Oh my goodness, congratulations on the big move to the Big Apple! The Concrete Jungle! The City That Never Sleeps! I’m so excited for you (or your favorite person) to start this new chapter. New York City is one of…
Are There Cars in Venice? Getting Around Without One
Are there cars in Venice, Italy? I’ve been to Venice 53 times, most of them as a trip manager bringing a group into the city. Sometimes we roll in by coach to Tronchetto or Fusina and hop on a private…
25+ Best Christmas Photo Spots in NYC (From a Licensed Tour Guide)
Every December I lived in New York City, I’d grab my DSLR, bundle up, and walk the city streets hunting for the perfect picture. Some years I got it. Other years I got a very clear photo of a stranger’s…
16 Best Restaurants Near the Eugene O’Neill Theatre in NYC
Picture it: 6:15 pm, curtain at 7, and you’re standing on West 49th Street with a growling stomach and about 40 minutes to fix it. I’ve been there many, many times. I spent almost three years living and auditioning in…
27 Best Things to do Around Yale University (From a Connecticut Local)
Yale has been in New Haven since 1716. It’s older than the United States; it has a marble library you can see light through, and it keeps a Brontosaurus dug up in Wyoming in 1879. So yeah, it’s old. I…
21 Best Day Trips from New Haven, CT (By Car and Train)
The best day trips from New Haven are Mystic for the seaport and the shopping, Hammonasset Beach for a classic Connecticut beach day, Essex and East Haddam for a steam train, a castle, and a Broadway-launching theater, and New York…
9 Quiet Hotels in New York City Where You’ll Actually Sleep
They call New York the City That Never Sleeps. It’s a great nickname. Until you’re the one lying awake at 2 a.m. listening to it. Sirens, delivery trucks, a sidewalk conversation that somehow sounds like it’s happening at the foot…
13 Best NYC Christmas Tours for 2026 (Picked by a Licensed NYC Guide)
There’s nothing like New York City at Christmas. Every Christmas movie you’ve ever loved that’s set in New York? Iconic for a reason. The city is alive year-round, but December is different. Even the coldest New Yorkers crack a smile….
Christmas in New York Bucket List: 35 Must-Sees and Best Things to Do (2026)
Updated October 2026 · Every date checked for the 2026 season You think the city of New York is pretty special any time of year, right? Well, get ready to experience it at Christmas. I’ve walked hundreds of people past…
How To Understand NYC Streets: The New York Grid System Explained
A while back, a girl from Milan asked me how on earth people find their way around Manhattan. Fair question. From the outside, it looks like someone spilled a spreadsheet across an island. Streets run east–west. Avenues run north–south. Street…
Does It Snow in NYC at Christmas? The Real Odds + 15 Snow Day Activities
Every Christmas movie set in New York, from Elf to Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, has prepared you for this moment. Lights on every corner. Little piles of snow tucked neatly beside the store entrances. A gentle flurry,…
Does Venice Smell Bad? When It Does, and When It Doesn’t
Mostly, no. Venice smells like salty, briny lagoon air. You might catch a stronger odor at a very low tide, beside a drained canal, or on a hot, windless afternoon, but it fades as soon as you walk away from…
