The Quick Lowdown to Vietnam

June 23, 2015 Erica Ho 10 minute read

There’s something to be said about visiting the country where your parents were born and raised for the first time. And sometimes there’s that glimpse of understanding into who they are.

The Quick Lowdown to Vietnam via @maphappy

Europe Features Ground Guides Trains

The Ins and Outs of Riding the Eurail Like a Pro

June 11, 2015 Melissa Roskowski 6 minute read

This is part 2 in The Backpacker’s Guide to Eurail Passes series.

I would have liked to know what I was getting into beforehand. Before I was standing the entire time for a train ride, without any AC. There are definitely a couple of things to be aware of, well, to make it a pleasant journey.

The Ins and Outs of Riding the Eurail Like a Pro via @maphappy

Adventure Countries Features Leisure Travel

How To Find That Perfect Offbeat Destination

June 3, 2015 Karina Martinez-Carter 3 minute read

Pop quiz: What city hosts the world’s biggest carnival celebration? Nope, not Rio.

How To Find That Perfect Offbeat Destination via @maphappy

Countries Europe Features

The Quick Lowdown to England

May 19, 2015 Erica Ho 5 minute read

Chuck Thompson once wrote, “I love England because it’s like a grown-up America, a fact I’m reminded of as soon as I get on a British Airways flight or hop into a London cab and people stop treating me as though I’d just learned to finger paint.”

The Quick Lowdown to England via @maphappy

Europe Features Ground Guides Trains

The Backpacker’s Guide to Eurail Passes

May 12, 2015 Melissa Roskowski 4 minute read

This is part 1 in The Backpacker’s Guide to Eurail Passes series.

Hopping trains through Europe is a backpacker rite of passage and a Eurail pass is the ticket. But it’s way, way more complicated than a couple clicks online and showing up at a train station.

The Backpacker’s Guide to Eurail Passes via @maphappy

Countries Features North America

The Quick Lowdown to Cuba Travel

April 20, 2015 Karina Martinez-Carter 7 minute read

For decades it’s been Americans’ forbidden fruit, a place where only devil-may-care travelers would slip past international borders, taking care not to have their passport stamped.

The Quick Lowdown to Cuba Travel via @maphappy

Africa Countries Features

The Quick Lowdown to Morocco Travel

March 16, 2015 Karina Martinez-Carter 6 minute read

l doubt I’m alone in saying that Casablanca put visions in my mind of visiting Morocco a long time ago. Intoxicating souks, winding through the streets, taking in the scents and smells and amicably haggling with merchant wearing a fez (language barriers don’t exist in travel daydreams, obviously).

The Quick Lowdown to Morocco Travel via @maphappy

Flights Hacks Money South America

Beware of Booking Plane Fares for Residents

February 24, 2015 Karina Martinez-Carter 1 minute read

The quest for plane tickets can drive us to jump through all sorts of proverbial hoops, like hiding our location and changing our language until we find—ta da!—that cheap golden ticket.

Beware of Booking Plane Fares for Residents via @maphappy

Countries Features South America

The Quick Lowdown to Colombia Travel

February 16, 2015 Karina Martinez-Carter 4 minute read

Colombia used to be considered too dangerous for the average tourist to touch. But then something happened: Things calmed down and the country started popping up on every top destinations list a few years ago.

The Quick Lowdown to Colombia Travel via @maphappy

Asia Countries

The Quick Lowdown to Hong Kong

January 20, 2015 Erica Ho 8 minute read

I used to watch the boats sail back and forth in the harbor from my cubicle and this junk (or boat) was always a distinctive blot on the waterfront. When I moved to Hong Kong, I didn’t believe there could be a city crazier than New York.

The Quick Lowdown to Hong Kong via @maphappy

Europe Flights Money Technology

Refund.me Claims Comp for EU Flight Delays

December 17, 2014 Karina Martinez-Carter 3 minute read

If there’s a silver lining to flight cancellations, delays or denied boarding it’s that getting screwed in the EU or with an EU airline can be profitable. For us.

Refund.me Claims Comp for EU Flight Delays via @maphappy

Countries Europe Features

The Quick Lowdown to Portugal

December 15, 2014 Karina Martinez-Carter 3 minute read

Spain unfailingly gets rounded up into all cool and considered about Europe but its Iberian neighbor Portugal is almost always overlooked.

The Quick Lowdown to Portugal via @maphappy

Countries Features Oceania

The Quick Lowdown to Australia Travel

November 17, 2014 Erica Ho 5 minute read

There used to be a point in time where I used to joke around that if I had to fly to Australia one more time, I would just finally move there.

The Quick Lowdown to Australia Travel via @maphappy

Asia Countries Documentation Trip Planning Visa

Tourists Can Now Visit China for Up to 10 Years

November 13, 2014 Erica Ho 1 minute read

I stopped visiting China sometime when I realized I had handed the government over $560+ in tourist visa fees.

Tourists Can Now Visit China for Up to 10 Years via @maphappy

Asia Countries Europe Features Videos

The Quick Lowdown to Turkey Travel

October 23, 2014 Erica Ho 4 minute read

Dive into Turkey, with everything you need to know in a quick glance. This is only a taster of the hot mess of West and East you’re about to encounter.

The Quick Lowdown to Turkey Travel via @maphappy

Countries Features South America

The Quick Lowdown on Argentina

September 18, 2014 Karina Martinez-Carter 7 minute read

Our brand new Snapshot series that covers the most important, quick-hit info about a destination so you can dive in as quickly as possible. First up is Argentina, that beguiling South American country where I set my post-collegiate sights.

The Quick Lowdown on Argentina via @maphappy

Asia Countries Features

To Mongolia and Back for 80 Dollars (Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love George W.)

April 4, 2013 Guest Author 11 minute read

A couple of funny things happen when the temperature gets down to minus 40° degrees. The first is that the Fahrenheit and Celsius temperature scales intersect. The second is that all your nose hairs instantly freeze solid.

To Mongolia and Back for 80 Dollars (Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love George W.) via @maphappy

Culture & Science Features Oceania

Why the International Date Line Isn’t a Straight Line

March 25, 2013 Erica Ho 3 minute read

The International Date Line isn’t a fixed line at all, but actually sort of follows the 180° longitude line, zigzagging its way through a bunch of small islands, territories and nations. More interestingly, it also allows you to semi-time travel.

Why the International Date Line Isn’t a Straight Line via @maphappy

Countries Features North America

Taking a Brief Glimpse Inside Guatemala’s Forests

March 2, 2012 Erica Ho 4 minute read

It doesn’t happen often, but as I was admiring the natural beauty that surrounded me, I also contemplated how close I was to imminent death.