The travel pages kept it real this weekend, with stories on stunt trips, insider knowledge and secret destinations, tips on how to find and avoid political hotspots, and news about how growing numbers of people are changing some beloved destinations.


Overcrowding at Machu Picchu
– “Taking the Back Roads to Machu Picchu” (NYT)

Hong Kong’s Disappearing Harbor
– “Hong Kong mourns as shrinking harbour gives way to development” (Guardian)

SF Chronicle Goes for the Borat Tie-in
– “JUST BACK FROM: Almaty, Kazakhstan” (SF Chronicle)

Survival Tourism
– “Setting Out Into the Arizona Wilderness With Only a Knife” (NYT)

Steering Clear of Politics in Mexico
– “Let caution be your guide” (LA Times)

Che’s Cuba
– “Santa Clara’s rebel saint” (Globe and Mail)

Berlin’s Fast Food for Foodies
– “Street Food with Ambition in Berlin” (NYT)

Istanbul on the Cheap
– “Modernity or Tradition: Istanbul at a Crossroad Finds Its Own Way” (NYT)

Secret Baja
– “Loreto: A relaxed fit” (LA Times)

Yellowstone in Winter
– “Zipping through Yellowstone” (Houston Chronicle)

Last weekend’s travel stories were slim pickings, no doubt due to writers and editors phoning it in before skipping out of town, but apparently on 4th of July weekend, we the people feel very, er, nautical – with seafaring stories washing up on both coasts.

- “In Turkey, Sailing into the Exotic on a Blue Cruise” (NYT)
- “Booty Call (Pirates of the Caribbean travel)” (NY Post)
- “A place of jagged beauty (cruising Norwegian fjords)” (LA Times)
- “Deep blues and more on the deep blue sea” (SF Chronicle)