For generations, travelers have organized their days around daylight. Get up. See the sights. Take the photos. Then, as the sun sets, the day starts wrapping up.  One of travel’s fastest-growing trends turns that itinerary upside down. And the lights off.  Noctourism or Astrotourism?  “Noctourism” – or nocturnal tourism – is the growing appetite for travel experiences after dark.  Noctourism can intersect with astrotourism, but they’re not exactly the same thing.  ‘Astrotourism’ is about traveling for celestial experiences.  And a recent survey of tens of thousands of travelers found that nearly two-thirds were considering trips to darker-sky destinations for ‘starbathing,’ constellation tracking and rare celestial events. At night, right?  Actually, one of the…

For many travelers, the increasingly popular destination of Japan begins and ends on the island of Honshu – literally, it’s ‘Main Island.’ I can’t blame them – so much of the energy and contrasts of Japan are to be found there: the neon energy of Tokyo, the ancient cultural treasures of Kyoto, the food scene of Osaka, and iconic attractions as different as Mount Fuji and Tokyo Disneyland! All connected by those famous, high-speed bullet trains. But if you stay on Honshu your entire trip to Japan, you’re missing out on experiences that will astound and resonate with you most after you leave. The incredible north-south length of the Japanese archipelago –…