Published August 20, 2022 — Tour guides from New Orleans examine the historical, musical, and culinary elements that make their city one of the most exceptional places anywhere in North America. They also share their top recommendations for exploring the city and discuss the merits of a pay-what-you-like model for city walking tours. And an associate conductor with the Seattle Symphony gives us a view from the conductor's podium while describing some of his favorite US venues for reveling in live classical-music performances.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives, and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

686 New Orleans by Foot; The Orchestra Conductor

Published January 7, 2023 — A tour guide from Mexico City describes some of the most pleasant surprises he enjoys sharing about his adopted home. Then the author of the "Thousand Places to See Before You Die" series explains why culture shock can be the highlight of your next overseas vacation. And a young orchestra conductor describes some of his favorite European venues for enjoying a classical-music concert.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

700 Pleasures of Mexico City; Why We Travel; Classical Music in Europe

Published on September 9, 2023 — Two local guides working in Venice recommend their favorite ways to find serenity in the "most serene" of cities, despite its often overwhelming tourist crowds. Then Rick chats with author Phillip Barlag about a dozen buildings and plazas in Rome that offer particularly fascinating insights into the city's rich history. And author Angela Nickerson helps us imagine Rome during the Renaissance, when it was the setting for many of Michelangelo's masterpieces.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

727 Enjoying Venice; History of Rome in 12 Buildings; Michelangelo's Rome

Published on September 16, 2023 — Hear how you can plan for a quick run into London when you have a long layover at Heathrow Airport. Get inspired by day trips from London to celebrated sites in the English countryside. Plus, meet the Ravenmaster who guards a thousand years of history at the Tower of London.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

610a London Layover; Tower of London; London Day Trips

Published on November 4, 2023 — A Jerusalem-raised Palestinian tour operator explains how he works to reconcile divided communities — in his home country, and far beyond. Then two Spanish tour guides consider what makes their country one of the world's most popular destinations among tourists, and what they want visitors to experience there. And a historian discusses the legacy of Shawnee chief Tecumseh, and why, in the early years of the US, he was so admired even by the settlers he opposed.</p>
 For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

733 Walls Around the World; Tourism in Spain; Tecumseh

Published on November 11, 2023 — Hear about the risks and heroism it took to protect Europe's art treasures during World War II. Then vicariously eat your way through four of Italy's lesser-known regions — where specialties include elaborate seafood stews, spreadable salamis, and some of the world's best sheep's-milk cheeses — with Italian-food expert Fred Plotkin. And listen in as two Belgians discuss the hearty comfort food of their homeland.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

734 Saving Europe's Art; Overlooked Cuisines of Italy; Belgian Treats

Published on December 9, 2023 — A columnist for the Irish Times discusses the dramatic recent changes in public opinion and attitude in Republic of Ireland, and how he's seen it become a modern, progressive nation over his lifetime. And a journalist from Utah tells us how to find some of the roadways the ancient Romans built to connect outposts of their empire — all the way to Istanbul.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

737 A History of Modern Ireland; Following Caesar

Published on December 16, 2023 — Hear about why cod is so popular among the Portuguese — especially at this time of year — and get a taste of the culinary treats to try in and around Naples. Then find out how the Irish gear up for the holidays, and what listeners enjoy about traveling overseas during the Christmas season.

 For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

587a Cod in Portugal; Eating in Naples; Dingle Bells; Christmas Travels

Published on December 23, 2023 — Brighten your holidays with an international perspective on Christmas celebrations: Learn about Europe's Old World holiday traditions, and meet some of Santa's cousins, as some of Rick's friends drop by to discuss the sometimes sublime, often quirky ways they observe the season in Bavaria, Sardinia, Croatia, Stockholm, Amsterdam, and Rome. And get a taste of a tropical Christmas in Costa Rica.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

738 Christmastime in Bavaria, Croatia, Sweden, Rome, Sardinia, Costa Rica, Amsterdam

Published on December 30, 2023 — Get some travel advice from the former U.S. ambassador to Bulgaria, who recommends his favorite vacation getaways in the Balkans. Then listen in as a climate scientist describes the efforts that have worked — and some that haven't — in combatting the pollution that causes climate change...and what you can do now to make a difference. And hear how Germany's pop music has evolved to reflect a half century of intense cultural transformation.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

739 Travel Like a Diplomat; Making a Difference; German Pop

Published on January 6, 2024 — A tour specialist from Cairo explains how you can cruise through five thousand years of history on the Nile River in Egypt. Author Pico Iyer suggests paradise on earth might be in some of the most unexpected places. He tells us about his sojourns from the Himalayas to Sri Lanka to experience what South Asia had to show him. And hear how Sophy Roberts searched for the historic "lost pianos of Siberia," and what she actually found.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

