WOW List.
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19. I have a question that hasn’t been answered above.

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Explore The WOW List

The 10 Most Popular Countries of 2022 for WOW Trips

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Drumroll, please: The 10 Most-Traveled-To Countries by the users of Wendy’s WOW system during this comeback year for global travel were:

1. Italy
2. Greece
3. Portugal
4. France
5. United Kingdom
6. Spain
7. Morocco
8. Egypt
9. Kenya
10. Costa Rica

It’s really no surprise that the top six countries are in Europe. Or that seven are on the Mediterranean Sea, where you can find sunny coastlines most of the year.

You might be surprised, though, to see Morocco rank as the most popular country outside of Europe. But it makes sense: Morocco is exotic yet close to the U.S. (so you needn’t spend too many hours on a plane), you can do virtually all your sightseeing and dining outdoors, and Morocco was so careful as regards Covid that travelers felt very safe there this year.

Three countries in Africa made the top ten—and they are all so different! In addition to Morocco, there was Egypt (for its ancient wonders) and Kenya (for its awesome wildlife). Egypt and Kenya are two countries that reopened early during the pandemic, as did the only country in the Americas to rank in the top ten, Costa Rica. That head start from reopening early helped set these countries up to welcome more travelers this year.

Popularity is a double-edged sword, of course: It can increase the crowds and hassles that travelers need to wrestle with—unless you’ve got the right local fixer in your corner, zapping the lines and logistics. To see what we mean, learn from these traveler reviews. And, to find such a local fixer, look to The WOW List.

READ TRAVELER REVIEWS OF THE LATEST WOW TRIPS

Be a safer, smarter traveler: Sign up for Wendy’s weekly newsletter to stay in the know. And read real travelers’ reviews of Wendy’s WOW List and use it to plan your next trip.

How Never to Wait on Hold with Airline Customer Service Again

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While there are many apps and online tools that you can use to get help when your flight is canceled, delayed, or changed, sometimes you just really need to talk to a live person at your airline. Of course, being put on hold forever doesn’t help anyone (you or the customer-service rep you’re about to unleash your frustration on), so here are a couple of tricks to help you avoid endless waits on hold.

Call the airline’s customer-service office in a different country.

Major airlines have overseas locations where staffers speak English—in the U.K., Germany, Australia, Hong Kong, and Singapore, for example—and they are typically just as able to help you as their U.S.-based counterparts, as long as their office is open (not all call centers are open 24 hours) and not dealing with a local weather event. So if you need to speak with someone at, say, American Airlines, try calling one of their worldwide phone numbers. To keep the cost of the call down, use WhatsApp, Skype, or Google Voice.

Let someone else wait on hold.

Gary Leff, the airline expert who writes View From The Wing and founded point.me, taught me about GetHuman.com a few years ago when Snowmageddon hit. This site offers many sanity-saving aids, including: phone numbers (with shortcuts) to many companies, step-by-step guides on how to solve certain problems, and representatives who can solve the problem for you if you simply don’t want to deal with any of it.

Turn to social media

During an Antarctica cruise last year, WendyPerrin.com contributing editor Carolyn Spencer Brown learned that weather would delay her ship’s return to port. On Twitter (now X), she sent a direct message to American Airlines, which was able to quickly rebook her flight home. Reader Kathy Wood tells us she’s also had good experiences using social media to make last-minute flight changes. “I have had great luck with Delta through their Facebook page and Facebook messenger,” she tells us. “I think it does help to be polite in your post and email… not belligerent. I am really impressed with how quick and efficient this has been and how helpful the reps have been.”

Let someone else handle it all.

CrankyConcierge.com offers urgent air-travel assistance, such as rerouting when your flight is cancelled or delayed. Run by longtime airline-industry expert Brett Snyder, the company can also plan your flights from the get-go. Emergency help starts at $175.

Something to keep in mind

When you give your credit card to a customer-service agent based in another country, your card may assess a foreign-transaction fee. So use a card that does not charge foreign-transaction fees.

Travel Visas and Expediters, Explained and Made Easy

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We all remember the era of waiting in long lines at embassies and consulates to get visas, but these days most visas are available electronically—if they’re required at all. Here’s what you need to know about finding and getting the right ones for your travels, including when to use an expediter.

Of course, when you plan a trip with a WOW Lister, you can always expect plenty of guidance during the application process. But to get you started, here are answers to the most common questions we get about visas.

Do I need a visa?

