10 destinations where you can DITCH your car this summer!!! You can walk,…
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Ajgoodfellow — 3 years ago(May 22, 2022 10:34 PM)
I couldn’t read it because it says you have to be a subscriber and enter your email. Maybe you could cut and paste the article because it seems really interesting.
Hey Diddler, Diddler….the cat and the fiddler LOL -
EURAZN — 3 years ago(May 22, 2022 11:12 PM)
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Tourists walk down the colonial streets in historic old town Hoi An. Chinese lanterns illuminate the walkways.
Pedestrians stroll through the old town in Hội An, Vietnam. A river trading port from the 15th through 19th centuries, it’s one of many destinations around the globe that ban or severely limit cars.
PHOTOGRAPH BY MATTHEW MICAH WRIGHT, GETTY IMAGES
TRAVEL
10 destinations where you can ditch your car this summer
You can walk, hike, and bike—but not drive—through these destinations that prohibit automobiles.
BYROBIN CATALANO
PUBLISHED MAY 18, 2022
• 12 MIN READ
More than 33 million U.S. travelers took road trips for Memorial Day 2021. While 77 percent of Americans report feeling ready to travel this year, 60 percent of those say ballooning gas and rental car prices will affect their plans.
Choosing a car-free destination is a way both to save at the pump and help save the planet. Places that prohibit, or at least greatly restrict, motorized vehicles range from the well-known (Venice, Italy, the world’s largest pedestrian zone), to the less-charted Geithoorn in the Netherlands and Holbox Island in Mexico.
A horn-free, less-hurried vacation can be more relaxing. “Traveling without a vehicle alleviates the stresses of route-finding under pressure, the headache, and expense of finding parking spots in busy city centers, and allows people to slow down and soak in a destination at walking speed,” says Paul Melhus, CEO and cofounder of Tours By Locals, which leads trips to auto-free zones, including Dubrovnik in Croatia, Governor’s Island in New York, and Hydra Island in Greece.
Here are 10 places where you can ditch your wheels and start unplugging immediately.
Tunø, Denmark
Inhabited since the Stone Age and just 1.4 square miles, Denmark’s Tunø is easy to explore on foot, bike, scooter, and traxas, the island’s tractor taxis. Travelers arrive via a scenic hour-long ferry from Hou (on the Odder Coast of Jutland), perhaps spotting seals and porpoises along the way.
Covered in lush green hills that rise above sandy, stony beaches, the island lures hikers and birders. The best views come at the tower of the 14th-century Tunø Church, an unusual combination of chapel and lighthouse surrounded by apple trees and blackberry bushes.
Tunø has several restaurants and a microbrewery, as well as a former dairy converted into a soothing and affordable seaside inn.
Mackinac Island, Michigan
Mackinaw Island Town View, Michigan
Victorian architecture and old-fashioned atmosphere draw visitors to Michigan’s Mackinac Island. Cars are banned, so tourists get around the 3.8-square-foot island on foot, bike, or via horse-drawn carriage…Read More
PHOTOGRAPH BY WILTSER, GETTY IMAGES
Located on Lake Huron between Michigan’s upper and lower peninsulas, Mackinac Island has been a popular vacation spot since the late 19th century. More than 80 percent of the 3.8-square-mile island is covered by Mackinac Island State Park, with its natural trails and butterfly conservatory.
Historic buildings in the postcard-pretty downtown hold boutiques and restaurants including coffeeshop/art school the Watercolor Café and the Ice House BBQ with its expansive garden. The island’s seven confectionaries crank out 10,000 pounds of fudge a day.
The Grand Hotel, built in 1887 and home to the world’s longest front porch, just added a new BMX bike path, a miniature golf course, pickleball courts, and a greenhouse nature center.
(Explore why it’s important to preserve historic hotels.)
Medina of Fez, Morocco
One of the largest contiguous car-free urban locations in the world, the 690-acre Medina of Fez is a UNESCO World Heritage site and the best-preserved medieval town in Morocco. Its 9,400 narrow, meandering streets are open only to foot and donkey traffic. Beyond its souks—which sell food, spices, lanterns, and leather—the medina holds centuries-old palaces, mosques, fountains, and schools.
The Bab Boujloud (blue gate), is the main entrance to the old town. Dar Batha, a palace museum, has an excellent collection of local artifacts, especially textiles and embroidery, plus a garden with a mosaic patio and fountain.
Stay at one of the city’s many riads, historic mansions that have been transformed into boutique hotels. While non-Muslims are prohibited from entering most mosques, the library of the ornate Al Quaraouiyine Mosque is open to the public.
Trogir, Croatia
The Cathedral of St. Lawrence, Trogir, Dalmatian Coast, Croatia, Europe
The 13th-century Cathedral of St. Lawrence towers over the old town in Trogir, Croatia. The island is a UNESCO World Heritage site due to its wealth of medieval and Baroque buildings.
PHOTOGRAPH BY ROBERT HARDING, ALAMY STOCK PHOTO
A UNESCO World Heritage site with Hellenistic roots (B.C. 323-33), this small island settlement in the Adriatic features architecture from Roman to Baroque. Located an hour west of Split—reachable by bus, taxi, or water tax
