Off-peak cheat sheet: When and where to travel from SA for big savings and quiet getaways
Peak season often means high prices and chaotic travel. Choosing a date more carefully can mean a significantly cheaper and more pleasant trip.
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Travel + Leisure
an hour ago
- Travel + Leisure
This Is the No. 1 Tourist Destination Letdown in the U.S.—But Here's How to Visit It Properly
The day after I graduated from college, my sister and I flew to New York City, meticulously plotting out our visit hour-by-hour in a spiral notebook. But the moment we got to the city, we ditched the plan and beelined for Times Square. Hours later, she was live on MTV's TRL (yes, this was 1999!) announcing the No. 1 song—and we instantly believed this was the place where dreams come true. A few years later, my office was smack dab in the middle of Times Square. While my co-workers complained about the constant hoards of tourists, I secretly loved stepping right into the excitement, always remembering that every individual in the crowd is experiencing that magical first moment of looking up and feeling the power of the bright lights and big city, or as I always call it, that first Felicity moment from The WB hit drama. Now that I've lived here 22 years, I know and understand the reputation of that the district around the intersection where Broadway and Seventh Avenue has. For global travelers, Times Square a must-see, standing among the skyscrapers and screens among the street performers and costumed characters luring travelers (and SNL comedians, as Colin Jost told Travel + Leisure). And for locals, it's the one place to totally avoid. So when I learned analysts at CasiMonka named Times Square the "biggest tourist destination letdown" in the world—with reviews calling it "expensive" and "touristy"—I instantly got defensive. As perhaps the most famous New Year's Eve destination in the world for its ball drop, a tradition since 1907, of course anyone who visits the city year-round craves a piece of that thrill, inherently turning it into a 'touristy' place. Plus compared to where many travelers are coming from, the cost of living is higher. But like anywhere else, there are budget-friendly options that still give you the ultimate Big Apple experience, if you know where to look. In fact, one of my most frequented spots is the Hershey's Store because I'm always handed free chocolate as soon as I enter! I was so obsessed with this that when I worked near Rockefeller Center for four years at a company that provided car service home, I'd turn it down just to unwind and walk through Times Square savoring that sweet treat in hand. The exterior of Hershey's Chocolate World in Times Square. Wirestock/Getty Images While dining anywhere in New York City can cost a pretty penny, some of my favorite affordable options are also in Times Square, and their diversity showcases the global influence of the city's cuisine. At the top of the list for a full-service meal is an outpost of Japanese ramen shop Ichiran with individual wooden booths for each diner. Its classic Tonkotsu ramen is $22 flat, as a no-tipping establishment. The Italian sandwich shop All'Antico Vinaio serves up Florence-style quick bites, and whenever I have family in town, we always go to Tony's DiNapoli for family-style Italian homecooking. There's also been a recent surge of authentic Asian eats, giving the city's Chinatown and Koreatown serious competition. An outpost of one of the world's most inexpensive Michelin-starred restaurants Tim Ho Wan serves dim sum, while the Taiwanese soup dumpling favorite Din Tai Fung opened its largest restaurant yet in Times Square last year. So many of my favorites in the city are within the district, like Four Four South Village for Taiwanese beef noodles, Kung Fu Little Steamed Buns and Kung Fu Kitchen for no-frills dumplings and noodles, The Handpulled Noodle for customizable noodle entrees, and Dim Sum Sam for wonton noodle soup. There is also the famous Restaurant Row on 46th Street with longtime mainstay Becco for Italian, while Don't Tell Mama is always fun for a dose of entertainment with your meal and Joe Allen is popular for the the theater community for its wall of Broadway flops, as Kristin Chenoweth told T+L. Of course, Times Square overlaps with the Theater District, with 41 Broadway theaters featuring the world's best musicals and plays, many with star-studded casts. Right now you can catch George Clooney in Good Night, and Good Luck and both Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal in Othello. There's never been a better time to take in a show as this current season is Broadway's highest-grossing in history. While tickets prices can be high, over two decades, I've seen hundreds of shows, never paying more than $100 (often less than $50!), with the exception of four, which were still under $200. Most theaters offer lotteries or rush tickets, and platforms like TodayTix and Theatr also offer deals, and Broadway Inbound for groups. There's also the famous TKTS booth under the Duffy Square's red steps for discounted same-day seats. With so many shows to choose from, it can be hard to navigate, but Wicked, Gypsy, Hamilton, and The Great Gatsby are great for first-timers, whereas my personal recommendations for the season are Maybe Happy Ending, a robotic-look at human nature fresh off its best musical Tonys win, and Just In Time with the beguiling Jonathan Groff in an enthralling homage to Bobby Darrin. Theater lovers should also make time to visit the Museum of Broadway, also in the neighborhood, and can even put on your dancing shoes for one of 50 daily drop-in classes at Broadway Dance Center—I've never felt more like a Broadway star that when I tap danced in the neighborhood! Other empowering city moments: practicing yoga with