Kansas City Star: Travel

Ball Star | The Royals and PECOTA projections

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:50 CST

The Star's Rustin Dodd has been looking over Baseball Prospectus' PECOTA projections and breaks out a few Royals-related nuggets from the system. Here's one: PECOTA definitely likes Alex Gordon.

Travel Troubleshooter | Google's influence grows with improved Flight Search

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 08:00 CST

Google's Flight Search, the fledgling search engine that lets you find a ticket and book it directly through an airline, is getting better. Much better. In recent weeks, the new service has quietly expanded the number of U.S. cities it covers. Google has also integrated flight searches into its authoritative search results, making them easier to find and use.

Fresh takes on old finds at Vintage Market

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00 CST

If new spins on old stuff are your cup of tea, Vintage Market South deserves a drop-in. On a recent stop, a Mason jar chandelier suspended from a wagon-wheel-like apparatus made by one of the 50 or so vendors illuminated a corner.

The arts thrive in unexpected places

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00 CST

The arts scene in Johnson County is both emerging and surging. It is occurring quietly in tiny and private suburban corners, like basement studios, and on a large, public scale, as evidenced by the growth of venues like the Epsten Gallery, part of the Kansas City Jewish Museum of Contemporary Art and Village Shalom, and of the Nerman, whose collection recently grew to 1,000 pieces.

Steve Rose | Johnson County leads the metro area's economy

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00 CST

Johnson County's economy in 2010 was as bad as we have ever experienced, but now there is reason to be optimistic. That is according to Doug Davidson, president of the Johnson County Economic Research Institute, where Davidson has been an economist for 22 years.

913 | Prairie Village keeps zoning in place for Mission Valley site

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00 CST

With the mayor casting a tie-breaking vote, the Prairie Village City Council left in place zoning that restricts future Mission Valley Middle School redevelopment to homes, churches and schools. The council voted 5-5 on Monday night to retain the site's residential zoning, with Mayor Ron Shaffer breaking the tie.

Contest lets students build bridges to the future

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 05:00 CST

About 120 other high school students destroyed a like number of bridges during the Model Bridge Building Contest. The contest, which was held Saturday at the University of Kansas Edwards Campus, has been sponsored for the last 29 years by the Eastern Chapter of the Kansas Society of Professional Engineers.

Filling the gap for pets in need

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 05:00 CST

When Heartland SPCA opened a low-cost medical clinic in 2011 administrators knew it was a desperately needed service. But no one could have expected what happened next at the clinic in Johnson County, which serves the entire metro area.

Travel Troubleshooter | Additional driver, additional fee

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 08:00 CST

It's highly unusual for a car rental company to charge an extra driver fee for a spouse, but such a surcharge isn't illegal. It is something of a money grab, though.

KCI changes direction, promotes official cellphone lot

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:00 CST

Motorists waiting to pick up airline passengers can quit circling the three terminals at Kansas City International Airport. KCI officials have now designated Economy Lot A as the official cellphone lot following The Star's report last week that Kansas City's was one of the few large U.S. airports that didn't promote such a service.

Don't let tarnished image deter you: Mexico's Copper Canyon is gorgeous, safe

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 08:00 CST

Traveling in the Copper Canyon, a region of northwestern Mexico consumed by drug-trafficking violence, is safe, especially if you stick to the route of el Chepe, the government-run train depositing tourists and commuters along a 400-mile stretch from Los Mochis in the Pacific coast state of Sinaloa to Chihuahua city, capital of Chihuahua state.

Travel Troubleshooter | New rules should clarify airline fees a little

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 08:00 CST

If airfares confuse you as much as they confuse me, then I have some good news: Several new rules are going to make it easier to calculate the total cost of a ticket. Maybe.

Joplin visitors bureau says 'tornado tourism' report inaccurate

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 05:00 CST

JOPLIN | The director of the Joplin Convention and Visitors Bureau says they are not actively conducting a "tornado tourism" campaign.

Travel 2012: Olympics, Titanic 100, Dutch Floriade

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 08:00 CST

The Olympics, the centennial of the Titanic sinking, new rules on travel to Cuba and a once-a-decade horticultural festival in the Netherlands will all help shape travel in 2012.

The lights went out, but they kept my money

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 08:00 CST

Q: We recently checked into the Holiday Inn Express Hotel Poulsbo in Poulsbo, Wash., and experienced a lapse in service. We need your help with a refund.

Last chance to enter our annual photo contest

Sat, 10 May 2008 22:15 CDT

Several years ago I was traveling through the Missouri Ozarks when I came across a 100-year-old grist mill near Eminence. It was a rustic structure perched on the edge of a turquoise spring.