With a few exceptions, Americans can travel without a visa for up to 90 days to countries in Europe and Central and South America. In Africa and Asia, many countries still require advance visas, but the days of booking interviews at consulates and getting physical stamps are essentially over.

Use the State Department’s Country Information page to see if your destination requires a visa.

When should I start looking for my visa?

Six months out, if possible. (Many countries also require your passport to be valid six months after your arrival date, so check your passport’s expiration date and start the renewal process if necessary, as it can take about three months.

Early in the process, check what paperwork is needed. Some countries require proof of plane tickets, hotel bookings, and health information such as vaccines or Covid test results.

To find out if a visa is required for your trip, go to the State Department’s Country Information page and type in your destination. The “Quick Facts” and “Entry, Exit and Visa Requirements” sections have useful info.

In the time of Covid, health restrictions can pop up at any time, even in visa-free countries. So keep an eye on the country’s tourism pages and talk to your trip planner (we have a list of useful resources and websites in our article The Countries That Are Open to U.S. Travelers and How to Get In).

Should I use an expediter?

Expediters, like CIBT, are travel-assistance companies that act as intermediaries in the visa or passport application process for an extra fee. These companies can be helpful for travelers on very tight schedules or doing business abroad, as they will ensure no information is missing (which could delay the delivery of a visa) and they monitor the process to completion.

However, expediters do not actually reduce the turn-around time for a visa. You’re not likely to get your visa any quicker than if you carefully follow the instructions on a consular website, and the vast majority of them are pretty straightforward these days. (And if you’re on a guided or planned tour, don’t branch out on your own for a visa. Let that organization help you.)

To find an expediter, ask your travel planner for a recommendation or check the Better Business Bureau’s listings.

How do I find an official government site to use to submit my visa application?

Every country represented on The WOW List has an official government website with visa application information—even if it looks like an old web page from the 1990s.

To find one, do a Google search and skip the top results marked “Ad.” Although some countries use “.com” addresses, most official sites use a country suffix at the end of their URL (for example, Turkey is .tr.). You’ll often find a “gov” in the URL too. Another tip is to look for an official tourism logo, registered trademark, or “country name”© at the bottom of the page. Look for “https” (versus “http”) in the URL address. And finally, double-check your browser’s encryption status to ensure the site’s transactions are secure.

Complete their online form, pay, and you should have your visa filed electronically or emailed to you as a printable PDF within days or a few weeks. When Wendy and her family traveled to Turkey last year, they got their visas online. “It was fast and easy,” she said.

I’m going to multiple countries; do I need to apply for multiple visas?

If you plan on leaving and reentering countries in Asia and Africa, read the application guidelines thoroughly to see if you need a Multiple Entry visa. Some country networks allow you to enter several countries on one visa. For instance, the East Africa visa gives you access to Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda.

How to Get a Quick Covid Test for Travel

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Many of us would like to ensure we’re coronavirus-free before we travel. Pre-trip Covid tests are required by some foreign countries, with the test administered anywhere from 24 hours to a few days before your arrival.

Thankfully, it’s become much easier to get quick Covid test results, whether you are seeking a mail-in option that eliminates having to visit a public-health clinic or testing site, or you require an in-person or video-proctored test on a short timeline.

Below are several of your best options for a test with the last-minute results you need for some destinations: We’ve listed in-person options for PCR tests in select U.S. cities, mail-in PCR test kits that you can do from home (note that some places will not accept results from mail-in tests), and proctored, self-administered antigen tests that you can take in a foreign country. If you’re looking for a PCR test in a location not listed below, do a search for quick Covid test—not “rapid,” as that is the term commonly used for antigen tests—and your desired location. In my reporting, I’ve found that urgent-care centers are a good bet for quick Covid tests.

Jump to: In-Person Tests

Jump to: Mail-In Tests

Jump to: Tests That Can Be Self-Administered Abroad

In-Person Tests

Nationwide

ARCpoint Labs offers tests at dozens of labs across the country. The cost is $150 for same-day results.
Curative conducts saliva-based tests at pop-up sites across the country. There is no out-of-pocket cost, and results are usually available (but not guaranteed) in 1-2 days.
DM Covid-19 Test will send a clinician to your home almost anywhere in the Lower 48 states to conduct a curbside test, with 3-4 days’ advance notice. Results are available the same day in Orlando, Philadelphia, northern Virginia, central Maryland, Washington, D.C., and New York for $349, or the next day at any location that they cover for $299.
CVS has drive-through testing—as well as walk-up testing in some locations—and reports that the average turnaround time is 1-2 days. Tests are free for those who meet certain criteria related to symptoms and exposure, and $139 otherwise. (Note: Pharmacies’ turnaround times are not as reliable as testing centers that guarantee results in time for travel.)
Walgreens offers drive-through tests at select locations; turnaround time varies by location and by the lab used to obtain results. There is no cost for most individuals. (Note: Pharmacies’ turnaround times are not as reliable as testing centers that guarantee results in time for travel.)
Passport Health is offering tests at some of their clinics at a cost of $200, with results in 72 hours.

