Hello Reader,

🧭 Where in the World?

Yup, we're here, at home, plotting our next steps. We have this funny feeling time is accelerating, so let's get on with it.

🛫 Get Going: Tours We Recommend For You

We have much to recommend! And here's a secret: our Travel Past 50 groups are inevitably filled with people who normally travel independently – and then discover they enjoy the small group dynamics (not to mention we take care of the details)!

In order of departure dates:

South America! We're excited to head to Santiago, Mendoza and Buenos Aires. It's summer there when we begin February 21, and we plan to chillax. Per usual, we have a combo of couples and singles. Look for details on our tour page, and contact us if you have any questions. We have room for two or three more.

Elective Study Abroad. Pick your dates (as early as March 2026) or pick your destination, but do have a look now at the 2026 course offerings by Elective. Their study abroad model is a great kickstarter for your thoughtful travel. (Read about our experience here.)

Consider your study options: Palermo, Paris, Istanbul, Andalusia, and more, to experience this unique approach to travel. Travel Past 50 is pleased to announce $250 off per person for enrollments in any of Elective's 2026 courses. Just use the exclusive code TP50.

Alaska. We've booked a visit to Alaska with American Cruise Lines. True story: we've never been there before! It would be fun to see you on our Alaskan Explorer Cruise sailing, June 5 - June 16.

Or check out American Cruise Lines' other Alaska, U.S. and Great Lakes offerings.

🧳 Our Latest Posts

Our Ireland in Focus trip to Sligo, Ireland, just a few weeks ago, filled us with fairy tales, ancient lore, gorgeous scenery, warm hospitality, and so many personal touches it's difficult to convey. But we did our best! Read about Things to See in Sligo: an Insider's Guide here.

Great news: the Ireland in Focus week in Sligo will be offered again next October. See preliminary details here and express your interest!

🗞️ Travel News From Around the Web

• For those of you who've been dawdling about getting Real ID, here's on possible solution. If you have an Apple or Android phone, you can now add your passport to your digital wallet, and that will serve as a valid ID at 250 US airports. Be aware, you'll still need your physical passport to cross international borders. Also, be aware, you'll need to upgrade your Apple iPhone to iOS 26 for the digital ID feature to be available.
• Here's a short article with several tips on making flying more comfortable – and healthier. Take them seriously, and we'd add, wear compression socks on longer flights. Here's our story on the same topic, btw.

💸 This Week's Best Deals in Travel

• Amazon's Audible has a promotion going on now with an introductory offer of $0.99 per month for the first three months. If that's for you (and we're finding we're listening to more books these days) now is the time to sign up. The offer ends December 16.
• Our favorite travel belt brand, Arcade, has just released their RECCO belt. If you're not familiar with RECCO technology, it basically is a reflector that can be incorporated into "adventure" clothing to help rescuers find you if you're lost in the wilderness or buried in an avalanche. It's simple, light, and never needs recharging. A valuable safety tool to add to your hiking daypack or whenever you're "out there."
• Speaking of being out there, our favorite travel (and hiking) shoes, Xero shoes, has a sale going on on most of their hiking shoes. Right now, most of their hiking shoes are 30 percent off. Take this opportunity to give them a try. We love them and have six pairs of Xero shoes between us in various configurations.
• To go with your new shoes, try Point6 merino wool socks. They're our absolute favorites, and they're on sale. They've announced a price increase for the new year, so stock up now.
• This is not strictly a travel item, but we just got a Fender-Teufel GO-2 Bluetooth speaker for Tom's home office to replace an old Bose speaker that gave up the ghost. Great sound, especially for the price. It's currently $10 off on Amazon.

✈️ Points and Miles News

• ​Thrifty Traveler is doing it for us again with an email we got yesterday featuring a Delta points sale to Europe. We just booked round trip to Madrid for less than 60,000 points, which is about half what we usually pay...and it was points!

📖 What We're Reading

Tom has finally plunged into a book that's been on his bedside for almost a year: Madrid, A New Biography, by cultural historian Luke Stegemann. It devotes a lot to the authors and artists who have lived in Madrid over the years, which is ok with Tom. Stegemann and Tom agree, by the way, that the Prado is the best museum in Europe.​

Kris is still in an Irish mindset, listening to This is Happiness by Niall Williams, reading There are Little Kingdoms (short stories) by Kevin Barry, interspersed with fairy tales as told by Joe McGowan or as edited by W.B. Yeats. She watched the movie Brooklyn this week, for good measure.

You can see most of the books we recommend in one place at our Amazon book shop. If you buy a book through our links, we make a small commission at no additional cost to you.

❝Travel Quote of the Week❞

My favorite thing is to go where I’ve never been. – Diane Arbus

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Happy travels,

Kris and Tom

P.S. What more can we do for you? Reply to this newsletter and ask us anything.

Tom Bartel and Kristin Henning ​Travel Past 50​ Connect with us: Facebook, Threads, Instagram, Join our Facebook community.

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