Unpacked by Afar
Unpacked by AFAR tackles one tricky topic in travel each week. Whether you want to hack your points and miles, figure out where to travel next, or need advice on an ethical dilemma, we're your expert travel guides. Because the travel world is complicated. We're here to help you unpack it.
Episodes
August 1, 2025 • 21 mins
Welcome to Unpacked, Five Questions, a podcast that takes you behind the scenes of one great travel story.
In this episode, host Katherine LaGrave sits down with New York Times bestselling author and Afar contributing writer Peggy Orenstein, who recently traded her usual slow-travel style for the bustling energy of Busan, South Korea's second-largest city.
Known for her thoughtful explorations of walking trails like the Kumano K...
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July 29, 2025 • 16 mins
Welcome to Unpacked, America 250, a mini series celebrating the music, art, food, and more that makes America, America—in honor of our nation's upcoming 250th anniversary. The mini series is part of Afar's "52 Places to Travel in the U.S. This Year" package, and in this second episode, host Aislyn Greene takes us to Washington, D.C. to explore go-go music—the uniquely American sound that's been moving communities for fifty years....
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July 25, 2025 • 28 mins
In this special Unpacked bonus episode, we're going behind the scenes of our newView From Afar podcast, which spotlights the people and the ideas shaping the future of travel. Afar editors traveled to the floor of IPW, the annual travel conference organized by the U.S. Travel Association to share the best of America with the rest of the world.
In this episode, we hear from Afar editorial director Billie Cohen, who conducted inter...
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July 25, 2025 • 29 mins
In this special Unpacked bonus episode, we're going behind the scenes of our newView From Afar podcast, which spotlights the people and the ideas shaping the future of travel. Afar editors traveled to the floor of IPW, the annual travel conference organized by the U.S. Travel Association to share the best of America with the rest of the world.
In this episode, we hear from Afar senior editor Michelle Baran, who conducted intervi...
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July 14, 2025 • 12 mins
Welcome to Unpacked, America 250, a new mini series celebrating the music, art, food, and more that makes America, America—in honor of our nation's upcoming 250th anniversary. The mini series is part of Afar's "52 Places to Travel in the U.S. This Year" package, and in this inaugural episode, host Aislyn Greene takes us to Minnesota to explore how Finnish sauna culture has evolved into a uniquely American tradition.
From Finnish h...
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July 4, 2025 • 20 mins
Welcome to Unpacked, Five Questions, a new series where we go behind the scenes of one great travel story.
In this episode, host Katherine LaGrave sits down with Afar contributing writer Lisa Abend, who recently traveled to Sicily to investigate the viral phenomenon of European countries selling homes for one euro. Based in Copenhagen, Lisa explores what really happens after the headlines fade—both for the buyers chasing their dre...
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Welcome to Unpacked, Five Questions, a new series where we go behind the scenes of one great travel story.
In this episode, host Katherine LaGrave sits down with author and journalist Bonnie Tsui, whose father has lived in Guangzhou, China, for decades. In the 2025 Culture Issue of Afar she writes about how a recent trip to the city transformed three generations of relationships.
She shares tips for first-time visitors, why you ...
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Welcome to Unpacked, Five Questions, a new series where we go behind the scenes of one great travel story.
In this inaugural episode, host Katherine LaGrave sits down with award-winning writer Anya von Bremzen to discuss her journey through Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico's exciting wine region just two hours from San Diego, which she wrote about in Afar's spring issue.
Von Bremzen, a James Beard Award-winning culinary writer who re...
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May 8, 2025 • 20 mins
In 2025, wellness is the main ingredient at sea. From elaborate tea houses to shopping excursions with the chef—these are the fresh ways that cruise lines are shedding their overindulgent reputations.
On this episode of Unpacked Minis, Cruise Edition, host Aislyn Greene sits down at F&B@Sea—the culinary showcase at Miami's Seatrade Cruise Global conference—with David Yeskel, a travel and food journalist who has covered cruising f...
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Peek into the colorful, immersive, and luxurious innovations shaping the future of cruising—straight from the floor of Seatrade Cruise Global, one of the cruise industry's most important events.
From flying theaters to floating pickleball courts, this episode of Unpacked Minis, Cruise Edition takes you behind-the-scenes of the surprising sights (and smells) making waves in cruising.