Arizona

Worksite Labs conducts tests in Phoenix; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours, $150 for results in 12 hours, or $250 for results in 90 minutes.
Saguaro Bloom sells test kits with a self-administered swab at their Scottsdale location; the cost is $149 for results in 24 hours, or $279 for same-day results.

California

Covid Check Today will send a clinician to your home (or any other location) in Los Angeles, San Diego, or Orange County to conduct a test. The cost is $199 for results in 24 hours ($149 with insurance), or $349 for results in 6 hours.
Cosmos Health Solutions offers tests in Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Tustin. Tests are free with insurance, with results in 24-48 hours; you can pay $75 for results in less than 24 hours, or $150 for results in 1 hour.
Good Life Medical Services has drive-through testing in Los Angeles that is free if you have insurance, or they will send a clinician to your home for $250. Results are returned in 48-72 hours; 24- to 48-hour turnaround is available for an additional $250-$350.
Worksite Labs conducts tests in Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Long Beach, and Los Angeles; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours, $150 for results in 12 hours, or $250 for results in 90 minutes.
Reliant Urgent Care conducts tests at locations across Los Angeles county; the cost is $175 for same-day results.
OnSite Safe conducts drive-up testing in Van Nuys and Sacramento, using saliva samples. The cost is $164-$215 for results by midnight 2 days after your test; in Van Nuys, you can pay an additional $24.75 for results by midnight the next day.
US Specialty Labs does drive-through testing with documentation for travel in San Diego for $135, with results in under 24 hours.
McCampbell Analytical offers self-collected test kits, which you pick up and drop off at their lab about an hour outside San Francisco in Pittsburg. Options range from results the next day for $99, to results in 3 hours for $699.
IGeneX offers testing in Milpitas, next door to San Jose; their staff will assist as you collect your own sample using a nasal swab. It is $250 for results in 24 hours, and $400 for same-day results.
Wellness 4 Humanity conducts saliva tests in San Jose, with results in 24-48 hours for $189, or guaranteed the next day for $439.
CityHealth conducts tests in Sacramento and throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, with costs billed to your insurance and results in 48 hours; you can pay $120 for results in 24 hours.
Med2u Inc. does home/office visits in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The cost is $200, plus a travel fee of $100 or more; results are available late the next day.
OpenClear is a concierge service that brings a clinician to your home or office in the Los Angeles area for Covid testing. Costs range from $499 for results in 48-72 hours to $899 for results in 12-24 hours.

Colorado

Covid Check Today will send a clinician to your home (or any other location) in the Denver area to conduct a test. The cost is $199 for results in 24 hours ($149 with insurance), or $349 for results in 6 hours.

Delaware

DM Covid-19 Test conducts curbside tests in Middletown; it’s $219 for next-day results.

Florida

Get Result Today performs tests at several locations throughout Florida. The cost is $139 for results within 24 hours, or $249 for results in 30-60 minutes. At-home testing is available in some locations for an additional fee.
Covid Check Today will send a clinician to your home (or any other location) in the Miami area to conduct a test. The cost is $199 for results in 24 hours ($149 with insurance), or $349 for results in 6 hours.
Covid Testing LLC does testing at several locations in Orlando and Central Florida. Testing is free with insurance, plus a $35 charge for next-day results or $75 for same-day results.
Worksite Labs conducts tests in Ft. Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, and Atlantis; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours.
LAB Doctor offers tests in Ft. Lauderdale for $179, with results the next day.
BayCare is conducting tests at the Tampa airport for $150, with results typically returned in 48 hours.
OnSite Safe conducts drive-up testing in Tampa, using saliva samples. The cost is $164 for results by midnight 2 days after your test; you can pay an additional $24.75 for results by midnight the next business day.
Med2u Inc. conducts tests at their Hollywood office, and will do home or office visits in the surrounding region. The cost is $200, plus a travel fee of $100 or more; results are available by late evening of the next business day.
Physician Partners of America will come to clients in the Tampa and Orlando areas to conduct a test for $300, with results in 24 hours.
OpenClear is a concierge service that brings a clinician to your home or office in the Miami area for Covid testing. Costs range from $499 for results in 48-72 hours to $899 for results in 12-24 hours.
DM Covid-19 Test conducts curbside tests in Daytona Beach; it’s $219 for next-day results, or $299 for same-day results.