hundreds of strangers for the annual Solstice in Times Square and running through its streets during the New York City Half Marathon. While the constant hubbub can be overwhelming, I've found calm within th area's coffee shops, often spend my days writing at Bird and Branch, which offers a fun coffee flight, Frisson Espresso, where I'm bound to overhear conversations from Broadway folks, and Bibble and Sip with cutesy desserts that are equally tasty. Like any other city hub, the hotel options can be pricey and room merely functional. But there there's also been a resurgence of boutique-style hotels, like the Civilian Hotel with a cozy artsy atmosphere and Kimpton Theta whose rooftop Bar Sprezzatura is like an Italian seaside getaway, and elevated The Times Square EDITION with The Terrace and Outdoor Gardens with a refreshed menu that includes frozen s'mores. "The Terrace and Outdoor Gardens feels like a sanctuary in the neighborhood," Susmita Baral, a senior editor at T+L said. "Aside from having quality food and a charming aesthetic, it truly transports you to a zen space." Despite being pulled in so many directions in Times Square, every night there's a unifying moment at 11:57pm, when all 92 digital screens from 41st to 49th Streets sync up with the work of contemporary artists for three minutes in Time Square Alliance's Midnight Moment—definitely worth experiencing. While my status of being a 'real' New Yorkers is threatened by admitting that my favorite neighborhood to work and play is Times Square, I will always remind travelers and locals alike to pause and look up and remember the words of Frank Sinatra, 'If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.' And there's no better place to find yourself than in the heart of New York City than Times Square.
Skift
an hour ago
- Skift
Canary Technologies Founders: What's Next After Raising $80 Million for Hotel Tech
Funding has been tight for travel tech startups, but Canary Technologies hasn't had much trouble. Venture capital funding has been a struggle for tech startups this year, but not for Canary Technologies. The hotel tech company says it wasn't actively fundraising when Brighton Park Capital approached the founders about a deal. 'We hadn't actually burned through almost any of the capital that we had raised on our last round. But the opportunity emerged,' said Canary CEO Harman Singh Narula. 'There was the right kind of investor with the right vision … so it made sense for us to move forward.' Canary recently closed a series D round of $80 million at a valuation of $600 million. Insight Partners led the company's last two rounds, all with continued investments from F-Prime Capital, Thayer Ventures, Y-Combinator, and Commerce Ventures. The platform by San Francisco-based Canary includes products for mobile check-in and checkout, upselling, guest messaging, and digital tipping. It's a type of add-on tech often integrated into a hotel's property management system. And it's an area with many startups and small companies, but few have raised this level of capital. Canary said its tech supports more than 20,000 hotels for clients including Best Western, Aimbridge Hospitality, Marriott, Wyndham, TUI Hotels & Resorts, and others. Canary has doubled revenue every year for the past few years, Narula said. There are nearly 300 employees, and the company is hiring across departments. Skift spoke with Narula and SJ Sawhney, president and co-founder, about what comes next. Doubling Down on AI Canary has released a few products powered by generative AI, meant to streamline repetitive tasks and free hotel staff. The company last year added a generative AI chatbot for guest messaging, which is meant to answer specific property questions and sell add-ons like late check-out, without input from front desk staff. A new AI voicebot product is meant to triage guest phone calls. And there's a new AI chatbot for hotel websites to drive direct bookings. The company uses multiple AI models to power its software, layering its own tech and data on top. 'It is answering 80% of guest messages. It is creating content that they don't have to come up with and write. It is, on a daily basis, making a real impact — that they're paying for,' Sawhney said. Industry leaders have said that they've found the most use for AI in operational tasks, while products in other areas have struggled to take off. Marriott, for example, is developing an AI tool to automate the tedious task for room assignment. And Hilton is exploring how to use AI to flag guests that may want room upgrades. A New Hotel Tech System Canary's founders want hoteliers to see the emerging guest management system – 'GMS' in the industry – as a piece of tech that they can't go without, taking a similar trajectory as the reservation management system. 'I think the GMS is certainly a category that — we're hearing a lot from hoteliers — has been this part of the tech stack that has come into focus,' Narula said. Hotels in North America have led adoption, and now the company wants to continue expanding globally. 'We're also seeing globally, a lot of what we think of as mid-market type brands portfolios really stepping up and having a lot of demand around this as well,' Narula said. The company has made an effort over the past year to localize its service in different geographic markets. In France, for example, the dashboard is in French and customer service representatives speak French. 'The investment last year was a big catalyst for all of our localization efforts to achieve that goal,' Sawhney said. Canary has predominantly grown organically, not via M&A, but Narula said that could change. 'There may be some opportunities that emerge that might make sense — where it helps service or provide specific needs to our customers — where we can help fill those gaps,' Narula said.
