Chicago Is "Second City" in Search

If you visited Hawaii recently, you're not alone. The 50th state is on a pace to set a record for the number of visitors in 2012, according to the Hawaii Tourism Authority. CLICK HERE TO SEE OUR READERS' BEST PHOTOS OF HAWAII  With the number of visitors up by nearly 9 percent in October, and with those visitors spending nearly 13 percent more money during their stay, the tourism authority is predicting that Hawaii will exceed the target of 7.89 million visitors it set for 2012, the most ever to visit in one year. Tourists will likely spend $13.9 billion for the year, also a record. Reasons for the increase include a rise in seats on flights to Hawaii, increased service from Los Angeles and Las Vegas, and a big increase (more than 15 percent) in visitors from Japan. Each of the Hawaiian islands saw an increase in visitors in October: The Big Island, home to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and 14,000-foot Mauna Kea, with the massive telescopes of the Mauna Kea Observatories, saw an increase of 14.1 percent. Don't miss: Kilauea volcano and views of Halema'uma'u Crater. Oahu, home to capital city Honolulu, Waikiki Beach, and the pro-surfer mecca, the North Shore, saw an increase of 7.6 percent. Don't miss: The Pearl Harbor and U.S.S. Arizona Memorial. Maui, where visitors can explore endless beaches, the 10,023-foot-tall dormant volcano Haleakala, and ultimate Hawaii road trip on the Hana Highway, saw an increase of 5.4 percent increase. Don't miss: Ka'anapali Beach. Kauai, known for Waimea Canyon (the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific"), the secluded cliffs of Na Pali Beach, and Wailua Falls, saw an increase of 2.7 percent. Don't miss: Waimea Canyon Overlook.  For more tips on visiting Hawaii, check out all of our picks for the Big Island, Oahu, Maui, and Kauai. 

If you spend as much time researching restaurants as researching hotels, then you'll probably want to consider Toronto for your next trip. The editors at Epicurious.com have named it the top Food City for 2013, according to their list of food trend predictions. That's because of new outposts by chefs David Chang and Daniel Boulud, plus amazing markets and places like the restaurant Victor that concentrate on local cuisine (check out the Toronto Tasting Menu). Even better, Toronto made our list of 2013's Best Budget Destinations, not only for the amazing food scene, but also because the average hotel price didn't increase at all in the first half of 2012. So we'll see you there! Looking for even more foodie destinations? Check out these 12 spots Budget Travel editors love.