Georgia

Viral Solutions offers drive-up testing in several locations around Atlanta at no cost. Results are typically available in 2 days.
Worksite Labs conducts tests in Atlanta; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours.
Wellness 4 Humanity conducts saliva and throat-swab tests in Atlanta, with results in 24-48 hours for $169, or guaranteed by 2:00 a.m. for $209. They will also come to your home or office for an additional $249.
DM Covid-19 Test conducts curbside tests in Atlanta; it’s $219 for next-day results, or $299 for same-day results.

Hawaii

Wellness 4 Humanity conducts saliva and throat-swab tests in Honolulu, with results in 24-48 hours for $199.

Illinois

Prime Care Physicians offers drive-up tests at their clinic in Schaumburg with results in 15-48 hours; they accept some insurance or charge $125 out of pocket. They also do in-home or in-office tests for an additional $100-$150 fee.

Maryland

Brookville Pharmacy conducts tests in Chevy Chase; the cost is $200 for results in 48 hours, or $250 for results in 24 hours.
DM Covid-19 Test conducts curbside tests at their Columbia office; it’s $219 for same-day results, or $299 for results in one hour.

Massachusetts

Tufts Medical Center conducts tests in Boston, with results in 48-72 hours. If your insurance does not cover the test, the cost is $135.
Veritas offers tests at locations in Manchester-by-the-Sea, Ipswich, Andover, Beverly, and Newton Center. The cost is $120; results are available the same day if your sample is collected before noon, or the next day for afternoon tests.

Nevada

Covid Check Today will send a clinician to your home (or any other location) in the Las Vegas area to conduct a test. The cost is $199 for results in 24 hours ($149 with insurance), or $349 for results in 6 hours.
Worksite Labs conducts tests in Las Vegas; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours, or $150 for results in 12 hours.
Phamatech, Inc. conducts shallow-nasal-swab tests in Las Vegas. The cost is $120 for results in 24-48 hours.

New Jersey

LabQ offers walk-up testing at various locations in New Jersey. The testing is free, with results in 24 hours.
Urgent Medical Care & MRI in Jersey City conducts tests with a 30-minute turnaround at a cost of $250.

New York

Get Result Today performs tests in Manhattan, Glen Cove, and Merrick. The cost is $139 for results within 24 hours, or $249 for results in 30-60 minutes. At-home testing is available for an additional fee.
LabQ offers walk-up testing at various locations in New York City. The testing is free, with results in 24 hours.
Bloom Labs sells test kits with a self-administered swab at their Manhattan location; the cost is $299 for results in 3-4 hours.
Worksite Labs conducts tests near JFK airport; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours.
CareCube offers tests at their locations in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens. The cost is $100-$150 with insurance, or $225 without, with results in 4-6 hours.
The Medical Offices of Manhattan performs tests at their three locations in Manhattan, with results in 1 hour. The office visit costs $199 (your insurance may cover this), and the test costs $225.
Venistat will send a clinician to your home anywhere in New York’s five boroughs or on Long Island. The cost is $115 with insurance, or $185 without. Results are guaranteed in 24 hours; the average turnaround time is 14 hours.
OnSite Safe conducts drive-up testing in Manhattan, using saliva samples. The cost is $184 for results by midnight 2 days after your test, or $208.75 for results by midnight the next business day.
The New York Center for Travel and Tropical Medicine offers tests with same-day results in Manhattan; the test costs $395, an official certificate for travel an additional $35.
Urgent Care of New York performs drive-up tests at its four locations in Westchester and Rockland counties for $75 (they accept most insurance for the $120 cost of the visit), with results in about 20 minutes.
Med2u Inc. does home/office visits in New York City. The cost is $200, plus a $100-$200 travel fee; results are available in 24 hours.
OpenClear is a concierge service that brings a clinician to your home or office in the New York area (including Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania) for Covid testing. Costs range from $499 for results in 48-72 hours to $899 for results in 12-24 hours.