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
Why Do Cruise Lines Make Changes To Itineraries Before Sailing?
With some cruise ports tightening rules on port calls in part due to protests, some cruise lines are dorced to change itineraries. Many cruise lines make alterations to their itineraries before sailing. In late 2024, Carnival guests were notified of itinerary adjustments for five cruise ships in early 2025 and 2026, impacting various ports in the Bahamas. These changes include port replacements, modified times, and shifts to 11 itineraries, giving guests at least four months to modify their plans if necessary. While Carnival's adjustments were minor, cruise lines can make significant changes before or even during sailings. For example, many world cruises planned for 2025 and 2026 have seen major changes due to the need to avoid certain parts of the world. Let's explore why these changes happen, and how you can minimize the risk of booking a cruise that ends up being changed. Cruise lines may adjust itineraries well in advance for several reasons, often tied to global events or local regulations. For instance, political instability or conflict can make certain destinations inaccessible or undesirable. A prominent example is the suspension of cruises to Saint Petersburg following travel restrictions and security concerns following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Baltic cruises now typically feature additional stops in Scandinavian cities like Stockholm, Helsinki, and Copenhagen to compensate for the change. Regulatory changes in specific regions also play a significant role. Norway's World Heritage fjords ruling, which aims to ban polluting ships from several iconic fjords, has influenced itinerary planning. While the regulation's implementation has been postponed to 2032, some cruise lines preemptively altered their routes to comply with expected environmental standards. With anti-cruise protests gathering pace, some destinations are cracking down on the type, size and number of ships that can visit. As itineraries are planned years in advance, this can force lines to change their plans. Economic factors can also drive changes. If a particular cruise isn't selling well, lines might rework itineraries to include more desirable or profitable ports. Similarly, underperforming destinations may be swapped out for trending hotspots that attract more bookings. These adjustments allow cruise lines to optimize revenue while meeting passenger demand. Finally, operational considerations such as port infrastructure upgrades, berth availability, or seasonal weather patterns might necessitate changes. Booking a trip on a cruise ship's maiden voyage has great appeal, being among the first people in the world to set sail on a brand new ship. However, the risk of delays or cancelations to maiden voyages are high. New cruise ships are incredibly complex, and construction delays are common. Also, before a new cruise ship can carry paying guests, it must undergo extensive sea trials and receive certifications from regulatory bodies. Sometimes, unexpected issues are found that must be addressed before the ship is cleared. Such issues don't just impact new builds. In the worst case, entire cruises can be canceled shortly before sailing due to overrunning maintenance. For this reason, booking a cruise immediately following a period of maintenance (known as 'dry dock') carries a higher risk of disruption. The most likely reason for a change in itinerary is the weather and/or sea conditions. Safety always comes first on a cruise, and it is the captain's decision that will ultimately decide. However, local maritime pilots and port authorities will also provide influence. Local pilots have extensive knowledge of the specific conditions and challenges in their waters, including currents, tides, and harbor limitations. Some ports are more difficult to enter than others. For example, Libson often proves challenging due to its exposure to the Atlantic Ocean and tidal influence along the navigation through the Tagus River. In Northern Norway, the narrow channels entering Bodø can be difficult to navigate during high winds. Medical emergencies can also lead to sudden itinerary changes. If a passenger or crew member requires urgent medical attention that cannot be managed onboard, the captain may divert the ship to the nearest port with adequate facilities. In some cases, this might mean bypassing or delaying scheduled stops, particularly if the medical need is critical and the ship is far from land. Mechanical issues are another possible reason for itinerary adjustments. While modern cruise ships undergo rigorous maintenance and safety checks, unforeseen mechanical problems can arise, sometimes affecting propulsion or essential systems. In these cases, the captain and operations team may decide to shorten or skip a port to ensure repairs are completed safely and efficiently, minimizing disruption to the overall cruise experience. Potential itinerary changes are just one reason why obtaining adequate cruise-specific travel insurance is essential. Many policies cover expenses related to canceled excursions and may even offer compensation if a port is missed.