What is the one thing you wish airlines would do to make flying better? We recently posed this question to our audience on Facebook and Twitter, and you certainly had a lot to say. We had a hunch the airlines were driving you crazy, but were stunned to see how much. Based on your answers, here are seven things airlines should do to make flying easier for everyone. Improve customer serviceMany of you complained about grumpy flight attendants, unfriendly representatives at the gate, and a lack of communication between airline staff and passengers when delays occured. Laurie Fundukian put it quite simply, "Communicate with passengers and don't lie to us about delays." Another traveler, Tracey Phillips said that airlines should return to the days where flying was a special experience. "Airlines used to be more concerned with making their customers happy and comfortable instead of simply getting as many bodies shoved in as cheaply as possible," she said, adding that a great customer service experience would lead to more customers. Mary Ingersoll Dirksen told about her recent ordeal while flying from Kentucky to Oregon on United Airlines, an experience that involved flight bumping and little-to-no communication about delays, which resulted in missed connections and having to pay for a hotel because the delay was not the airline's fault. Another traveler, Jennifer Ansbach, put it more bluntly: "Treat us like people." Add more leg room and wider seatsThis category got the biggest amount of responses—whether you're tall or short, everyone could use a little more leg room. For some of you, it goes beyond that: Judy Dion LaMance said, "Stop treating passengers like cattle. Give us a human sized seat with room to exit the row without everyone getting up." Traveler Amy Bacharach voiced another common seating complaint. "Definitely get rid of reclining seats unless they add at least six more inches of space. Reclining on today's flights is rude and inconsiderate." Some of you even compared airline seating to that of Amtrak, noting that if their seats could be wider, the airlines should be able to provide the same level of comfort. In the words of Kim Hale, "Wider seats with more leg room. I dare to dream." Get rid of baggage feesA lot of you were absolutely adamant about baggage fees. Some said to choose one fee, either for checked bags or carry-on pieces, while others used profanity to express their aggravation with being charged to carry luggage at all. Susan Flagg offered a compromise, "I would suggest no fees for one checked bag and fees for carry-on bags. It would expedite loading and unloading passengers, while at the same time eliminating the hassles of someone trying to cram an oversized bag into the overhead bin." Kimberly Sparks simply said, "Eliminate or lower baggage fees...Southwest has figured it out." Improve the boarding processYou also thought the boarding process could use an overhaul. Gini Johnson said airlines should simplify things by always boarding from the back of the plane first. "It is more efficient than waiting as people put their luggage overhead." She also says airlines should let people with tight flight connections get off the plane first. Jill Masse Stokes said the "zone" boarding only leads to more crowds at the gate and complicates things when bags no longer fit in the overhead compartment by the time you board—she added that eliminating baggage fees would lead to less carry-on bags, and that would solve the overhead bin dilemma. Another traveler, Andrea Dillon, said a seat-by-seat boarding process may help (as in window seats, then aisle seats), since waiting for people in aisle seats to unbuckle and move around to let in the window seaters also takes time and leads to longer lines. Bring back food—and make it betterSome of you insisted on bringing back hot meals and a wider variety of free food options while onboard. Marie Rodgers said, "Make sure you have enough food for everyone. Also, have something nutritious. There has to be something better than chips and candy, especially when you run our of everything else." (Until then, we recommend bringing along your favorite snacks.) Enforce carry-on rulesA few of you mentioned how irritating carry-on rules can be in terms of bag sizes and where to put them onboard, but even more so when you're the only person following them. Erin Cramer said, "Try to maintain some order with where passengers put their carry-on luggage. The last few flights I've been on, passengers in the back have had their carry-ons in overhead bins in the front and vice versa. It causes headaches for everyone." Denise Marasco, said, "You should only be allowed to put your carry-on in the overhead bin above your own seat. Not wherever you feel like it. It would make boarding and unloading so much faster." Start kid-free flightsAnother major trend was complaints about babies crying on the plane and how kid-free flights would be preferable. (After a three hour flight from Rome to Dublin this summer in front of a six-year-old with kicking abilities that rival David Beckham, I'm starting to become a fan of this.) One traveler complained about babies being allowed into first class, saying that people don't pay that kind of money to have a screaming child behind them. Others advocated family friendly flights, while Mary Michaels suggested that airlines, "Charge a little more for the ticket prices for an adults-only flight. This would be especially beneficial for adults on those long overseas flights where all you want to do is catch some shut eye." Do you agree with these demands? Sound off in the comments below!

"On the fourteenth day of April of 1935, there struck the worst of dust storms that ever filled the sky," sang Woody Guthrie in his classic ballad "Dust Storm Disaster." Now, nearly 80 years later, the center of the Depression-era calamity known as the Dust Bowl is poised to welcome visitors in search of history. The Ken Burns documentary The Dust Bowl, which aired on PBS this week, includes interviews with survivors of the drought and wind storms that hit the Oklahoma and Texas panhandles in the 1930s, and residents of those regions are anticipating an uptick in tourism thanks to the two-part television film. One site that will likely receive an increase in interest is the No Man's Land Museum, which focuses not only on the Dust Bowl but also on other aspects of the region's environment and history, helping visitors trace the evolution of the land from Native Americans through American settlers who pulled up native grasses in order to plant wheat, setting the stage for the massive loss of topsoil that created the giant dust storms of the '30s. The museum, in Goodwell, OK, takes its name from the Oklahoma panhandle's former nickname (it can be a dry place even in the best of times, with less than 20 inches of rain per year). The museum, part of the No Man's Land Historical Society, features an extensive collection of Plains Indians arrowheads, the first printing press ever to cross the Mississippi River, historical archives, and a photo collection. Talk to us! Do Ken Burns's documentary films inspire you to travel? Whether it's The Civil War, Baseball, or another film, we'd love to hear how Burns's work has informed your travel plans.