North Carolina

DM Covid-19 Test conducts curbside tests in Wilmington; it’s $219 for next-day results.

Oregon

Worksite Labs conducts tests in Portland; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours, $150 for results in 12 hours, or $250 for results in 90 minutes.
AFC Urgent Care Center offers tests at their 5 locations in the Portland area. The cost is $139 for results in 24-72 hours, or $199 for results in 15-60 minutes.

Pennsylvania

AFC Urgent Care Center conducts tests in South Philadelphia. They bill insurance for a standard test with results typically returned in 1-3 days; same-day results are available for $150.
Frontage Lab does testing at its Exton facility. The cost is $200 for same-day results.
DM Covid-19 Test conducts curbside tests in Philadelphia and East Falls; it’s $219 for next-day results, or $299 for same-day results.

South Carolina

Phlebo on the Go offers mobile testing in Hilton Head and the surrounding area; the cost is $165 for results in 24 hours.
DM Covid-19 Test conducts curbside tests in Fort Mill; it’s $219 for next-day results.

Tennessee

At their two locations in Nashville, Complete Health Partners offers a package that includes a medical exam and a Covid test for $250, with results in 30-45 minutes.

Texas

APC Health offers drive-through tests in Pearland. The cost is $60 for results in 24 hours.
DevLab bio conducts tests at their lab near Dallas-Fort Worth. The cost is $115 for next-day results, $215 for same-day results, or $290 for results in 30-45 minutes.
BioExcel Diagnostics performs saliva tests at their lab in Houston. The cost is $60 for results within 48 hours.
OpenClear is a concierge service that brings a clinician to your home or office in the Houston area for Covid testing. Costs range from $499 for results in 48-72 hours to $899 for results in 12-24 hours.
iGenomeDx conducts drive-up tests at its San Antonio lab for $125. Results are available by 6 p.m. for tests done before 10:30 a.m.; otherwise, results are available in 24-48 hours.
ADL Health conducts drive-through tests at its San Antonio testing center; the cost is $169 for results in 24-48 hours.
Worksite Labs conducts tests in Austin; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours, $150 for results in 12 hours, or $250 for results in 90 minutes.

Virginia

McLean Pharmacy conducts tests; the cost is $299 for same-day results.

Washington

The City of Seattle offers free tests with results in 48-72 hours.
Worksite Labs conducts tests in Seattle; the cost is $90 for results in 24 hours, $150 for results in 12 hours, or $250 for results in 90 minutes.
Discovery Health MD conducts test at the Seattle Airport and at the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton nearby. The cost is $176 for next-day results or $349 for results in 1 hour.

Washington, D.C.

Farragut Medical and Travel Care offers tests at $250 for results 4-48 hours after the lab receives your sample.
The Washington Travel Clinic performs tests for $350 with results in 15 minutes.

Mail-In Tests for the U.S.

ADL Health

The price: $119 for travelers flying on United; $169 for all others
The promise: Results are typically available 24-48 hours after the lab begins processing your sample.
The process: Order a kit online; when you’re ready to conduct your home test, return to ADL’s website to activate your kit. Collect your sample via a shallow nasal swab, then send it to the lab using the enclosed, prepaid UPS Next Day Air shipping label.
Get more info on ADL Health.

APC Health

The price: $100
The promise: Results are available within 24 hours of your sample arriving at their lab.
The process: When you request a kit from APC, you can choose to collect your saliva sample independently, or during a video call. (Some countries require that you be supervised while taking the Covid test necessary for entry.) Return your specimen via the prepaid UPS materials. Results include a QR code.
Get more info on APC Health.

Azova

The price: $114.99
The promise: Results are expected 12-36 hours after the lab receives your sample.
The process: Choose from a nasal-swab or saliva test kit. Once you receive your kit, you can schedule a video observation to collect your sample. Return it via the prepaid next-day air shipping materials.
Get more info on Azova.

Carbon Health

The price: $145
The promise: Results are expected within 72 hours of shipping your sample to the lab.
The process: Order online and your testing kit will be shipped to you via FedEx overnight delivery. Collect your saliva sample and return it in the overnight packaging provided.
Get more info on Carbon Health.

