Travel
Discover facts about travel. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Travel
Valle de la Luna perfectly mimics the lunar surface
Wind and water carved its rocks into jagged formations so lunar-like that the landscape could serve as a practice ground for early space rovers.
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African equator line boldly slices through thick forests
In parts of Africa, the equator runs through dense, humid forest, where vines and mosquitoes can make reaching the line a sweaty trek.
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Ben's Chili Bowl proudly feeds local politicians for free
Famous comedians are on the free-meal list too, helping the restaurant draw publicity for its half-smokes.
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Louis Vuitton learned luxury travel by packing for other people
Before establishing his business in 1854, Vuitton worked as a trunk maker and packer and served Empress Eugénie. Delicate wardrobes needed protection and…
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When the Dakar Rally crossed the real desert
Its route once sent drivers through vast dunes, where blowing sand and punishing terrain could wreck suspensions and make navigation grueling.
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Dubai built a sunken city inside the world's deepest pool
Deep Dive Dubai holds 14 million liters of freshwater and is designed as an abandoned city, with furnished apartments and underwater arcade games for divers…
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The world's highest ATM sits above 15,000 feet
At Khunjerab Pass in Pakistan, the solar-powered machine sits 15,397 feet above sea level and serves border guards and tourists. Refilling it means a bank…
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A Bermuda roof can also be part of the water supply
Stepped roofs guide rain toward storage tanks, turning the surface above a home into a collection area. The system helps residents use rainfall where surface…
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Air marshals blend in by pretending to be tourists
Rather than wear conspicuous suits and sunglasses, they blend in as ordinary travelers, staying unnoticed until a threat emerges in the cabin.
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Why a thumbs-up can be an insult in parts of the Middle East
In Iran and Iraq, a thumbs-up has historically been considered a vulgar insult, sometimes called “bilaakh”—closer in meaning to flipping someone off than…
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Why Monaco citizens can't gamble at Monte Carlo casinos
Monte Carlo’s casinos were built to attract wealthy foreign gamblers, while Monaco citizens are barred from gambling there—and even from entering the gaming…
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Kaieteur Falls drops in one massive single plunge
In Guyana's jungle, it sends about 30,000 gallons of water per second over a sheer cliff.
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Driving a slow tractor on a highway infuriates other drivers
When farm equipment has to travel between fields on a public road, its low top speed can leave cars crawling behind it.
Discover moreWhy sea level isn't the same everywhere
Gravity and massive underwater ridges make the ocean's surface uneven, so water piles higher in some regions than in others.
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Japan has a village filled with life-sized scarecrows
As residents left Nagoro, life-size handmade scarecrows took their places, posed at bus stops and schools around the rural Japanese village.
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New York's horn rule treats impatience differently from danger
The city's noise-code guide allows a horn as a warning of imminent danger, not as a soundtrack to being stuck in traffic. That makes the reason for the blast…
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Oxygen masks deploy automatically upon pressure drops
A pressure sensor detects the drop and releases the panels, so the masks deploy without the pilots pressing a button.
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Legoland glues its giant Lego models together
Staff glue the bricks together because visitors might otherwise pull the giant models apart.
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Icebergs are made of fresh water
An iceberg is a floating reservoir of fresh water, not frozen seawater.
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The Grand Canyon got a glass skywalk
The horseshoe-shaped steel-and-glass walkway extends over the canyon rim, giving visitors a view above the drop for a fee.
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Bull sharks spent years in an Australian golf-course lake
A study documented their presence at Carbrook for 17 years after floods gave them access. They entered as juveniles and reached maturity in the lake's…
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Secret shoppers aggressively critique showers
Quality-assurance agencies pay ordinary people to stay undercover at hotels and inspect details such as bathroom grout and tile cleanliness.
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Qantas has never had a fatal crash in the jet era
Since the jet age began in the 1950s, Qantas has had no fatal crash involving a jet airliner.
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Why black suitcases vanish at baggage claim
So many suitcases look alike that one can be mistaken for another—or grabbed without attracting attention.
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