smarter traveling, driving and spending
Whether you are a NYC native like me, moved here recently, or a visitor experiencing the greatest city on the planet, these are the best FREE things to do in New York City. This list offers something for everybody, including free museums and sightseeing, free guided tours, free tickets to late night TV shows,
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Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi on Jan 8, 1935, which celebrates its most famous native year round, not just on his birthday, when there are concerts of Elvis music and screenings of his most popular Hollywood movies. I loved my recent visit to the small Mississippi Delta town where The King of Rock
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It’s world’s most famous Christmas song, sung in more than 140 languages around the world. There’s an interesting story behind the creation of Silent Night, Holy Night, which is celebrated each Christmas Eve in the tiny chapel in the Austrian Alps where it was first performed more than 200 years ago, on Christmas Eve 1818.
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Christmas Markets are a centuries-old tradition in Germany, taking over town squares with colorful booths filled with handmade gifts, holiday decorations, food and entertainment that includes concerts and puppet shows. After a two-year Pandemic pause, the festive outdoor markets are back, including some that are bigger and better than before. Here are some of the
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Rooms With a Boo: Stay in one of these historic hotels, where some “spirited” guests may have checked out, but never leave. From a former convent to hotels adjacent to battlegrounds and one that was once a morgue, many of these hotels report that former guests or former owners haunt the halls long after they have checked out, and that current guests have seen them.
One of the most historic and romantic cities in Germany, Heldelberg is also one of the most popular cities along the well-named Castle Road. These are my favorite spots from several recent visits, including to update Fodor’s Essential Germany, for which I wrote the chapter on Heidelberg and the surrounding Neckar Valley. What to Do
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Most visitors to NYC take a ride on the Staten Island Ferry, between Lower Manhattan and St. George. This is an invitation to explore further, including beaches and breweries, museums and historic sites, one of the NYC’s largest parks, great dining and shopping. Staten Island offers something for everybody, for visitors and local residents, too.
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Pierce Arrow. Studebaker. Packard. Hudson. Tucker. AMC. Pontiac. DeSoto. These and other automakers of the past no longer in business are showcased in wonderful new exhibit at the Hershey Auto Museum in Pennsylvania. 100 years ago, even 50 years ago, there were dozens of small companies making cars in the USA. Some survived, like Ford.
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Frederick Law Olmsted designed some of the world’s most famous and popular green spaces, including NYC’s Central Park and Prospect Park, Montreal’s Mount Royal, and the grounds of the US Capitol and White House. Celebrate his legacy on his 200th birthday, April 26, 2022, and the rest of the month with special events including virtual
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Celebrate National Park Week with FREE admission and FREE events in many of the 400 national parks in the USA, including festivities marking the 150th birthday of Yellowstone National Park, one of the most famous and most visited parks in the world. National Park Week, April 16 through 24, encourages all of us to discover
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