The COVID Consultants

The price: $199 (+$25 if you need a Saturday delivery label)
The promise: Results are guaranteed within 24 hours of your sample arriving at the lab.
The process: Fill out their form and The COVID Consultants will immediately send you a kit (you can choose between a sputum test or nasal swab) and an invoice. Collect your sample and send it to their lab via the included packaging for overnight shipping.
Get more info on The COVID Consultants.

empowerDX

The price: free with insurance, or $99
The promise: Results are normally available with 24-48 hours of the lab receiving your sample.
The process: Order a kit online and you will receive it within 2 business days. Collect your sample with the shallow nasal swab, then return it via the enclosed FedEx next-day packaging.
Get more info on empowerDX.

Everlywell

The price: $109
The promise: Results are reported within 24-48 hours of the lab receiving your sample. The stated time of your sample collection may default to midnight. You must be 18 or older to use the test.
The process: Order a kit online and it will arrive within 2-8 business days, depending on the shipping method you choose. Once the kit arrives, insert a swab about one inch into each nostril, then return your sample to the lab via the prepaid UPS next-day service label.
Get more info on Everlywell.

ImmunitiRx

The price: $225, with a 10% discount on orders of 4 or more kits (+$15 if you need a Saturday delivery label)
The promise: Results are reported 24-36 hours after their lab receives your sample.
The process: Order a kit online and ImmunitiRx will send it out via FedEx two-day shipping. Spit three to four times into the supplied cup, then deliver it to a FedEx DropBox for overnight shipping to the lab (box and shipping label provided).
Get more info on ImmunitiRx.

LetsGetChecked

The price: $109
The promise: Results are usually available 24-72 hours after the lab receives your sample.
The process: Order a test online, then activate the kit via the company’s website when you’re ready to use it: Collect your sample with a shallow nasal swab, then mail it to the lab via the enclosed express UPS shipping label.
Get more info on LetsGetChecked.

Med2u Inc.

The price: $200, plus $39 shipping fee per order (+$10 if you need a Saturday delivery label)
The promise: Results are available 12-14 hours after the lab receives your sample.
The process: Order either a nasal-swab or sputum testing kit and collect your sample. Return it to the lab via the prepaid overnight shipping label.
Get more info on Med2u Inc.

Quest Diagnostics

The price: $135
The promise: Results are typically available 1 to 3 days after your sample arrives at the lab. You must be 18 or older to use this test.
The process: Quest’s kit includes materials to collect an upper respiratory nasal sample and a prepaid overnight Fedex shipping label. (Quest also offers drive-through testing at a number of Walmart locations across the country for $125.)
Get more info on QuestDiagnostics.

Reliant Health Services

The price: $129
The promise: Results are usually available 24-48 hours after your sample arrives at the lab.
The process: The kit includes materials to collect a saliva sample and a box to return it to the lab via prepaid Fedex overnight shipping. When you’re ready to take the test, register it online, indicating that you are using it for travel. If your destination requires video observation, you will be connected to a practitioner for a telehealth visit.
Get more info on Reliant Health Services.

VaultHealth

The price: $90
The promise: Results are returned 24-48 hours after your sample arrives at their lab. The provided documentation lists the date of the sample collection, but not the time.
The process: Receive your testing kit in the mail (or via Doordash delivery in select cities), then do a Zoom video call with a test supervisor, who will guide you through the process of saliva collection. The kit includes prepaid materials for overnight shipping.
Get more info on VaultHealth.

Tests That Can Be Self-Administered Abroad

Note: These kits are antigen tests, which many countries now also accept for entry (typically within a shorter window prior to arrival than PCR tests). Internet access suitable for a video call is essential.

Abbott BinaxNOW + eMed

The price: $150 for a pack of 6 tests via eMed; $70 for a pack of 2 via Optum
The promise: eMed sells Abbott’s BinaxNOW test kits that you can self-administer anywhere you have broadband internet access and a device with a camera. Results are determined in 15 minutes during your guided testing session.
The process: Order the kits online and you can self-administer them via a video visit with an eMed Certified Guide. The test involves a shallow nasal swab. You must download the NAVICA app before departing the U.S. and bring two tests per person.
Get more info on eMed.

Ellume + Azova

The price: $26-$45 for test kit, $15 for video observation visit
The promise: Ellume’s test kit meets the testing requirement to enter the U.S. only when conducted under video observation, which Azova provides. Results are sent via SMS and email within 24 hours.
The process: Purchase an Ellume kit online or in a pharmacy, then go to Azova’s website to schedule a video visit during which you will take the test. Video observations are available 24/7, but it is recommended that you schedule your session as soon as you have booked your flight back to the U.S.
Get more info on Ellume.
Get more info on Azova.

