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April 2024
News
April 2024
News travels

Your need-to-know this month

By Fiona Kerr
April 2024

From city dipping to la dolce vita, and the U.S.’s newest national park: Here’s your inside track on everything travel

April 2024
By Fiona Kerr
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  1. City dippers hit urban rivers 

    As Paris continues to clean up the Seine in preparation for a certain world athletics event this summer, it also promises to open swim zones for residents from 2025. And it’s not the only city diving into river swimming. Long-awaited plans for a floating pool in New York’s East River are being tested this summer: If all goes well the +POOL could open next year, filled with cleverly filtered river water. Chicago‘s river will be open for swimming for the first time in more than 100 years during a September charity event, while Boston’s Charles River opens to swimmers during July’s City Splash fundraiser. Meanwhile, in outdoorsy Portland, Oregon, locals cool off in the Willamette River—following in the wake of Zurich and Munich where river swimming is part of urban life. 

  2. Introducing America’s newest national park

    America’s national parks range from vast canyons to active volcanoes, sprawling deserts to frozen fjords. But the newest park, designated in March, was chosen for its profound history rather than its soaring geography. Amache in Colorado was one of 10 sites used to unjustly detain Japanese Americans during World War II. There, see reconstructed barracks, mess halls and a guard tower, as well as the camp’s cemetery—a poignant place to reflect and recommit to the pursuit of freedom and justice. Explore any of the fee-charging National Park Service sites (including the Colorado National Monument, pictured) for free on Juneteenth (June 19) and August 4 (Great American Outdoors Day). 

  3. Ready for an easier take-off?

    A number of innovative airside updates will make it simpler to fly this summer. At Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport, self-screening lanes tipped as the “checkpoints of the future” allow those with TSA PreCheck to whiz through. Over at Washington, D.C.’s Dulles International Airport, the first Global Entry Enrollment on Departure service is being trialed, giving on-the-go access to pre-flight interviews that complete membership to the coveted program. Meanwhile, in Congress, proposed new regulations aim to make flying more accessible for wheelchair-users: Watch this space.  

  4. Sportscations are scoring big

    2024 is a summer for sports, and if you’re planning to travel to an event, you’re not alone: Sports tourism is expected to grow 17.5% through 2030. Paris isn’t the only city in the spotlight: Soccer fans can see Liga MX matches across the U.S. and Canada from July 26, as well as Copa América games in Atlanta, Miami, Houston and other cities between June 20 and July 14. Meanwhile, Germany hosts the Euros from June 14. Cyclists should add Italy to their itinerary for the Tour de France, this year setting off from Florence (yes, you read that right) on June 29. And if you loved new tennis film Challengers, spin a vacation around the U.S. Open in Queens—booking opens on June 3. 

  5. Italy’s coast is having a moment

    There are new ways to soak up Italy’s dolce vita shores this season. Fly directly to the Amalfi Coast—having a moment, thanks to Netflix show Ripley—via international airport Salerno Costa d’Amalfi, which reopens in July. Always dreamed of the glamorous seaside hotspot Portofino? From June, you can arrive in style on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, a romantic route that starts in Paris. Or strike out and discover the coastline on foot: At Cinque Terre (pictured), beloved hiking trail the Via dell’Amore reopens in July after a landslide closed it in 2012.  

Set-jetting guide to Italy

Go on location at the sets of Ripley, Gladiator, The White Lotus and more

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Fiona Kerr

Writer

Fiona Kerr is a food-loving travel journalist and former features director at Condé Nast Traveller. Her writing has appeared in The Guardian, The Telegraph, Elle Decoration and the The New York Times. When she gets to a new country, her first stop is usually the local supermarket.

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