Travel
Discover facts about travel. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Travel
Why your rental car may have another state’s license plate
Rental companies may register fleets in states with lower vehicle taxes or registration fees, even when the cars are rented elsewhere. They can save on…
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A flight price is easier to judge with a history
Google Flights can compare a fare with typical prices and show a price graph across travel dates. That gives a sudden increase some context: is this…
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Machu Picchu was already known to people living beside it.
Machu Picchu was already known to people living beside it. Local residents guided Hiram Bingham to the ruins in 1911, where families were farming among the…
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China spans five geographical time zones but mandates a single uniform time across the entire country, meaning people in the far western provinces often watch the sun rise at ten in the morning.
China spans five geographical time zones but mandates a single uniform time across the entire country, meaning people in the far western provinces often watch…
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Paris became the name of a rare travel-related psychiatric crisis.
Paris became the name of a rare travel-related psychiatric crisis. Clinicians have described severe distress among some Japanese visitors and residents in…
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Everest's frozen rubbish can take years to remove.
Everest's frozen rubbish can take years to remove. A Nepalese cleanup team reported removing 11 tons of waste from Everest in the 2024 climbing season, along…
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An undercover airport test reportedly slipped threats through 67 times out of 70.
An undercover airport test reportedly slipped threats through 67 times out of 70. ABC News reported those results in 2015, citing officials briefed on…
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Clark County had over 150,000 lodging rooms at the end of 2025
The Las Vegas tourism authority counted 150,300 rooms across 292 properties in the county. That is rooms, not beds, and includes more than the Strip alone.…
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Why McDonald’s is nearly everywhere
Franchising lets local operators invest in restaurants while using an established brand, operating system, and supply network. McDonald’s can expand without…
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Sioux City, Iowa, was assigned the unfortunate airport code SUX back in 1946, and after petitioning the FAA twice to change it and failing, the city finally gave up and trademarked the slogan "Fly SUX" in 2007.
Sioux City, Iowa, was assigned the unfortunate airport code SUX back in 1946, and after petitioning the FAA twice to change it and failing, the city finally…
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Mapmakers frequently insert entirely fake towns, known as paper towns or phantom settlements, into their officially published maps to act as copyright traps for lazy competitors…
Mapmakers frequently insert entirely fake towns, known as paper towns or phantom settlements, into their officially published maps to act as copyright traps…
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Why you can’t see the Great Wall from space
From low Earth orbit, the wall is too narrow to pick out with the naked eye against similarly colored rock; a brightly lit highway is easier to spot.
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Why TSA confiscates bowling pins
The TSA classifies bowling pins as bludgeoning items, so they aren't allowed in carry-on bags.
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A bag of nuts sent a Korean Air plane back to the gate
In 2014, executive Cho Hyun-ah objected to macadamias being served in their bag rather than a bowl on a flight leaving New York. The aircraft returned to the…
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Bhutan is carbon-negative—and charges tourists by the day
Bhutan’s constitution requires at least 60% of the country to remain forested, helping it absorb more carbon than it emits. Visitors also pay a daily…
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Why Tokyo has so few public trash cans
Security concerns after the 1995 subway attacks contributed to the removal of bins in some public places. Carrying rubbish away became part of navigating the…
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A hotel key is an expiring permission, not just a room number
Electronic cards can encode or link to an access period as well as the door they open. That period is programmed by the hotel, so the lock's timing and the…
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Even America's inches are defined in metric
The international inch is exactly 2.54 centimeters, making a foot exactly 0.3048 meters. American travelers still encounter miles and Fahrenheit, but the…
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Tokyo's Shinjuku Station handles 3.6 million passengers a day
With over 200 exits and several overlapping railway operators, finding your way through the station can be a challenge even after navigating the crowds.
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Mount Thor's cliff leans past vertical for a 1,250-meter drop
Guinness lists the Canadian peak's west face as the greatest vertical drop, with an average angle fifteen degrees beyond vertical. The rock overhangs instead…
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Santa Cruz del Islote leaves even its cemetery off-island
The Colombian island is so densely built that residents use neighboring islands for services and space the settlement lacks. Its cemetery is elsewhere. A…
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Clouds can drift through Vietnam's vast Son Doong cave
The cave's enormous passages connect with the outside through openings, and its temperature and moisture conditions produce mist and clouds. Visitors can…
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Ethiopia has a landscape that looks chemically unfinished
In the Danakil Depression, volcanic heat, salt deposits, and mineral-rich brines produce vivid crusts, pools, and steaming ground. The colors are clues to…
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Hamburg has nearly 2,500 bridges to keep itself connected
The city spreads across rivers, channels and islands, with road and rail connections layered over the waterways. Its port authority alone manages 133 bridges,…
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