Lucira + Azova

The price: $89 for test kit and video observation
The promise: Results in 30 minutes.
The process: Order a kit online, then schedule your video observation. Results are available via QR code and pdf.
Get more info on Lucira + Azova.

On/Go + Azova

The price: $55 for test kit and video observation
The promise: Results in 15 minutes.
The process: Order a kit online, which includes two tests. Take the first test 24-48 hours prior to your scheduled video observation, during which you will be instructed to take the second test. Results are available via QR code and pdf.
Get more info on On/Go + Azova.

Qured

The price: $45
The promise: Take a kit during a telehealth visit and receive results in 2 hours.
The process: Order a kit online, schedule your video consultation, and at the appointed time one of Qured’s health advisors will walk you through the testing process. The kit includes a second test, which users are advised to take 24-36 hours later to confirm the result.
Get more info on Qured.

Reliant Health Services

The price: $69; discounts for boxes of 2, 6, and 10 tests
The promise: Results are typically available within 15 minutes of your telehealth session .
The process: Order a kit online. When you’re ready to take the test, register your kit on the website during operating hours (9:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Sunday); you will be sent a link to access a video-observation session.
Get more info on Reliant Health Services.

Be a safer, smarter traveler: Sign up for Wendy’s weekly newsletter to stay in the know. And read real travelers’ reviews of Wendy’s WOW List and use it to plan your next trip.

Wendy’s Travel Advice for 2022

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Of the thousands of you who arranged international trips via our WOW system last year during Covid, many of you said in your trip reviews that it was the best trip of your life and that you felt safer overseas than you do back home. This was not just dumb luck. It was the result of careful orchestration of the pandemic-travel experience by people with the expertise and connections for navigating the new international travel landscape. Based on everything we’ve learned throughout the pandemic, if you’re looking for the best travel experiences in 2022, here’s my advice:

Let your timing dictate where you go. Flexibility regarding choice of your travel destination is key. Smart windows for travel will differ by country, as the factors that help determine a destination’s Covid-safeness (e.g., local vaccination rate and type, availability of open-air dining, optimal conditions for outdoor activities, etc.) fluctuate. When you know when you’ll be able to travel, write to Ask Wendy, and we can recommend where you’re likely to have the best experience during that window.

Embrace last-minute opportunities. Given how quickly the travel landscape keeps changing, the next smart opportunity may come sooner than you think, so be ready to jump. (My family, for instance, is ready to jump because we’ve already ordered, and received, the mail-in PCR tests and at-home antigen tests we’ll need for our next international flight, even though we haven’t chosen our destination yet.) Fair warning, though: Last-minute arrangements are a bad idea for popular countries such as France, Greece, and Italy that are seeing sky-high demand (and consequent sky-high pricing) for spring/summer/fall 2022.

Favor travel to countries that require vaccination and/or a negative test for entry. So many of your trip reviews mention you felt safer in the foreign country than you do back home, thanks to local protocols and private, Covid-safe arrangements. Even the international flight feels safer because everybody onboard is vaccinated, or has just tested negative, or both. If you choose the right country at the right time, you’ll get better service, fewer tourists, and a more rewarding experience than in crowded, understaffed resort areas in the mainland U.S.

Stick to one country per trip. With entry requirements in constant flux, every border crossing introduces the possibility that something could go wrong and ruin the rest of your trip.

Fly nonstop, if possible, to reduce time in airports and avoid more requirements.

Don’t discount a country because you’ve already been there: It’s easy to get a trip that’s completely different from your last trip to that place if you use a WOW List local expert. Just ask your fellow travelers who made return trips in 2021 to Belize or Croatia or Morocco or Italy or Tahiti or Greece or….

Give yourself something to look forward to. Anticipation of a trip helps your mental health. If prepaying for a trip, protect yourself financially by using the right WOW Lister and/or buying the right travel insurance (and using a credit card to purchase your trip; here’s more on that). A WOW Moment is something to look forward to as well, so if you’ve traveled with us recently, don’t forget to submit your trip review within three months of your return date so you’ll earn WOW Moment credit for that trip. Here’s how to get a WOW Moment.

Remember that you must test negative before boarding your flight back to the U.S…
Especially if you’re traveling with kids, you will want all family members to test negative the day before your return flight. So, even if sickness caused by Covid is not a concern for you, it’s still critical to travel in a way that avoids infection. See 5 Testing Tips for an Easy Return to the U.S.

…and for that reason, make your last hotel a good one.
On the off chance that you test positive at the end of your trip, make sure you’re staying somewhere comfortable, ideally with private outdoor space that you could access while isolating.

