I woke from a deep, coma-like sleep.  Not entirely sure where I was…the celestial-looking ceiling above me seemed to ooze Heaven. Nimbus poufs of feathery clouds loomed languidly over my head…hints of statuary, or Cupids, or angelic cherubs, sketched in sorbet colors,floated gracefully on the canopy above my head.  Jet lag being what it is, it took me a few minutes to realize I was in a different kind of Heaven on Earth. I was in the Sofitel Rome Villa Borghese, floating on its signature-branded Sofitel MyBed, my body a limp whirl of protoplasm atop a bowl of weightless cotton candy!

How was your journey? The Gambardella family, several generations of whom are usually on the scene, have been asking this question ever since they began welcoming guests to their villa-like retreat on the edge of a cliff along the legendary Amalfi Coast of southern Italy in 1904.

It may be tough to travel these days, but it is not impossible. There are lots of fun places open for business and with a little research and planning, you can still have a great getaway away from home.

All the Christmases roll down toward the two-tongued sea, like a cold and headlong moon bundling down the sky that was our street; and they stop at the rim of the ice-edged fish-freezing waves, and I plunge my hands in the snow and bring out whatever I can find.

Cinema is an art form that brings you the unexpected. In superhero movies, nothing is at risk, a director says.... Odds are if you are a regular traveler — and even if you’re not — you will eventually experience a flight delay.

Every year, the sand dunes at Lençóis Maranhenses National Park in Brazil collect rainwater from about January to June. And come July, these dunes become temporary pools full of clear, warm water... In Houston, Texas, A tiny suburban eatery is breaking all the rules to create some of the freshest-tasting grub on the horizon.

A photon walks into a hotel. The desk clerk says, "Can we help you with your luggage?"

Ming, the Siberian-Bengal tiger is gone. Antoine Yates, Ming’s owner, once said that the tiger was his ‘only friend, really'... For every national park swarmed by visitors, dozens of state and federal preserves, parks, and monuments go relatively untraveled. Here's a list of 10 crowd-free alternatives.

Beth Whitman is the founder of WanderTours and your (mostly) fearless leader... Not everyone is happy about Roman Polanski having a new film in competition in Venice — especially since the festival only has two women directors competing this year... Think the plastic straws you gave up sipping from are bad for our oceans? It’s time to consider the same about the sunscreen you use.

Beth Whitman here. I’m the founder of WanderTours and am your (mostly) fearless leader. I escort groups on most of our trips – the exception being photography trips and yoga retreats where professionals are there to guide and teach you. After my first book was released, Wanderlust and Lipstick: The Essential Guide for Women Traveling Solo, women started asking me to bring them along on my travels.