A while ago, I saw the movie “The Time Traveler’s Wife” and it didn’t take long for me to look for the book, too (written by Audrey Niffenegger). But although I’ve never been much of a science-fiction enthusiast, there is something about time traveling that makes me dream with my eyes open. I remember visiting Sighisoara (Romania) back in 2000 and asked myself how it would have been to visit the city during the 1430s when Vlad the Impaler lived there. Then, this year in Athens, I was wondering how the Ancient Agora would have looked and felt when the great minds of antiquity walked the streets. I would certainly want to use a time machine to travel to either place [and many others]. If you could go back in time to any point, where & when would you want to ‘travel’ to? Is there a place that has always fascinated you that you would like to see how it looked and felt back in time? » This week on BootsnAll: Articles you’ll read this week include a look at the unforgettable characters from around the world, remembering the people we meet while traveling, as well as information on how to find cheap accommodation alternative during the London Olympics and about free walking tours during the Olympics, for those who [...]
Finding indie travel opportunities doesn’t mean we need to cross a border or fly to another continent. There are endless possibilities in our own back yard. We just need to look carefully. When was the last time you took a train ride just for the joy of seeing the scenery roll by? How about packing your camping gear and spending some time in nature, relaxing and forgetting about your daily routine? Traveling to and within the States can be an expensive affair, but there are always ways to cut back costs. If you are from the USA, what is your budget travel tip for someone planning an American adventure? As for those planning a vacation to the States, a quick look at the map can make planning seem like a daunting task — so many places to see and things to experience. Maybe you’ve always dreamed of visiting New York with its famous Times Square, Central Park and Statue of Liberty. Or maybe you want to take a road trip on Route 66 or Highway 101 along the west coast. Perhaps you always wanted to hike the Grand Canyon.. » This week on BootsnAll: Articles you’ll read this week include Why We Decided to Road Trip Across Europe in a Self-Built Campervan , a guide to visiting the Mayan Ruins [...]
Food is an important part of our travels and helps us understand the culture of the place we visit. Sure, it’s “just” a way to fill our hungry bellies, but when you stop at a street cart and taste what’s on offer, you also get to know the people who eat it regularly. I remember the smile of the old man who sold pretzels in Athens, on a rainy Sunday. I thanked him in Greek. Then I realized I just tasted the best pretzels. Ever. It didn’t matter it was pouring rain an we were cold and tired . We paid just 80 euro-cents for our meal on the go and it was amazing. Food has a way to connect us to the places we visit. You may remember only a hint of smell which takes you back exactly to that hidden alley where you tasted something special. Even if the result was sometimes a belly ache. How has food connected you to a destination during your travels? Tell us your story. What was the weirdest food you tried? What was the tastiest you tried? » This week on BootsnAll: Articles you’ll read this week include a detailed guide about Pho, the Vietnamese noodle soup , information about adding dangerous destinations to your RTW trip and best live like a [...]
From the good advice to the bad advice, travel tips can be based on anything from personal experience to general fears. Last year, we asked our BootsnAll community what the worst piece of travel advice you’d ever received was. The list was both funny and random, where we could almost have played a game of opposites and had a great list of advice. So now we’re asking you: What’s your best tip for a first-time traveler? Most of us get that feeling of excitement and nervousness right before leaving on our next big adventure, but can you remember what you felt like on your first trip? First-time travel is such an eye-opening experience. Everything is new. You’re mind is processing a million things – How much is this change worth? Will this bus stop at the next place or do I need to pull the cord? What language are they speaking? No matter what we do, we’re going to make mistakes — that often end up as some of the best memories — but if you could go back in time and tell self-circa 2009 or 1999 or 1989 or 1979 or whatever decade you began your adventures: What’s one of the first things you would say? » This week on BootsnAll: Articles you’ll read this week include: Is It [...]
Having a place to keep track of the things that inspire us to travel is nothing new. Remember the days when an image from a magazine would compel you to tear it out and hang it on a bulletin board in your hallway, reminding you to get out there and see the world? Or when, as you were researching your next adventure, you’d jot down recommendations you heard about from friends or on TV in the margins of your guidebook? My friend Melanie keeps 3-ring binders organized by country with articles and photos from magazines and newspapers, which she then refers to when she’s planning a trip. (It’s the most organized analog travel inspiration system I’ve ever seen.) Today, of course, many of our travel dreaming tools have gone digital. Personally, I keep my TripDoc iPhone app open whenever I’m watching a travel TV show so I can put that restaurant Tony Bourdain is fawning over on a map for when I (eventually, I hope) visit that city. After gathering tips for recent trips to Paris and New York, my maps were overflowing – there was no way I’d be able to hit all those recommended spots during short visits, but the fact that I had all those options made me really happy. And, of course, I’ve got a head-start [...]
Happy New Year! We hope your 2011 was full of meaningful connections, working and playing with passion, embracing change and learning about yourself and the world. And we hope the coming year bring you even more amazing indie travel experiences. This week, we’re kicking off the new year with a week dedicated to planning. We’ll suggest some great travel resolutions to inspire you to get out and go, and help you cope when you’re in between planning trips. We’re also kicking off a new weekly event, called the Indie Travel Challenge, that will last for all of 2012! If you enjoyed participating in or reading the responses to our 30 Days of Indie Travel project, you’ll love what we have in store for you this year. Rather than doing a prompt every day, we’ll post a prompt, question, or challenge (are you up for it?) every week for all of 2012! Similarly to the 30 Days of Indie Travel, we’ll ask you to respond to the prompt on your own blog, and link back to BootsnAll so we can find and highlight the best submissions. For the very first week, we’re talking resolutions! Many of us use the New Year as a time to make resolutions that we think will improve our lives. We plan to eat better, spend less, [...]