Keep checking back, and reading our newsletter, for smart trip ideas now (you’ll find more here) plus answers to your most pressing Covid-related travel questions. There are a ton of would-be travelers out there who could use our help de-complicating the new international travel landscape, so please share our newsletter with your friends. Billie, Brook, Kristine, and I wish you safe and extraordinary travels this year! —Wendy

Last-Minute Tips For Traveling During Covid

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Wherever you’re headed, a little pre-trip preparation will help you have peace of mind while traveling these days. Here are Wendy’s last-minute tips, ideas, and solutions for travel during Covid—covering Covid tests, packing, travel insurance, flying, and more. Most are for international trips, but many are useful for domestic travel too.

Testing / Covid-Related Prep For International Flights

It’s the airline’s employees who will be verifying your paperwork when you check in, so reconfirm with your airline(s) the entry requirements for all countries on your itinerary. That includes countries you’re only transiting through.
If a pre-trip test is required, here’s how to get it. Use a lab that specializes in tests for travel. (A local drugstore’s test may be cheaper, but be sure it guarantees your results in time.)
Complete any forms or paperwork required by your destination, and download any required apps. These could include an entry form, contact tracing information, or health affirmations. Argentina, for example, requires that you fill out an online affidavit.
Even if it’s not required, take a PCR test before you go. You can do it quickly and easily by mail or at numerous locations across the country. A negative result will give you peace of mind that is important, especially if you’re flying to a foreign country.
Have a plan to get tested at the end of your trip. All travelers entering the U.S. via air must show a negative Covid test (either PCR or antigen) taken within one day of their departure. A WOW List trip planner can arrange for a fast and convenient in-person test at your destination, and/or there are official, video-monitored self-test kits that you can pack in your luggage. You might want to pack an extra self-test: Many manufacturers include two tests per kit or recommend that each traveler bring two tests.
Consider taking extra precautions to avoid infection in these last days before you depart. The more careful you are now, the less likely a positive test could cancel your trip.

Remember to Pack

Vaccination card if traveling internationally. (For domestic trips, a photo of your card usually suffices.)
A print-out of your negative Covid test result. Carry a printed copy of your results and any other necessary paperwork (and keep electronic back-up copies securely in the cloud or on your phone).
N95 or KN95 (medical-grade) masks. For a long flight, for ear relief, you might want a mask-strap extender or a N95 that straps around the back of your head instead of around your ears. On my flights, I bring both types of N95s.
Hand sanitizer and wipes. The TSA allows air travelers to bring one liquid hand-sanitizer container, up to 12 ounces per passenger, in their carry-ons now. It’s helpful to pack a smaller bottle also, to carry with you in your day bag at your destination, or in case international airports have different liquid allowances.
Snacks you can eat when masked. Some airports and airlines are limited in the food they are providing nowadays. Be prepared with an energy bar or similar.
A Covid self-test, so you’ve got one handy in case you need it.

Optimize Safety on Your Flight

Mask up. Even though masks are no longer required on domestic flights—rules on international flights depend on the arrival country’s requirements and the airline’s policy—health experts say it’s still wise to mask in airports and on planes.
Sit as far as possible from the nearest stranger. If you see on your airline’s website that a stranger is occupying a seat next to you, try to move to a seat with adjacent empty seats. At the airport gate before your flight, reconfirm with the gate agent whether you are still next to an empty seat; if not, ask about moving.
For ventilation, turn on the air nozzle above you and keep it at full blast throughout the flight. Studies have shown that it does work to scatter viral particles. Since that might make you cold, bring a sweater.
The airplane bathroom is the most germ-filled place on the plane, so use an airport bathroom right before you board, to increase the chance that you can avoid the airplane lavatory entirely or at least minimize the number of visits.
If you’re seated next to a stranger, don’t remove your mask to eat or drink while your seatmate’s mask is removed. Wait until your seatmate’s mask is back on.

Consider Travel Insurance

Do you need it – and, if so, have you bought it? You’ll find answers and options in our Travel Insurance section. At this late date, with your departure coming so soon, you might be reluctant to purchase trip-cancellation insurance, but you might still be interested in medical air transport home should you become hospitalized or inexpensive coverage for medical expenses during your trip, in which case you might use this tool to find an option that suits.

Make Your Next Trip Extraordinary

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Wendy’s Travel Advice for 2022

Last-Minute Tips For Traveling During Covid

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