740 Cruising the Nile; Paradise on Earth; Lost Pianos of Siberia

Published on January 13, 2024 — Get tips for enjoying elegant, easily navigated Vienna, Austria's capital and the epicenter of a once-mighty empire. Then hear a Bosnian describe what his country, a generation after its infamous war, has to teach us about getting along with our neighbors — and why the nation is now blossoming as a travel destination. And get acquainted with the fascinating ancient structures atop Athens' Acropolis.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

741 Visiting Vienna; Visiting Bosnia; Athens Acropolis

Published on January 20, 2024 — Hear the unlikely story of how Spanish grew from a Latin dialect in northern Iberia to become one of the world's most important and widely spoken languages. Then get tips for enjoying your first trip to Spain, and for getting the most out of a visit to the Prado's massive art collection in Madrid.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

595a The Story of Spanish; First Timer's Spain

Published on January 27, 2024 — A deep-sea diving instructor from Australia explains why he's not afraid of sharks — well, most of them. Then a Cuba travel expert looks at the places and experiences you can explore beyond Havana, as well the rules that govern travel to Cuba for US travelers. And a guide from Italy helps us step into a day in the first century, frozen in time, at the ruins of Pompeii on the slope of Mount Vesuvius.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

742 Sharks; Beyond Havana; Pompeii

Published on February 3, 2024 — The most popular storyteller of our time, author James Patterson, shares insights he gained from talking to the people who work behind the scenes to make Las Vegas America's most extravagant tourist mecca. And a tour guide from Morocco invites us to imagine a very different type of desert experience as he describes sleeping under the dazzling night sky — the same that's guided travelers for millennia — that stretches over North Africa's vast Sahara.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

743 Happens in Vegas; Morocco's Sahara

Published on February 10, 2024 — Astronomer Philip Plait — who fell in love with Saturn after first viewing the gas giant, with its mesmerizing rings and moons, through a telescope as a child — shares some of the amazing discoveries we've made about the planet in recent years. Then actor Martin Sheen describes how his travels in the developing world have opened his eyes, and his heart, to the needs of others. And a Florence-based tour guide and culinary expert lets us in on where to find the best food in her adopted home.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

744 Falling for Saturn; Heart of Martin Sheen; Florentine Favorites

Published on February 17, 2024 — Hear what it's like to live on one of the windswept Orkney Islands, off the northernmost tip of Scotland, where people have made a home since prehistoric times. Then consider how you can help make your own city streets more enjoyable as the author of "Walkable City" offers examples from Europe, where redesigned urban centers have improved life at the heart of town. And learn about some of the world's most fascinating nomadic societies — from their often underappreciated role in history to their struggles in the modern world.
For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

745 Orkney Living; Walkable European Cities; Nomads of Europe

Published on February 24, 2024 — Get ideas and tips from TV host Samantha Brown for finding little corners of Europe in the New World, then hear an author's dramatic firsthand account of a near catastrophe on a cruise ship caught powerless in a freak winter storm off the coast of Norway. And a tour guide takes us to the wild, windy, and wonder-inspiring backcountry of Iceland.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

641a Finding Europe in America; Cruise Ship Nightmare; Iceland Backcountry

Published on March 2, 2024 — A historian helps us re-envision Europe's eastern half, from the Baltics to the Balkans, with a lively account of how most of the region's countries have modernized since the Cold War, and of the challenges they face today. Also, an artist and creative-writing teacher shares her joy of being "Welsh by choice," telling us of Welsh words that describe feelings we don't easily express in English.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

746 Goodbye Eastern Europe; The Long Field in Wales

Published on March 9, 2024 — A columnist for the Irish Times describes some of the historical objects so cherished by his compatriots that they're considered key to Ireland's national identity, and tells us where you can see them on display. Then we take a closer look at the life of Michelangelo and the midlife mess that threatened to derail him from creating many of the world's most treasured works of art. And we learn about the many languages spoken in New York City that are on the brink of disappearing — and the efforts to preserve their unique vocabulary and sounds.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

747 Ireland in 100 Objects; Midlife Michelangelo; Language City New York

Published on March 16, 2024 — In this all-Irish hour, tour guides describe some of the intriguing sights you'd encounter on a walking tour of Dublin and explain why the rugged Aran Islands, off Ireland's west coast, are such an exciting place to explore Irish traditions. And author Timothy Egan delves into the legacy of 19th-century America's most famous Irish immigrant.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

