Hello Reader,

🧭 Where in the World?

As you know, we usually don't comment on politics here, but US political news events of late have again intruded on the traveling public. It's already affected us personally as the TSA slowdowns caused us to lose our Global Entry privileges (that we've paid for) upon reentry to the United States from Argentina a couple of weeks ago. Also, there have been wide reports of long delays – up to 3 or 4 hours – to clear security in many US airports. Finally, there's the deployment of untrained ICE officers at airports. Our experience with ICE here in Minnesota aside, what realistically can be expected by adding untrained, armed, police to the process of getting people onto commercial aircraft?

And, all that seems trivial compared to the tragic accident that killed two Air Canada pilots and injured scores of passengers at La Guardia airport in New York City yesterday – an incident that seems to be attributable to overworked and understaffed air traffic control.

Whatever your politics, I hope you can agree that Congress and the Administration are holding us, and the poor unpaid TSA agents, hostage for whatever reasons they feel are more important than serving the United States citizenry.

If you're a US citizen, please call your representatives today and tell them to settle this mess, pay our TSA officers, and improve and modernize the air traffic system.

🔐 Travel security updates: free online event tomorrow

Last Call!

Register today for this free conversation on Thursday, March 26 at 7:30 p.m. CT, featuring Tom and Kris with other travel experts.

"Prepared Travel for Today’s World" is a live briefing about travel topics that matter in 2026.

You’ll get grounded, practical insight on:

• What to pay attention to — and what to ignore — in global news
• How to reduce digital and financial vulnerability before you leave
• What American travelers should realistically expect abroad in 2026
• How to prepare wisely for unfamiliar destinations

If you value independent travel and want to feel more prepared on your 2026 trips,

It’s free to attend and replay access will be available for a limited time. Hope to see you there!

🛫 Get Going: Tours We Recommend For You

Please consider joining our November 2026 trip to Spain, centered on the Elective Study Abroad course, Architecture and Cuisine of Andalucía. You can read all about it on our Travel Past 50 Tours page by clicking here.

We can’t wait to explore Granada and Córdoba in depth, a rare opportunity with expert instructors. Travel Past 50 readers save $250 with the code TP502026. There’s no single supplement, and just for the asking we’ll help with any of your pre- or post- travel extensions in Spain, our home away from home.

🗞️ Travel News From Around the Web

• The US State Department has issued a world-wide travel alert for Americans traveling abroad. Because of the war with Iran, tensions are high...obviously. Probably a good time to avoid the Middle East, and American embassies and consulates around the world. Come to our webinar mentioned above for more info on how much attention you should pay to alerts like these.
• Delta, our favorite US airline, has suspended special privileges for members of Congress during the TSA funding mess. We wish some of the other members of the government had to fly commercial so they could share in the situation they've created. Here's a suggestion from the US Travel Association.

💸 This Week's Best Deals in Travel

Amazon's "Big Spring Sale" is on now through March 31, and there are several travel products we use and recommend included in the sale items they're offering. For example:

• The Osprey 40 liter travel backpack. While we don't have this specific pack, we do have two other Osprey backpacs we use all the time. We love the brand. Quality, light weight, and always well thought out. Now's a good time to upgrade your carry on. There's also a women's version for those of you with shorter torsos.
• Maybe the best deal is the Apple Airpods 3 Pro model, which is now on sale for $50 less than I paid for them a couple weeks ago. Without going into too much detail, these are simply the best ear buds Tom's ever used.

✈️ Points and Miles News

• Once more, we recommend Thrifty Traveler's Premium newsletter. This week alone we've received notice of flights to Hong Kong round trip for 25,000 Skymiles points, and for first class lie flat seats to Seoul for 89K each way. If you take advantage of either one of these or any of the other deals they notify you about, you've more than made up the annual fee for the premium newsletter.

📖 What We're Reading

Tom is still working on One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel García Márquez, and is also taking breaks from that dense work by reading a new collection of short stories by one of his favorite authors, Louise Erdrich, called Python's Kiss, which you can also order direct from Louise's bookshop, Birchbark Books in Minneapolis.

Kris is just starting The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, by Junot Díaz, who she’s also been following on Substack.

You can see most of the books we recommend in one place at our Amazon book shop. If you'd prefer an alternative to Amazon, there is Alibris.com, where we frequently buy used books, and Bookshop.org, which supports independent booksellers. And, if you're into art books, like we are, check out the catalog at Taschen, the world's foremost publisher of art books.

If you buy a book through our links, we make a small commission at no additional cost to you.

❝Travel Quote of the Week❞

Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac? – George Carlin

Read past editions of our newsletter here.

If you're enjoying what you're reading, please consider recommending it to others. They can sign up here.

Have any feedback? Ideas for future posts or email topics? We'd love to hear from you. Email us at feedback@travelpast50.com.

Happy travels,

Kris and Tom

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

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