As American tourists, we tend to think of Europe as the pinnacle for spectacular castles. However, while certainly there are some amazing castles all across the European continent, that perspective ignores one of feudalism's greatest homes: Japan. Japanese feudal society was every bit as complex as that in Europe, and with it came - as…
Sometimes a country is so wonderful that one date night won't do. Such is the case with Japan, one of my favorite places I've ever visited, and the country my family had planned to see in 2020 and now is hoping to reach in 2022. Do you remember our first Japanese date night? Well, this…
Editor's note: this was a hard piece for me to edit. I've never been to Auschwitz, but have visited a concentration camp in southern France. It was a haunting experience for me as a person and as a Jew, and I can only imagine what a journey to this place would be for me. I…
It's a beautiful morning at Pasadena's historic Rose Bowl stadium. It's hard to measure the excitement in the air, but here in my car, it is indeed palpable. I'm here to live out one of my childhood fantasies. For many who come to this storied place, such a fantasy would be scoring the winning touchdown…
In the year 802 CE, Khmer ruler Jayavarman II moved his Capitol and court to the new city of Angkor and declared himself to be a god-king. A few decades later, in 889, Yasovarman I ascended to the throne and undertook one of the most massive building projects of the pre-industrial world. Over the next…
Iceland, the land of fire and ice, and a place I've never been but that has always been near the top of my wish list. The idea for this date night came when A and I watched a Netflix comedy special from Ari Eldjarn entitled "Pardon My Icelandic." Loving it - seriously, watch it -…
Editor's note: it gives me immense pleasure to introduce Tamara Parkhurst, our newest writer here at The Royal Tour. Tamara, as our first writer with children, will largely focus on travel with small kids, like this quick getaway to the gorgeous Sedona, Arizona. To read all of her articles here at TRT, click here to…
Tapas has become one of the hottest cuisines in the United States. However, what we think of as tapas has little to do with the foundational cuisine in Spain. So what is tapas, where does the concept originate, and how has it evolved? Today we will take a deep look at one of my favorite…
In 1913, railroad magnate Henry Huntington and his wife Arabella moved from San Francisco to Los Angeles, purchasing 500 acres of land in what was called the San Marino Ranch. Arabella didn't like life in Southern California, and persuaded her husband - the nephew of her second husband Collis Huntington - to create a European-style…
Editor's note: getting off the beaten path can lead to some amazing experiences, like this trip to Serbia by writer Sam Spector. When I was in Belgrade ten years ago, I remember thinking that it was going to be a hot destination, but wasn't quite there yet. I'm glad to see it made it! For…