George Hobica

A while back I wrote about some of the gripes I have with hotel rooms, things like not enough power outlets in rooms, poor bedside reading lights, that sort of thing. But then it occurred to me, maybe I should give a shout out to some of my...

Have a question about travel or airfares? We answer as many as we can, either by email to questions@airfarewatchdog.com or in our Q&A column

Q: Two college roommates and I booked a cruise through Celebrity Cruise Lines. We did everything as suggested: booked through a travel agency, had Celebrity book...

Anyone with a pile of money can build a big pile of a house, and back in the day, that's what you did. (See, for instance, Downton Abbey.) But during the 20th century, a group of architects staged a controversial revolt. Why, they asked, couldn't less be as impressive as...

Have a question about travel or airfares? We answer as many as we can, either by email to questions@airfarewatchdog.com or in our Q&A column

Q: My family and I plan to fly to New York City sometime this year or next and after doing some sightseeing we'd like to take...

Have a question about air travel or airfares? We answer as many as we can, either by email to questions@airfarewatchdog.com or in our Q&A column

Are Airport Luggage Scales Accurate?
Q: I recently took a trip where I was dangerously close to being overweight with both my checked bags....

There are luxury resorts (Four Seasons, Aman and their ilk), and then there are the ultra-luxury ones. What's the difference?

The ultras are even more exclusive, pride themselves on highly individualized service and are seldom larger than 20 to 40 rooms. They're usually situated on acres of pristine land...

Have a question about air travel or airfares? We answer as many as we can, either by email to questions@airfarewatchdog.com or in our Q&A column.

Q: Are airfares really that high?
Why is the general public (and readers of your column and website) complaining about the high cost of...

After a barely-there winter and a heavy dose of springtime, Toronto's out and about and ready for a nice, long summer. Canada's biggest city -- the population is now pretty much equal to Chicago's at approximately 2.5 million -- continues to evolve and surprise, offering appealing, hip neighborhoods and unusual...

The second season of Portlandia, a critically-acclaimed show, if you've never heard of it, on IFC that lovingly lampoons life in one of the country's most unique cities, recently wrapped up its season. But you want to know what's even more fun than watching Fred Armisen make jokes...

One of the great charms of Baltimore is its lack of interest in running with the herd. Possessing a unique look and an entertainingly odd culture, it moves at a slow and steady pace, entirely out of step with the rest of the bustling Northeast megalopolis.

Here, you are just...

Thousands of airplanes take off and touch down every day without incident, but every now and then -- as we were so vividly reminded this week with the story of the JetBlue pilot and his midair meltdown -- things can go spectacularly wrong. Sometimes, it's the guys up at the...

If you've ever been lucky enough to visit an airline club (you know, the United's Red Carpet Club, American's Admiral's Club, etc.) and partake of the free booze, perhaps you've wondered about the person behind the bar serving you. We did, so we asked a couple about their work in...

It may feel like summer out east and winter out west, but according to the calendar, this really is spring we're having. And spring, of course, means flowers. Which means it's once again the time of year for a whole series of festivals, designed to highlight -- and celebrate --...

Between the time you book a trip and the time you take it, there's a good chance that the hotel, rental car company or airline lowered the price. These websites (one of them just launched) watch your purchase and rebook you at a lower rate automatically, or alert you that...

According to a recent Expedia poll, 25 percent of men and 33 percent of women have "not but always wanted to" drive across the USA. I've always wanted to do this, too, and actually am planning to this spring, if all goes to plan.

But if you're not that ambitious,...

Airfarewatchdog.com answers your questions about air travel. We answer as many as we can in this column or by email to questions@airfarewatchdog.com

Q: I want to visit Hong Kong for about 30 days, leaving from Syracuse, New York (or New York City if I must). My travel dates...

What I'm about to say may not be great for the airline industry (my bread and butter so to speak), but did you know that, chances are, you live within an a six-hour drive of a cruise ship port? In fact, most Americans do. Heck, some of you reading this...

Looking for signs of spring? No need to strain those eyeballs -- at these 10 incredible indoor green spaces, there's always plenty of colorful flora to go around.

You'd never know it from their famously-cheeky (and sometimes offensive) fare sale campaigns (this one, from June, 2010 in the aftermath of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, was especially tactless), but Spirit Airlines is pretty grumpy these days.
 
Spirit is the airline that the...

When my friend Mike, a finance guy based in Newton, Mass., opened the overhead bin during a British Airways flight from Boston to London several years ago, he got a nasty surprise. No doubt he had listened carefully to the pre-flight safety announcement, including the bit about "items in the...