The luxury innovations taking cruises and...
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April 24, 2025 • 27 mins
With just five years under it's belt, Hotel the Mitsui has already stood the test of time. Housed in the former estate of one of Japan's most influential families, this five-star hotel is full of details that help guests see the rich traditions of Kyoto with a fresh pair of eyes.
In this “If These Walls Could Talk” episode of Unpacked, Aislyn Greene takes you on a tour of the stories—and secrets—that a hotel can reveal about th...
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April 17, 2025 • 54 mins
This isn’t Washington, it’s D.C.—and it belongs to the people. On this episode of Unpacked, join host Aislyn Greene as she meets the D.C. locals who are shaping the city. They share the diverse communities, places, and histories that make the district unique. From a blossoming food scene to thriving cultural legacies, discover the D.C. that most tourists miss.
In this episode, you’ll learn
Histories to explore beyond the Nation...
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April 10, 2025 • 30 mins
When it comes to the future of cruising, sustainability is steering the ship.
On this episode of Unpacked, Afar cruise expert and deputy editor, Michelle Baran, takes you to Seatrade, one of the cruise industry's most important events for a panel discussion that asks the question: Is sustainable cruising the new luxury cruising?
From wind-powered voyages to community-centered tourism, she uncovers the surprising and inspiring w...
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April 3, 2025 • 36 mins
The best hotels offer so much more than a place to stay. In this episode of Unpacked, go behind the scenes of our Best New Hotels list to discover the hotels that are helping to redefine a destination, setting a new bar for sustainability and design, and bringing travelers into communities where their dollars can really count. Host Aislyn Greene and senior deputy editor Jennifer Flowers—Afar's resident hotel expert—share inspiratio...
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April 1, 2025 • 38 mins
These locals are blazing a trail back to the legends that made Mississippi, specifically the Delta, a region that was (and is) vital to the development of modern music.
On this episode of Unpacked, British writer and fiddle player, Emma John, takes you on a musical odyssey through the Mississippi Blues Trail and its role in reviving a blues heartland and connecting travelers to the soul of the genre.
A special thanks to the lat...
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March 27, 2025 • 43 mins
Hut-to-hut skiing, frozen waterfalls and seaside foliage—there are surprising outdoor adventures to have in the off-season.
Whether you're looking for "softer adventures" in the outdoors (think cycling and hiking) or routinely exercise your way through destinations, this episode will help you tap into the magic of the off-season and plan a travel year full of natural wonders.
How the Best Outdoor Adventures Really Happen
On this...
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March 25, 2025 • 8 mins
There's a surprising key to booking a successful cruise, whether it’s your first or 100th. In our second episode of Unpacked Minis, Cruise Edition, host Aislyn Greene and cruise journalist Nicole Edenedo share the secret tool in the savvy cruisers' tool box: a travel advisor.
Why Should I Book With a Travel Advisor?
In this episode you’ll learn:
The difference between a travel agent and travel advisor—and how to choose one.
H...
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March 13, 2025 • 41 mins
Looking to avoid the crowds and make the most of summer travel in 2025? On this episode of Unpacked, Afar contributor Mark Ellwood—a seasoned traveler who has spent most of his life living out of a suitcase—shares the off-the-beaten path summer adventures you can enjoy, again and again.
Looking for the Best Places to Travel in Summer?
On this episode you’ll discover:
How to find the best summer travel deals and get the most o...
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March 6, 2025 • 48 mins
This year—2025—is a holy one in Rome. But you can still avoid the crowds.
On this episode of Unpacked by Afar, Rome local and journalist Laura Itzkowitz, takes us off the tourist trail and into the lesser-visited places that make Rome worth visiting, all year round.
How To Experience Rome Like A Local, Not a Tourist
On this episode you’ll learn:
How to beat the crowds in hot spots like the Vatican and the Colosseum.
Where to ...
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March 4, 2025 • 17 mins
Welcome to Unpacked Minis, our new Unpacked series. Throughout the year, over the course of four bite-size episodes, we'll dig into the biggest themes in travel. This month, we're tackling cruising, specifically those who are new to cruising—or think it's not for them.
In our inaugural episode, Michelle Baran—Afar’s deputy news editor and resident cruise expert—sits down with host Aislyn Greene, a former cruise skeptic, to unpack t...
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