Want to skip the bot and talk to a human? It could cost you
The problem with artificial intelligence is simple: When travelers need it the most, it is the least helpful.
CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT
Behind the fight for sustainable tourism in Okinawa
The turquoise water lapping against Okinawa’s pebbled beach is so clear that you can see an occasional parrotfish streaking by. Just behind it, the Hoshinoya Okinawa’s low-slung modernist villas blend into a landscape of gnarled fukugi trees and hibiscus.
eBay’s buyer protection loophole leaves a customer empty-handed
Joe Burley buys a mini PC on eBay, but the seller ships his package to another address. When USPS confirms the delivery wasn’t to Burley, eBay denies his refund, citing an exception in its policy. Can he get this sorted out?
How a simple car rental cancellation turned into a $52 annoyance on Expedia
Todd Brueshoff cancels his Hertz rental through Expedia two days before pickup and receives an email confirming that there’s no cancellation fee. But wait, there is! Hertz charges him a $52 no-show fee. Can he get his money back?
This $1,200 Amtrak ticket vanished into thin air. Was she scammed?
As a cancer survivor recovering from a stem cell transplant, Kim Snyder says she needed to avoid crowded spaces and germs while rebuilding her immune system. Flying felt too risky. The Amtrak Auto Train, with its private bedroom option, seemed like the perfect solution for her trip from Virginia to Florida.
Love is in the air: The most annoying things couples do when they travel (and what to do about them)
Of all the annoying things couples do when they travel, the coerced seat swap may be the worst.
Kirstyn Allen saw it on a recent flight from Atlanta to the Caribbean island of St. Maarten. Two newlyweds boarded the plane after her and pressured another passenger to surrender her assigned seat so they could be together.
The truth about drinking water abroad that could save your next vacation
You’re sipping a margarita at the beach in Mexico when you realize the ice may have been made with tap water. You brush your teeth in Bali, accidentally swallowing a drop. Hours later, you’re chained to a bathroom, your dream trip collapsing like a house of cards.
Frigidaire’s frozen promises left me out in the cold
Mike Tarallo pays a fixed rate to repair his refrigerator but gets endless delays, false diagnoses, and a canceled service visit. Can Frigidaire and its parent company, Electrolux, thaw this ice-cold mess?
Why can’t I get a refund for my canceled Alaska Airlines flight from Expedia?
Laura Hughart has fought Expedia for almost a year to reclaim $500 for a canceled Alaska Airlines flight. But she’s caught in a loop between two airlines and an online travel agency. Will anyone help her?
Are these up-and-coming sustainable cities worth visiting?
When Daniel Anderson stepped off an electric ferry in Oslo, he braced for the usual urban cacophony. It never came.