A while ago, I saw the movie “The Time Traveler’s Wife” and it didn’t take long for me to look for the book, too (written by Audrey Niffenegger). But although I’ve never been much of a science-fiction enthusiast, there is something about time traveling that makes me dream with my eyes open. I remember visiting Sighisoara (Romania) back in 2000 and asked myself how it would have been to visit the city during the 1430s when Vlad the Impaler lived there. Then, this year in Athens, I was wondering how the Ancient Agora would have looked and felt when the great minds of antiquity walked the streets. I would certainly want to use a time machine to travel to either place [and many others]. If you could go back in time to any point, where & when would you want to ‘travel’ to? Is there a place that has always fascinated you that you would like to see how it looked and felt back in time? » This week on BootsnAll: Articles you’ll read this week include a look at the unforgettable characters from around the world, remembering the people we meet while traveling, as well as information on how to find cheap accommodation alternative during the London Olympics and about free walking tours during the Olympics, for those who [...] 
Finding indie travel opportunities doesn’t mean we need to cross a border or fly to another continent. There are endless possibilities in our own back yard. We just need to look carefully. When was the last time you took a train ride just for the joy of seeing the scenery roll by? How about packing your camping gear and spending some time in nature, relaxing and forgetting about your daily routine? Traveling to and within the States can be an expensive affair, but there are always ways to cut back costs. If you are from the USA, what is your budget travel tip for someone planning an American adventure? As for those planning a vacation to the States, a quick look at the map can make planning seem like a daunting task — so many places to see and things to experience. Maybe you’ve always dreamed of visiting New York with its famous Times Square, Central Park and Statue of Liberty. Or maybe you want to take a road trip on Route 66 or Highway 101 along the west coast. Perhaps you always wanted to hike the Grand Canyon.. » This week on BootsnAll: Articles you’ll read this week include Why We Decided to Road Trip Across Europe in a Self-Built Campervan , a guide to visiting the Mayan Ruins [...] 
Food is an important part of our travels and helps us understand the culture of the place we visit. Sure, it’s “just” a way to fill our hungry bellies, but when you stop at a street cart and taste what’s on offer, you also get to know the people who eat it regularly. I remember the smile of the old man who sold pretzels in Athens, on a rainy Sunday. I thanked him in Greek. Then I realized I just tasted the best pretzels. Ever. It didn’t matter it was pouring rain an we were cold and tired . We paid just 80 euro-cents for our meal on the go and it was amazing. Food has a way to connect us to the places we visit. You may remember only a hint of smell which takes you back exactly to that hidden alley where you tasted something special. Even if the result was sometimes a belly ache. How has food connected you to a destination during your travels? Tell us your story. What was the weirdest food you tried? What was the tastiest you tried? » This week on BootsnAll: Articles you’ll read this week include a detailed guide about Pho, the Vietnamese noodle soup , information about adding dangerous destinations to your RTW trip and best live like a [...] 
From the good advice to the bad advice, travel tips can be based on anything from personal experience to general fears. Last year, we asked our BootsnAll community what the worst piece of travel advice you’d ever received was. The list was both funny and random, where we could almost have played a game of opposites and had a great list of advice. So now we’re asking you: What’s your best tip for a first-time traveler? Most of us get that feeling of excitement and nervousness right before leaving on our next big adventure, but can you remember what you felt like on your first trip? First-time travel is such an eye-opening experience. Everything is new. You’re mind is processing a million things – How much is this change worth? Will this bus stop at the next place or do I need to pull the cord? What language are they speaking? No matter what we do, we’re going to make mistakes — that often end up as some of the best memories — but if you could go back in time and tell self-circa 2009 or 1999 or 1989 or 1979 or whatever decade you began your adventures: What’s one of the first things you would say? » This week on BootsnAll: Articles you’ll read this week include: Is It [...] 
Having a place to keep track of the things that inspire us to travel is nothing new. Remember the days when an image from a magazine would compel you to tear it out and hang it on a bulletin board in your hallway, reminding you to get out there and see the world? Or when, as you were researching your next adventure, you’d jot down recommendations you heard about from friends or on TV in the margins of your guidebook? My friend Melanie keeps 3-ring binders organized by country with articles and photos from magazines and newspapers, which she then refers to when she’s planning a trip. (It’s the most organized analog travel inspiration system I’ve ever seen.) Today, of course, many of our travel dreaming tools have gone digital. Personally, I keep my TripDoc iPhone app open whenever I’m watching a travel TV show so I can put that restaurant Tony Bourdain is fawning over on a map for when I (eventually, I hope) visit that city. After gathering tips for recent trips to Paris and New York, my maps were overflowing – there was no way I’d be able to hit all those recommended spots during short visits, but the fact that I had all those options made me really happy. And, of course, I’ve got a head-start [...] 
Happy New Year! We hope your 2011 was full of meaningful connections, working and playing with passion, embracing change and learning about yourself and the world. And we hope the coming year bring you even more amazing indie travel experiences. This week, we’re kicking off the new year with a week dedicated to planning. We’ll suggest some great travel resolutions to inspire you to get out and go, and help you cope when you’re in between planning trips. We’re also kicking off a new weekly event, called the Indie Travel Challenge, that will last for all of 2012! If you enjoyed participating in or reading the responses to our 30 Days of Indie Travel project, you’ll love what we have in store for you this year. Rather than doing a prompt every day, we’ll post a prompt, question, or challenge (are you up for it?) every week for all of 2012! Similarly to the 30 Days of Indie Travel, we’ll ask you to respond to the prompt on your own blog, and link back to BootsnAll so we can find and highlight the best submissions. For the very first week, we’re talking resolutions! Many of us use the New Year as a time to make resolutions that we think will improve our lives. We plan to eat better, spend less, [...]