Helen Hatzis, is the Chief Exploration Office and Co-Founder of Trip Jaunt.
Helen is a recipient of the Governor-General Award, has been honoured as one of Canada's Nicest People! A true xenophile at heart, she finds joy in traveling and delights in sharing her experiences through Trip Jaunt (formerly Weekend Jaunt), an online travel community and hub she established in 2010. Her aspiration is to inspire others to explore the world as she does!
Helen is an esteemed advisory member of the North American Travel Journalists Association.
In the quiet harbor of Damariscotta, Maine, a distinctive fall tradition unfolds each October when enormous pumpkins are hollowed out, fitted with motors or paddles, and piloted down the river by costumed crews. This Pumpkinboat Regatta forms part of a wider season of East Coast food festivals that honor local harvests and working communities. With
Near Charlotte Douglas International Airport, the full fuselage, wings, and tail of US Airways Flight 1549 now form the centerpiece of the Sullenberger Aviation Museum. The aircraft that landed in the Hudson River on January 15, 2009, with all 155 people aboard surviving has found a permanent home here after years in storage. Visitors can
Philadelphia offers easy access to places where documented events from the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and later eras left lasting marks. Travelers can reach these locations in a single day, gaining insight into the region’s layered past through preserved buildings, battlegrounds, and institutions. Each site connects to verifiable records of hardship, innovation, or conflict
Five tropical systems are taking shape across the Atlantic and Pacific at once, a development that coincides with the height of hurricane season. Travelers planning coastal or Caribbean journeys this month are paying close attention to how conditions evolve. The simultaneous activity underscores the value of staying informed without letting uncertainty overshadow the joy of
Travelers often weigh price, location, and amenities when selecting a place to stay. For many in the LGBTQ+ community, additional considerations shape those decisions, from expectations around safety to the simple desire for staff to recognize a partner or preferred name without hesitation. Booking.com has responded with a structured effort to address those realities through
On a humid Saturday in Washington, D.C., the familiar rhythms of New Orleans filled the streets of Chinatown. Floats rolled along 7th Street NW while marching bands played and beads arced toward spectators lining the route. The scene offered a vivid transplant of Louisiana traditions to an unexpected urban setting. A Parade Rooted in Cultural
Sicily – An underwater fisherman recently located a 2,000-year-old Roman shipwreck in the waters off the island’s coast. He called the find the most incredible of his life. The discovery underscores how Sicily’s seafloor continues to reveal chapters from its long maritime past. A Chance Encounter Beneath the Waves The fisherman was conducting a routine
Ljubljana welcomed its visitor with a river that runs quietly through the center and a castle perched on a hill above colorful streets. A series of flight disruptions had already trimmed the planned schedule, leaving just one evening at the start of the trip and one full day at the end. Even so, the compact
Los Angeles – The long-planned Automated People Mover at Los Angeles International Airport now carries a firm target for passenger service beginning in October. Known as SkyLink, the electric train system will link the airport’s terminals with rental-car facilities, parking structures, and regional transit options. Travelers planning trips through one of the nation’s busiest gateways
Long Beach sits along the Southern California shoreline just south of Los Angeles, a city whose public spaces have now earned national recognition. Maxwell Social recently placed it first in its assessment of outdoor social environments across major American cities. The result underscores how thoughtfully designed waterfront and neighborhood areas can shape daily life and
Soweto – In 1985, as South Africa remained under the grip of apartheid, a car slipped quietly into the township carrying a passenger few would have expected. Concealed in the back seat was Paul Simon, the American singer-songwriter whose work had already reached audiences worldwide. He had come at the invitation of Sipho “Hotstix” Mabuse,
Some of the oldest continuously operating taverns in the United States stand in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware, their stone and brick walls dating back to the 1600s and 1700s. These buildings witnessed the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and the daily lives of early settlers, merchants, and travelers. Many still serve meals and drinks today,