Time Slows on Easter Island

How tourists damage eight of the wonders they love most

(NEWSER) - From the litter strewn around Machu Picchu to the noisy highway junction next to Stonehenge, mass tourism and misguided development have many of the world's most famous travel destinations looking worse for the wear. Wanderlust magazine reports on the top eight threatened wonders, what can be done to help them, and three places that could use more tourists. A few of them: More»

Flight, hotel promise to offset vacation's carbon footprint

(NEWSER) - If carbon-footprint guilt is keeping you from taking a vacation, one company has your sun-soaked answer, TreeHugger reports. From the domestic flight to the hotel stay—and even airport transfers in biodiesel vans—NatureVacations' eco-friendly package to Costa Rica promises to offset every ounce of carbon you produce on your island adventure. More»

If it leaves the eurozone, it'll be a real bargain, experts say

(NEWSER) - These days you probably think of Greece as the place threatening to set the euro on fire. It's easy to forget that it's also a pretty beautiful tourist destination, loaded with ancient ruins and sunny beaches—and soon, NPR points out, it could be a pretty cheap destination, too. If Greece leaves the euro, the value of its currency would plummet between 30% and 50%, analysts predict. More»

Dean Heller, Shelley Berkley fight for the government's right to party

(NEWSER) - No one is actually talking about outlawing government travel to Las Vegas or Reno in the wake of the GSA scandal, but a pair of Nevada lawmakers want to ban such a banning, just in case. Sen. Dean Heller and Rep. Shelley Berkley are putting forward bills in their respective chambers making it illegal to ban travel to any particular US city, USA Today reports. More»

Panama, Finland, and Myanmar top the list

(NEWSER) - If you like cool design, upscale safaris, or a forbidden communist island, the New York Times can recommend 45 locales to visit in 2012. Among them:

• Panama. See the world-famous canal before its expansion, then stay for Panama City's economic boom and Frank Gehry's first design in Latin America—a natural history museum called BioMuseo.