THE RULES

Sat, 10 May 2008 22:15 CDT

The Kansas City Star's Travel Photo Contest is open to amateur photographers of any age who are residents of Missouri or Kansas.

Sex toys, nude pools and more: Hot hotel amenities

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

On Valentine's Day, just about anything can get a person in the mood - but there are some things are a sure bet. That's why we perused our most romantic hotels to find come-hither amenities that could have even total strangers getting hot and heavy in no time. Grab your spouse, significant other, or the eye candy that lives next door and check in to one of these sexy spots.

Just Ask Gemalto: Where can I get advice on international payment?

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

Q: Are there websites where travelers are sharing their experiences and where I can get advice on international payment?

Milwaukee's indoor 'mountain': Weatherproof biking complex tests your fortitude

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

MILWAUKEE - If you can ride a two-wheeler, you're qualified to hit the timber and rock "trails" at Ray's Indoor Mountain Bike Park in Milwaukee. But don't be fooled: Ray's isn't your average family entertainment venue.

Hawaii sees a bigger wave of tourists

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

No need to fret for the state of Hawaii tourism anymore.

Westwood: Movies and Marilyn Monroe

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

LOS ANGELES - Great L.A. theaters and intriguing gravesites.

Want to hear a good story? Check out Georgia's Azalea Storytelling Festival

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

LAGRANGE, Ga. - Once upon a time in a village called LaGrange in a kingdom called Georgia, there was a storytelling festival named after a beautiful flower called an azalea. From all across the land, men and women would gather, often bringing their little ones, to hear stories kindled by humor, nostalgia, a commitment to preserving history, and perhaps best of all the imagination.

Custom clothing: As prices have dropped, more men are buying dress shirts made just for them

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

Custom-made men's dress shirts were once considered the privileged peacockery of the moneyed set - a dash of sartorial swagger that could be afforded only by Hollywood A-listers, Wall Street bankers and monocle-wearing aristocrats of a bygone era.

Just Ask Gemalto: Why would you move your credit card info to your phone?

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

Q: Why would you move your credit card into your phone? If it gets stolen, someone could use it, couldn't they?

Chefs Rick Tramonto and John Folse want their French Quarter debut to be sensational

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 02:00 CST

NEW ORLEANS - What is to become Restaurant R'evolution is still under construction; there are gaping spaces for equipment yet to arrive and rubble yet to be removed. But chefs John Folse and Rick Tramonto can look through the dust and see their vision coming to life.

It's theoretically possible to eat sensibly in New Orleans, but why bother?

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 02:00 CST

NEW ORLEANS - I get to New Orleans every so often, and my waking hours there can be separated into three categories: Eating, getting ready to eat and just finished eating. I map out my semiregular restaurant assaults the way some parents plan a day at Disney World: I figure out which attractions I most want to see and time my arrivals to ensure a good seat.

Djokovic's win over Nadal is as good as tennis gets

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 02:00 CST

So many times sleep approached.

Off-the-beaten path in Maui

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 02:00 CST

Sample the cream puffs at a historic Japanese bakery.

A hodad's tale: 20 years at Pipeline

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 02:00 CST

My name is Gary Warner and I am a hodad.

Djokovic pushed to the limit in epic Australian Open final

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 02:00 CST

Novak Djokovic admitted Monday that he needed all of his physical and mental resources to rally from 4-2 down in the final set to sting Rafael Nadal for a 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 7-5 victory in an epic Australian Open final.

Good 'Luck' figuring out HBO's new horse-racing series

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 02:00 CST

LOS ANGELES - A series about horse racing led by Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte sounds like a sure thing. But "Luck," which debuts Sunday night on HBO, is so nuanced it may alienate viewers who don't spend every Saturday afternoon at the track.

There's plenty to do off the ski slopes at Steamboat Springs, Colo.

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 08:00 CST

If you think Ski Town USA is only about the skiing, think again. Winter in Steamboat Springs, Colo., can be a time to try everything from fly-fishing to hot-air ballooning to skinny dipping in a remote natural hot springs. Want some indoor activities? How about Pilates, knitting classes or throwing a bowl on a potter's wheel?

A heated war of wax museums takes shape in Hollywood

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 08:00 CST

Madame Tussauds, which considers itself the best of wax artistry -- with the $25 ticket price to match -- is trying to best its cheaper competitor, the Hollywood Wax Museum, with a new marketing blitz stressing the defects in its rival's paraffin starlets, singers and comics.

Gay marriage fight may hinge on Supreme Court's Anthony Kennedy

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:00 CST

The Supreme Court has nine justices, but if the constitutional fight over same-sex marriage reaches them this year, the decision will probably come down to just one: a California Republican and Reagan-era conservative who has nonetheless written the court's two leading gay rights opinions.