597a Dublin Walk; The Immortal Irishman; Aran Islands

Published on March 23, 2024 — An American expat in Oslo lets us in on the upsides of raising a family in Norway, and explains a few of the customs of his adopted city. Then a historian and adventure-travel writer tells us what he found in four of the "emptiest" corners of the US. And an ethnobotanist taps into centuries of herbal lore to describe the healing properties of the world's many varieties of herbs — some of which might be growing in your own backyard.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

748 Quirky Oslo; Last Empty Places; Herbal

Published on March 30, 2024 — A nature filmmaker and self-proclaimed "umbraphile" shares tips for viewing the next total solar eclipse, when the moon will cast its otherworldly shadow on a narrow band across North America on April 8 — and explains why he thinks it's worth a trek to the totality zone. Then the "Paddle Pilgrim" returns to tell us about the unexpected challenges along his month-long Southeast Asian adventure kayaking down the Mekong River, where he was forced to learn to "linger with the lotus." And Cecily Wong from Atlas Obscura describes some of the strangest potions and fermented foods concocted before the era of refrigeration.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

749 Totally Eclipsed; Mekong Paddle Pilgrim; Strange Food

Published on April 6, 2024 — We learn some surprisingly useful Italian phrases from one of Italy's most popular newspaper columnists, then consider why certain places have fostered more than their share of world-changing innovations, and hear about Timbuktu's history as an important center for scholarship. Plus, we find out about the thrill of dropping in on a choir practice in small-town Wales.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

750 Mini Italian Lesson; Geography of Genius; Timbuktu Haircut

Published on April 13, 2024 — We admire the seafaring prowess of the Polynesians and hear how a cultural faux pas led to Captain James Cook's fateful encounter with 18th-century Hawaiians. Then tour guides from Athens and Thessaloniki recommend attractions to visit in northern Greece, and The New Yorker's "Comma Queen," Mary Norris, explains what an appreciation for Greek language and mythology can add to your own Greek odyssey.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

591a Polynesian Explorers; Northern Greece; Greek to Me

Published on April 20, 2024 — Celebrate Earth Day by considering the ways you can address climate change at home, with practical advice from a scientist who's seen its effects around the world. Then hear from a culinary historian about the crops, farm animals, and agricultural traditions that we risk losing in America. And mark Shakespeare's birthday by learning how his works have played a key role in shaping Africa's newest nation and by getting tips for enjoying a visit to his hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

751 Eyewitness to Climate Change; Endangered Eating; Shakespeare in Stratford and South Sudan

Published on April 27, 2024 — A Dutch guide invites us to imagine a day on the water exploring Amsterdam's iconic canals. Then a historian shares what little we know of the elusive Sentinelese — likely the most isolated, least contacted people on earth — and what he learned by traveling to nearby islands in the Bay of Bengal. And a tour guide from Portugal tells us why the venerable university of town of Coimbra is such a delight to explore.

For more information on Travel with Rick Steves — including episode descriptions, program archives and related details — visit www.ricksteves.com.

752 Amsterdam Canals; The Last Island; Coimbra

We look at how important the poet W. B Yeats is to the Irish, then Agatha Christie&rsquo;s grandson recommends places in England where you experience the world of her mystery novels. And, just in time for Burns Night, Scottish troubadour Jim Malcolm explains what Robert Burns means to the Scots &mdash; and sings some of his favorite Burns tunes.
 For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Ireland's W. B. Yeats; Scotland's Robert Burns; Agatha Christie's England - Travel with Rick Steves

Published Feb 4, 2017 -- Journalist Elizabeth Becker tells us how China's mandatory Golden Week holidays have boosted the fortunes of the travel industry. A European panel explains how populist politics are playing out in the European Union. And discover the rewards of being a "road trip pilgrim," to add enthusiasm to your next adventure. 
For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Becoming a Road Trip Pilgrim; China Tourism; Nationalism in Europe -- Travel with Rick Steves

Published Sep 21, 2008 - Humorist and frequent traveler David Sedaris tells us how he's settled in as a 50-something ex-pat in Europe on the next Travel with Rick Steves. And he shares a few surprises about what he found in Japan - where he went to learn to quit smoking.  

David helps us tackle the gender of French nouns - sort of - and compares notes with Rick on the most irritating things about tourists in Paris, staying in hotels, and a dirty little secret about some flight attendants.   For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

David Sedaris: An American in Paris and Tokyo - Travel with Rick Steves

Rick Steves, best-selling guidebook author and star of public television’s most-watched travel show, also hosts a fun, hour-long, radio talk show "Travel with Rick Steves" featuring lively conversations about travel, cultures, people, and how worldwide travel can broaden our perspective.

Popular tracks by Travel with Rick Steves