The Reality of Porto: The City That Sold Its Name
Porto gave its name to one of the world's most famous products, and the product promptly moved out. The city's namesake wine…
Regional Guide
Countries
Explore the best of Countries: sights, culture, routes and travel tips from PenguFly, plus cheap flights to plan an unforgettable trip to Countries.
Cheap flights to Porto: the Ryanair door to northern Portugal, the metro that meets your plane, and the night the city sells out
On one of my early trips to Portugal, I booked a flight to Lisbon and planned to spend my holiday exploring the…
The Reality of Istanbul: The City That Was Three Capitals
Some cities are preserved by geographical isolation; others survive because they were simply spared by history. Istanbul is the absolute opposite: a…
Cheap flights to Istanbul: two airports on two continents, the airline that flies everywhere, and the month that moves every year
On one of my first trips through Turkey, I booked a cheap flight to Istanbul with a self-transfer connection, arriving at Sabiha…
The Reality of Cusco: The Capital the Conquerors Overwrote
Cusco is a city judged twice, with the final verdict delivered by geology. It was the capital of the Inca Empire until…
Cheap flights to Lima: the brand-new terminal that moved everything overnight, the airport with no train, and the June week Cusco sells out
On one of my first trips to Peru, I booked a tight connection through Lima's airport, landing on a late-afternoon flight from…
The Reality of Kanazawa: The City the War Never Reached
Nearly every major Japanese city was firebombed in 1945; their historic districts are, by necessity, largely post-war rebuilds. Kanazawa lacked the strategic…
Cheap flights to Tokyo: two airports playing different games, the rail-pass rethink, and the weeks Japan travels all at once
On an early trip to Japan, I booked an exceptionally cheap flight to Tokyo that landed at Narita Airport at ten thirty…
The Reality of Matera: The City Italy Emptied by Law
The Sassi—the two sprawling districts of cave dwellings cut directly into the limestone ravine—are widely considered one of the oldest continuously inhabited…
Cheap flights to Bari: the door to Puglia, the private railway to Matera, and the Sunday trap
On an early trip to southern Italy, I booked a bargain flight to Bari, planning a weekend getaway to the historic cave…
The Reality of Hoi An: The Port the River Switched Off
For four centuries, this was Faifo—one of Southeast Asia's great trading ports. Japanese, Chinese, Dutch, and Portuguese merchants maintained busy quarters here,…
Cheap flights to Madrid: one airport, two worlds inside it, and the month the city walks away
On one of my early transcontinental trips, I booked a self-transfer connection through Madrid-Barajas Airport, arriving on a legacy carrier from North…